best language for 3D manipulation over web ?

[TGOS]

On Sun, 03 Jun 2001 14:46:42 GMT, "Bruce G. Stewart"
<bruce.g.stewart at worldnet.att.net> wrote:

<snip>

>> Do you think a nuclear power plant runs with Windows? Or maybe the software of
>> an airport tower? If that's the case, how many people do you think would die
>> during a blue screen error?
> 
> Most computer systems, even in the nuclear power and air transport
> industries, are not in life critical applications.

Interesting, so when the tower control software (that paints those little dots
onto your radar screen, including name and height of the airplane) all of a
sudden crashes and your whole screen is black, it's not life critical?

Oh wait, do you maybe want to tell me that those are no computer systems? There
are little draws behind the screen that pull little paper points over the
screen with their fingers, right?

Why the hell do you think does Micro$oft literally say in their license
agreement that you are not allowed to use their software in the two example
cases I mentioned above? To avoid that people do this as this could kill
people.

>> Do you think the majority of worldwide banks use Windows? An easy to hack,
>> insecure and not very stable operating system? A blue screen would mean loosing
>> millions of dollars a minute and a single hack would make every hacker a rich
>> man.
> 
> Yet most do use it. Not exclusively, but for desktop client machines,
> it's very pervasive throughout the financial industry.

Not at the banks where my friend was working (he's system administrator for
bank networks). The majority used OS/2 and Attila just told me about VMS,
something I'll have to ask my friend about next week (maybe he also worked with
that more often).
 
>> At my university are over 2,000 PCs and not a single one runs with Windows.
> 
> You are perhaps fortunate, but not typical.

Oh, I checked that at other universities and it's not different there.
They usually don't run Windows for lot's of reasons.

> Surely some individuals or departments could benefit from some
> commercial software that is only available for Windows.

Which kind of software could this be? Provide an example.
(and never forget that there's also commercial software for other platforms.
Why do all people always assume that every non-Windows application is either
for free or open source?)

> Are your systems implemented in some proprietary,
> non-cross-platform way?

What do you mean by that?
The OSes on those 2,000 PCs are regularly update and they are very up-to-date.

>> On which planet are you living?
>> You probably think that 99% of all CPUs currently in use are x86 CPUs, right?
>> Well, that's damn wrong. Not even 40% of all CPUs are x86 compatible ones.
>> (Source: Market Research of '99...not quite up-to-date, but there hasn't
>> changed that much in the last 1 and half years)
>> And with what OS do you think run the other 60%? Certainly not with Windows.
> 
> A large percentage of CPUs aren't in personal computers.

Never said they are.

> Many toil away in microwave ovens, cd players, electric toothbrushes, etc.

Don't forget:
Refrigerators, TV set top boxes, web pads, cars, etc.

> These aren't particularly relevent to questions about 3D
> graphic maniplulation over the www.

Let's assume your refrigerator has a WWW connection, so you could also surf
webpages with it. Why shouldn't you be able to access a 3D data base with it,
just because some shit-heads decided to use a Win32-only solution, instead of
an already existing cross-platform solution (that easily could have been
implemented into your refrigerator as well). Never thought about that?

What if you want to browse with a web pad, your set top box or with the new
mini computer in your new car in 5 years? Why do you want to exclude all those
users right from the start, instead of using a solution that will work for
everyone? Because you say that they won't want to access those 3D database? Who
are you to predict that, how can you really know?

Maybe people from a company want to access this database on their way to work
and now they can't because you said that won't ever happen? And then the whole
system must get rewritten for thousand of dollars, dollars that you can easily
safe by writing a cross-platform solution right now.

> [...] 
> 
> The main point of your post is well taken. A cross-platform interface
> standard is preferable to a platform specific one, other things being
> equal.

Especially in cases where a cross-platform solution already exists.

-- 
TGOS