Re: [Sheflug] Re: TopPage info for Sheffield Linux User Group

[Craig Andrews <nospam [at] fishbot.free-online.co.uk>]

There's nothing wrong with the Windows API as such, and I might say that
V Studio 97 is a damn fine way of quickly knocking together what could
otherwise be a painful task.

I am not against using the Windows API in itself, but until kernel support
for Win32 (and win16) binaries comes along (which may not be long...) and
a Linux specific compiled version of the Windows API comes along (ie. no
wrapper needed) I beleive that using an API specifically coded for the
target OS is not an unreasonable expectation.

If people are happy to use MS software using a wrapper ( again, Java VM
springs to mind) then fine, let them, but if the trend continues, a Linux
box will mean nothing more than a particularly difficult to configure
Windows box! At least, this is likely to become true with desktop only
Linux boxes which are becoming more popular (Corel for eg.)

RedHat have a definite view on QT, in that they refuse to support it
because its not free enough (although how they can say that and still
charge nigh on 80 quid for their 'free' software is beyond me... esp. when
SuSE only charge 25 for more stuff!).

What I'm saying is this.. Windows software, generally speaking, is
licenced commercial software. It costs to own and use. Use the same
software under Linux, in the same form (same binaries, etc) and the same
restrictions apply. Bang, open source down the drain. 

Projects such as Gnome show that good software can be created using free
(in every sense of the word) software and toolkits, and can be distributed
freely. This is the basis in which the Open Source foundation and the GNU
project, from which, lets not forget, Linux was born, and it is danger of
being commercialised purely on developers apparent need to stick with MS
products through thick or thin, whether it is the best choice or not!

Wine is a very accomplished piece of software. It allows programs written
with a different API for a completely different OS to run on the OS we are
using. However, this should be used as it was intened... to run existing
windows program for which there is no decent alternative (which are
getting increasingly few) and NOT as a cheap and nasty way of creating
'Linux/Unix based software'. 


Craig Andrews
craig@fishbot.free-online.co.uk

PS. Anyone else have any thoughts on the Wine idea, and the use of the
Win32 API to develop programs for Linux?

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