This may be true to an extent, but if it were always true, then everytime there was a new version of Windows, notepad.exe would have to be recompiled!
If they stick with providing compatibility for the core Win32API they have a good chance of being able to run most of the programs that are written to run on multiple MS OSes in the first place. Examples are IE, Office, and most of the Windows Accessories and Games that MS doesn't recompile to use new features everytime the API changes.
I question their decision to leave out driver compatibility. In my opinion, that is key to gaining acceptance of a clone OS.
It wouldn't matter if DirectX pushed 99.999% of the Windows API out of the way, the other.0001% of the code that relied on the windows API would still render the application unusable under AtheOS without some kind of Windows emulation layer (or a recompile, which we all know ISN'T going to happen)
From a conceptual standpoint, it makes more since to talk about something in "inches" or "points" than it does to talk about "pixels". Pixels are a different size on every screen. With a floating point system the graphics device can then be abstracted to a surface with dimensions x units X y units where those units are real world. Thus you can make a window that is 3 inches by 5 inches and it will be 3 inches by 5 inches on whatever output device it is presented on. Of course with most of these systems you can still revert to a pixel-based mapping mode (think MM_TEXT vs MM_LOENGLISH if you're a windows programmer). The floating point makes it easy to use various units that aren't defined by some quanta (there's no such thing as 1.5 pixels, that's either 1 or 2, but 1.5 inches is a VERY real measurement)
Well ok this is a blatant plug, but I'm writing (or trying to write) an OS myself and I've kept a log of my frustrations as well as some starter lists and such. The URL is http://bloggins02.dyndns.org
Personally, I'd pick Debian. Mandrake is great if you just want to get a working Linux distro up and running quickly, but I find that it is really detrimental to your actually learning Linux and the ins and outs of a UNIX operating system. With Debian, it's not a PITA to install, but you actually have to LEARN how to do things. When I first started using linux in 1994, Slackware was king, there were no RPMs for installation, no pretty graphical (X or otherwise) setup routines, and compiling your kernel meant you had a choice of make config, make config, or make config. I wouldn't know anywhere near as much about UNIX/Linux or computers in general had I had something like Mandrake to hold my hand all along. Debian installs can be somewhat frustrating if you're new to it all, but the experience and enlightenment that you get will be invaluable.
Actually, CP/M brought you the FAT filesystem, notepad is a small footprint text editor that is so incredibly simple that it couldn't be a "bad" application if it tried, MS Word takes exctly 10 seconds to load up on my P233, while under Linux StarOffice takes 2 MINUTES, and MS Bob... well... can't argue with that one, but everyone has their bombs. Remember New Coke? Don't get me wrong, I run Linux at home, but I also have a Windows 2000 workstation at work that hasn't crashed once even while running Visual Studio every day and two instances of VMWare. I'm not saying there's nothing wrong with Microsoft, but it's not all exactly black and white either.
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This may be true to an extent, but if it were always true, then everytime there was a new version of Windows, notepad.exe would have to be recompiled!
If they stick with providing compatibility for the core Win32API they have a good chance of being able to run most of the programs that are written to run on multiple MS OSes in the first place. Examples are IE, Office, and most of the Windows Accessories and Games that MS doesn't recompile to use new features everytime the API changes.
I question their decision to leave out driver compatibility. In my opinion, that is key to gaining acceptance of a clone OS.
A 3d printer can print out a working 3d printer?
It wouldn't matter if DirectX pushed 99.999% of the Windows API out of the way, the other .0001% of the code that relied on the windows API would still render the application unusable under AtheOS without some kind of Windows emulation layer (or a recompile, which we all know ISN'T going to happen)
From a conceptual standpoint, it makes more since to talk about something in "inches" or "points" than it does to talk about "pixels". Pixels are a different size on every screen. With a floating point system the graphics device can then be abstracted to a surface with dimensions x units X y units where those units are real world. Thus you can make a window that is 3 inches by 5 inches and it will be 3 inches by 5 inches on whatever output device it is presented on. Of course with most of these systems you can still revert to a pixel-based mapping mode (think MM_TEXT vs MM_LOENGLISH if you're a windows programmer). The floating point makes it easy to use various units that aren't defined by some quanta (there's no such thing as 1.5 pixels, that's either 1 or 2, but 1.5 inches is a VERY real measurement)
Well ok this is a blatant plug, but I'm writing (or trying to write) an OS myself and I've kept a log of my frustrations as well as some starter lists and such. The URL is http://bloggins02.dyndns.org
Personally, I'd pick Debian. Mandrake is great if you just want to get a working Linux distro up and running quickly, but I find that it is really detrimental to your actually learning Linux and the ins and outs of a UNIX operating system. With Debian, it's not a PITA to install, but you actually have to LEARN how to do things. When I first started using linux in 1994, Slackware was king, there were no RPMs for installation, no pretty graphical (X or otherwise) setup routines, and compiling your kernel meant you had a choice of make config, make config, or make config. I wouldn't know anywhere near as much about UNIX/Linux or computers in general had I had something like Mandrake to hold my hand all along. Debian installs can be somewhat frustrating if you're new to it all, but the experience and enlightenment that you get will be invaluable.
Actually, CP/M brought you the FAT filesystem, notepad is a small footprint text editor that is so incredibly simple that it couldn't be a "bad" application if it tried, MS Word takes exctly 10 seconds to load up on my P233, while under Linux StarOffice takes 2 MINUTES, and MS Bob... well... can't argue with that one, but everyone has their bombs. Remember New Coke? Don't get me wrong, I run Linux at home, but I also have a Windows 2000 workstation at work that hasn't crashed once even while running Visual Studio every day and two instances of VMWare. I'm not saying there's nothing wrong with Microsoft, but it's not all exactly black and white either.