I recently had the displeasure of reading the following in a book on
Linux ("Linux Kernel Internals, 2nd edition", Beck, Böhme, Dziadzka,
Kunitz, Magnus, Verworner; Addison Wesley, 1999, p.3):

"Linux runs on several hardware platform, from the Amiga to the PC to
DEC Alpha workstations.  Such hardware independence is achieved by no
other serious operating system."

Unfortunately, this kind of offhand statement is becoming far too
common to read these days.  It's frustrating.  People seem to think
that Linux -invented- hardware independence.  *sigh*

-- 
Mirian Crzig Lennox                                Systems Anarchist
  "Don't follow leaders... watch the parking meters."  --Bob Dylan