Mac OS X should be more Linuxy

Recommended resources:

What is Mac OS X?
http://www.kernelthread.com/mac/osx/

... and Amit's upcoming book:

Mac OS X Internals
http://www.osxbook.com/

I agree with Al that Dan really doesn't know what he's talking about on this one. I love LowEndMac but merging OS X with Linux make no sense. Dan's experience with the install though, is very telling. Al, I'm sure most of the TUAW faithful could complete a Linux install, but the truth of the matter is that until people like my wife can do it, Linux will never be more than a niche player. I'm talking about general computer use and not the server market, where Linux obviously thrives. Oh, Dan's quote about the Intel switch being a perfect time to change kernels...dead wrong. They key to the Intel switch is minimal disruption to developers. Change the kernel and you've pretty much killed that.

Dan Knight doesn't have a bloody clue about kernel design. He can't even install a Linux distribution. The only source he sites for Mach sucking is a loose attribution to Microkernels in Wikipedia (that oh so reliable source) that doesn't really apply to Mach. Knight, stick to what you know, old macs.

Interesting article, if a very unfortunate title. What he's really saying is the OS X *kernel* needs work (we all know it does), not that "OS X is holding back the Mac" - hell, he spends most of the article detailing what a pain Linux can be. Meanwhile, the Linux kernel is exactly why a lot of the problems on Linux exist (lack of software installers, dependency hell, drivers must be compiled with the kernel, not added later). Linux and others are philosophically opposed to binary compatibility, only allowing source compatibility. If Apple moved to a Linux kernel, the ABI (application binary interface) could change with the next kernel rev, and you'd have to recompile all of your applications? Can't recompile Office or Photoshop? Ahem, re-BUY all of your applications. True, Apple could fork it and ensure that their version had a more stable ABI and graft I/O Kit onto it for properly loadable drivers, but it would probably be a lot better and easier to just work on eliminating the kernel funnels in Mach. There's a HUGE amount of good kernel info on both API's and the split funnel here: http://arstechnica.com/reviews/os/macosx-10.4.ars/4