Microsoft's Linux Kernel

Post by AnIdiotOnTheNet » Sat, Jun 29, 2019, 12:40 AM UTC

cameronbrown wrote: post #75

AnIdiotOnTheNet wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sadly, much like with the web, things have evolved such that it is virtually impossible to create a competitor due to all the accumulated complexity. The driver problem on the PC platform is pretty much insurmountable at this point, so any competitor would have to begin life, and gain massively in popularity somehow, on a much less flexible hardware platform. It's a shame and makes me sad for modern computing.

I wouldn't be so cynical. As with all things, tech comes and goes in cycles. I think with the limit to Moore's law rapidly approaching for current silicon, there's a good chance that efficiency & simplicity will become front and centre again at some point. Not sure if this will mean new architectures, operating systems & better tools.. but one can dream!

Post by luckydata » Sat, Jun 29, 2019, 12:44 AM UTC

umeshunni wrote: post #38

mullingitover wrote: post #10

I wish Microsoft would release their own linux-based OS with a compatibility layer to let me run Windows apps. I'm not overly impressed with the direction Apple is going but I really enjoy a *nix-native environment too much to go back to vanilla Windows. It would change the math a lot for me if it was full-blown linux under the hood.

Absolutely. At this point, there isn't much value for Microsoft to hang on to the legacy of Windows - with most of their revenue coming from Azure/Cloud and developer products, it might be time to say goodbye to that legacy and make it subsystem on a modern Linux-based system. That might also be a way for them to become more relevant in mobile devices and platforms.

Post by tbrock » Sat, Jun 29, 2019, 12:46 AM UTC

mullingitover wrote: post #15

giancarlostoro wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Windows Subsystem for Linux is really close to that though. If you have not tried it yet you can download a Windows VM for developers from Microsoft that includes WSL and other dev goodies. Its mostly for evaluation but good enough to get started with. Edit: Here is the link to the Microsoft provided VMs: https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/downloads/virt...

This is still with Linux running in a VM though, right? I'd like a lightweight VM for legacy Windows and Linux running on metal. Given Microsoft's zeal for legacy support I'd say there's a snowball's chance in hell for this, but a man can dream.

Post by mlevental » Sat, Jun 29, 2019, 12:47 AM UTC

filmgirlcw wrote: post #42

mullingitover wrote: post #10

I wish Microsoft would release their own linux-based OS with a compatibility layer to let me run Windows apps. I'm not overly impressed with the direction Apple is going but I really enjoy a *nix-native environment too much to go back to vanilla Windows. It would change the math a lot for me if it was full-blown linux under the hood.

Disclosure: I work at Microsoft but not on Windows (and my work machine is a MacBook Pro FWIW) WSL 2 is a lot like that -- it's a VM in the sense that it uses Hyper-V, but it's super lightweight. And in fact, when WSL 2 is enabled, both Windows AND Linux are running in the same type of VM (separate, obviously), so it's near-native performance in a lot of ways. There are still some I/O issues that the team is actively…

Post by fooker » Sat, Jun 29, 2019, 12:49 AM UTC

filmgirlcw wrote: post #42

mullingitover wrote: post #10

I wish Microsoft would release their own linux-based OS with a compatibility layer to let me run Windows apps. I'm not overly impressed with the direction Apple is going but I really enjoy a *nix-native environment too much to go back to vanilla Windows. It would change the math a lot for me if it was full-blown linux under the hood.

Disclosure: I work at Microsoft but not on Windows (and my work machine is a MacBook Pro FWIW) WSL 2 is a lot like that -- it's a VM in the sense that it uses Hyper-V, but it's super lightweight. And in fact, when WSL 2 is enabled, both Windows AND Linux are running in the same type of VM (separate, obviously), so it's near-native performance in a lot of ways. There are still some I/O issues that the team is actively…