[geeks] Re: [rescue] This Just In: HP to buy Compaq

[Greg A. Woods]

[[ MOVE IT TO GEEKS!!! ]]

[ On Wednesday, September 5, 2001 at 16:42:15 (+0100), Paul Sladen wrote: ]
> Subject: Re: [rescue] This Just In: HP to buy Compaq
>
> Please be /very/ careful about whether you are refering to:
> 
>   a)  The kernel, scalable enough to run on your Palm Pilot, and your S/390.
>       Please don't bring up the issue of efficeny;  Solaris doesn't run on
>       a Palm, and NetBSD (a Real-Unix(TM) that does) doesn't `scale' to SMP.

Actually, no, the linux kernel is not that scalable.  It does not run
well under heavy load on an S/390 -- that's why you run hundreds,
thousands, or even tens of thousands of virtual linux partions under VM.

Even *BSD kernels require major tuning and hackery to run well on really
big iron, even really big iX86 iron.....

>   b)  The OS:  GNU's Not Unix.   Exactly what it says, a clean-room rewrite
>       (again) of Unix fundmentals.  This the same suite of utilities that
>       you have to install before you can do anything useful on all the
>       Solaris, AIX, HP-UX, SCO and the BSDs.  What about the legendary GCC
>       compiler that you use for compilation on all the above OS's and which
>       is the standard Playstation II dev-suite.

The bad thing about clean-room rewrites even those done in effect by
committee, is the tendency to not re-write, but instead to re-invent.

There are lots of horrible abominations that have crept into what would
otherwise be good clean tools.

Even *BSD, which since 4.3Net-2 is itself a rewrite, has similar warts,
but at least in my opinion it has stayed inifintely more true to form
than GNU stuff ever did.

> After reading the above, I'm very interested to know why GNU/Linux is so
> much worse than an alternative, when (as can be seen from the above) all
> you've done is swap out the kernel and C library.

Well, one problem is that the Linux kernel is still intricately tied to
the GCC compiler, and in some senses to GNU libc even; and similarly
many GNU tools are intricately tied to GNU libc too.  You cannot
currently build Linux kernels with any other tools.

The *BSD kernel, at least in its NetBSD incarnation, is still highly
portable between compilers.  The best way to start a port of *BSD to a
new platform is to start compiling the kernel with your platform's
native C compiler.  You do not have to port GCC first.

(Of course most *BSD tools are intricately tied to the *BSD libc....)

-- 
							Greg A. Woods

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