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I was a *die-hard* OS/2 user up until 2001 or so, and I just retired my last OS/2 server this year. But even I wouldn't call WebExplorer anything even approaching neat...

let's not forget that OS/2's windows "compatibility" was, at it's peak, maybe capable of running solitaire or minesweeper. It was terrible. Native apps? fuhgettahboutit. so why buy an operating system that will emulate the one that came with you computer, but only sporadically?

because of that sweet, sweet OS/2 logo!

wait, i mean.. OS/2 isn't dead.

Obviously, it wasn't. The best OS/2 news site is WarpCast. Several OS/2-related news items are posted daily. Check it out for a couple days, and you'll get an idea of what's been going on recently.

IBM has chosen Linux as a corporate-wide standard. This consolidation is intended to simplify and streamline operations. But this move can't hurt OS/2. It opens up the possibility that parts of OS/2 source code can be released. However, the main obstacle there is that various copyrights which don't belong to IBM. Those non-IBM copyrights on OS/2 essetially belong to Microsoft.

As for getting a copy of OS/2, there are plenty of options. Visit http://www.os2ss.com/Information/NewUser s/.

While I appreciate the ability to customize Slashdot to include the headings from OS/2 News and Rumours and Warpcast, the lack of OS/2 coverage at Slashdot has always been a major disappointment. After all, the byline is News for Nerds, not News for Linux Users, and OS/2 users(like myself) tend to be rather nerdly :-)

Anyway, I don't see this as a death knell for OS/2. IBM has a habit of saying NOTHING about what their plans are until it's just about to bear fruit. I suspect this is a result of their dealings with the DOJ, and can only hope that Microsoft will behave in a similiar fashion after the DOJ finishes with them(ie: no more vaporware announcements.) I consider the fact that IBM is still releasing fix packs, and other items for OS/2, to say a lot more about IBM's support of OS/2 than any lack of news from IBM. These items are things such as the just released Java 1.1.8 update and the beta of Netscape 4.6. It's rather hard to pronounce something dead if the vendor is actively updating it.

I suggest waiting to see what comes out at Warpstock (one of those OS/2 related news items I would have expected to see grace Slashdot's front page). IBM plans to have representatives there and I'm sure the OS/2 users will be after them for information. Weither or not it's something us OS/2 users would care to hear remains to be seen.

While I appreciate the ability to customize Slashdot to include the headings from OS/2 News and Rumours and Warpcast, the lack of OS/2 coverage at Slashdot has always been a major disappointment. After all, the byline is News for Nerds, not News for Linux Users, and OS/2 users(like myself) tend to be rather nerdly :-)

Anyway, I don't see this as a death knell for OS/2. IBM has a habit of saying NOTHING about what their plans are until it's just about to bear fruit. I suspect this is a result of their dealings with the DOJ, and can only hope that Microsoft will behave in a similiar fashion after the DOJ finishes with them(ie: no more vaporware announcements.) I consider the fact that IBM is still releasing fix packs, and other items for OS/2, to say a lot more about IBM's support of OS/2 than any lack of news from IBM. These items are things such as the just released Java 1.1.8 update and the beta of Netscape 4.6. It's rather hard to pronounce something dead if the vendor is actively updating it.

I suggest waiting to see what comes out at Warpstock (one of those OS/2 related news items I would have expected to see grace Slashdot's front page). IBM plans to have representatives there and I'm sure the OS/2 users will be after them for information. Weither or not it's something us OS/2 users would care to hear remains to be seen.

As far as the 'slashdot junkie' problem, that's exactly why I proposed that. If someone gets their /24 block banned from posting and there's a lot of other people on that /24 block, there'll be MAJOR hell to pay for the person getting them banned, and quite a few people will be quickly sending angry comments to their ISP, thereby removing the troll permanently, or at least until they get another ISP.

As far as spoofing, the IP address which is banned won't have been something that would have been validly routed at the time. If the ISP knows what they're doing, they'll realize that someone was spoofing. Unfortunately, most ISPs don't know what they're doing. :/ I don't see TCP/IP spoofing as being a major source of these problems, though. Most of the ACs in question are just (well, seem to be) stupid kids who know nothing but try to shout everything. Most notably being that one (I hope) particular AC in the Rich Stevens article who was spamming the discussion thread with porn sites under the guise of on-topic conversation and is likely the same one who kept on talking about "spraying his petrified face with scalding-hot jizz" or whatever. He made me nauseous with rage, in any case.

Maybe just punishing ACs on the same subnet, then, yeah... or maybe every day posting a list of the banned IP addresses and who caused the ban, if applicable.

And yeah, I know what Pvt Pyle did in that movie. :) But Pyle can't go and blow away Rob (well, actually, Rob's home address *is* easy to find...) and Pyle had other problems to begin with (not that the bad ACs here don't seem to to begin with). But as you said, it was an analogy. Just an analogy. :)
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"'Is not a quine' is not a quine" is a quine.

• Linux: Always!
• Windows: Only if it's an Evil Empire story
• BeOS: If they can grep "linux" or "open source", and find something
• OS/2: ... (blank stare) ... Ooh, look! The next story mentions Linus Torvalds!

If you run OS/2, there is a command-line client available via http://www.os2ss.com/seti/. Like the Unix client, this version has no GUI and runs at a low priority so that it doesn't interfere with your regular work. It does have the option to run at regular priority.

There is also an OS/2 Warp group, available via http://setiathome.ssl.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/cgi?cmd =team_lookup&name=OS%2F2+Warp. We currently have 211 members and we're in 32nd place.

Of course, you don't need to be running the OS/2 client to join the group. In fact, I have one Mac, 2 OS/2 PC's, and 1 NT PC all running the client under the same name.

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Timur Tabi
Remove "nospam_" from email address

If you run OS/2, there is a command-line client available via http://www.os2ss.com/seti/. Like the Unix client, this version has no GUI and runs at a low priority so that it doesn't interfere with your regular work. It does have the option to run at regular priority.

There is also an OS/2 Warp group, available via http://setiathome.ssl.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/cgi?cmd =team_lookup&name=OS%2F2+Warp. We currently have 211 members and we're in 32nd place.

Of course, you don't need to be running the OS/2 client to join the group. In fact, I have one Mac, 2 OS/2 PC's, and 1 NT PC all running the client under the same name.

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Timur Tabi
Remove "nospam_" from email address

Those of you familar with the Win32-OS/2 Project (recently renamed to Project Odin), know that it's possible to load and run some Win32 exectuables under OS/2 (most notably Quake II). The next step for Project EverBlue is to create an ELF loader so that OS/2 can load Linux binaries. Then Wine will be ported to OS/2 (via a merge with Odin), and at that point, OS/2 will be able to run ...

1. DOS apps better than any other OS
2. 16-bit Windows apps, better than most other versions of Windows can
3. Most Win32 apps (just like Wine)
4. All OS/2 apps
5. Most, if not all, Linux apps

Combine that with the power of the WorkPlace Shell, and you'll have one kick-ass operating system.

--
Timur Tabi
Remove "nospam_" from email address

Just cuz the computer press denounces it(perhaps for fear of losing micro$oft ad money?) doesn't mean it's not a viable alternative to windows. After all, if it wasn't useable, you wouldn't see things like:

January 28, 1999 - SOUTHTRUST BANK Standardizes on OS/2 Warp 4
March 22, 1999 - IBM Managers Increase In Desktops As Financial-Services Company Expands

A quick look at the Large OS/2 Customers List shows a lot of banks. Banks can't afford for their systems to be down as customers tend to get rather irate if they cannot access their money.

As far as updates, IBM is still releasing free fixpacks for Warp 4.0 as well as 3.0(released in 94). If you'd rather not download the fixpacks, OS/2 Super Site offers them burned on a CD for about $15. Current device drivers can be found at IBM's online Device Driver Pack. In the past 30 days 2 new drivers have been added and 264 drivers have been updated.

For typical office needs, Staroffice can handle current MS office documents and is available for OS/2, Linux, and even Windows.

OS/2 even provides for a Y2K compliant Windows 3 environment.

What other everyday needs do you have? Perhaps people can send you suggested replacements. For a ready made list of comparable applications for OS/2, check The OS/2 Alternative site.

You're part of the problem if you just let micro$oft keep screwing you over.

Just cuz the computer press denounces it(perhaps for fear of losing micro$oft ad money?) doesn't mean it's not a viable alternative to windows. After all, if it wasn't useable, you wouldn't see things like:

January 28, 1999 - SOUTHTRUST BANK Standardizes on OS/2 Warp 4
March 22, 1999 - IBM Managers Increase In Desktops As Financial-Services Company Expands

A quick look at the Large OS/2 Customers List shows a lot of banks. Banks can't afford for their systems to be down as customers tend to get rather irate if they cannot access their money.

As far as updates, IBM is still releasing free fixpacks for Warp 4.0 as well as 3.0(released in 94). If you'd rather not download the fixpacks, OS/2 Super Site offers them burned on a CD for about $15. Current device drivers can be found at IBM's online Device Driver Pack. In the past 30 days 2 new drivers have been added and 264 drivers have been updated.

For typical office needs, Staroffice can handle current MS office documents and is available for OS/2, Linux, and even Windows.

OS/2 even provides for a Y2K compliant Windows 3 environment.

What other everyday needs do you have? Perhaps people can send you suggested replacements. For a ready made list of comparable applications for OS/2, check The OS/2 Alternative site.

You're part of the problem if you just let micro$oft keep screwing you over.

I know of nothing called "Win32s-OS/2". There is the original Win-OS2, aka Windows 3.1, which is included in Warp 4, optional with Warp 3. That may well have MS copyright issues. Win32-OS2 is Timur Tabi and company's effort to reproduce the Win32 API in Warp. Their page is at http://www.os2ss.com/win32-os2/, and they have a brief comparison of Win32 and Win32s. I believe that their project is the one people have been referring to.

Couple of thoughts.

Firstly, I secured one of the bata copies of the new version of OS/2 Server for E-Commerce and was very dissappointed. The sooner they realise that all the wonderful technology and features in the world are useless when the PM (User interface) is almost as broken as it was in OS/2 2.0 back in 1992, the sooner they'll be able to make a useable product. The PM is incredibly buggy and there is still no task manager that I know of. At least when NT dies you can use a keypress to bring up a utilities screen. Not so with OS/2 - the only keys that work are c-alt-esc, and that just reboots the machine.

Secondly - just think of the implications of OS/2 Open Source. You could apply Win32-OS/2 and just think... most native Win32 applications could run under Linux. That's one to dream about, huh :) :) :) I don't think they've got Office running yet - but it's only a matter of time. :) Check out http://www.os2ss.com/win32-os2/

As an enthousiastic OS/2 user I follow the news closely and haven't heard anything about a $40 upgrade coming. I only know of speculation about a Client version of the new OS/2 Warp Server (Aurora).
Perhaps you what you saw was a price for OS/2 TCP/IP version 4.1??
OS/2 news and rumours can be found at The OS/2 SuperSite.