Dick Pick’s unique database operating system
We usually at least recognize old computer hardware and software names. But Asianmoetry taught us a new one: Pick OS. This 1960s-era system was sort of a database and sort of an operating system for big iron used by the Army. The request was for an English-like query language, and TRW assigned two guys, Don Nelson and Dick Pick, to the job.
https://www.osnews.com/story/143184/dick-picks-unique-database-operating-system/
CP/M creator Gary Kildall’s memoirs released as free download
The year before his death in 1994, Gary Kildall—inventor of the early microcomputer operating system CP/M—wrote a draft of a memoir, “Computer Connections: People, Places, and Events in the Evolution of the Personal Computer Industry.” He distributed copies to family and friends, but died before realizing his
https://www.osnews.com/story/142849/cp-m-creator-gary-kildalls-memoirs-released-as-free-download/
Let’s give PRO/VENIX a barely adequate, pre-C89 TCP/IP stack (featuring Slirp-CK)
Only a few weeks ago, I linked to Cameron Kaiser's excellent deep dive into the DEC Professional 380 running PRO/VENIX, and now we have a follow-up.
Fortunately, today we have AI we have many more excellent and comprehensive documents on the subject, and more importantl
FreeDOS: history, legacy, and a valuable resource for old machines
FreeDOS is a free and open‐source operating system designed to be compatible with MS‑DOS. Developed to keep the DOS experience alive even after Microsoft ended support for MS‑DOS, FreeDOS has grown into a complete environment that not only preserves classic DOS functionality but also introduces modern en
https://www.osnews.com/story/142038/freedos-history-legacy-and-a-valuable-resource-for-old-machines/
More pro for the DEC Professional 380 (featuring PRO/VENIX)
Settle down children, it's time for another great article by Cameron Kaiser. This time, they're going to tell us about the DEC Professional 380 running PRO/VENIX.
The Pro 380 upgraded to the beefier J-11 ("Jaws") CPU from the PDP-11/73, running two to three times faster than the 325 and 350. It had faster RAM and
https://www.osnews.com/story/141945/more-pro-for-the-dec-professional-380-featuring-pro-venix/
The DOS 3.3 SYS.COM bug hunt!
Last year somebody reported a problem with the DOS 3.3 SYS.COM command when used with NetDrive. They started with a valid FAT12 image, ran SYS.COM to make it bootable, and then they were not able to mount the image using NetDrive again. Running SYS.COM against the image had broken something.
Besides copying the operating system's hidden files to the target drive letter, S
https://www.osnews.com/story/141784/the-dos-3-3-sys-com-bug-hunt/
FM TOWNS Technical Databook partially translated to English
In recent months, we've talked twice about FM Towns, Fujitsu's PC platform aimed solely at the Japanese market. It was almost entirely only available in Japanese, so it's difficult to explore for those of us who don't speak Japanese. There's an effort underway to recreate it as open source, which will most likely t
https://www.osnews.com/story/141536/fm-towns-technical-databook-partially-translated-to-english/
What does APPEND do in DOS?
The working principle of APPEND is not complicated. It primarily serves as a bridge between old DOS applications which have no or poor support for directories, and users who really, really want to organize files and programs in multiple directories and possibly across multiple drive letters. Of course the actual APPEND implementation is anything but straightforward.
↫ Michal Nec
https://www.osnews.com/story/141396/what-does-append-do-in-dos/
HP-RT: HP”s real-time operating system from the ’90s
Every now and then I load OpenPA and browse around. Its creator and maintainer, Paul Weissmann, has been very active lately updating the site with new articles, even more information, and tons of other things, and it's usually a joy to stumble upon something I haven't read yet, or just didn't know anything about. This time it's
https://www.osnews.com/story/141316/hp-rt-hps-real-time-operating-system-from-the-90s/
Free Towns OS: an open source recreation of FM Towns OS
A few weeks ago I linked to a story by Misty De Meo, in which they explored what happened to the various eccentric Japanese PC platforms. One of the platforms mentioned was FM Towns, made by Fujitsu, which came with its own graphical operating system from the era of Windows 3.x. I had never heard of this one before, but it
https://www.osnews.com/story/141145/free-towns-os-an-open-source-recreation-of-fm-towns-os/
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