Re: MSDOS static

[Lale Shripad S-INDIA]

> My PC is running Lout but it is not running MessyLoss or Winloze: it
> is only running Linux (and installing Lout was trivial on Linux).
>  
> I'm not really a MessyLoss expert (I did some DOS programming in
> 1979!), but I think that:
>  
> *** unfortunately, if lout want to be successful, it has to support
> MessyLoss!! (but I don't need it).
>  
> a) Lout C sources files should be nearly portable as is to
> MessyLoss. The only problem lies in filename size limitations pecular
> to MsDog: filenames in MessyLoss are restricted to up to 8 (upercase)
> letters or digits or a few special chars followed by an extension of
> up to 3 letters. Hence .lout is not a valid extension to MessyLoss.
>  
 
..>> In response to the latest references to MessyLoss and MsDog, and in
..>> spite of the fact that, in addition to DOS, I have, love and use Linux
..>> (unix), I have a few points I'd like to share.
..>>  
..>> 1.  Many of us don't have much of a choice as to what OS we use due to:
..>>  
        ..>> a.  The dictates of our job
        ..>> b.  The available application software choices
        ..>> c.  The expense of hardware
        ..>> d.  The complexity of various OSs
..>>  
..>> 2.  In spite of DOS's limitations, there are more jobs available 
programming
    ..>> for it and more money to be made on it.  (Please don't agrue this point
    ..>> unless you are either tremendously nieve or ignorant.)
..>>   
..>> 3.  In spite of DOS's limitations it does the job that many people need.
..>>  
..>> 4.  What other OS can be installed by someone who knows virtually nothing
    ..>> about computers?
..>>   
..>> 5.  What other OS can fit on a floppy (including all its utilities)?
..>>  
..>> My point is that in spite of DOS's limitations and my lothing for its
..>> lack of capability, it feeds my family, has done so for more than ten
..>> years, and I would rather not look a gift horse in the mouth.
..>>  
..>> I respectfully request that we just call it DOS...
..>>  
..>> Thanks.
..>>  
..>> --blake
..>>  
..>> 

Dear Blake,

Congrats! That was one of the most elegantly worded flames so far
in the catagory, 'advocacy'.

I think we can do with a little more of such maturity on this news
group.

Keep it up!

(BTW, I am a SunOS/Unix programmer, who just understands what you
mean.)

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| Shripad Lale          |Internet: address@hidden |
| PSE-LT4, Siemens AG   |Phone: (+43-1) 601 71 - 5989          |
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