[humorix] Get Ready For Transparent Network Transparency

[James Baughn <jbaughn@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Get Ready For Transparent Network Transparency
June 6, 2004
By Mikkel Kamstrup Erlandsen, kamstrup [at] daimi [dot] au [dot] dk

A new project called LiNukes has been announced that aspires to
become the "the next generation of X." This alternative X
implementation introduces a brand new concept conceived by the
LiNukes team called Transparent Network Transparency (TNT).
Much like Lindows/Linspire/Linwhatever, LiNukes is designed
with Windows users as the target audience.

In the following exclusive interview, the founder of LiNukes,
Mr. H. Alfwit, talks about the new project.

Q: "So how does TNT work?"

A: "In all its simplicity, TNT takes a standard X
implementation and wraps it up in obscure code to eliminate any
signs of network transparancy. The network transparency is
transparent! Using our patented TNT-API, it will be very hard
to implement any graphical program that can be run on a remote
server and show up on your own screen. This way we hope to
attract a lot of Windows developers, since they don't have to
familiarize themselves with the concept of network
transparancy."

Q: "Windows does have a bit of network transparancy... You are
able to enter an URL in the filemanager. Do you have any
features like that?"

A: "It is not that network transparancy is impossible with TNT.
It is just harder to implement in your application. Speaking of
IE or the Windows filemanager, we have also adopted another
design concept of Windows. With careful surgery-like coding, we
have tied the whole desktop, filemanager, browser, e-mail
client, you name it, directly into the Linux kernel. This way
if anything crashes, everything crashes. This ensures that you
will always know if your LiNukes operating system is fully
functional. Any bug will effect the entire system, and thus
will be to easier find."

Q: "Doesn't the close tie between kernel and desktop lead to
security issues?"

A: "Not really. Any security issues related to this are
outweighed by the fact that intruders can't use a GUI to crack
the system from the inside. Nobody uses a terminal these days."

Q: "What has been the hardest part to implement?"

A: "Funny enough the whole TNT concept and kernel hacking
hasn't been the hardest part. We have worked very hard to strip
all debugging information from the kernel as well as
applications down to 'Fatal Error.' We still have a few bugs
where real debugging information might inadvertantly show up,
possibly confusing the user. This will, of course, be fixed in
our final release."

Q: "Shouldn't you be focusing on the real bugs instead of these
error-message-bugs?"

A: "I have no comment on that."

At the moment, LiNukes is having a financial crisis because a
major sponsor recently backed out after it was revealed that
the project might infringe on a patent involving the
"oversimplification of failure messages." If LiNukes ever makes
an official release we will of  course review it here at
Humorix.


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