Submitted by The ReactOS team has released version 0.3.4 of its NT compatible operating system and discusses a new and improved release cycle and lists the huge number of updates and improvements since the last release. Some screenshots can been found here.
The ReactOS team has released version 0.3.4 of its NT compatible operating system and discusses a new and improved release cycle and lists the huge number of updates and improvements since the last release. Some screenshots can been found here.
…a new release… can not wait to install… thank you ReactOS Team… and they will try to stick to a two month release period… nice…
Edited 2008-01-22 21:45 UTC
I may be a little slow, but what is the point of making a clone of windows? I would think that with all the resources being spent on this that maybe they would instead try to make something better, perhaps more innovative, a different UI even.
I guess to each his own.
Edited 2008-01-22 21:54 UTC
Well why not, there are so many games and applications for windows, many people hate microsoft etc etc = a nice free alternative to try
The Windows UI is replaceable, even on Windows. That is not where the innovation is happening. Look beneath the skin – Windows has a lot of good points architecturally. There are many decent Windows programs as well. There is a lot of value to being able to support Windows without being beholden to it.
Keep up the good work, ReactOS team!
The ultimate goal of ReactOS is to make an operating system that is binary compatible with Microsoft Windows. This means that you will be able to use drivers and applications designed for Microsoft Windows in ReactOS.
If this goal is achieved, creating a new user interface is kind of trivial. Actually, you could use Blackbox for Windows, for example (http://www.bb4win.org/).
Another potential use for ReactOS is to offer legacy support for old Windows apps some time in the future.
In a few years time you may have some ancient crusty app that does something very important for your company, but for some reason doesn’t run on the two latest versions of windows. You could either try to find an old, unsupported version of the latest version of windows that the program worked on and try to get that working on whatever hardware is around then. Or you can install the latest version of ReactOS, which has activly maintained and run your app on that.
That wouldn’t be too hard a thing to do actually. Unlike the old days we have virtualisation solutions today that can create a hardware environment that the OS is certain to function on.
So whatever the real hardware may be at that time, you can still enjoy a nice and stable legacy OS that will, in the case of Windows, run better and more comfortable under virtualisation than on real hardware.
The licensing part remains, of course, and that’s where ReactOS comes in. A free OS to run your application on, installed on either physical or virtual hardware.
I think this would be good for Windows as well.This being the long needed break from legacy support which would enhance the quality of windows and increase the user base of ReactOs.
Take time to look at the updated screenshots. All I can say is WOW!
It plays Diablo 2! Enough for me, I’m in
I thought the original post had a link to the changelog, guess I must of missed it out.
http://www.reactos.org/wiki/index.php/ChangeLog-0.3.4
Edited 2008-01-22 23:41 UTC
It is very good that there will be free alternative to the MS Windows. A lot of programs were written for Windows and some of them are free. So when ReactOS will be stable it’s distros will grow up quickly. May be than MS politics will be not so arrogant. (as in situation with IE). But it will be very late…
As computers get faster and more powerful, Virtualisation will replace a windows clone. I don’t see the point?
You still need something to Virtualise. If ReactOS can run your app as well as (or better than) the latest version of windows, why not use it? As I mentioned above in a few years time the version of Windows you need might not be supported or even available.
I have nothing that I would need windows for anymore. Made the break a long time ago and I’m completely free of any vendor lock in. It’s a great feeling too
but I guess some people could find a use for it
i need dx10 support.. would be great for playing the newest games without the vista crap. i love some products of microsoft, but vista is not one of them.
The WinNT architecture has always been pretty good, so it’s nice to see a clone of it that’s not closed up and tied to Microsoft…
Reactos has some parts that works even better and faster on windows than its copyrighted counterparts.
Then the new reactos bootloader now supports windows Operating systems too meaning xp can get a boost in loading on xbox or format a harddrive with ext2 (no fragmentation) and try with reactos bootloader+ windowsxp
see if it works well
Excellent work Reactos Devs!!!!!
To be honest, I don’t think ‘games’ are reason enough to clone windows or even to drive the technology behind operating systems. They aren’t reason enough to clone windows so that a game can run without having to purchase windows. Having said that, there are games for every major operating system so you still have the chance to keep yourself entertained. In addition, there are far better uses for the average home user.
I’m not against ReactOS though. I do like it for one reason. To me, programming is about creation and creativity. If something can be done, then why not do it? I do like the ReactOS developers’ commitment to the project. It is really an inspiration.
Edited 2008-01-25 02:42 UTC