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> "Windows came from the single-user domain. Unix came from server space." Windows 9x came from the single-user domain but is long dead except for compatibilit

> "Windows came from the single-user domain. Unix came from server space." Windows 9x came from the single-user domain but is long dead except for compatibility stuff left over in modern Windows. Windows NT and its successors came from server space from its VMS lineage.

ghostpepper 7y ago
I have to wonder what percentage of the Windows 10 codebase is for backwards compatibility.
oneplane 7y ago
While that is true, the win32 API and other stuff that floats on top of NT for the GUI based stuff (which is most stuff) is still very much restricted by that legacy. NT was supposed to be very tunable and modular and have multiple personalities and abstractions but it turns out it mostly is just win32-on-NT and everything else ended up being on top of win32. It has gotten better, especially post-OneCore, but it still is very much restricted compared to Linux, BSD and Unix. Windows NT (and VMS) were not as much multi-user server as they were more closer to mainframes (which died/are dying for their own reasons). VMS, like plan9, had concepts to allow many (theoretically) fancy server things, but were to much a created world instead of a grown world (like post-system-v). Also, while the VMS dude who was on the NT team did influence it heavily, the legacy they had to support made it almost impossible to use any of that fancy 'new' stuff back then. While it was orders of magnitude better than DOS, it feels like Windows needs to make yet another evolution like it did going from DOS to NT to get back to current times instead of patching on top of patches every time.
- mixmastamyk 7y ago
  Not expecting that to happen as MS is investing less in Windows.
  - pjmlp 7y ago
    Given that we just got the new SDK, DirectX 12 Ultimate is around the corner and release notes are a pleasure to read, it doesn't look to me like that.
- int_19h 7y ago
  Can you give any examples of Win32 API that manifest design flaws or restrictions due to "single-user domain" legacy?
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]

ghostpepper 7y ago

I have to wonder what percentage of the Windows 10 codebase is for backwards compatibility.

oneplane 7y ago

While that is true, the win32 API and other stuff that floats on top of NT for the GUI based stuff (which is most stuff) is still very much restricted by that legacy. NT was supposed to be very tunable and modular and have multiple personalities and abstractions but it turns out it mostly is just win32-on-NT and everything else ended up being on top of win32. It has gotten better, especially post-OneCore, but it still is very much restricted compared to Linux, BSD and Unix. Windows NT (and VMS) were not as much multi-user server as they were more closer to mainframes (which died/are dying for their own reasons). VMS, like plan9, had concepts to allow many (theoretically) fancy server things, but were to much a created world instead of a grown world (like post-system-v). Also, while the VMS dude who was on the NT team did influence it heavily, the legacy they had to support made it almost impossible to use any of that fancy 'new' stuff back then. While it was orders of magnitude better than DOS, it feels like Windows needs to make yet another evolution like it did going from DOS to NT to get back to current times instead of patching on top of patches every time.

mixmastamyk 7y ago
Not expecting that to happen as MS is investing less in Windows.
- pjmlp 7y ago
  Given that we just got the new SDK, DirectX 12 Ultimate is around the corner and release notes are a pleasure to read, it doesn't look to me like that.
int_19h 7y ago
Can you give any examples of Win32 API that manifest design flaws or restrictions due to "single-user domain" legacy?
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]