At Wed, 24 Mar 2010 12:01:40 +0200, markucz%gmail.com@localhost wrote:
Subject: Re: Definition of NetBSD users
>
> > 4) Indeed, proprietary technologies shouldn't even be thought about in
> > this context, let alone mentioned as a "notable" feature that makes
> > GNU/Linux systems "easier".
>
> s/Flash/FOO/ where FOO is something less desktopy: IBM WebSphere, Oracle and
> Informix DBs or even something more trivial like Mathematica. What about
> *that*?
Interesting question.
To some extent those are more self-contained proper applications, not
insidious embedded plugins that suddenly go from displaying cheap
animations to being able to harbour full code execution engines with
unrestricted access to everything the user might do (though of course
each might also include their own code interpreters or other means of
allowing code to be downloaded and executed).
Personally I avoid even those kinds of applications where possible. I
even avoided proprietary unixes for many years until I got a Mac again.
The only software I've bought since buying OS X are other system tools
necessary to fill in gaps missing in OS X (parallels and synctogether).
Do those applications really make GNU/Linux systems (or even proprietary
unix and unix-like systems) "easier" for users (either desktop or system)?
I suppose it depends on what tools the user is accustomed to using and
where the majority of the user's experience lies, and to some extent
what the user's underlying fundamental requirements are.
I have relatively unsophisticated needs as a desktop user, an I would be
quite happy with what the average GNU/Linux desktop would deliver, if I
didn't have a major "ick" response to Linux in general (and lots of GNU
stuff too). Oddly I feel far less "ick" towards OS X and I'd rather pay
for it (in order to use slick top-end hardware and in order to not have
to deal with maintaining my own desktop software from source) than to
deal with the "ick" I get from GNU/Linux.
On the server side NetBSD and the freely available open-source
applications that run on it provide more than I could ever need and give
me the satisfaction of having a non-icky system and source code for
everything I use.
It's not a very technical answer, but there you go! :-)
--
Greg A. Woods
Planix, Inc.
<woods%planix.com@localhost> +1 416 218 0099 http://www.planix.com/
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