Reply #10: substandard? [View All]

What is 'standard'? (and please don't say 'bug-free'...that is neither standard nor a reality)

I am no fan of MS, and I am capable of using a number of other OS's... and do. However, without MS the majority of people here at DU would not be able to get here.
Obviously, MS is NOT what makes the net possible, but there isn't really another OS that is brain-dead enough to allow your average user to get online.

Mac is probably the only one.... but Apple is arguably more cut throat than MS, just not as successful at it. Look at Apple's early history, where they mercilessly bled competitors in court until they folded.

Mandrake and RedHat Linux installs have finally got to the point where they can be _somewhat_ successful on non-standard hardware, but not completely. I have yet to see any flavor of linux detect my scsi, wireless, and 10/100 pcmcia cards without problems.

Solaris, BSD, etc. can be FAR better systems than anything MS puts out, but few of us can actually use them in a productive manner.

The point is, if there _is_ a standard for winblows to be compared to, it's winblows itself.