Raven Killgrave
ravenk@hotmail.com
Winux: MS's Secret Weapon
for the 21st Century
Microsoft recently tried to sue some makers of Linux, claiming that Linux contained some of MS's own code.
Seems there is a project that MS does not want the public to know about yet. It is code-named Winux and it basically is based on Xenix, Microsoft's version of Unix from the 1980's updated to 32 bit code with the Win32 API added, and Win32 software being run via virtual machines like NT does for Win16 code. MS is busy porting it to 64 bit code for Merced.
MS hopes that Winux will close the gap between NT and Unix, and fire back at Linux, Solaris, Rhapsody/MacOS X, SCO Unix, and other Unix systems. Unlike Linux, Winux won't be free or have the source code given out, but it will be stable and run most of the older Windows 32 bit software when it comes out in the year 2000. By that time the 64 bit Windows NT standard will be out, but Winux should port the Win64 API quite easily. I have been slipped an alpha copy by insiders at Microsoft that I know, and its a purple box with Winux on it and clouds over mountains and a purple skyline. Purple Mountain Majesties I guess, as Microsoft already took the names of most of the popular cities on the way from the East Coast to Redmound, like Chicago, Cario, etc. Seems like the mountains might be a more logical choice, but I would have picked some other code name besides Winux.
Microsoft already added Active Movie, DirectX, Media Player, , Display Postscript, ActiveX, DCOM, TAPI, and the WDM to it. More on the way as IIS and SQL Server get added, there already is a primative MS-Mail server, but PD Unix mail servers for POP and IMAP work just as well. That is the whole beauty of it, finally a Unix that runs Windows apps from the company that brought you Windows and Xenix.
They are planning on ports to Alpha, MIPS, and PowerPC platforms as soon as they find a way to emulate the X86 instruction set on those platforms. They are starting to recruit programmers who have written arcade and console emulation programs on the Internet to head up that part of the project.
I promised not to give out the names of those who gave me a sneak preview to this technology, but I figured I would post it here anyway as they have no idea who I am, or if what I am telling is true or not. So, believe it or not.
With the amount of spoofers, spammers and general wierdness that the BBBS is noted for - take at your own risk with this one folks. It's got some interresting details though, and seeing how there's no way in hell anything CGI related is going to work with this message "live" it had to be moved here anyway.
Given the fact that I've got Apple employees, ex-Apple employees, and who knows what other companies represented - nuttier stories have come through here....
-mgabrys
