OSNews

So who's going to buy the domain? Would be a good place for a massive spyware payload considering the number of inbound links and google rank.

My notebook came with FreeDOS as an OS, though they didn't install it though, and neither did I (in case you're wondering the law here requires that an OS is sold with the computer, so I picked FreeDOS instead of that other one).

I guess the right wording here would be "FreeDOS development is dead", as FreeDOS will always be freely available.

You can download DRDos for free, but it is not opensource:
http://www.drdos.net/

Also, there is a really good DOS emulator called DOSBox which is actively developed.
http://dosbox.sourceforge.net/news.php?show_news=1

I use DOSBox on my parents Linux pc so my father can run an obscure dos based database app (paradox).

It really hurts to see a project come this far and stop. There seem to be more and more projects that don't reach enough developers - or that those who work on them become busy in their personal lives (not that I can blame any of them). Hobbies take time, and that's getting harder and harder to come by these days...

(sigh)

"The magic of open-source software is not the software. It has nothing to do with the code at all. Most open-source code is terribly inferior to commercial software code," Hilf said. "The magic is the community and how you interact and participate in a community and make development transparent enough that the community believes in you and trusts you."

When the community evaporates, what's left?

...that nobody wanted to go back to DOS. I know I sure don't want to.

DOS is dead. I'm not surprised this project, is finally gone. In the main it must have been a fairly thankless task.

Emulation from DOSBox, and recreating the engine has become more common for legacy software.

The last time I used freedos was to upgrade firmware on motherboard, but most of those upgrades for better or worse have become Windows(TM) based.

I suspect parts or the whole of this project will live on elsewhere.

There are very few applications where DOS is still wonderfully useful. I'd only consider using it in extreme real-time conditions. The only major product that I know of using FreeDOS is SpinRite (http://www.grc.com/sr/spinrite.htm), which is a hard disk resurfacing and emergency data recovery tool. When it's simply impossible to boot your operating system anymore, and no OS can recognize your hard disk, then this can save your butt. There you can take advantage of a lightweight run-exclusively-my-process type of environment, where nanosecond precision timing is absolutely essencial, yet it has to run on a PC, not on a microcontroller. I can hardly think of any different application which can truly benefit from the simplicity of DOS, other than emergency hard disk data recovery software or backup/mirroring tools.

I've no interest in FreeDOS but if the last remaining maintainer has stopped to work on FreeDOS, he should post a news on the new SF website and say so.Otherwise people will be fooled into thinking it's still an active project and waste their time testing it.

Additionally, if he still owns the domain, he might as well redirect to the new adress.

Open source software doesn't die. It just fades away.

Why was he waiting for 1.0? As far as I can tell, FreeDOS was usefull as-is. People have been using it for years. What was missing? A number?

That's sad... I always hate it when good software projects stop development.

This is sad news for reasons of nostalgia, but I'm not sure it's bad news from a technical point of view. (Key words - *I am not sure* - meaning there could be reasons that I'm not aware of.)

But I would imagine any software that was relying on FreeDOS could be ported to run on OpenBSD/FreeBSD, or Linux. I run OpenBSD on an embedded computer which has minimal resources and the programs I use run flawlessly.

Are there really any systems in use these days, embedded or otherwise, that have such tight requrirements where a minimal *BSD/Linux kernel can't do the job?

People get upset when they read the word 'forge'
( forged signatures , forged identity etc)

So, I think it doens't look good in your business communications, to link the word forge to a software project or to use the word in any website name:
i.e: forge.novell.com/modules/xfmod/project/?apparmor
Apparmor formely know as immunix


Some synonyms and antonyms of the word forge:

copying
counterfeit
commit forgery
duplication
work as a blacksmith
invent painstakingly
imitation
imitate fraudulently
stealing
swindle
theft
repetition
robbery
plagiarism

With regards,
Openbsd-user

Edited 2006-06-29 00:47

You've got a point, but don't forget the other, more creative meaning of the word 'forge'. Think of the blacksmith's forge, where shapeless metal was worked into useful tools. And horsehoes. Everybody needs those...

There are some CD burner programs use freeDos as a boot image.

It is still the best solution for the boot image because the MS DOS is not free, and it's quite useable.

I work in a computer shop as a technician and I often see FreeDOS being used by AsRock's drivers discs, when you try to boot one (mainly for sata driver floppy generation). So it's being used to this day (these are brand new AsRock boards).

Or why is the death message not on the sourceforge page?

At the very least I'd expect an official statement on the freedos sourceforge page to clarify to users why they suddenly get to sourceforge.

I wonder why a free project would die. Isn't GPL a guarantee that projects that are released in this licence cannot be killed by the people who created them in the first place ?

And I am supposing that freedos has been released under GPL, Can't a person who is interested in it actually start maintaining the project?

I think it is only a disgusting joke..

http://sourceforge.net/mailarchive/forum.php?thread_id=16179919&for...

I have the NASTY feeling this was a squatter being an butt monkey - otherwise why would there be no mention on the sourceforge version...

MUCH LESS, that www.freedos.org works (and continues to work) just fine, only freedos.org was returning the message (and now returns server not found)

Not suprised to see they stopped development.. what else can you improve on freedos ?? multitaskin' ? ;-)

Its a nice OS for old machines esp. if you combine it with openGEM !! no kidding.. its a nice and simple environment to perform some simple tasks on that old machines...

yeah this is sad ... but DOS had its best years.
And maybe DOS is still the best operating system ever,
it just doesn't give what the computer user of today
wants. Today people want GUI and skinning support and other useless good looking useless stuff.

Well, judging by the situation, we can only say that the development of FreeDOS has officially paused. Even if it is for an indefinite amount of time, its not going to die in any way (even if SF.net dies, it can live on...)

Really, we need to be more cautious of how we use words.

Also, FreeDOS has a very fine niche to fill. It simply won't die in the next few years. Although I've removed my floppy drive, DOS is still the only "language" MS emulates as a command line best. Too many scripts and niche apps run on DOS and FreeDOS does them just fine.

...for instance, SpinRite uses FreeDOS for its (temporary) OS, does this mean that Steve Gibson will have to switch to something else (Linux)?

Spoke with Jim(owner of FreeDOS.org) and FreeDOS is not dead. As the last sentence in the OSNews article implies, no one was expected to see the message. Not sure how that equals "Official"....

"I think Dosbox uses FreeDOS for some things."

Maybe. But I prefer true DOS without silly things
like EMUs or BOXes.

And, FreeDOS is not dead. It was a delayed April's fool.