4 ms·

Fortunately, Microsoft seems to be moving towards: Windows as "just another Linux distribution" with a backwards compatibility layer. Previous Step: Linux comp

Fortunately, Microsoft seems to be moving towards: Windows as "just another Linux distribution" with a backwards compatibility layer. Previous Step: Linux compatibility layer on Windows. https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/install https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/install Current Step: Get DirectX to be first-class on Linux. https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Microsoft-DXGKRNL-v3-Linux https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Microsof... Next Steps: Get the Windows GUI + Win32 APIs + backwards compatibility layer to run on WSL2. Port the best parts of NT to the Linux kernel. Final Step: Replace NT+WSL2, with the Linux kernel. Use the current devs/tests/etc working on NT for better ROI (from a business customer perspective the NT kernel is no longer a positive differentiation).

noveltyaccount 4y ago
Are those final two steps (next, final) pure speculation on your part? I'd be surprised if Windows threw out NT and moved to Linux kernel, and yet at the same time, it sounds like a great idea IMO (WSL2 + Docker is already a great experience for software development).
- stevewatson301 4y ago
  Not the parent commenter but this isn’t as far fetched as it seems. Since much is abstracted by the Win32 and other APIs, they could write something to do exactly this.
  - layer8 4y ago
    This seems unlikely to me. For example, the threading model (non-forking) and file system semantics (locking, permissions, etc.) are wildly different. You’d need a complex compatibility layer and effectively two classes of applications (legacy and linux-y).
    - yazaddaruvala 4y ago
      If they can build WSL2, and WINE can be built without MSFTs help, I’m not sure what is left to doubt. At that point the only question is “Is the one time cost of building the compat layer less than the ongoing cost of improving NT? Building windows specific drivers? Etc”. “One time cost” is always going to win the negotiation in the long run.
- yazaddaruvala 4y ago
  Pure speculation! but the more I write about it, the more it’s likely to get read by a Microsoft VP, and the more it’s likely to happen :) That said, truly it’s a no brainer. For the future of Microsoft, all paths lead to windows/linux (maybe windows/bsd but way way less likely).
loudmax 4y ago
After embracing Linux, that would definitely extend it. Wonder what would come next.
- yazaddaruvala 4y ago
  I know where you’re coming from, but the reality is MSFT no longer has that ability. 1. Desktop/laptop OS based revenue is in decline. There is no reason for it to go up again. Between Chromebooks on the cheap end, MacBooks on the expensive end, and iOS and Android supporting an increasing number of productivity and content creation apps “with a free OS”, there is not much room for new and soon old companies to pay for OS licenses (other than legacy custom code - being “actively” migrated to Azure). 2. Because of Azure competing with AWS and GCP with a Linux distribution, MSFT already has teams with Linux expertise and working on improvements. This can’t get “extinguished” people just migrate Linux workloads elsewhere. This leaves us with: > Wonder what would come next Likely more improvements to the Linux kernel from MSFT. Maybe even a big push of Linux to Rust (with Amazon and Google as partners). A bigger push from MSFT to get hardware manufacturers to build open source drivers into the kernel directly (so MSFT doesn’t need to fund the work for each of them). Maybe even “Windows” over Wayland. Basically windows/linux rather than gnu/linux. Likely more applications built on DirectX + Linux native (ie without Win32). Maybe even Office without Win32. A Windows compat layer for gtk or qt or Flutter or whatever is good at the time. Even if only for new application creation. Likely, given the direction of gaming at MSFT, DirectX (or whatever they call it) competes with Unreal for cross platform game stuff. For the next big revenue stream for MSFT from game devs (including their internal studios).

noveltyaccount 4y ago

Are those final two steps (next, final) pure speculation on your part? I'd be surprised if Windows threw out NT and moved to Linux kernel, and yet at the same time, it sounds like a great idea IMO (WSL2 + Docker is already a great experience for software development).

stevewatson301 4y ago
Not the parent commenter but this isn’t as far fetched as it seems. Since much is abstracted by the Win32 and other APIs, they could write something to do exactly this.
- layer8 4y ago
  This seems unlikely to me. For example, the threading model (non-forking) and file system semantics (locking, permissions, etc.) are wildly different. You’d need a complex compatibility layer and effectively two classes of applications (legacy and linux-y).
  - yazaddaruvala 4y ago
    If they can build WSL2, and WINE can be built without MSFTs help, I’m not sure what is left to doubt. At that point the only question is “Is the one time cost of building the compat layer less than the ongoing cost of improving NT? Building windows specific drivers? Etc”. “One time cost” is always going to win the negotiation in the long run.
yazaddaruvala 4y ago
Pure speculation! but the more I write about it, the more it’s likely to get read by a Microsoft VP, and the more it’s likely to happen :) That said, truly it’s a no brainer. For the future of Microsoft, all paths lead to windows/linux (maybe windows/bsd but way way less likely).

loudmax 4y ago

After embracing Linux, that would definitely extend it. Wonder what would come next.

yazaddaruvala 4y ago
I know where you’re coming from, but the reality is MSFT no longer has that ability. 1. Desktop/laptop OS based revenue is in decline. There is no reason for it to go up again. Between Chromebooks on the cheap end, MacBooks on the expensive end, and iOS and Android supporting an increasing number of productivity and content creation apps “with a free OS”, there is not much room for new and soon old companies to pay for OS licenses (other than legacy custom code - being “actively” migrated to Azure). 2. Because of Azure competing with AWS and GCP with a Linux distribution, MSFT already has teams with Linux expertise and working on improvements. This can’t get “extinguished” people just migrate Linux workloads elsewhere. This leaves us with: > Wonder what would come next Likely more improvements to the Linux kernel from MSFT. Maybe even a big push of Linux to Rust (with Amazon and Google as partners). A bigger push from MSFT to get hardware manufacturers to build open source drivers into the kernel directly (so MSFT doesn’t need to fund the work for each of them). Maybe even “Windows” over Wayland. Basically windows/linux rather than gnu/linux. Likely more applications built on DirectX + Linux native (ie without Win32). Maybe even Office without Win32. A Windows compat layer for gtk or qt or Flutter or whatever is good at the time. Even if only for new application creation. Likely, given the direction of gaming at MSFT, DirectX (or whatever they call it) competes with Unreal for cross platform game stuff. For the next big revenue stream for MSFT from game devs (including their internal studios).