[Sussex] Improving on UNIX

Geoff Teale Geoff.Teale at claybrook.co.uk
Fri Mar 14 10:14:00 UTC 2003


Andrew wrote:
-------------
> First I have to say this, I don't know and I can not find out 
> as there some
> working being done on the Internet connection today.  As for Satellite
> decoder (SkyDigital) I thought there OS was developed by an 
> British firm for
> Sky.  As such Sky owns the OS them self's.

There is a great deal of variation across companies and systems.  Microsoft
actively market the fact that 60% of the worlds satellite decoders now run
versions of NT and/or XP embedded - it's not as visible as X-Box but
Microsoft is trying to force it's way into the embedded market - and for a
lot of companies it is as sensible choice as LINUX is - it's not as good as
QNX, but it performs as well as VxWorks and is cheaper than both QNX and
VxWorks in terms of licensing and the salaries for your staff - the
arguement is that any old Windows developer can develop and embedded system
- if you believe that hype then you are going to make some very bad consumer
devices.
 
> X-Box2 have new filing system has more to do with Microsoft 
> plans of DRM
> then anything else.  It would just make it lot harder to get 
> around.  Also
> Microsoft also wants CPU's to be adapted instruction set, so 
> where one CPU
> command might be on x86 00010 it would be 10010 and command 
> that is 10010
> would be 00010.  Those making harder to put something like 
> Linux on there.
> 
> Microsoft had already done something like that with hard 
> drives in XBox and
> change command set but people just worked it all out in time.

How very petty.  Ultimately these things will be resolved.  Frankly running
LINUX on consoles is a _toy_ project - it's useful if you happen to have one
and want to look at LINUX, but it's really a silly way to go about getting a
PC.

-- 
geoff.teale at claybrook.co.uk
tealeg at member.fsf.org

"make music like mercy that gives what it is and has nothing to prove"
 - Ani DiFranco "Up Up Up Up Up Up"


The above information is confidential to the addressee and may be privileged.  Unauthorised access and use is prohibited.
 
Internet communications are not secure and therefore this Company does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this message.
 
If you are not the intended recipient, any disclosure, copying, distribution or any action taken or omitted to be taken in reliance on it, is prohibited and may be unlawful.
 
Claybrook Computing Limited is a subsidiary of Claybrook Computing (Holdings) Limited
Registered Office: Abbey House. 282 Farnborough Road, Farnborough, Hampshire GU14 7NJ
Registered in England and Wales No 1287205
 
A Hogg Robinson plc company





More information about the Sussex mailing list