> By contrast, the comments about mouse-handling in the Amiga are typical of
> the single-user approach; the MacOS is similar - if the mouse stops
> tracking, you know your system is toast, and not just thrashing. From where
> I sit, this is a very desireable behavior in such a system - I'm at the
> console (display, keyboard, mouse) and the system should respond to *me*,
> damnit!

And there lies the key. The _console_.

Find a way to ensure that console-related processes are part of a console
process group and grant that group extra privileges and priorities. Perhaps
the uid logged in at the console is granted certain extras as well, like
shared-memory access to the local screen buffer.

If the console user doesn't do stupid things like running an expensive screen
saver, leaving the console idle should have little or no impact on multiuser
operation, so the system can also be used as a part-time server.

Todd Whitesel
toddpw @ best.com