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Playing Nice: Reviews of CrossOver Office, WineX 4

Posted by timothy on from the methadone-clinic dept.

JimLynch writes "One of the more common questions experienced Linux users get asked by those considering migrating from Windows to Linux is, "Will my Windows applications run under Linux?" Thanks to the folks at CodeWeavers, the answer to that is yes--for some applications, anyway." And Dan Dole writes "Linuxlookup.com staff member Rich reviews Cedega (WineX 4.0), give it a 20/20 score & Editors Choice Award. "The release of Transgaming's newest version of WineX, renamed Cedega, was met with considerable enthusiasm and interest in the Linux community last week. So much so that their server was inaccessible the day of release. Cedega is claimed to be much improved, offering the ability to play recent games released for Windows "seamlessly and transparently" under Linux. They provided me with a copy, and I was curious to see if it lived up to the hype.""

13 of 279 comments (clear)

  1. Wheeee by rootus-rootus · · Score: 1, Insightful

    If only they'd develop native versions....

    FP?

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    1. Re:Wheeee by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      Yeah, good that stuff is starting to work on linux. Bad that it isn't native.

      How will this affect the development of programs? "We will just make the windows version and force the linux people to use Cedega if they want to use our stuff"

      Cynic? I'm a product of society baby!

  2. Prevent it? by DaHat · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I'm forced to wonder if an application developer could put enough logic in their code to prevent it's running under Wine. It'd be an interesting attempt to prevent 'unauthorized' distribution of their product if they only authorize it's use under Windows.

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    1. Re:Prevent it? by DaHat · · Score: 3, Insightful

      One word: Support.

      How many software houses are going to want to support their application running under an unsupported operating system?

      Oh yes, they can clearly say "We do not support running _____ under Linux, do so at your own risk" but that does not prevent the inevitable calls and e-mails, asking for support, hoping that an answer exists or worse... that they did not read the warning.

      If Wine were perfect and could handle ANY Windows app then yes, it might be advantageous for a publisher to sell to Linux users for use under Wine... but lets face it, it's not perfect, it can't handle all apps.

      The best way to avoid support for something is to prevent it. My favorite example, VMware... ever try to install VMware inside of a VMware VM? The install shield says no, saying that it is not supported. Period. And with that go any possible support issues down the line of someone having problems which could be caused by such a setup.

      Also, when I said unauthorized distribution I did not mean 'piracy' I meant (and said) use under an unsupported/unauthorized operating system.

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  3. Re:"The answer to that is yes" by aardwolf204 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    How do we expect to be able to say YES to "Will my windows application work under linux" when we cant say 100% YES to "Will my windows application from 1995 work on windows XP?"

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  4. Re:I'm not going to pay for it because.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    all the code that makes winex different to wine is not in the cvs

  5. Probably not going to happen by The+Angry+Mick · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I don't see this as ever likely happening. Mainly because it would be a classic case of "cutting off one's nose to spite one's face". Why go out of your way to piss off a potential customer base? All most commerical developers really care about about is that their software isn't pirated and they get paid for their efforts. Regardless of whether the app is designed to run on Windows or not, folks would still be expected to pony up a licensing fee. Just because you can now run MS Office on your Linux box relatively painlessly doesn't mean you get a free ride from the folks at the BSA.

    --

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  6. defusing your intellectual dishonesty by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Have any software company guarantee their software will work even 90%. Hell, have Microsoft give you any guarantee at all regarding Windows. Go ahead, I dare you. Guaranteeing it will crash on you doesn't count.

  7. Re:MOD PARENT DOWN!!! by IamTheRealMike · · Score: 3, Insightful
    But the same is true of Windows. Patches Microsoft has released to Windows have broken applications before, and new versions of Office they released are not always runnable on older versions of Windows.

    I don't really see your point. Your asking for guarantees you don't even get with regular Windows.

  8. Gaim? by cr@ckwhore · · Score: 2, Insightful

    In the article, the author gives an example of an application that doesn't work properly under WineX ... GAIM. Well, WTF... why the hell would anyone running WineX try to run Win2k GAIM when the app is native to *nix anyway? Just a thought.

    --
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  9. Re:WineX is nice, but.... by Azureflare · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Are you saying that WineHQ/Transgaming/Codeweavers aren't supporting the linux community?

    Because if you are, you're wrong. They aren't supporting the segment of the linux community that says "Ohh Noo Nothing but native linux apps for us, windows sux0rs and must burn in hell!" They're supporting the segment that says "Hey, I've used windows for a long time, and I like linux a lot, and I'd like to be able to play/run my windows stuff on my linux box. Can you help a guy out?"

    There are plenty of developers in the world. These people are supporting that segment of the linux community that desires the ability to run windows applications on linux.

    We can debate all we want about if this is a good strategy in the long term. But there's no doubt that these companies are strongly supporting (parts) of the linux community.

  10. Re:WineX is nice, but.... by Skraut · · Score: 2, Insightful
    I'm not saying Codeweavers and Transgaming aren't supporting Linux, I'm saying if I buy Warcraft III and play it under WineX, I am giving Blizzard money for making a game for Windows.

    What insentive do they have for making Warcraft IV Linux compatable if Transgaming will do all the hard work for them?

    Bioware overcame a lot of hurdles to make NWN available under Linux, including forcing MILES to make their sound system Linux compatable. Yes it took them a long time to do it, but it did happen. Every company that pruduces games for Linux is a major ally. The next time Bioware produces a game, they will know which technology will allow them to make it more cross platform. The next time a company uses the MILES audio system, it will be easier for them to convert the game to native linux.

    This is what is important, companies contemplating Linux. The next company that uses the UT engine can convert their game easily to linux. The company that uses the LithTech engine can not.

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  11. Re:"The answer to that is yes" by Lew+Payne · · Score: 2, Insightful

    What's the difference? I can't get Windows applications to *work* with windows. Sure... they load and run for a while... but they inevitably crash. A program that *works* doesn't *crash*.

    I suspect that before we can get Windows applications to work under any emulator that runs on a non-Windows o/s, we must first get the Windows application to *work* under Windows.

    But that's just one man's opinion.