[Fwd: If Operating Systems were Airlines] (fwd)

...a FYI I got in the pipeline this a.m.....


If Operating Systems were Airlines...

DOS AIR

All the passengers go out onto the runway, grab hold of the plane, push
it until it gets in the air, hop on, jump off when it hits the ground
again. Then they grab the plane again, push it back into the air, hop
on, etcetera.

WINDOWS '95 AIRLINES

The terminal is very neat and clean, the attendants are all very
attractive and the pilots very capable. The fleet is immense. After your
plane arrives 6 months late, you begin to wonder why it has not arrived
yet. Your jet takes off without a hitch, pushing above the clouds, and
at 20,000 feet it crashes without warning.

MAC AIRWAYS

The cashiers, flight attendants, and pilots all look the same, feel the
same and act the same. When asked questions about the flight they reply
that you don't want to know, don't need to know, and would you please
return to your seat and watch the movie.

OS/2 SKYWAYS

The terminal is almost empty, with only a few prospective passengers
milling about. Airline personnel walk around, apologising profusely to
customers in hushed voices, pointing from time to time to the sleek,
powerful jets outside the terminal on the field. They tell each
passenger how good the real flight will be on these new jets and how
much safer it will be than Windows Airlines, but that they will have to
wait a little longer for the technicians to finish the flight systems.

FLY WINDOWS NT

All the passengers carry their seats out onto the tarmac, placing the
chairs in the outline of a plane. They all sit down, flap their arms and
make jet swooshing sounds as if they are flying.

WINGS of OS/400

The airline has bought ancient DC-3s, arguably the best and safest
planes that ever flew and painted "747" on their tails to make them look
as if they are fast. The flight attendants, of course, attend to your
every need, though the drinks cost $15 a pop. Stupid questions cost $230
per hour, unless you have SupportLine, which requires a first class
ticket and membership in the frequent flyer club.

MVS AIRLINES

The passengers all gather in the hanger, watching hundreds of
technicians check the flight systems on this immense, luxury aircraft.
This plane has at least 10 engines and seats over 1,000 passengers. All
the passengers scramble aboard, as do the necessary complement of 200
technicians. The pilot takes his place up in the glass cockpit. He guns
the engines, only to realise that the plane is too big to get through
the hangar doors!

UNIX EXPRESS

Each passenger brings a piece of the airplane and a box of tools to the
airport. They gather on the tarmac, arguing constantly about what kind
of plane they want to build and how to put it together. Eventually, they
build several different aircraft, but give them all the same name. Some
passengers actually reach their destinations. All passengers believe
they got there.





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