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Date:      Wed, 3 Apr 2002 19:27:05 -0600
From:      Mike Meyer <mwm-dated-1018315626.ca44c2@mired.org>
To:        "Randall Hamilton" <nitedog@silly.pikachu.org>
Cc:        "Anthony Atkielski" <anthony@atkielski.com>, <chat@FreeBSD.ORG>
Subject:   Re: Anti-Unix Site Runs Unix
Message-ID:  <15531.44009.426543.851156@guru.mired.org>
In-Reply-To: <00a501c1db75$9cf9fcd0$0301a8c0@NITEDOG>
References:  <20020402113404.A52321@lpt.ens.fr> <3CA9854E.A4D86CC4@mindspring.com> <20020402123254.H49279@lpt.ens.fr> <009301c1da83$9fa73170$0a00000a@atkielski.com> <15530.6987.977637.574551@guru.mired.org> <012601c1dadb$104d5100$0a00000a@atkielski.com> <15531.2846.277278.29276@guru.mired.org> <005e01c1db44$e10d2a40$0a00000a@atkielski.com> <15531.27851.19169.720598@guru.mired.org> <001301c1db55$7c883950$0301a8c0@NITEDOG> <009201c1db5e$41b1baa0$0a00000a@atkielski.com> <15531.33743.830853.456500@guru.mired.org> <000f01c1db68$0bbad580$0301a8c0@NITEDOG> <15531.37605.851236.651200@guru.mired.org> <004901c1db69$9a1cc3f0$0301a8c0@NITEDOG> <15531.38785.141595.336871@guru.mired.org> <007601c1db6c$9daac550$0301a8c0@NITEDOG> <15531.40067.230080.806545@guru.mired.org> <009b01c1db6f$fca61480$0301a8c0@NITEDOG> <15531.41974.162478.960468@guru.mired.org> <00a501c1db75$9cf9fcd0$0301a8c0@NITEDOG>

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In <00a501c1db75$9cf9fcd0$0301a8c0@NITEDOG>, Randall Hamilton <nitedog@silly.pikachu.org> typed:
> > A desktop as opposed to *what*? Most of the Dell's I've encountered
> > > wow..3 replies to cover one simply point. lemmi try again with ya
> > > does your ps2 have tons of hardware support? does it have the ability to
> run
> > > spreadsheets...office related tools..play video's in a whole slew of
> > > different codecs..same with audio.. AND play games? last time i
> > > checked...no. that would mean it would be a poor desktop.
> > I can run Linux on it, so the only "no" is having "tons of hardware
> > support". On the other hand, it supports the hardware I described
> > above just fine. What makes a desktop require all that strange
> > hardware?
> "tons"? im still waiting for linux to support "tons" on a pc...much less a
> ps2.
> when a PS2 can support my digital camera, webcam, hard drive and network
> adapter under USB..as well as run some spreadsheets..office..and ohh..play
> some divx 4 video files with mpeg3 audio..without killing the performance of
> the machine..I'll will take your PS2 to be a desktop.

I don't have Linux on the PS2, so I don't know how well it handles
divx 4 video files, but I expect it to do OK on them.  The Linux
package sold by Sony includes a hard drive. I can certainly attach a
digital camera, webcam and network adaptor to it and get them to work
vai USB, as Linux supports all of those things. Whether or not *your*
specific hardware will work is another question. Since you didn't buy
it for the PS2 but for a different platform, I consider that it meets
that requirements. So the only one it misses is the divx, meaning it's
close to being what you call a desktop once you add Linux.

> > > a workstation is a machine that does the task of someone working.
> > > generally..an account has one main goal in a company. and thats to track
> the
> > > books. he may need only 2 programs to do that...or he may need 10. the
> point
> > > is..that all the programs are geared around the task..and the fact that
> > > audio..video..games...hardware are NOT factors in a great majority of
> > > workstations.
> > Have you ever supported people using machines in a business? I can
> > guarantee you that 90% or more of the software on any given desktop
> > machines in a business is generic software, and *NOT* targetted at
> > that person's specific tasks.
> yes..office 2000 is a general business software...i agree.
> then again..for some strange reason...i rarly see peachtree/turbo tax on a
> web designers workstation. for some strange reason...it generally only on
> marketing/accounting workstations. fancy that.

You don't know the web designers I do, then. They are independent
consultants, and do their taxes on their computers. I don't know about
Peachtree, but turbo tax is really popular for them.

> > Personally, I think your definitions are badly skewed. A desktop
> > machine is a machine that sits on someone's desk so they can use it
> > for whatever needs they have. A workstation is either a machine that
> > runs one application, or a desktop that had a fancy label hung on it
> > to raise the price. A workstation *used* to be a high end desktop that
> > used SCSI drives and similar high-grade hardware, but that's been
> > polluted by the second definition above.
> No..i believe my discriptions work just fine for me. while you are used to

True, but it's out of line with a large chunk of reality.

> seeing desktops used in offices...i normally see workstations. while
> workstations WERE highend machines 10 years ago..the general definition of a
> workstation is an office machine nowadays.

That's the second of my two definitions, from a different
perspective. A workstation *used* to be a high end machine. So PC
makers starting hanging that moniker on desktop machines to raise the
price, thus watering the term down to what you're using. However, the
believe that those are "low end machines" is false. Sure, some of them
may be. Then again, so are some home machines. On the other hand, if
the person who's using it is doing video conferencing over the network
as part of their job, they've got lots of CPU and a fat pipe - among
other things.

	<mike
--
Mike Meyer <mwm@mired.org>			http://www.mired.org/home/mwm/
Independent WWW/Perforce/FreeBSD/Unix consultant, email for more information.

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