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wine vs win4lin


axel_2078
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What's the difference between wine and win4lin? They're both programs that allow you to run Windows programs inside of Linux, correct? Is there anything more that separates the two? I've tried using wine before, but I could never get it to work.

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The similarity that youlist is the total extent of the similarities between the two. They are fundamentaly different programs, which opperate on completely different levels.

 

Wine (and also the 'crossover office' and cedega projects) opperates as a compatability layer inbetwen windows based programs and linux. the idea being that if you simply translate back and forth between windows api's and linux api (advanced programming interface or something like that) then you can run windows software in linux.

 

Win4Lin on the other hand is a bit like running windows and linux both at once. You have to use a specialy patched and compiled kernel, just for win4lin, which add's all sorts of things to the kernel to make it compatible with the win4lin software. It also require, to my understanding, a full install of windows, where wine requires nothing.

 

The advantage of win4lin is that it works on a great deal more rpograms, but at a cost. First, the program itself is payware, and expensive payeware at that, and unless you're the dishonest sort, you can expect to pay a pretty penny for win4lin.

 

Wine on the other hand, runs far fewer programs, many of which require some tweaking to get intalled, but is totaly free, and very light weight.

 

There's another program (also payware) called vmware, that's much easier to set up than win4lin, and doesn't require a special kernel. However, it's REALLY expensive, and still reuire a full install of windows. It's the only 'true emulater' as it accualy emmulates an x86 PC running whatever version of windows you install.

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