The Matrix has you

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The Matrix has you

By: Sushil Mayengbam *

What is Matrix ? - The Matrix is a computer generated program simulating the fake-world.

This is a very popular tagline from the famous movie character 'The Matrix'. The above statement seems to be conspicious on the current Indian context if we co-related with the computer aspect. Tens of thousands of millions of common people are still believing the falsity that the Micro$oft is the ultimate in the computing arena.

They [Micro$oft] are generating a simulated belief to the Indian-layman's mindset giving an impression that the 'Windows OS' is really the one. This would be the millinieum 'Matrix', if I'm not a cranky fellow. How many Windows/Micro$oft products have been pirated for the last decade or so in India?

That is innumerable - and it would be so because this is the Matrix-like impression insisted on the mindset. People feel it is the truth whereas I would suggest it's not so. Well it's true to the facts and figures that early-Indian computing era is intertwined with the MSDOS and old Windows version.

The concept of open-source do exist at those time but Microsoft impression is so strong that any Indian-Neo could not hack the utimate falsify-impression to bring about the real open-source impression. I strongly belief the open-source in terms of ethical standards, productivity, fraternity, congeniality and by far the eclectic technolgy.

Why I'm saying so is directly related to the scenario of developing nation like our country. Had I been born in far-developed nation, perharps I could not spell these things. But even then there's a truth that most of the developed nations had started Linux in their bussiness enterprises. Our country [forget about goverment orgns] has also started feeling the burning sensation of open-system elegant qualities, but far lately compare to western nations. I bet this late sensation is quite good rather than meandering out of it.

Linux is what I would call a 21st Millenium Neo. Is there anything else it cannot do algorithmically or efficiently?

It is the outcome of tens of thousands of passionated programmers across the globe. Anything else in it is doing in a transparent way unlike 'closing the door..do something else..bring about a new product' sort of things. I agree the very fact that there's some issue of linux on rendering mp3 files and the so called GPL3 licensing figure.

Apart from it, i don't see any cranky issues out of this box. Some nutty isues like 'unable to mount ntfs etc' are claiming. For them, i would suggest to shoot themselve before raising those 'silly' issues. The patches/tips/HowTos for those related issues are there across the net. Again , How many windowing system are lying for unix like system? Depends on the number of them we've seen so far.

How many for windows OS? Only one and only one. what else? I'm really feeling pity about the windows users for doing and seeing the same thing again and again and again. Are they not getting bored on seeing the torpid and stomping windows logo when they boot for the first time?? Are they not getting bored on the same graphical interface for playing different programs? Are they not getting flabbergasted on the the infamous 'blue screen of dead'? Are they not getting feeling shame when the linux penguin is dancing multifariously above the windows screen?

These are the common sense intuitive questions coming on any linux user. I'm not a Linux evangelist nor am I a Linux crusader against Microsoft. The only thing I feel is that I found Linux a good programming platform and the Microsoft an ostentatious decieving one. The success of open-source propanganda specially the Linux OS is against the famous 'Brooks' Law.

Brooks' Law says 'The complexity and communication costs of a project rise with the square of the number of developers, while the work done rises only linearly, at best'.

The number of linux developers is increasing exponentially without losing the communication flow among the developers. This is in sync with the Linus' Law - 'Given enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow'. I don't know which law is fitted/unsuited for Microsoft OS. May be a dotNet/dashNet/hyphenNet programmer could spell out the answer!!!

I may be saying and bitting the Microsoft very hard in a way unprecedentedly. But looking very closer and deeply I found myself giving my early days programming skill credit only to it only. I respect and appreciate every Microsoft innovative move. Even their maxim 'your potential, our passion' is pretty good.

They're really immaculate in every of their motions - be it on entertainment arena or any software. I'm sure that Linux OS is popular because of Microsoft Windows only. Linux is following the Windows pave only so far. They're doing the second impression of Windows OS but doing and implemented in a different way. I'm especially talking about the outer issue not the internal OS architecture.

Well the dice is already rolled out. I've given my bet on open-source already.

Let's see whether I lose myself or not!!!

Sushil Mayengbam, a software Engineer in New Delhi and GNU/LINUX enthusiast, writes regularly to e-pao.net
He can be contacted at [email protected]
This article was webcasted on May 25, 2006.

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