I think the answer is the total guileification of the (extended) GNU operating system. We need to facilitate cross-talk between bits of the operating system, and there would be no more natural way to do this in GNU than to make all commands understand literal Scheme lists of arguments, and give back literal Scheme lists of data (including the response to '(help), which would make the entire system introspective!), so that inter-operation between sub-systems becomes natural.
The desktop and the developer
271–280 of 304 posts
Re: The desktop and the developer
#272As a newbie/student developer I found the main benefit of switching to mac is that it is what everyone else uses so you follow the tutorial / instructions and it just works. I had dual boot Unbuntu / win 7 previously which seldom just worked. Also I wanted to upload my Phonegap app for iOS and Apple won't let you without using a mac pretty much, darn them.
Re: The desktop and the developer
#273Earlier quoted context omitted.
I've used Linux, Windows and OS X. I don't consider OS X to be a development environment for serious development. I do consider Linux and Windows to be real dev tools.
I don't know a single person that uses windows for development other than people writing windows specific(.net) software, judging by the overall vibe on HN and /r/programming I'd assume this is a general trend.
HN and /r/programming are great resources, but they're not by any means representative of developers or the programming world in general. Indeed, I think it's quite safe to say the vast majority of developers have never heard of HN (or even Github) and while they might know of Reddit most of them probably don't visit. This might be a lamentable thing, depending on your views, but it is what it is.
It's really easy to get caught up in the SV culture, but it's by no means the rule. There's millions of developers out there whose code is never made public, writing Java, .NET, C, C++, Ada, Fortran, and other languages that HN would regard as obscure, niche, or dead. They're consulting or working for small businesses, medium size businesses, enterprises, local, state, federal governments.
I don't know if most of them use Windows, but it's definitely a hugely substantial fraction. It's not a small minority.
Re: The desktop and the developer
#274Earlier quoted context omitted.
> (And I won't be buying Lenovo again, because I do not expect my BIOS to be password protected, and not be provided with the password. :-) ) Are you referring to UEFI? If so, what do you mean about not being provided the password? Doesn't it either provide an interface to put your own keys or at least switch to legacy mode?
I mean: I try to get into the BIOS, and I'm asked to enter a password, which I've not been given. Never had this problem with any other computer company. I thought it might just be the dodgy vendor I got it from, but my girlfriend ordered a Twist from the official Lenovo site, and has the same issue. Which, because she's in the brave new Win8 SecureBoot era, stops her from installing an OS she hates less than Win8. U…
That's kind of weird that Lenovo would do that with the BIOS password thing. I've owned a few Lenovos and it would put me off getting another one.
Re: The desktop and the developer
#275Earlier quoted context omitted.
Because I have a data center full of nodes for when I need horsepower and a big fancy desktop with multiple monitors and a desk and a chair and a keyboard for when I need do serious development. What I want out of a laptop is a great form factor, solid battery life, a good keyboard, a large trackpad, a web browser and a real terminal. I own a 13-inch MacBook Air, it cost $1000 brand new, so no I didn't pay any premiu…
unless you need a halfway decent GPU for you work, then you are bound to the top of the line $2600 rMBP. Thats the main problem with apple, very limited choices.
This is one of the reasons I still take Windows over Mac OS X.
Those Intel GPUs are a no-go.
Re: The desktop and the developer
#276I think the answer is the total guileification of the (extended) GNU operating system. We need to facilitate cross-talk between bits of the operating system, and there would be no more natural way to do this in GNU than to make all commands understand literal Scheme lists of arguments, and give back literal Scheme lists of data (including the response to '(help), which would make the entire system introspective!), so…
As a Guile hacker, I also think that more programs should be extensibile via Guile. However, I don't think programs need to "understand" sexps in the way you're describing. Programs can continue to work as they have, taking in textual input and outputting textual output. What you get with Guile is the ability to use the program's API via the REPL so you can interact with and extend that program, much like Emacs.
Re: The desktop and the developer
#277Earlier quoted context omitted.
Do you also cover up the logo on your car? What about its distinct and recognisable shape? Actually, same goes for macs. I always find it funny that in TV shows the logo is covered up even though everyone can clearly see they're using a mac.
It's not like I'm going out of my way to prevent advertising. Of course I don't cover a logo of my car, but I also don't drive cars on races or other events where I am publicly presenting something. If I were a famous car driver or even running mechanic shop, I would make sure not to show any, eg. tire manufacturer poster unless I have clear financial interest to do so. But, if I'm presenting something computer relat…
It's quite plausible exactly zero people in your audience ever had that impression.
Re: The desktop and the developer
#278I like OSX on a laptop because it's the only portable machine I've ever used where everything works correctly when I am constantly opening and closing the lid of the machine. At work I will leave my desk several times per day for meetings in conference rooms, then I take the machine home and I may open and close it a dozen more times in the evening. I've probably had 50 laptops over the last 20 years, and the only on…
Yeah the reliable open close the lid thing's cool. Also going from a Win7 Thinkpad to a Macbook Air I'm struck by how almost everything works pretty much instantly. On the Thinkpad if you just right click a file it would often take 30s just for the right click menu to appear.
Re: The desktop and the developer
#279Earlier quoted context omitted.
Am I the only person out there who hasn't got a clue what the point in suspend / hibernate are for. Whenever I use them, it seems to take longer to boot than a complete restart, and half of the times it doesn't boot, and if it does, there is a good chance something is not working.
No, there are probably other Linux / Windows users who are similarly confused. :-p Among Mac users, your comment is hard to understand, though. We don't have "suspend" or "hibernate" so we don't think about that. Want to relocate? You close the lid, no thought about it. Get to the new place? Open the lid, and your mac is operational instantaneously - literally as soon as the lid is fully open. Of course, the laptop w…
If the Mac laptop starts running out of power while asleep it will in fact hibernate; when it comes back it will display a progress bar as it reloads the contents of memory from disk. (Being able to explicitly tell the system "I know I won't be using you for the rest of the day, please just hibernate so you have tons of battery when I turn you back on next" is something I miss from Windows.)
Re: The desktop and the developer
#280I use a macbook air at home for some development. I hate OS X for development (C++) its, a real pain. Ubuntu is a lot more friendly I feel.
But who makes a high quality ubuntu laptop? Just dell, and they lost me as a customer years ago. In terms of hardware, there absolutely is no other option for me. Which sucks, I want a good quality laptop, and i'm willing to pay for it.