[ale] possible web server

[Jeff Hubbs]

On Sat, 2003-10-04 at 22:09, Stephen Turner wrote:
> hey in the near future i am going to be making a online catalog web based
> so it can work from webserver cdrom etc. i will be working with them and
> quite possibly being their IT department. is there anything windoze can do
> that linux cant in the area of web? i know thats a rather broad statement
> im just currious what services windoze offers and also windows based 3rd
> parties that if it came time i wouldnt be able to reproduce :-p.
> 
> The reason behind this actually makes a rather funny story. this company
> has no IT guys its a small industrial situation. theres a server or 2 and
> a rich owner. they contracted a recent windoze virous i think it was the
> one that prevented you from patching windoze lol and so frustrated the
> owner bought all new computers! didnt mess with the os just replaced them
> entirely LOL i think after that (my grandfather is best friends with this
> man and works with him) i think i will be probably working closely with
> this man and his company. :) not just computers but most likely physical
> labor too. but hey ill get to raid their servers most likely and convince
> him to run linux! so what do you guys think?

I've seen this kind of mentality in operations several times.  Inkjet
printer runs out of ink - buy a new printer.  I've gotten a couple of
free printers this way.  

I wouldn't waste your time convincing him to run Linux when it's clear
that the issues associated with running Windows are totally lost on him.
If you're going to be put in charge, *be* in charge and make the
decisions that need making.  Just explain to them that you will commit
to making things better to the best of your ability, and deploy your
knowledge and your case of distro CDs.  There's no real need to trouble
them with Linux vs. Windows vs. Spockix vs. EbolaOS rhetoric.

To address your more specific question, "is there anything windoze can
do that linux can't in the area of web:"  yes.  Active Server Pages, 
.NET (those more knowledgeable may insert caveats here), and any other
MS-pushed things are going to be more or less out of reach.  Still, the
buffet table for the Linux world is pretty rich even if you stay in the
freebie aisle:  you can script in Java, Perl, PHP, Python, or Ruby, and
you've got Apache and other Web servers (my consensus-of-one is that
Apache development is such a heavily plowed field that I can't imagine
using anything else UNLESS you were trying for wicked speed {think
Slashdot} and split off some static serving to Tux or something like
that).  

There's Zope as a Web-app server - and it runs on Windows OR Linux - and
there are $$ things like IBM Websphere, which I think runs on either as
well.  Someone else can talk about Tomcat.

- Jeff



I would have to wonder - what *other* irrational, impulsive business
decisions do these guys make?