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You need to prefix "applications" with "web" or "cloud."



Desktop and mobile is actually where you want containers most. Servers rarely run untrusted or semi-trusted code because everything comes from a trusted source, usually open source, or in house.

But users want to run lots of shady apps, either that they find on random websites or places like the Google Play store.


It's also the rare case where you can't accept a 5% performance hit because that's 5fps in a game or 5 seconds on a 100 second render time or 5ms instead of 95ms wait in an interactive app.

I find that the key to running desktop OS/apps is never use sensitive data and always be ready to wipe your machine and start over.


Containers don't have a 5% performance hit.


That sounds good but I’ll believe it when I see it. There aren’t many desktop container/sandbox implementations out there and most are “vm light” e.g the windows sandbox and sandboxie. I haven’t seen anything more lightweight that can run desktop apps (in Windows at least).


Windows store apps are one example.


Not sure if that changed since its inception but originally windows store was exactly this: no SLI/Crossfire, v-sync always on, no overlays. Basically it was isolated from using the driver properly.


Unless you want to roll the traditional telecom industry under the "web" or "cloud" label, you have to add "telecom" to the list as well.

Containers have been gaining ground in telecoms since at least 2015 (https://www.sdxcentral.com/articles/analysis/telecom-opens-u...). Network function virtualization solutions rely increasingly on containers.


Flatpaks and snaps, while maybe not as popular, are also containers


They're also pretty terrible ways to distribute a native application and can be crippled due to their containerization.


Unfortunately, they're over-complicated as a means of application packaging and distribution, at least in my opinion.

Now AppImage, that's pretty great. It doesn't really bring any of the security benefits of containerization, but that can be tacked on separately.




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