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0 pointsDalewyn2y ago0 comments

>Not GP, but I think NT as a whole is great OS. It likely has the largest and oldest software repository out there, excluding phone app shovelware.

The sheer history and depth of the Win32 library of programs is the reason Windows continues to be dominant in the desktop space.

Just the other week we had a thread about how Windows 11 will happily run Win32 programs from 30 years ago. Kudos to Microsoft, their dedication to backwards compatibility is exceptional.

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eru2y ago· 1 in thread

> Just the other week we had a thread about how Windows 11 will happily run Win32 programs from 30 years ago. Kudos to Microsoft, their dedication to backwards compatibility is exceptional.

Yes, that is indeed a strong point. They place great emphasis on upgrading your Windows being a no-brainer, instead of a potentially risky decision.

(As developers we dislike the ugly technical compromises that brings. But the consumer benefit is definitely there.)

Btw, the Linux kernel people are also quite fanatical about not breaking user space. But the rest of the Linux ecosystem ain't.

See https://www.computerworld.com/article/2821929/torvalds-patch...

hot_gril2y ago

> Btw, the Linux kernel people are also quite fanatical about not breaking user space. But the rest of the Linux ecosystem ain't.

Yes, even for basic end users. If I'm just using Ubuntu, the entire GUI layout changes randomly over the years for no reason. And we have Linux workstations at work that I hardly use; one day, they all changed desktop environments because of some chain of incompatibilities involving X and Wayland, idk idc.

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