> Mike is right, I didn't mean such extremes...
Of course not. My first response was meant to be sarcasm.
> And Mike is right about the platforms, too.
> OSs (plural) for the x86 platform should be able to
> support all the hardware available for the platform.
But it isn't the responsibility of the OS company to support all hardware. All hardware for the x86 platform should support every OS available. So while I'll agree with you, I'll disagree about who is to blame. A decent hardware company should support every OS they can.
> And they should start with the most common. I'd like Linux to
> support my Matrox Marvel G400, PS/2 mouse, CD-RW and HP DeskJet 930
The OS company may not know a single thing about the Matrox Marvel G400. On the other hand, the most OSs have published documentation on creating device drivers for the OS.
> I am much like Mike I guess - I like computers and love to learn about
> them no matter what platform or OS, but I want my mouse to work.
Then buy a better mouse. :)
If you buy a new tire for your car and the car starts pulling so bad that you can't keep it on the road, who is to blame? Don't blame the car manufacturer just because the car doesn't support whatever tire you want to buy.
Jon
