Win4Lin

Program Info

Terminal Command	win or fwin
Program URL	http://www.netraverse.com/products/win4lin50/

The big claim of Win4Lin is speed. The program doesn't start a virtual machine, but instead runs a DOS environment by translating Windows operations to Linux operations using hooks in the kernel. W4L is definitely a program for the more experienced Linux user, but its speed claim is justified. I admit to not being someone who enjoys patching the Linux kernel, but I have gotten Win4Lin working with a fair amount of tweaking and swearing. When the program is installed and working, running Windows is pretty easy. Because a copy of Windows is running, getting your favorite Windows programs to work isn't too hard.

There are limitations to Win4Lin's speed demon approach. With DOS running, you can use only Windows, 95, 98, or Me. They are working on supporting newer versions of Windows, but I'm sure that requires great changes to the program. You need a copy of Windows to install, and, yes, you should have a legal copy of Windows. If you are a person who tends to update the Linux kernel yourself, you are dependent on the company that makes Win4Lin, NeTraverse, for kernel updates to keep running Win4Lin. One of the bigger limitations in Win4Lin is that the program lacks DirectX support. That means no games or multimedia applications for you with W4L. Finally, and this might not be a limitation as much as it is a consideration, Win4Lin is a commercial program that you have to buy.

On the bright side, besides the speed with which Win4Lin runs, you can count on the program to reliably run many Windows programs. Supported programs include these:

• Microsoft Office

• Adobe Photoshop

• Dreamweaver

• Adobe Illustrator

• Lotus SmartSuite

• Internet Explorer

• Norton Anti-Virus

• Adobe FrameMaker

Win4Lin also supports sound playback and Windows networking. With the graphical installer, speed, and reliable performance, W4L is a good program for moderate to advanced Linux users.

FRIDGE

Message for the Man in the Ten-Gallon Hat

If you are standing in the middle of a Starbucks in the suburbs of Oregon in a giant cowboy hat, a western shirt covered in shiny pearl snaps, a giant belt buckle, and pointy little boots, I have to laugh at you. What are you pretending? The stern cowboy look on your face isn't helping. You're still a man chasing an image and playing dress-up. How can anyone take you seriously when you use a giant white hat to try to project who you think you are?

Dude, listen to me. There are no cows in the shopping center. There is nothing to wrangle in the Target parking lot. There are no little doggies or tumbleweeds in the Barnes and Noble bookstore.

Try to deal in the reality you and your big belt buckle are now standing in.