Re: GNOME/Freedesktop/redhat incompetent or malicious influence

On 10/13/2024 16:37, D wrote:

  On Sun, 13 Oct 2024, Phillip Frabott wrote:
 

That's a good point. Maybe the OS-level is so mature, that not much remains to be added.
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In terms of desktop, my retired father has happily used linux for 10+ years so I'd argue that given an honest look, the linux desktop is actually far better than any commercial alternatives.
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But, being the tech-optimist that I am, that raises the question, will there be another paradigm shift in OS:s? If so, what could it be?
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I would think this would only happen/be necessary if/when a technological change in hardware happens that would cause more capability beyond the standard scope of what we have now. Remember, the OS is just an interface between the hardware below it and the software on top of it. It doesn't (and shouldn't) do much more then that. It's just an interface and mediator to share 1 piece of hardware with multiple pieces of software at the same time. So when you think about it, the real question is, what hardware paradigm shift will happen that will need the OS to be changed significantly.

 The only thing I can think of that would be radically different would be
quantum computers. Maybe it will work in 20-30 years or so, and perhaps
that will bring with it changes?

It would honestly depend on how different the processing of input and output is from the hardware-level kernel exposure. Meaning, what interfaces does the kernel need to interface with a quantum processor and is it significant enough to warrant an incompatible change with existing kernels. Because software input/output wouldn't really change between the kernel/OS and the application. The data is just different but the method to get the data to the kernel for processing is likely not to change much (but I could be wrong). I mean if you go into the current kernel you will still find implementation to use internet-based applications over a ham (amateur) radio interface. I mean you can literally run a radio-only telnet/SSH server over radio transmission without any internet connectivity at all. But because the input/output between the kernel and the application is the same regardless of if it's over amateur radio or Ethernet, there is not enough to warrant a paradigm shift. So it all will just depend on exactly how interfacing with a quantum computer would work. It'll be an interesting subject that's for sure. I'll probably be too old by then to really figure it out though. heh.

 On the other hand, another perspective on a computer interfaces is that
I formulate things I want to do, and enter those formulations through an
input device, and read the putput from an output device.
 The physical world hasn't changed much, and the GUI does seem to do the
job quite well, I mean, with a terminal and a GUI, I do not feel
constrained in any way.
 On the other hand, that's why they call it a paradigm shift, since I am
probably not even aware of the next paradigm, so maybe I am contrained
after all, I just do not know it. ;)
 

I think a Gibsonian cyberspace is probably not the future.

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If that happens, we'll all just hack the Gibson. The police will be on us in like, 10 minutes. And if we all do it together we can do it in 5 minutes, Lord Nikon will safe all our a**es. Lets go shopping!

 True! ;)
 

--
Phillip Frabott
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- Adam: Is a void really a void if it returns?
- Jack: No, it's just nullspace at that point.
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