The emerging internet operating system.

August 23, 2002 7:22 AM

The emerging internet operating system. Tim O'Reilly has seen the future. "It's just not evenly distributed yet." Alpha Geeks know things we'll all be learning soon: the Internet is an operating system. And they're busy building applications for it. Bonus:the article is heavily annotated for further reading!
Yes, he's talking to Apple developers, and applauds OS X, but this is not an Apple post. If you prefer, he makes the same points and applauds Sun in a speech to their developers.
posted by putzface_dickman (4 comments total)

He makes some good points there. At the moment Microsoft is at the pinnacle of their dominance. But it won't always be like this. Throughout history great companies, great empires have come and gone. Whatever the future is, i bet MS won't invent it :)
posted by derbs at 8:39 AM on August 23, 2002

Thanks, putzface. Good post, even if I don't have anything useful to add.

Maybe I just wanted to be able to type "putzface".
posted by fuzz at 11:58 AM on August 23, 2002

I think saying thanks for the link is pretty useful, so thanks putzface! (heh, you're right. It's fun typing that.) As a recent OS X convert, I gotta say I'm really psyched about computing now. Even went as far as to install Debian on and old box and I'm, gasp, trying to learn PostgreSQL. I swore off programming back when I ran DOS 3.3 and Mac OS X/Linux drags me right back in.

Now all we need is pgaccess for OS X and I'd be set.

Oh, and I'd never heard of KCRW before iTunes. Best. Station. Evar.
posted by Tacodog at 1:34 PM on August 23, 2002

Although my paycheck depends on the success of the Microsoft/Intel duopoly, I've always had a lot of heart for Apple. Any every time I get a new computer for home I think about getting a Mac knowing I would need to keep it a secret at work. OS X intrigues me and if the TiBook was priced like my WinTel notebook I might have switched over to the dark side. But then I'd have to buy all new software: My Adobe and MS Apps only run on the PC.

Also, derbs' point about Microsoft being at their pinnacle is correct which is why they fight with every dollar they have to keep their dominance. If MS didn't reinvent Windows and Office in 95 when the web was taking off, it would be a different landscape today.

MS probably won't be the dominant force in the distant future. It will probably get killed/neutered by some kids in a garage somewhere on the cusp of inventing "the next big thing."

Great post putzface!
posted by birdherder at 2:19 PM on August 23, 2002