Did we all just witness Windows start to die?

[bbond007]

If Windows ARM had been full Windows (like Linux - same system, multiple architectures), they would have had something, especially with an x86-to-ARM (and vice versa) emulator. Instead, they're forcing everything through the 30%-cut Windows Store, cutting off decades worth of programs and reasons for using Windows. They had an opportunity to unify the platform - instead of just the UI - across form factors and they blew it.

At one point Windows NT did run just like you describe, on multiple architectures... I know, I has a ARC bios Olivetti prototype machine that ran NT 4.0 -  which was actually quite nice.  The machine has a MIPS processor. I had to chuck it when a cheap KVM blew out the PS2 port. before that, it would actually run 16bit x86 Windows programs under emulation but not 32bit.

[bbond007]

I think eventually x86 ond ARM will eventually converge on around the same power, price and performance per watt and then Windows RT will be irrelevant and will cease to exist.

Microsoft has the best development tools for business software, and there is a lot of momentum behind .NET. Legacy x86 software exits. etc.

Windows is not going anywhere...

[bbond007]

Being mainly an Apple person I haven't gotten to use Jelly Bean too much, what are some of the best new features of Jelly Bean?

running bitorrent client

I had iphone 1, 3 & 4 but switched to Galaxy S3 and the only thing i miss about the iPhone is how the voice mail works. Now I hate it when people leave me messages.

[bbond007]

I have to say I really didn't like Jobs as a person (and reading his biography didn't help), but the one this I did like about him was the fact that it felt like he actually used the products Apple sold.

That may be true, but I doubt he ever gone so far as to upgraded the OS on his personal iPhone...

Otherwise that process would be better...

[bbond007]

What's so hard about it? It does it for you with two finger taps!

never actually had it work right. Well, maybe once...Takes forever, more than once its crashed leaving the phone in an non-bootable state. Apple in all their user-friendliness cant check if you have enough space prior to starting, and I had a SSD.  If I NEVER see iTunes again it will be too soon.

[bbond007]

The only thing that really bothers me about the death of Windows is the potential for loss of Visual Studio as a DE.  I actually really like Visual Studio, to the extent that I think you'd have to be mad to develop Windows based applications with any other tool.

I like Linux but to my knowledge there isn't really a direct equivalent of a Visual Studio type of development environment on Linux? Correct me if I am wrong and I will happily go and check it out

Brian.

In the past you could choose one of the Borland products such as Delphi or C++ Builder, but you are absolutely correct... there is not much competition (from commercial products anyway) which is a shame. I believe both of those products were also available on Linux, however I seem to remember the Kylix IDE being a little unstable under Linux.

In Linux there are a lot of IDEs to choose from that you can use with the various GNU languages. Eclipse, Genie, CodeBlocks, etc...

xwpe is a clone of the old Borland "Turbo" IDE if you are nostalgic for that