* Posts by strayling

3 publicly visible posts • joined 10 Nov 2024

How the OS/2 flop went on to shape modern software

strayling

Single Input Queue

That was what did it for OS/2. One bad app and the whole system ignores all input.

MS obsessed over making sure the mouse pointer never froze (even if the rest of the system had), so the user always felt like the system was responding.

Arch Linux installer now slightly less masochistic

strayling

Arch tried ...

... but Gentoo emerges the winner.

Tech support world record? 8.5 seconds from seeing to fixing

strayling

DIP-Switch Dipshi...

"The new client's printer doesn't work! Drop everything and go fix it."

A four-hour drive from Manchester to Boston, a flip of a DIP switch to disable parity, a drive back.

Some days, being the PFY was a sweet gig.