On Fri, Aug 29, 2003, Oded Arbel wrote about "OS-X rules, X sucks (Was: Forthcoming "Blitz" of Announcements)": > after you do that, you can manipulate the window in hardware - resize it, > make it translucent, swipe it here and there, etc' all in hardware and as >.. > Only problem is : you can't do it in X, because X was designed a long time > before any decent 3D hardware acceleration was even thought of, and as a > result X sucks. >... > X and pursue greener pastures. IMO - X is the single reason why Linux and > other free OSs do not have the same desktop market share as they do for > server installation, and probably it diminishes acceptance in that sector as >..
While I agree that X11 needs some improvements, I completely disagree with your conclusions. As you probably know, Apple's "desktop market share" is miniscule despite all the cool features you're describing, so your point (that Linux's market share is small because it lacks these features) doesn't make sense. It even makes less sense when you consider that the OS that has the biggest market share (namely, Microsoft Windows) doesn't appear to have those features at all (at least not last time I looked it it). Also, factually, ten years ago it came feasable to do "opaque window moving" in X-Windows on a normal PC, and PCs are just getting faster. Opaque, translucent, or whatever - all can be done in software nowadays so quickly that users will be none-the-wiser. Hareware acceleration may be needed for full-screen animation (and even that is becoming possible without additional hardware as CPUs become faster), gaming, and things like that, but not for displaying icons and windows. On the contrary, not having to install a $200 stove (also known as a "graphics card") inside your computer might be a winning point for Linux for some people. Remember SGIs? These had all those cool features - great graphics, a built-in camera, CD-ROM (when those were still rare), etc. But for the "layperson" who didn't need all those things - you could buy a PC with Linux (or System V, before Linux came along) for a fraction of the cost. -- Nadav Har'El | Friday, Aug 29 2003, 1 Elul 5763 [EMAIL PROTECTED] |----------------------------------------- Phone: +972-53-245868, ICQ 13349191 |Open your arms to change, but don't let http://nadav.harel.org.il |go of your values. ================================================================= To unsubscribe, send mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word "unsubscribe" in the message body, e.g., run the command echo unsubscribe | mail [EMAIL PROTECTED]
