I'll go out on a limb here and agree with James Tabor to some extent. I've been saying this for quite a while. While ARWINSS is technically interesting, i feel that with limited developer choices, ReactOS should be focused on developing a usable, stable platform. Focus on any target! Windows XP, Windows 7 (7 is typically a good target as app support won't be going away for a while, however Windows XP is good as well), etc. and make it work..and look... great. Make it usable for the every day user, even if it's still alpha quality. You do that, you'll not only get developer backing, but have the satisfaction of having been a part of one of the biggest achievements an open source project has ever accomplished.
Note that the statement I have previously mentioned doesn't technically EXCLUDE ARWINSS...but rather I'm saying to zero in on a specific version of Wine, fork it, optimize it for ReactOS, plug it in, and focus on the bigger problems...like the fact that AMD Catalyst drivers won't install/run.
As some of you well know i've been following (and in some instances in the long past, contributing to) ReactOS. I just want to see it work. I want to see it succeed sometime in my lifetime. The journey has been incredible, but i'd like to see it really take off. The only way it's going to get there is to draw in user interest. Do any of you know exactly how long this project has been under development? I do...i've been with it...and following it...for a VERY long time. Hell, when i first started following this project, i was on dialup and a 386! I was a teenage for crying out loud! Now i am am 31 years old, I have a wife and two daughters and this project still continues forward. Incredible stuff!
If ReactOS were to get to that 'usable' phase, it wouldn't be that hard to get REAL funding to tackle some of the hard stuff...like staying up to date with the latest versions of Windows.
Thanks for reading my rant!
Richard Campbell