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After some years, another great CEO tossed a couple of billion dollars (and a chair?) and said, "here, don't get yourself a real operating system".

Actually, strictly speaking, an OS includes none of those things (nor package managers).

Mine does.

To whit.

Welcome to THE FUTURE(TM).

http://tomayko.com/writings/that-dilbert-cartoon

Trying Linux since 1992, eh?

You are complaining about Printing, Networking, Laptop features.

What were you using in 1992? Windows 3.11, WfW? Or, did you use a Mac? Maybe OS/2? Presuming you were using "standard" architectures, because that was all Linux ran on back then...

Back then, Linux was far and away the technical lead. Except, of course, when compared to OS/2, or SCO. (My "rant" apologies if you were on one of those platforms).

Linux offered REAL processes and preemption, and REAL isolation. It was able to support real servers, and REAL applications. Windows? Mac? Not so much. Simply holding down the mouse button could crash networks with MacOS.

Linux proceeded to develop, as did Windows(tm) and Mac(tm). Apple eventually introduced OS X, and Microsoft the NT based kernels. Bringing their stuff to parity.

As a Unix (Linux) user, I didn't really bother with USING Windows(tm). It didn't offer anything and wasn't compatible with the applications I wanted to run. Finally, Windows(tm) caught up, as did Apple with OS X. Still, there are missing pieces (NIS, NFS others). At least Apple owns CUPS now.

As to printing: (to give a specific)

The Unix model for the past twenty years has been to have the applications generate Postscript. That will go to a standard LPD, and may be sent to a different machine. If the printer being used is "inferior", GS may be used to generate a raster for it. This is, of course, isolated from the application.

CUPS adds printer publishing (don't need to define the print queues anymore).

And that's all there is to it.

Windows(tm) breaks this model. GDI is used to rasterize and drive the printer. Completely different, and in my opinion, wrong and broken. CUPS does try to accommodate the Windows(tm) model, but it is, at best, a poor emulation. Of a broken system, so it doesn't matter to me anyway.

You can try to argue that a GDI based model is superior to a Postscript model -- but Postscript has far better resolution and device independence. It IS the standard for Unix printing. Which is NOT Windows(tm) printing.

Yes, I am one of those crusty "Here's a Nickel, Kid, Get yourself a better computer" guys.

http://tomayko.com/writings/that-dilbert-cartoon

Yes, Windows(tm) and the Mac OS have (for the most part) finally caught up. But they don't really offer much extra; except for some specific applications.

If you NEED one of those applications you would be better served with the system that actually supports it. Personally? Since I am an old-hat Unix/Linux user, I don't have any such applications.

Unix guru to Wally: Here's a nickel kid, get yourself a better computer

http://tomayko.com/writings/that-dilbert-cartoon

...so he can get himself a better computer.

I really just prefer Python on Rails as a framework instead of Ruby.
Here's a nice article I've encountered while searching about this on Google few minutes ago :
No Rails For Python

The Dilbert comic refered to by the sister post is available online, too. "Condescending Unix computer user" has to be one of the coolest characters in Dilbert ever!