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Comment by GoofballJones | Hacker News Reader

Sorry, I've been on "open systems" and walled gardens and at this point in my life, I prefer the walled garden.

Whenever I wanted to do something in an "open system", it usually turned into a giant pain-in-the-ass or I got preached/yelled at by everyone. "oh, sorry, you don't have a driver for that yet. Maybe write one yourself and put it on github? Oh sorry, this system doesn't support that format because that format is bad and it kills baby seals and blah blah blah. Oh, don't use _that_ distribution because _that_ Linux distro spies on you and they're in bed with Amazon and they're literally Hitler. Oh, want to run this piece of software? Sorry, that's not available on this "open system", but here's a hacked-together piece of crap that's just as powerful...so I hear..."

I'm old and tired and just want to sit down to something that works. Is that asking too much?

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I think there is a balance - with the walled garden you can walk around inside it until they decide that your favourite fruit tree is a bit old and they dig it up, and you are left with alternatives like shrubs and flowers, but no useful fruit tree. That's where the open systems help, such as the other replier stated where being able to run web servers and systems for development can be benefitted by open systems.

But you're right about many of those statements on open systems. I think the fact that stuff is only half-finished is the one that really annoyed me when I wanted to get stuff done. I could have written more and contributed but I had finite time and didn't want to have to do more stuff in order to do the stuff I wanted to do in the first place.

Plus, the endless CADT model of development in Linux land ("I'm NEW AROUND HERE. Let's bin this old nonsense that I've not used for long and START AGAIN! It'll be MUCH better than the old stuff. I will be because I SAID SO, plus I'm NEW AROUND HERE") got wearisome.

I love open systems when I need an open system. I was a linux fanboy for a very long time but the frustration and configurability simply does not help me in my life as a consumer. I just need a phone that works, apps that don't suck, and a camera to capture my life. Apple is dominant in that category.

I couldn't imagine the same things I get out of the walled garden Apple provides as helping me in my career as web engineer. On a gnu/linux server I love being able to have absolute control to change everything as well as leverage the hard work others have contributed to the ecosystem. I just prefer to ssh to that server via my macbook.

You're so god damn right. It's not that I mind open systems, it's that I'm too lazy. I don't want to deal with all the bullshit that comes with an open system.

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