Is windows a virus

[dereck]

I know that this is meant to be humorous, and I like
this type of humor.  So - this made me smile and I
thank you.

But you should be aware that historically many
computer professionals considered *NIX to be a virus. 
In terms of OS history *NIX has big problems, and its
history is very checkered.  I use it, because it is
the most complete and widely available OS.  But I find
it hardly "good," either theoretically or practically.
 I have a love/hate relationship with it, because the
constant re-implementation of *NIX takes a lot of
human years away from what should be a _re-evaluation_
of the whole *NIX project.  (Yes, beginning with the
use of C and its variants as the base language.)

The spread of *NIX and its many copycats is definitely
NOT a win-win for the computing industry as a whole. 
There is even a downloadable book on the early years
of *NIX, which tells the whole sordid story (in user
emails) of why *NIX has historically sucked.  I love
BSD and I hate it.  It is the "best" of what is
available.  Would that we could do better!

Enjoy the link below!  Note that almost none of the
fundamental problems are fixable - they are products
of the original design.  And Dennis Ritchie's
introduction is worth the price of the original!  The
man can turn a phrase.

http://web.mit.edu/~simsong/www/ugh.pdf

Dereck

BTW:  I still lean toward Windows as virus :-).  It's
definition of how user interface _should_ look is a
scab on the industry.  BAH!

--- Xian <ian at codepad.net> wrote:

> Is Windows a Virus?
> 
> No, Windows is not a virus. Here's what viruses do:
> 
> 1.They replicate quickly - okay, Windows does that.
> 
> 2.Viruses use up valuable system resources, slowing
> down the system as they
> do so - okay, Windows does that.
> 
> 3.Viruses will, from time to time, trash your hard
> disk - okay, Windows does
> that too.
> 
> 4.Viruses are usually carried, unknown to the user,
> along with valuable
> programs and systems. - Sigh.. Windows does that,
> too.
> 
> 5.Viruses will occasionally make the user suspect
> their system is too slow
> (see 2) and the user will buy new hardware. - Yup,
> Windows does that, too.
> 
> Until now it seems Windows is a virus but there are
> fundamental differences:
> Viruses are well supported by their authors, are
> running on most systems,
> their program code is fast, compact and efficient
> and they tend to become
> more sophisticated as they mature.
> 
> So Windows is not a virus.
> 
> It's a bug. 
> 
> On top of that Windows cost money while viruses are
> free.
>  
> -- 
> /Xian
> 
> "The important thing is not to stop questioning.
> Curiosity has its own reason 
> for existing."
> Albert Einstein
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