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ReactOS releases 0.4.8 with experimental Vista/7/10 software compatibility

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Re: ReactOS releases 0.4.8 with experimental Vista/7/10 software compatibility

#102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Newer Windows is still only two shell commands away from activation.

Do tell

KMS servers. there are a bunch on the internet you can use, and you can even run one locally on your LAN. only catch is you can't run the server locally (although you can patch out system files to bypass this), and you need to connect to the server every 180 days to refresh your ticket.

Re: ReactOS releases 0.4.8 with experimental Vista/7/10 software compatibility

#103
post #39
post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I use a lot of virtual machines across all versions of Windows. What I've found is that almost every time online activation fails, if I do the telephone activation, it goes though. Just wanted to pass that along in case you or someone else runs into this again.

I tried phone activation as well, it was rejected. I typed all installation numbers correctly.

If the automated telephone doesn't work, you used to be able to stay on the line (or just don't enter anything) and talk to a person. They can usually help.

Re: ReactOS releases 0.4.8 with experimental Vista/7/10 software compatibility

#104

Genuine question: What advantage does ReactOS provide over Wine? https://www.reactos.org/wiki/WINE explains a bit but still doesn't answer the question. P.S. oh by the way, the developers of both projects are apparently collaborating and ReactOS uses Wine's DLLs for their userspace, so my question is not meant to criticise the "double-effort" or anything like that.

The big-picture advantage is that Windows users can switch to it without becoming Linux users first. Many people actually like (some version of) Windows and would prefer to keep using it, but have issues with licensing or Microsoft's stewardship of the platform.

There are also some technical advantages for applications that require driver code. Examples include specialized software with intrusive DRM (where either the DRM is so beastly or interest in the software is so narrow that there's no crack; ISTR that Cubase is sort of legendary for this) or software that drives industrial equipment. Wine will probably never run this sort of thing.

Re: ReactOS releases 0.4.8 with experimental Vista/7/10 software compatibility

#105

This has been one of my favorite software projects to watch, because it's such an insanely monumental undertaking and moves so damn slowly. There were people working on this two decades ago, putting in tiny fixes and little bits of code and whatnot, and they did it even knowing that basically nobody would see their work for decades. Hell, I have never seen a ReactOS installation in the wild, and I'm the kind of perso…

when it starts getting really good, Microsoft will probably sue it to the ground.

Re: ReactOS releases 0.4.8 with experimental Vista/7/10 software compatibility

#106

This has been one of my favorite software projects to watch, because it's such an insanely monumental undertaking and moves so damn slowly. There were people working on this two decades ago, putting in tiny fixes and little bits of code and whatnot, and they did it even knowing that basically nobody would see their work for decades. Hell, I have never seen a ReactOS installation in the wild, and I'm the kind of perso…

> Hell, I have never seen a ReactOS installation in the wild

I've seen it once so far, because my employer has a no Windows policy for contractual / security reasons and I was requested to translate a foreign-language dialog (on an English language OS installation). It was to solve / use an esoteric bit of Windows, that ultimately did not succeed. I commend the effort to make such a distro, but it is still a decade or longer away from the "casual" techie.

Re: ReactOS releases 0.4.8 with experimental Vista/7/10 software compatibility

#107

This has been one of my favorite software projects to watch, because it's such an insanely monumental undertaking and moves so damn slowly. There were people working on this two decades ago, putting in tiny fixes and little bits of code and whatnot, and they did it even knowing that basically nobody would see their work for decades. Hell, I have never seen a ReactOS installation in the wild, and I'm the kind of perso…

> soon (well, years, but still) people will be using it everywhere as a replacement for Windows.

No they won't. It's a fringe OS that requires technical expertise to install. Not only that but it looks like "old Windows". Users won't want to work with a Windows from a decade ago. Not only that but it'll have bugs and no support.

You'll see tiny pockets of people using it but as Microsoft gets closer and closer to simply having a free OS it doesn't seem likely anyone would ever use this OS for anything beyond "hey, that's cool!".

Re: ReactOS releases 0.4.8 with experimental Vista/7/10 software compatibility

#108
post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Hell, I have never seen a ReactOS installation in the wild It's not especially common, but I do know of a couple kiosks and a PoS system that run ReactOS under the hood to avoid Windows licensing.

How the hell do they get PCI certified with ReactOS?

I don't have details, I just happened to see a crash to desktop, but it may not have been certified - many Australian retailers will pay the fines rather than go through the effort of ensuring compliance.

Re: ReactOS releases 0.4.8 with experimental Vista/7/10 software compatibility

#109

This has been one of my favorite software projects to watch, because it's such an insanely monumental undertaking and moves so damn slowly. There were people working on this two decades ago, putting in tiny fixes and little bits of code and whatnot, and they did it even knowing that basically nobody would see their work for decades. Hell, I have never seen a ReactOS installation in the wild, and I'm the kind of perso…

> soon (well, years, but still) people will be using it everywhere as a replacement for Windows. No they won't. It's a fringe OS that requires technical expertise to install. Not only that but it looks like "old Windows". Users won't want to work with a Windows from a decade ago. Not only that but it'll have bugs and no support. You'll see tiny pockets of people using it but as Microsoft gets closer and closer to sim…

Two things

>It lights a fire under M$'s asses to make windows competitive

>Adoption is slow but exponential. Today is the first day I learned about ReactOS and I'm excited. I can program and I have money. If people can find value in it, adoption will grow.

Re: ReactOS releases 0.4.8 with experimental Vista/7/10 software compatibility

#110

This has been one of my favorite software projects to watch, because it's such an insanely monumental undertaking and moves so damn slowly. There were people working on this two decades ago, putting in tiny fixes and little bits of code and whatnot, and they did it even knowing that basically nobody would see their work for decades. Hell, I have never seen a ReactOS installation in the wild, and I'm the kind of perso…

Why would one use ReactOS over Wine? I read this page: https://www.reactos.org/wiki/WINE , but it didn't really provide an answer. I understand that ReactOS doesn't require Linux as a dependency, but is that a significant win?

I like what Linux is trying to do, but I havent been satisfied with desktop usage.

Ubuntu server with LAMP is the greatest thing of all time, but desktop Linux has disappointed me over the nuances like mouse acceleration settings, netflix not working natively, etc...

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