From: josh (josh@lag.net)
Date: Fri Aug 18 2000 - 13:06:26 PDT
.A quote from this article: (referring to the mindcraft "scandal")
=============================
What's more, Microsoft last year began to take notice of Linux. In
the spring, for example, it released a study showing that Windows NT
outperformed Linux in some common computing tasks.
The study caused an uproar in the Linux camp, with Mr. Torvalds and
others suggesting at the time that they had somehow been rigged.
Subsequent tests, though, showed Microsoft was right, and in his
interview, Mr. Torvalds conceded that he initially had been "in denial" on
the matter.
. "We had been arrogant," he said, adding it was painful for him
to admit that Windows was better than Linux, at least in the areas covered
by the Microsoft test
============================
http://www.msnbc.com/news/447916.asp?0nm=N11O
I personally worked on those early performance tests. Our initial data was
from tests
we ran in the MSFT perf labs. They were honestly done, and we spent a fair
amount
of time tuning the linux box to let it shine.
Further, my colleagues and I were surprised by the results. The main point
of the tests and the halloween documents was to instill fear in management
and show Linux as a competitive threat. I honesty thought linux would
have faired better in the tests than it did. In fact, I was personally
expecting
to "show up" the NT perf team. When it didn't I tried to tune the machine
and even test different things to help linux show its strength.
Later, mindcraft ran similar tests, with similar results.
So, seeing these quotes, and Linus's commendable candor, is somewhat
personally satisfying. MSFT isnt the only one who can be accused of
being arrogant and ignoring the facts.
On a personal note, for all those that echo'ed Linus's original kneejerk
reaction, taking it
as fact and rabidly maligning work that we had performed honestly, and even
in some
cases maligned us personally,
"STICK IT UP YOUR ASS!"
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Fri Aug 18 2000 - 13:09:35 PDT