Correct, Windows started off on four platforms so the intimacy of VMS with the VAX was just not there. But VMS was a lot farther away from Alpha too. The reason support for Windows was dropped for all platforms other than IA32 and IA64 indicates that it is too costly if not impossible to engineer. After all these years Windows settled nicely on IA32. What Microsoft probably lacks is DEC's compiler architects. Those guys live with Intel now and performance these days is very much their line of business. It wouldn't surprise me if Intel and Microsoft did do a little bit of joint engineering since 1998. -----Original Message----- From: Phil Mendelsohn <phil at rephil.org> Sender: owner-hecnet at Update.UU.SE Date: Fri, 10 Aug 2012 13:29:06 To: <hecnet at Update.UU.SE> Reply-To: hecnet at Update.UU.SESubject: Re: [HECnet] AXP Emulation On 10/08/2012 10:51 AM, hvlems at zonnet.nl wrote: Windows is a relative of vms, an ugly cousin but still family. Its growth is stunted, Windows 7 is the fifth version after W 3.5. VMS grew a lot faster, with more (end user) functionalty, more stability during its first two decades. Even then Windows 5.1 (aka XP) is stable and useful. Vista wasn't then again VMS 6.1 wasn't that mature either... But VMS had the advantage that it and the processor (VAX) that ran it were designed in concert. x86 architecture and Windows are more a case of being cobbled together iteratively and separately. -- "Worry is a misuse of imagination." -- Some Guy Called Dan Zadra