Re: [tlug] Speaking of computer usage ....

["SL Baur" <steve@example.com>]

On 2/29/08, Stephen J. Turnbull <turnbull@example.com> wrote:

> Do either of you remember the last time you rebooted because of an OS
>  fault?

Good question, but make it on a non-experimental kernel running
either Linux or commercial Unix.  When I was Linux kernel hacking
at NEC I crashed Linux all the time when I was fiddling with writing
my own kernel modules and debugging Linux 2.5.

Certainly not this millenium.  I think the last time was in 1998 when
I was having an animated discussion with my boss (Steve-san
knows just how animated I can get in certain kinds of conversations)
and well, I um, gestured too dramatically and caused a removable
hard disk cartridge to eject while it was mounted and that caused
a reboot.  (The boss man was angrily describing what happened at
the previous night's school board meeting - he was a school board
superintendent, and I agreed with him perhaps a bit too forcefully).

But if you mean anything, it was last year when I was fiddling with
notebook computers running "rock solid and stable" Microsoft
Windows XP.  That crashes or locks up requiring a reboot all the
time - usually a couple times a week.

In the environment of notebook computer, wireless internet and
primary applications being web browsing and World Of Warcraft
over a similar timeframe (about 8 months each) the score is:

Mac OS X - 0 crashes/lockups.
Microsoft Windows XP (business enterprise) - ?? I lost count.

-sb