The GPL dudes have invented a new Operating System.
WINDOWS 
– http://www.reactos.org/
I especially get a kick out of how it’s a complete rip-off of Windows, but their web site has a bunch of dialog protecting their Trademark !
I know that a small but ridiculously loud minority in the Open Source community have nothing better to do with their energies than to hate all that is Microsoft, but really, what’s the point.
If a guy runs Ubuntu on his laptop and Centos on his server, I get it! Working at Microsoft doesn’t make me stupid. I have a box I se every day that runs Linux and I have a MacBook Pro that I use every day too. (Though if I had to pick only one OS it would still be Windows)
I get why Linux is fun. How does that thing work? Crack the code! I want a good custom phone screening system, no problem, I’ll write a custom filter for Asterisk.
But if you want / need to run Windows Applications or Windows simply makes the most business sense for you, why would you want to use a “not as good” clone ?
If you wanna use Linux use a real Linux – if your gonna use Windows – use a REAL Windows !
RE: ReactOS – What’s the point ?
ReactOS – What’s the point ?
ReactOS is not Linux based, and it shares none of the Unix architecture. You can’t possibly be threatened by this… right?On an unrelated note, I think this DasBlog theme sucks; I have to scroll horizontally!!And I have to submit my comment twice in order for it to go (it tells me everytime to enter the CAPTCHA code, even though I did answer it the first time).Can I ask why you abandoned BE.NET?Regards…
Clearly, you are missing the point here.First, its a clone, not a ripoff. ReactOS is not disgusing itself as a Windows, its quite hard not to distinguish them…Secondly, UI style and layout is by no means patentedable or under any kind of protection. There`s plenty of Linux flavors, offering UI more alike Windows ones, than ours do.So what is it then? Is it the attempt of offering similar functionality for free, not for a hefty price?You are also mistaken, assuming that we hate Microsoft. Most of ReactOS team are NT professionals, with long experience on Ms products. Your humble servant here is an Admin/Helpdesk specialist, working in a gov. agency with almost 500 NT boxes and several NT servers. This is how we gathered the experience necessary. Why do you think, are we spending our free time on this project? Would we create ReactOS and not work on Linux? A wise man said that copying is greatest form of appreciation. Please do mind that.
Clearly you didn’t read my post where I said "I don’t get the point." That really is my question. WHY would a group of smart people spend time to copy somethng that already exists? If so, what’s the need? (Not sarcasm, honest question.)
It’s the same as the Linux / unix argument. Why was Linux created when Unix was available?1. It’s fun2. It is a great learning tool3. It doesn’t lock you in to Microsoft4. The entire codebase is freely available5. Anyone can make changes to suit their needs6. It’s lightweight7. It allows people who are familiar with Windows (99% of computer users) to switch to a free OS with no learning curve8. It will run all Windows applications and drivers9. It will allow people a greater range of hardware (due to driver compatability)10. It can piggy-back the wealth of 3rd party software available for Windows11. Not everyone loves linux, but people want free OS’s12. It has more chance of succeeding on the desktop than Linux doesI could go on….
"WHY would a group of smart people spend time to copy somethng that already exists?"Why did Linux Clone UNIX? Why dd HE spent time to copy it?!"If so, what’s the need? (Not sarcasm, honest question.)"Whats the need of Linux?
I’m not a hystorian, but as an old Unix guy I can guess. THere was a tme when PCs became popular but there was no flavor of Unix available to run on them. What did come out were Unix-Work-a-likes that sat on top of DOS. Even wen the first PC Unic versions came out (1980′s) they were thousands of dollars so when Linus wrote the first verion of the Linux Kernal, we was building something that did NOT exist. In the "early" days of Linux the need was the Unix experience that ran on PCs and other small architectures, since then it has grown into it’s own computing experience. Lots of the applications built on linux have been built by Linux users to add a missing functionality or to provide a better solution than the one that existed before then buit a better one.
The point is simple: for free software purists, windows is practically non existent; the is no way I’d run a non-free closed source OS on my machine. But what if I like how windows works and I want to use it? I’ll use the free clone. What if I want to run a windows only app but I don’t want to run Windows? I’ll use the free clone. blah, blah, blah
For most programmer maybe the likes of being a Home OS designer is the reason why they want ReactOS. They want to decorate their OS and make it more comfortable for their needs.Same reason for me, with a bigger goal of learning the flow of the kernel. In microsoft you are limited in just using the kernel while in ReactOS you can do even edit the kernel. Ofcourse, Linux is quite good, but microsoft is much user friendly. keeping those in mind it make us think to combine them. With the ReactOS we may. OS like microsoft and yet you can editeverything you like. Maybe more time and more people is needed to finish it as full pledge Operating System but not far on becoming One… ^_^