Version 1.2 of the Athene Operating Environment is now available from the Rocklyte Systems web site. OSNews featured an exclusive interview with Rocklyte’s Paul Manias recently. The new release (read more to see a brand new screenshot from version 1.2) is for Windows only (the Linux version will come in a few weeks) and includes the following changes:
- The screenshot option in the desktop menu has been reactivated.
- Icons now use alpha blending to merge with the desktop graphics.
- The main window can now be resized and maximised to take up the entire screen.
- Added a Timer class for the purpose of scheduling events at set intervals.
- The graphical routines for window layering have been completely rewritten.
- Faster text scrolling has been implemented.
- All environments now support screen savers. The screen saver settings can be adjusted in the user:config/screensaver.cfg file.
- The Gradient, Box and Line classes now support variable translucency through a new Opacity field.
- Added support for simple region based render objects.
- Added ‘start’ and ‘step’ instructions to the
tag in DML. - Added support for 64-bit floating point fields to the Inspector application.
- Fixed scrolling issues with depth based scroll bars.
- The Run class has been enhanced so that it can launch data files (for example, running a picture file will open it up in the picture viewer).
- DML files can now be launched from the File Manager.
- It is no longer necessary to explicitly declare file name extensions when loading files.
- Support for saving PNG files has been added.
- 256 colour PNG files are now supported.
- All PCX images in the Athene archive have been converted to PNG files.
Click for a larger version
Very nice. I’ve started playing with DML and Athene and so far i really like them…
I like the Athene OS, but it is missing a major part. It needs to be bootable and installable. I don’t want to have to launch a program in Linux to be able to use it.
>It needs to be bootable and installable
I am not sure it will ever be. Athene is an Operating Environment, not a (full) Operating System IMHO. Hence the title of the story.
Then they should be changing their website to say Athene: A Multi-Platform OE instead of Athene: A Multi-Platform OS.
“Athene is an object based <STRONG>operating system</STRONG> that is being developed for use in PC’s and embedded systems”
Yes, I know that this is what Rocklyte say. In their book, they have an OS. In my book, they have an OE. Athene runs on top of Windows and on top of Linux. It does not have its own drivers API, or its own VM etc. It needs to be hosted by another OS that can boot/post and load into a state that Athene can load further. In fact, under Linux, Athene uses XFree in order to get drivers support. For me (at least as of today’s version), this is an OE, not an OS.
But I am sure Paul will have another opinion. 🙂
If you wand to boot straight into Athene from windows 98 you should be able to modify your system.ini file, replace shell=Explorer.exe with shell=[path to Athene]
That should work, make sure you have a windows boot disk incase it doesn’t work and you can’t get back into windows…
Read the interview. it says they are “a multi-platform operating system”. They will be working to make a stand alone version after they make it work with existing OSes.
> They will be working to make a stand alone version after they make it work with existing OSes.
Maybe, but *for now* it is still an operating environment. And I stand by this opinion.
As for the effort to make it stand alone, to me, it strikes me as strange that someone would like to create a product that runs under other OSes first and then make it stand alone. What does that serve? To give just one of the drawbacks of such a ‘plan’ is that in order to make your apps to work under Linux or under Windows or any other OS, you will have to make some compromises in the design and code (for example, you follow these OSes VM guidelines because you don’t have your own). And now you tell me that one day they are going to make it stand alone? I am sure they are going to use a lot of source code that already have. And these drawbacks will be there, because when you are developing something, it does not make sense to re-engineer *large* parts that already work, even if these parts do not work as they should if you don’t have an underlying OS. It is time consuming and money waste to rewrite these parts. And if you indeed rewrite them, then it is an OS indeed. But as it stands today, it is an OE.
And if they make it one day stand alone, this day is not so close. There is no low level kernel, no filesystem, no VM. Just a GUI (which actually still relies on XFree and GDI or DirectDraw). It is like there is only an Interface Kit and parts of the app_server as in BeOS, and ALL the other Kits missing. This qualifies to me as an OE, but not as a whole, full blown OS. And to write the rest 10 kits, it takes *years* (except if you use a modified Linux kernel, in which case it is just that: a modified Linux which utilizes a new Gui).
Be warned, I like Paul and Rocklyte a lot (we are just having a discussion here
. It is just that in my mind, this is not an OS, no matter the marketing hype that companies today want to bring into these “new OSes”. Same goes for QubeOS for example. It is an OE, not an OS. No matter what Michal or Paul say. 
I agree, it’s an OE like Qube… i would like to see a standalone version of Athene…
I was just wondering about what makes this different from a window manager or a desktop environment like KDE or Gnome. I suppose Operating Environment means the same thing. Anyone want to clarify?
<BR><BR> It seems neat, but I agree its certainly a long way from an OS. They just added a timer class, that hardily sounds like a system that will boot a computer anytime soon.
Qube and Athene are far more advanced than a window manager. They are more like Gnome or KDE or GnuSTEP, than let’s say, Sawfish or Blackbox. Athene and Qube have their own libraries, their own programmable API, their own internal design, their own desktop, they just *use* the underlying’s OS windowing system to display their stuff. When you program for Athene under Linux, you will only use their API, the user or programmer will never know that Athene actually relies on X. In the window manager case, when you program an app, you have to use X calls. The window manager works concurrently with X, Athene and Qube just uses X in order to utilize the framebuffer and the drivers X has to provide. Other than that, they are pretty independant on all other areas.
Eugenia, I certainly respect your opinion and you do make very valid points, but lets not get in a war of words. The point of my post was that they are moving in the direction of making this into a stand alone operating system. You are certainly right that this in not an OS right now. I’m just going by the information provided by the interview.
Hi people,
To clarify my stand point I have no problem with Eugenia referring to Athene as an Operating Environment in reference to the Windows version. On technical grounds she’s quite right, as Athene uses Windows as a host environment in this case.
However, for reasons of consistency we prefer to use the words “Multi-Platform Operating System”. This is a little more descriptive of what the product actually is, while also being technically correct (it’s an OS that runs on multiple platforms – pretty straight forward really :-).
And yes, there will be a stand-alone version in 2002 just as I’ve said in interviews and on the web site. Athene’s future is not limited to Microsoft Windows, I’ll assure you of that much! 🙂
Sorry Eugenia http://www.sun.co.uk/software/solaris/“>Solaris is</u> an Operating System.
You’ll have to make up something else for Athene
>And yes, there will be a stand-alone version in 2002 just as I’ve said in interviews and on the web site
This is good news.
>Sorry Eugenia Solaris has OE. And has done for quite some time. Solaris OE is an Operating System.
I know that Sun calls Solaris an OE. But it is an OS (you said it yourself), not an OE. Marketing, marketing everywhere…
Has anyone succeeded in getting it to run under Win2k? On my system it won’t execute. Another guy on Rocklyte’s Yahoo forum installed it under Win2k also, and he has the same problem.
Yep, you have to reboot to make it run. Windows is involved, so why not?
I have got the same problem. I am runnng WinXP Pro and Athene won’t execute.
I tried all shorcuts and executables but it won’t execute.
Also allow me to use this space to say something else.
Athene is far from an OS. I agree with some of you, Athene is like a desktop environment which uses its own libraries or in other words a graphical shell.
I don’t understand why they call it an OS? An OS is something that relies on itself but not from another OS. There for, it’s using Windows/XFree86 API to create its own GUI libraries. The same applies for QubeOS. But XFree86 relies on Linux/Unix.
Also, Operating Environment, Sun Microsystems, many times refer to their Solaris OS as an Operating Environment. But it is an OS isn’t it?
What’s the difference then? For example, I call XFree86 a graphical/windowing operating environment since it relies on Linux/Unix to run. Windows is also an operating environment. It requires DOS in order to run. OS/2, same!
But then, they are all OSes since they do a lot of things. Technically, they are Operating Environments but they call them OSes because they do have their own drivers, libraries etc…
BASH is a shell but it is also an operating environment. Isn’t it? 🙂
Since Sun Microsystems call their OS on their web page an operating environment, what’s the difference between an OE and an OS then? I think it’s just another saying for an OS. An OS or an OE.
In this case this makes, Athene, QubeOS and KDE, it makes them shells which IS the proper term!
If an OS runs of the top of anoher OS (which in that case it shouldn’t be called an OS) for instance, Windows over DOS, then I assume they used that terminology to call Athene/QubeOS an OS (because it runs on top of another OS), since MS calls Windows an OS and runs on top of DOS! And it is an OS since Windows does everything by itself! UNLIKE Xfree86 which many times requires Unix/command line programs to perform duties dor example pppd, Windows performs duties by itself. It doesn’t require DOS command programs to do stuff. And this is one of the main things that separates XFree86 from Windows. Windows is an operating system because it does everything by itself, and Xfree86 is just used to display graphics (an operating environment?) while Linux/Unix performs most of the duties. So with that, I guess since Windows performs everything, UNLIKE XFree86, that’s why MS calls Windows an OS.
I believe after all, there is a differnce between an OE and an OS so Sun should call Solaris an OS and not an !!!OE!!! Oh well that’s what I think…
What I said above is how I believe the things are.
Windows (9X/ME kernal), Athene, QubeOS and XWindows are Windowing Systems.
DOS/WinNT/UNIX/BeOS are OSes.
Explore/litestep/OpenTracker are shells
KDE/GNOME are Window Mangers PLUS
LWM/…. are Normal Window Mangers.
maybe?
>> KDE/GNOME are Window Mangers PLUS
Actually, KDE/GNOME are desktop environments AND shells. They are desktop environments because they mess around with the system such as mounting a file system and are also capable of changing system settings. They are shells because they interpret commands. KWM is a window manager such as IceWM, twm, Enlightenment etc. KDE/GNOME are NOT window managers. GNOME relies ON window managers in order to give the user the ability to move form widgets. GNOME itself is NOT a window manager. try running GNOME without a window manager and all you will get is window widgets around your screen unable to move them.
>> DOS/WinNT/UNIX/BeOS are OSes.
I agree with that but I am not familiar so much with BeOS so since I am not aware of its concept of doing things I can’t argue. Also, I can argue for WinNT. Yeah, as I said above in my previous post, an OS because actually does things but it still works on top of DOS just like XFree86 works on top of Unix/Linux.
So, WinNT is ONE POWERFULL (OS POWER) Windowing Environment?
) I know what some of you are thinking and I agree. It’s WinNT, it does things, it is an OS 
I am not a Linux/Unix fan really, but I have to admit that Unix/Linux are TRUE OSes because they are the first that start and they actually control everything and Xfree just provides a GUI. It doesn’t need to control networks, file systems etc because it is controlled by Unix UNLIKE Windows/WinNT!
Windows controls everything and DOS simply provides a basis for the core Windows to work. DOS does nothing except running the Windows OS and some other important stuff in the background.
So this is my final definition. Since Windows DOES control everything, just like Unix controls everything, in that case Windows can be an OS because an OS is the part that controls everything. And since Windows controls everything, that’s why is an OS! There
))
So, an OS is an OS and Xfree is an OE (a Graphical OE, while KDE/GNORE are shells and desktop environments)
Any arguments???
But DOS can control things without Windows if you really wanted to, so therefore it is an OS.
Dude,
If I’m not mistaken, OS’s based on the WinNT kernel (eg. WinNT, Win2k, WinXP) do not rely on DOS. They do have a command line you can get to, but they don’t rely on DOS. Someone please correct me if I’m mistaken.
IMHO
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WinNT/XP/2K are not dependant on MS/PC/DR-DOS. They have their own kernel with a operating environment slapped on top.
Win 1.x – 3.x are desktop environments running on top of MS/PC/DR-DOS.
Win 9x/ME are operating environments running on top of MS/PC/DR-DOS.
MS/PC/DR-DOS, CP/M, UNIX, VMS and ComOS are Operating Systems.
BeOS and Solaris are like NT/XP/2K, a kernel with an operating environment slapped on top.
Athene is an operating environment slapped on top of the Linux kernel, PC/MS/DR-DOS or WinNT/2K/XP kernel.
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That’s my $.125 Canadian.
Windows started as an OE. Looks like they have chosen a workable path.
No doubt that they have taken a good starting path, but I think the warning Eugenia was making was that they have to watch how they design so that it will be an easy transition to a stand alone version. Relying on the underlying OS will make for a difficult change to stand alone as you have to remove all the dependant code.
It is a good bet that they have probably taken that into account and have designed Athene accordingly.
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If I’m not mistaken, OS’s based on the WinNT kernel (eg. WinNT, Win2k, WinXP) do not rely on DOS. They do have a command line you can get to, but they don’t rely on DOS. Someone please correct me if I’m mistaken.”
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I agree with that.
Cheers