5 ms·

I remember doing this using X forwarding 10 years ago. Of course there is the potential here to implement something more performant, but for things like develop

I remember doing this using X forwarding 10 years ago. Of course there is the potential here to implement something more performant, but for things like development tasks where 3D acceleration isn't so important, this has been possible since forever. So I wonder what's so exciting about it?

jpalomaki 6y ago
It's convenient to get everything out-of-the-box with minimal configuration and supported by the operating system vendor. I think that's the main point of the WSL. Most of the things people are using it for could have been done for years with a separate Linux VM, but getting smooth experience was not trivial.
coldtea 6y ago
Did "X forwarding" give you seamless access to local Windows files automatically? Did it work with microphones and other peripherals like this says it does? Heck, was it even built-in into Windows with first-class support from Microsoft? That's what's so "exciting about it".
- ubercow13 6y ago
  Not automatically, but yes if you set up a network share? I mean yes, the fact everything is set up by default and supported is very nice, and some integrations are better than they would have been before such as sharing peripherals. But we are talking about something that is specifically for developers here. Many people are saying that WSL has finally let them use Windows for development, as if it was really impossible before before.
  - coldtea 6y ago
    >Many people are saying that WSL has finally let them use Windows for development, as if it was really impossible before before. It didn't have to be impossible for them to say that. A subpar, messy to setup, and incovenient experience (as it was) would have been enough to make it unusable... I've used X-Window servers to servers, plus local Cygwin on Windows in the past. I'd take WSL over that any day of the week...
thekyle 6y ago
This feels a lot like that infamous comment left on the Dropbox thread. > For a Linux user, you can already build such a system yourself quite trivially by getting an FTP account, mounting it locally with curlftpfs, and then using SVN or CVS on the mounted filesystem. From Windows or Mac, this FTP account could be accessed through built-in software.

jpalomaki 6y ago

It's convenient to get everything out-of-the-box with minimal configuration and supported by the operating system vendor. I think that's the main point of the WSL. Most of the things people are using it for could have been done for years with a separate Linux VM, but getting smooth experience was not trivial.

coldtea 6y ago

Did "X forwarding" give you seamless access to local Windows files automatically? Did it work with microphones and other peripherals like this says it does? Heck, was it even built-in into Windows with first-class support from Microsoft? That's what's so "exciting about it".

ubercow13 6y ago
Not automatically, but yes if you set up a network share? I mean yes, the fact everything is set up by default and supported is very nice, and some integrations are better than they would have been before such as sharing peripherals. But we are talking about something that is specifically for developers here. Many people are saying that WSL has finally let them use Windows for development, as if it was really impossible before before.
- coldtea 6y ago
  >Many people are saying that WSL has finally let them use Windows for development, as if it was really impossible before before. It didn't have to be impossible for them to say that. A subpar, messy to setup, and incovenient experience (as it was) would have been enough to make it unusable... I've used X-Window servers to servers, plus local Cygwin on Windows in the past. I'd take WSL over that any day of the week...

thekyle 6y ago

This feels a lot like that infamous comment left on the Dropbox thread. > For a Linux user, you can already build such a system yourself quite trivially by getting an FTP account, mounting it locally with curlftpfs, and then using SVN or CVS on the mounted filesystem. From Windows or Mac, this FTP account could be accessed through built-in software.