[NTLUG:Discuss] Re: Lost boot Loader -- a "limited" OS

[Bryan J. Smith]

On Mon, 2004-11-01 at 11:51, Chris Cox wrote:
> I agree.. but for a weird reason.  This weekend I had to install
> WinXP Pro on a box (blasphemy!)... anyway... it couldn't even find
> the drives... had to interject a set of drivers VIA floppy (WinXP makes
> NO provision for getting the drivers into the installation process
> EXCEPT by floppy!!).  Linux in many, many ways is light years ahead
> of WinXP (especially... on installation).

Like the fact that NT5 (2000, XP, 2003) requires an _exact_ registry
setting for the boot-time storage device (let alone the drivers)?

E.g.,  
http://lists.leap-cf.org/pipermail/pc_support/2003-August/003891.html  

Plus _any_ NT version is incapable of supporting more than one storage
driver at boot-loader time.

No wonder virtualization of Windows (either atop of Linux on
client/server, or mainframe) is becoming very popular!

> I took all day to get the necessary drivers and setup done on the box...
> takes a few minutes to do a Linux install.

And the drivers are far more reliable, _all_ drivers are signed in the
kernel's distribution (either by Linus in stock or the vendor kernel),
etc...

> Floppies aren't dead yet.. well, maybe not as needed on a REAL
> OS... but certainly REQUIRED for Windows.

I personally love the requirement of a DOS or CE boot disk and Microsoft
Network Client for DOS or CE.  Microsoft still has _yet_ to produce a
lightweight NT kernel that is bootable from a floppy with network
support.

Talk about a "limited" OS.  Those of us who have been working with NT
for years tire of broken promises and lack of focus.  .NET/"Longhorn" is
just another Win32/"Cairo" --er, now it's no longer "Longhorn" as
promised but "WinFX Technologies" -- just like no longer "Cairo" as
promised but "Cairo Technologies."

History repeats itself.


-- 
Bryan J. Smith                                  b.j.smith at ieee.org 
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