Remco de Korte wrote:
> 
> Your choice of words already indicates a certain opinion (I don't even know what
> foist is but it doesn't sound very appreciative, I do know what hijack is). I
> don't think Microsoft can claim to be inventors or developers of the GUI
> standard (if there is one), neither can Apple or any other single company. Some
> may have come up with the seeds but GUIs are constantly developing as is the
> interface hardware.

I guess my post might be kind of confusing, but the point I was trying to get
across is this:

I don't believe that an operating system can be looked at as a Standard, by any
definition of the word. An OS uses different technologies or methods of
operation which might be accepted as "Standard", such as OpenGL, Drag-and-drop,
cut-and-paste shortcut key definitions, etc.  

An OS might be made up of a collection of those technologies or methods that are
accepted as Standards, as well as some unique features which are native only to
that single OS. I would say that a Windows/Intel machine is a "platform", as is
a PowerPC running OS X or an Alpha running Linux, etc.

A statement was made earlier in this thread:

+++

"Saying it is not without giving reasons that actually apply to the
formation of a standard in an industry doesn't make it so either, what's
your point. There have been many reasons posted here as to why Windows can
be considered a standard, wide range of use, large number of programs
written for it while other OS's scramble to make their system play the
Windows programs, ease of use to newcomers and powerful use of new
technology.

Sure all the other OS's have one or two of the many reasons, but Windows
has them all. And sure Windows has some problems and each of the other OS's
have some of those problems as well as different problems of their own."

---

I do not agree at all with the above statement. Given my prior explanation, I
would say that Windows is merely the most commonly used platform, or the most
widely used OS. Some of that is because of marketing - you must admit that Bill
Gates is a marketing genius. It is also easy to use (for the most part) for
those who really do not like computers that much. You certainly would not use it
in a render farm for a movie like "Titanic". You wouldn't use it for anything
that needed security, either. But, I have a Windows machine, and two Linux
boxes. I enjoy programming for Windows, occasionally. But, it really grates on
me to hear people exclaim how great Windows is. Whether it is true, or not, the
first thing that comes to mind when I hear someone say that is: "Here is someone
who has gotten his first computer and has studied pretty hard about how to use
Windows and be a "Power User" for a whole year <snicker> and now thinks they
understand the  entire industry."

Jon

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Jon S. Berndt
League City, Texas
jsb### [at] hal-pcorg

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