Re: Using FreeDOS In 2022

On 2024-04-22, Kyonshi <gmkeros@gmail.com> wrote:

On 4/21/2024 5:07 PM, Ben Collver wrote:
I do like FreeDOS as such, but I would argue that Linux is much more
adaptable to human use. But well, I just like unixoid systems a lot.
I did start with MS-DOS when I was a kid, and I liked it back then, but
it always had too many limitations.

From my start i tried to make DOS more Unix-like.  Borland had
grep.exe and i remember using DesqView for multi-tasking.

Soapbox time:

Now i use Linux as my daily driver.  As to whether Linux or DOS are
more human scale, i think it is similar to asking "Which is simpler?
ASCII or Unicode?"  The obvious answer is that ASCII is simpler
because it is a subset of Unicode.  But there's more to it than that.
All the world is not a Vax, so to say.

I still can't shake the obvious answer.  ASCII is easier to fit into
my head than Unicode.  The DOS source code is easier to grep through
than the Linux source code, simply because it is so much smaller.
A pocket-sized paper calendar seems to have fewer points of failure
than a digital calendar.

Another question is how far back will a retro-enthusiast rewind the
clock?  In my case i am not inclined to use an abacus, sliderule,
pre-ASCII, or even pseudo-ASCII computers.  But i think it is
important for people to enjoy those hobbies, if they wish, in order
to keep in touch with history and stay "honest".

I used to work with a supervisor whose father did not have a formal
education in engineering, but his hobby was to build model steam
engines that would perform different kinds of work.  Steam engines
are undeniably obsolete but the steam engine itself is not the
important part.  The important parts are the ingenuity and
resourcefulness that enable an uneducated person to construct working
steam engines.  In my mind, these are not associated with the status
quo.  They are outliers who are willing to try something different.

Linux used to be something different.  It was the upstart perceived as
too much of a risk by the business types.  Now it is Linux people in
positions of leadership who are labelling outliers as irrelevant.
Success went to their heads, so to say.