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RE: Windows-style pathname does not work as command - why?


> Date: Wed, 8 Sep 2010 15:39:09 -0400
> From: cgf
> To: cygwin
> Subject: Re: Windows-style pathname does not work as command - why?
>
> >>>> Isn't the whole reason for Cygwin actually to enable doing Unixy things
> >>>> in Windows (that is, providing Windows/Unix interoperablity?
> >>>
> >>> No, that's not a key goal. From the Cygwin main web page:
> >>>
> >>> Cygwin is a Linux-like environment for Windows
> >>
> >> Well, I (and my employer) would not be using Cygwin if it wasn't for
> >> the Windows integration, in particular the ability to plug POSIX and
> >> Windows programs together.
> >>
> >> If I just wanted to run Linux software on Windows, I'd use a virtual
> >> machine or coLinux. While Cygwin's lower resource usage is nice to
> >> have, that's easily outweighed by the inevitable compatibility and
> >> performance drawbacks that come with building on top of Win32.
> >
> >There are allot of different reasons people choose to use Cygwin.
>
> Correct. And, people apparently find Cygwin useful even when their
> usage does not 100% align with the stated project goals. That does not
> mean that we're going to change the goals and, given the project goals,
> it certainly doesn't mean that it's a bug when a Windows-specific usage
> like a MS-DOS path doesn't work in a Cygwin program.
>
To be fair (as opposed to just mean) Cygwin does provide other tools to
aid in interoperability, such as, cygpath and run (and run2). Being Unixy
(Linuxy) is just more important than supporting Windowsisms. If the
priorities were reversed, Cygwin would be less useful overall.
 
Thanks,
 
...Karl 		 	   		  

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