[jstimpfle]

I'm super excited about the idea of removing the artificial boundaries between kernel and userspace. Equally, static and dynamic compilation.

Are there any technical or practical reasons why systems like Symbolics Genera are inferior to todays mainstream operating systems? Or do you think it's only social / economic processes that they weren't adopted?

[nickpsecurity]

It was economics like with most hardware of the time. Those were expensive, custom machines. The CISC and RIZC processors kept getting cheaper and faster to point that users, mostly wanting performance, were better off buying them. Genera itself eventually got hosted as an emulator or something on Alphas. Then Alphas bit the dust haha. Wait, it's not funny cuz PALcode was amazing.

Anyway, economics and market demand as usual. That's what killed it.