> I'm not talking about multiple simultaneous installs. I'm talking about the hardware being the same across operating systems. If I'm buying hardware to set up a linux machine, I will go to the same place as if I were setting up a windows machine.
Building a machine from scratch is not normal user behavior. You can't talk about "many people" and then describe uncommon behavior as if it's typical. The vast majority of users buy off-the-shelf computers with bundled keyboards. Power users who build their own machines should know to buy the right keyboard.
> But I wouldn't. Because I don't use full size keyboards.
What keyboard do you use that doesn't include the Windows key? A compact keyboard does not imply a lack of a Windows key.
> I don't think the operating system should expect this "command" key at all.
Why do you believe this? How is the Windows/Command key any different from the Control key or the Escape key or Alt key or any of the Function keys or the other "special" keys? Why is it reasonable for the OS to expect those other keys will be present but not the "Windows" key that's present on virtually every keyboard that's shipped in the past 15 years?
You don't think "many people" build machines by shopping at retailers like TigerDirect? It might not be the vast minority, but it's still "many people".
The reason I believe that is because unless every keyboard has that key, then a major operating system that has traditionally been fine without it shouldn't suddenly expect it unless there is some major advantage to requiring it.
*edit:
According to wikipedia, this key became a standard key on PC keyboards. Obviously I'm of the opinion that this should not have happened. But at this point it's ridiculous for me to complain about it.
> You don't think "many people" build machines by shopping at retailers like TigerDirect? It might not be the vast minority, but it's still "many people".
No, I don't think that "many people" do this in the grand scheme of things. I'd bet less than 3% (possibly much less) of new PCs for home use are purchased this way. But I don't have any stats for this.
> The reason I believe that is because unless every keyboard has that key, then a major operating system that has traditionally been fine without it shouldn't suddenly expect it unless there is some major advantage to requiring it.
I understand your point, but I disagree. This means that there can be no progress. There have been keyboards in the past that didn't have the Alt key or the Escape key. There have been keyboards with Meta keys. Hardware can and should change, and software should change with it and not be trapped in the past. European keyboards often have an "AltGr" key that allows inserting characters that to my knowledge cannot be easily inserted from a standard US keyboard (Wikipedia says Ctrl+Alt does the same thing, but it doesn't on my system). I think it's perfectly reasonable to say that if you want this functionality, you get a keyboard that supports it.
Building a machine from scratch is not normal user behavior. You can't talk about "many people" and then describe uncommon behavior as if it's typical. The vast majority of users buy off-the-shelf computers with bundled keyboards. Power users who build their own machines should know to buy the right keyboard.
> But I wouldn't. Because I don't use full size keyboards.
What keyboard do you use that doesn't include the Windows key? A compact keyboard does not imply a lack of a Windows key.
> I don't think the operating system should expect this "command" key at all.
Why do you believe this? How is the Windows/Command key any different from the Control key or the Escape key or Alt key or any of the Function keys or the other "special" keys? Why is it reasonable for the OS to expect those other keys will be present but not the "Windows" key that's present on virtually every keyboard that's shipped in the past 15 years?