🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <5gvbph$sp8$1@news.xmission.com>, hunterp@xmission.com says...
>
>In <858953572.987137@nntp-2.io.com>, timur@io.com (Timur Tabi) writes:
[SNIP]
>>Hmmm.... WPS on X?  Interesting idea.
>
>Why not. We already have a win95 look-a-like of fvwm. Pretty cheesy looking
>though.

I like this concept, but not from your perspective. Let me explain:

First - I think Timur meant an implementation of WPS on X for OS/2. This
would add some serious value to the OS (a REAL X-server!), solve a lot of
the problems with the SIQ and PM in general, and generally give OS/2 a
great deal more flexibility.

It would be quite a bit of work, though, to make it backward-compatible.
PM imposes some pretty specific ideas on application design that could be
a real pain in the ass to port. VIO windows would have to be redone, 
although this could be less of a problem than I think it is. Windows 
support would be difficult as well, or IBM could license WABI from Sun
and do a port. Or they could leave it as it is (see below).

X itself is freely available from the XFree86 ports, or (more likely)
IBM could roll its own X Servers.

For compatibility, a PM library would have to be written using Xlib. This
library would be a DLL shared by all PM applications. To fix the SIQ, the
library gives each PM application the impression (at least from its 
message queue standpoint) that it is the only PM app running. In fact,
though, the library has a queue for each application, and its own queue
using the X server's messages. The library would then map messages from
X to PM, and put them in the queue for the app. It would also map graphics
calls to their X equivalents. The only changes necessary to other window
classes would be if there was some kind of bug that make them incompatible
with the new PMLib.

This would also allow PM applications to display their output on a standard
X terminal, which would be a real plus for remote access and administration.

IBM would have to provide the SOM implementation for WPS, which would be
a client of the PMLib at first but could be redone to use X more efficiently.

You'd also need a window manager, probably with extensions for WPS. This
shouldn't be too hard to do.

In the best case, however, we would get a Display PostScript system with
font smoothing, color-level control, and real-time resolution and color
depth changes. Something that would make even NeXTStep look like dirt.

I get wood thinking about it. ;) 

But... it probably will never happen.
Such is life.

Sincerely,

Ben Romer