Interesting Commentary On Microsoft Windows' Rise- And Fall

[Shamar]

Windows is one of those things that I've always just sort of... tolerated.

It's irritating, but I'm stuck with it. Most things I have not only dont support Linux, but they're often the types of programs that get all uppity if I dont sacrifice a goat to the moon once a month. A lot of very awkward things that aint getting less awkward ever. That's not even counting the emulation archive. That one's TWO goats per month and it still goes insane every now and then.

Even my blasted controller app (ReWASD) is like that. And that's one of those "cant go without it" sorts.

The one extremely specific thing I know will work on anything is Steam itself, but... yeah a lot of games are Windows only as well.

I miss DOS. "Command" went directly to "does things" and that was it. And no freaking internet. Never thought I'd start to develop a distaste for the internet as a whole, but here we are. Bah.

I still sometimes use a DOS editor called PC Write from the 1980s. You can select a block of text (not just lines or paragraphs) from anywhere and move it around or swap blocks. EXTREMELY useful for some of the data I had to work with (OK, it CAN be done with Excel, but is extremely clumsy, messes up the rows and columns, and is a pain to convert formats). After 40 years, Microsoft still doesn't have a text editor to do this. And I have written to them about this several times, no response.

 

[Crabcore]

But AA and indies, much less likely. Particularly for the super small dev teams. Heck I remember when I was working on the contract years ago, our game didnt hit Linux either. Just wasnt in the budget, nor in the team's skillset. We had a fair sized team, but only a couple of them were programmers of a level to deal with the engine. The rest were like me, working with scripting (XML). I remember everyone was kinda disappointed to not be able to hit that extra level of support, but that's just how it goes sometimes.

Problems like these are likely to remain (or possibly even get worse over time), since most studios aren't even rolling their own engines anymore, and the entire process is pretty much just high-level scripting. I guess the other alternative is that everyone just uses Unreal and Unity forever, Steam gets Proton to bridge everything over and we all live happily ever after... where everything we make is potentially owned and reliant on something / someone else.

Obviously there are some great upsides; building games takes almost no systems or deeper programming knowledge anymore, and a lot of people can pick up the basics in a matter of weeks. When the cracks begin to show, though, you can tell it's all just sort of inside of its own weird, semi-sterile dream bubble. What happens if it pops?

 

[velociraptor]

I could walk away from Windows tomorrow if large vendors like Adobe would get their poop in a group and support Linux.

 

[Judge]

Has anyone investigated this new product called "Winboat" ? Seems to claim that it can run current Adobe software effortlessly within Linux with a simple GUI compared to its competitors.

Sounds interesting, but it's difficult not to be doubtful of such claims given how Adobe continues to distance its current product line against any Linux product designed to run various Windows programs. And evidently I saw that while it may run current Adobe software, that various games remain a struggle in comparison.

WinBoat - Run Windows Apps on Linux with Seamless Integration

I'm fine at this point as long as I can continue to run Photoshop 5.5 through Wine 10.0 and Linux Mint 22.2. Supposedly one can run Affinity in Linux in the same manner. A graphics program some consider closest to Photoshop. Perhaps more so then Gimp, which I find somewhat less than Photoshop in comparison.

 

[velociraptor]

First I have heard of Winboat, thank you. It looks like I need a Windows license, though?

 

[Judge]

First I have heard of Winboat, thank you. It looks like I need a Windows license, though?

LOL. Yep, the legal considerations of it all were the first thing I thought of. But not licensing issues so much as Adobe in particular, which since 2024 has been pummeled by both the Department of Justice and multiple ongoing class actions against them over so many civil wrongs perpetrated on consumers for decades.

Makes me wonder if this product involves timing more than anything when it comes to all the legal implications of such a product. And whether or not corporations like Microsoft, Adobe and Nvidia remain aloof to much of anything that involves Linux given their dominance in the market.

An interesting tactic from the standpoint of public relations alone. To ignore such competition, and emphasize that the Linux world simply doesn't matter in the "big picture". Though such entities also have the overwhelming capital to utilize if they really wanted to wage a war in court.

In essence under the obvious circumstances, I'd think a new product like this would have to be top-heavy in their own legal department to make such a product work. Provided of course their claims continue to be validated.

So yeah, I'm sure you're as puzzled as I am to see something like this, particularly if it actually works with current Adobe products. A claim that Wine has not been able to ever make that I know of.

 

[velociraptor]

So yeah, I'm sure you're as puzzled as I am to see something like this, particularly if it actually works with current Adobe products. A claim that Wine has not been able to ever make that I know of.

Will try to play with it at some point. Free time is scarce.

I thank you for this, it is useful knowledge and I am appropriately grateful.

 

[Judge]

Will try to play with it at some point. Free time is scarce.

I thank you for this, it is useful knowledge and I am appropriately grateful.

I thought of you first and foremost given the professional quality of the digital images you create. But given your job I can professionally relate to, I also understand the amount of time it may take to fully digest the capabilities of this technology. And the legal implications easily cause my head to spin....

I hate to admit it, but even with far more time on my hands, I've never really explored all the alternative to Wine 10.0 that are presently out there. As long as I can run my ancient, but full version of Photoshop through Wine, I suppose I'll remain somewhat complacent as a retiree. My bad.

Though in your case, this might prove to be quite the breakthrough you may be looking for. But I remain skeptical about it, not only technologically speaking but also legally as you immediately pointed out.

But dayim....this would be amazing if anyone could indefinitely break through that hurdle of current Adobe products which may be deliberately designed to sabotage products like Wine from being able to produce a compatibility layer to make it operate in Linux-based operating systems. And perhaps a practice presently well-subsidized contractually with Microsoft. Operating fearlessly in an environment where antitrust laws are no longer enforced behind closed doors.

 

[velociraptor]

Though in your case, this might prove to be quite the breakthrough you may be looking for. But I remain skeptical about it, not only technologically speaking but also legally as you immediately pointed out.

I don't mind paying for a license if I get the improved reliability of Linux.

I'm two weeks away from going winter camping and starting my video side-hustle. Time is not on my side these days.

 

[Judge]

I don't mind paying for a license if I get the improved reliability of Linux.

I'm two weeks away from going winter camping and starting my video side-hustle. Time is not on my side these days.

Thought I'd just pass this along....installing Winboat on various Linux distros. I bookmarked it for further review.