From: djheydt@kithrup.com   
      
   In article , Mickmane  wrote:   
   >On 10.08.25, djheydt@kithrup.com   wrote:   
   >> In article , Mickmane  wrote:   
   >   
   >>> I'd disagree on "nobody is born with a fundamentally good moral   
   >>> code...". Humans certainly are born as a blank slate with just   
   >>> hardware, and upbringing adds the software.   
   >   
   >> [Hal Heydt]   
   >   
   >Would be better if that were seen in the address/name.   
   >   
   >> I'd modify that slightly to claim that humans (and other animals)   
   >> aare also born with some firmware.  One could argue about the   
   >> degree to which the firmware can be modified--or just   
   >> overridden--by accumulations of software.  (One also needs to be   
   >> careful not to stretch the analogies too far...)   
   >   
   >That's what I call hardware.   
   >   
   >Like you may have a 286, 386, or a 486 motherboard with fitting CPU, 4MB   
   >to 16MB RAM, 5MB MFM harddrive or 800MB seagate,... (I once had a 286   
   >board with 386 CPU. :) )   
   >   
   >As far as firmware, at most I'd permit (in my analogy) bios.   
      
   [Hal Heydt]   
   A BIOS is firmware, but there are other forms of firmware. You've   
   limited your list to one particular line of processor chips.   
   There are, and have been many others.  One that is sold at a rate   
   many times the x86 chips these days are ARM processors.   
      
   >Software is then, DOS, Linux, or DOS with windoze 3 (the poor folks   
   >where the parents and environment are basically a handicap).   
      
   What you've listed are operating systems, and your list if far   
   from complete.  OSes are, indeed software, but so are   
   applications programs.   
      
   However, not all hardware requires an OS to operate.  There is,   
   for instance, a microcontroller (aka MCU) doesn't noramally run   
   with an OS at all.  You probably have a considerable number of   
   MCUs in your house.  Start with your washing machine and go on   
   from there. Pretty much anything you have that has a control   
   interface is likely to contain an MCU.  They're sold by the   
   billions every year.  (PC sales are on the order of 100 million   
   per year.  "Smart" phone and tablet--most using ARM chips--sales   
   are on the order of 1 billion per year.  MCUs...much more than   
   that.)   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)