ChrisSD

To be very pedantic, Python was always strongly typed in the sense that every value has a concrete type. This is very different to, e.g. C, where `void*` is often used to actually erase the type or, conversely, more abstract languages where there are only interfaces.

But of course Python function were always duck typed so it often didn't matter to the user.

A certain type of person (quite common in tech) really dislikes saying "I don't know". They seem to have a strong need for always having an answer, even if that answer is from google or a chatbot or simply pulled out of their arse.

The other other way would be more structured. Arguments are not just an array, they also contain `--switch` and key/value pairs (e.g. `--key value` or `--key=value` depending on who you ask). One problem with the flat array approach is there's no way to distinguish a literal value starting with `-` from a switch, which means there needs to be some way to workaround that (and users have to remember the workaround; how often do people remember to use `rm -- "$FILENAME"`).

In practice almost every application does still need to do its own parameter parsing; a flat array is not enough.

I think the point was more that it's hard to compose shell utilities to make something new that's not supported out of the box. Instead you do have to write an entirely new utility and use that.

That said having key/value semantics and not just stream of bytes would make the shell much more versatile, at the cost of making it bigger.

Note that GDPR did not mandate the cookie banners we see everywhere today. Those are a form of malicious compliance. Their goal is not to conform to regulation but to undermine the regulation itself in the eyes of the public.

Sometimes things are just common sense pure and simple.

But then that shifts the issue. You've now got an opaque binary blob being injected into programs. What if it is malicious?

You can call into the kernel just fine in Windows. The fact you use a function call wrapper instead of a raw syscall is not really relevant.

Most Windows NT kernel functions take a buffer to use rather than allocating their own memory. Even many Win32 functions don't allocate (although there you have to be much more careful).

Servo was sparsely maintained for years after Mozilla abandoned the project. Just in the last year it has picked steam as an independent project with a range of third party sponsors. Work is now progressing apace and it's becoming increasingly compatible with real-world websites.

Maybe give them a second? Yes, it's usable for applications web views if you're willing to restrict yourself but for general purpose web browsing there's still a lot that needs doing (but work is progressing). Under Google's management, web tech has grown fast. And it's an ever shifting living standard. There is a lot for any alternative browser engine to implement, let alone keep pace with the changes.

Like all such metrics, the specifics don't really matter. All that matters is that you can tell a story, over the course of the year, on how you've "improved". The goal is to use the story to highlight the work you've been doing while passing it off as evidence. This kind of story telling is something people in management positions tend to be very good at but it's also a skill people not in management should have some proficiency in.

Or you could use powershell and avoid the issue ;).

Though nowadays system files should be protected even from admin and even if you do manage to delete them, Windows can restore them.

VMs should have VirtIO RNG set up so there is a high quality entropy source at boot time, provided by the host system.