Re: Progress on AdaOS (Was: Re: How Ada could have prevented the Red

["Marin David Condic" <dont.bother.mcondic.auntie.spam@[acm.org>]

First off, lets clarify a couple of things. I am not involved with AdaOS and
am not in any way shape or form looking to be involved with AdaOS. Hence I'm
not targeting anything for any market. What I am observing is that AdaOS is
Vaporware and one of the reasons is that (IMHO) nobody is getting paid or
seeing some way of eventually getting paid for having been involved in
developing it. My contention is that the closer the connection is between
doing some work and seeing some money from it, the more likely you are to
see the work getting done. This is just basic human psychology - ask any
first-year psych student.

Second off, you are not correct in stating that MacOS and Windows## are $0
in cost. When you buy a computer that has this already installed the cost of
the OS is simply part of the cost of the computer. Do you believe it when a
car dealer tells you "I'm throwing in the bucket seats and spoiler trim
package free!" Of course he isn't. Whatever it costs him to have those
bucket seats and trim packages installed is going to be figured into the
profit margin he needs on the sale of the car in order to stay in business.
Same goes for the computer manufacturer who installs Windows for you.

Now as to how somebody (not me!) is going to make money on AdaOS? Your guess
is as good as mine. Maybe like Act, Cygnus, Red Hat, et alia, they end up
making something by selling support & training. Will that be the guys who
are writing the OS? (If in fact anybody is writing anything) Again, your
guess is as good as mine. Will they be able to sell a CD with AdaOS on it
for $29.95? Maybe. Who knows? Its their problem. My observation remains the
same: If nobody is seeing any financial rewards for working on it, the
chances that it gets completed are going to diminish.

When Bill Gates woke up one day and said "I think I'm gonna build me an OS!"
and threw a few million at the development of WinNT, he eventually got
himself an OS - more or less according to plan and on schedule. What do you
suppose the odds are that if I post here "Will somebody go write me an OS in
Ada - just because I want one - and no, I don't have any money to give you
when you deliver it to me." that I'll get one while holding my breath? :-)

MDC
--
Marin David Condic
Senior Software Engineer
Pace Micro Technology Americas    www.pacemicro.com
Enabling the digital revolution
e-Mail:    marin.condic@pacemicro.com
Web:      http://www.mcondic.com/


"David Starner" <dvdeug@x8b4e53cd.dhcp.okstate.edu> wrote in message
news:9lujcr$aai2@news.cis.okstate.edu...
>
> What niche are targetting with this OS? If you're targetting anywhere
> around the desktop/server area:
>
> Linux: $0 (CD's in the $2-$10 range, boxes in the $20-$100 range)
> *BSD: $0 (CD's in the $2-$30 range)
> BeOS: $0 (boxes in the $100 area)
> MacOS X: $0 (with computer) (boxes in the $100 range)
> Windows##: $0 (with computer) (boxes in the $100-$200 range)
> Windows NT: $100s
>
> Considering that 5 out of the 6 are in the $0 range for most people,
> and 2 out of the 6 have no use or distribution restrictions*,
> that Linux will be bigger, badder and still free when you get AdaOS done,
> and Windows NT's big selling points are amount of software and full
Windows
> compatibility, I think moving into this niche with a non-$0 price-tag is
> a sure sign of failure.
>
> * Excluding a few distributions, and talking in a practical sense for
> an end user or company.
>