Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!samsung!crackers!jjmhome!acestes!paradis
From: paradis@acestes.UUCP (Jim Paradis)
Newsgroups: comp.os.minix
Subject: Re: Where is MINIX going?
Keywords: MINIX
Message-ID: <116@acestes.UUCP>
Date: 2 Dec 90 20:46:58 GMT
References: <61262@bbn.BBN.COM> <8395@star.cs.vu.nl>
Reply-To: paradis@acestes.UUCP (Jim Paradis)
Distribution: comp
Organization: Alberichs Rings & Things
Lines: 23


You took the words right outta my keyboard, Andy 8-)

Actually, as for 32-bit and VM and all that... I for one agree that
the official release of MINIX should be "lean and mean", and that you 
should resist creeping featureism as much as possible.  I have no problem 
with adding additional features (like the VM implementation I'm working 
on) as long as they remain unofficial additions to the base release
and not a part of the base system itself.  Bruce Evans, Earl Chew, et al
have shown us that "unofficial" need not mean "unprofessional".

Perhaps one way to "resist" the pressure to add features would be
to do what a lot of other OS vendors do:  have an "official" 
distribution, and also have an "unspported features" tape/disk
set.  The latter would contain all the goodies people are likely to
ask for but that you don't want to make part of the "official"
distribution.  It comes on a strictly as-is, no-support, buyer-beware
product (sort of like a lot of anonymous-ftp software is today).

It's a thought, and it's a way to keep the wolves at bay 8-)
-- 
Jim Paradis                  UUCP:  harvard!m2c!jjmhome!acestes!paradis
9 Carlstad St.               AT&T:  (508) 792-3810
Worcester, MA 01607-1569     ICBM:  42deg 13' 52",  71deg 47' 51"