Morphos Archive
Yes, I’m a little late, but here we go: The MorphOS development team is proud to announce the public release of MorphOS 3.18! This new release includes several new applications such as Hex – a scriptable file/RAM/disk hex editor, ArchiveIt – a ZIP archiver/unarchiver application and Thermals – an app displaying thermal and fan information and graphs. In addition, MorphOS 3.18 supports Samba 2 and 3 network share browsing and mounting in the Ambient desktop. Radeon drivers have been updated to better support dual monitors, more graphics card models and 3D, including updated TinyGL library and drivers. We have also improved Realtek 8168 ethernet drivers with support for more card variants and enhanced networking stability on PCI express systems like PowerMac G5 11,2. USB input device connectivity issues on supported CyrusPlus 5040 systems have been corrected. This looks like a great release, but with the supply of PowerPC Macs, especially capable ones, dwindling, one has to wonder just how long they can keep this going. There have been rumbles here and there these past ten years of a port to x86, but I have no idea where those efforts stand.
The MorphOS development team is proud to announce the immediate availability of MorphOS 3.16. This release includes numerous important performance, stability and security improvements. A new version of Wayfarer comes included with the OS and replaces the now obsolete Odyssey Web Browser. We’ve also included the Iris email client, Magic Beacon notifications system and a Command-Tab application switcher. The Synergy Client and Server applications are now compatible with the free Barrier alternative. OpenSSL3 is now available as a shared library. MorphOS is actually a remarkably good and capable operating system – held back by its reliance on outdated Apple PowerPC hardware. It’s got a a robust core, a good browser, a number of great applications, and you can configure and alter every nook and cranny of the operating system (assuming you can get through the thick molasses that is several decades of Amiga-isms that make no sense to anyone who hasn’t been part of the scene for about as long). It’s just sad it’s held back by outdated hardware that’s really becoming ever harder to keep running these days. There have been the occasional rumblings of a port to x86, but as far as I know, nothing has come of it yet. Meanwhile, my 17″ 1.25Ghz PowerBook G4 sees the occasional boot into MorphOS, and with this new release, I feel a few boots incoming.
MorphOS 3.15 ram-handler contains a bug that when unlucky may results in the RAM: root directory to appear to contain many duplicate entries. Multiple users had reported this over the years, but until recently the root cause of this issue had eluded us. Due to recent developments, the bug has finally been located and fixed (thanks to AngryTom for help!). Fixed ram-handler will be released as the part of the future MorphOS 3.16 release. Meanwhile you can install the following patch that fixes the problem for MorphOS 3.15. I know this isn’t a major new release or anything, but it’s rather rare and interesting to see a small, standalone update like this being release for a small, alternative operating system. Usually, these get rolled into major new releases or nightlies, so I found this interesting.
The MorphOS development team is proud to announce the immediate availability of MorphOS 3.14. While mostly a maintenance and stability release, this update also brings multiple technological improvements in the kernel. Out of these, the most notable are TLS support in exec.library, updates to the Netstack and ixemul.library. As usual MorphOS 3.14 is free upgrade for existing users and can be downloaded from the download page. Check the changelog to find out what’s new in this release. At the same time Wayfarer, a new web browser based on a modern mid-2020 branch of WebKit is now available for download. This new browser makes it possible to browse most of the web that has become off-limits for Odyssey with its ageing engine. Google apps like Docs, Drive and Maps with Street view are supported just as the Whatsapp or Telegram web interfaces.
This new version introduces brand new dual-monitor capabilities to various Powerbook laptops as well as G5 desktop systems, and features improved thermal management, fan control and dynamic CPU frequency switching, which provide increased energy efficiency and reduced noise levels. Additionally, the Helios Firewire stack has been fully integrated into the core OS and we added support for hundreds of modern printers and scanners. Furthermore, the Odyssey web browser has been upgraded and now utilizes newer and more modern components for handling connections, encryption, spell-checking, and low-level drawing operations. Plus, it features a redesigned and more adaptive user interface. This is just the tip of the iceberg, as reading through the release notes reveals a massive number of changes, improvements, and fixes. It’s definitely time to dust off my MorphOS 17″ PowerBook G4 and get this new release up and running.
Submitted by ASiegel
2018-07-09
Morphos
We're ending our Amiga/BeOS/Atari day (for now!) with the release of MorphOS 3.11.
The MorphOS development team is proud to announce the immediate availability of MorphOS 3.11. In addition to performance, stability and security improvements, this new version also features the first more substantial update of the Odyssey web browser in a while, which improves the rendering of and general compatibility with modern websites in several ways, as well as a more refined version of the recently introduced Flow Studio, our official integrated development environment. For a more extensive overview of the changes included in MorphOS 3.11, please read our release notes.
The browser improvements are most welcome, since that's definitely a sore spot for MorphOS on PowerPC machines because of the browser's underwhelming performance. While the improvements listed won't suddenly fix this problem entirely - and there's only so much you can do on outdated PowerPC hardware to begin with - they should still alleviate the problem somewhat.
Morph.Zone reports:
Dan Wood of kookytech.net has published a new MorphOS video that shows some of the new features of MorphOS 3.10 and demonstrates how to change the look of MorphOS in two easy to follow steps.
Also the lastest issue of Amiga print magazine Amiga Future has a review of MorphOS 3.10 (reading excerpt).
You have installed MorphOS to a compatible machine, but... now what? You could always go and install a pre-configured package like Chrysalis, but you would end up with a system configured for someone else's taste and you still wouldn't know how to actually use the operating system. If you are in this situation and would like to learn how MorphOS works, this is a tutorial for you! The tutorial will guide you through the things you should do and notice after a fresh install, with practical examples from basic configuration options to installing new software. It won't cover all the details and is just an opinion on how to proceed, but it should give you some knowledge how to continue on your own and make your own decisions.
I bought a used PowerBook last weekend - a 17" PowerBook G4 1.33Ghz with 512MB RAM with 2GB on the way - specifically for MorphOS and its recent 3.10 release, and I'm having a total blast. This guide is a great first stop after installing MorphOS, as is the accompanying tips and tricks article. Amiga-like operating systems have some very unique paradigms and ways of doing things, and articles like these really ease you into them, while offering a first few glimpses into the absolutely insane amount of customization options they offer.
Objective-C is conceptually similar to BOOPSI - it's generally an add-on to the C programming language. In both Obj-C and BOOPSI calling a method implies calling a dispatcher function that resolves the actual method to call and invokes it. With the addition of reference counting to BOOPSI in MorphOS, both follow the same memory management principles.
The main difference comes from the fact that BOOPSI classes need to be manually created with functions being manually assigned their IDs and let's not even start on the extra hassle of having to write the code for the dispatchers. This made programmers reluctant to add new classes in their applications, in turn making the overall code less object oriented.
Here's where Objective-C fills in.
Meanwhile, the MorphOS team has also released an early beta of the operating system's future default email client, Iris. It uses many of the new features introduced in MorphOS 3.10, and support IMAP, OAth2 for Gmail and Outlook, and much more.
The MorphOS development team is proud to announce the immediate availability of MorphOS 3.10, which represents one of the biggest updates in its history yet. This brand new version introduces support for AmigaOne X5000 systems as well as A-EON X5000 mainboards, and it greatly expands the general hardware compatibility by adding numerous new drivers for graphics cards, scanners, network cards, SATA controllers, and USB audio devices.
Furthermore, MorphOS 3.10 brings Flow Studio, which is an integrated development environment that offers features such as a built-in source level debugger and seamless MorphOS shell access.
In addition to many bug fixes and general performance improvements, MorphOS 3.10 also provides varied user interface and usability improvements. This release includes modern themes, new fonts, and support for vector graphics, such as SVG icons, as well as time zones via Coordinated Universal Time.
This is a huge update, and it contains so many improvements I don't even know where to start. The massive list of hardware compatibility improvements is incredibly welcome, as are the brand new themes which make MorphOS look a bit less dated. Be sure to read the full, detailed list of changes.
This is definitely the release that finally pushed me to get a PowerBook G4 to run MorphOS on (preferably the 17" 1.67Ghz with DDR2), since this release really reaffirms that the team is 100% dedicated to the operating system. I can't wait to go used PowerBook shopping this week.
Supposedly, MorphOS is being ported to x86 - AMD64 to be more exact. MorphOS developer 'bigfoot':
I've mentioned it before, but I'll happily mention it again: When MorphOS gets ported to AMD64, we will not be supporting Macs. AMD64 Macs have all the wrong hardware for that to make any sense. When such a time does come, expect us to support one desktop motherboard (with one family of CPUs and GPUs) and one laptop. We'll of course make sure it's hardware that's actually available one way or another.
MorphOS has undergone a lot of development lately, and the currently available pool of hardware to run it on (G4-based Macs) has grown considerably. The developers have shown they are capable and willing to sustain relatively fast-paced development, which bodes well for the future. Porting it to x86 is the only possible way forward in the long-term.
The MorphOS development team is proud to announce the public release of MorphOS 3.8, which introduces support for ACube's Sam460 series of mainboards and numerous Radeon graphics cards from AMD's X1000 and HD series. In addition to various performance improvements related to the Quark kernel, Exec, 3D graphics and video playback, MorphOS 3.8 also adds the ability to use state-of-the-art 4K displays in their native resolution. For a more extensive overview of the included changes, please read our release notes.
Looks like a great release. It's so tempting to get a G4 Mac for this one.
The MorphOS development team is proud to announce the public release of MorphOS 3.7, which features various bug fixes as well as other minor improvements. For an overview of the included changes, please read our release notes.
They just keep on going with these regular releases.
This new version can now utilize the built-in Wi-Fi hardware in all Apple systems that feature Broadcom's BCM43 chipset. In addition, MorphOS further extends its support of graphics chipsets to include AMD's R400 series by adding compatibility with Radeon X800 XT/Pro and FireGL X3 cards. Moreover, the latest version of MorphOS now enables laptop owners to define custom screen modes and provides default modes for increasingly common high resolution displays.
Improving interoperability and overall convenience, MorphOS 3.6 adds a new SMBFS filesystem handler with 64-bit I/O support for easy file sharing via network storage devices, a new VNC server to control your MorphOS systems remotely or even without a display, and a Synergy client for sharing a nearby mouse and keyboard with any Linux, MacOS or Windows machine that is part of your local network and acts as a Synergy server.
Seems like a pretty big update. I'm keeping my eyes open for a nice PowerBook G4 so that I can re-review MorphOS somewhere in the near future.
Now this is interesting. The WarMUp Association, the world association of MorphOS users, publishes a webzine with a whole lot of information and news about MorphOS. There's a whole lot of cool stuff in the latest issue about new software releases - low-level and user-facing - but what jumped out at me is a very detailed breakdown of MorphOS sales.
In total, 2275 MorphOS licenses were sold until 14 April, and the detailed history of sales is quite, quite interesting. This seems like a low number - and technically, it is - but considering that one, the AmigaOS scene is small enough as it is, and MorphOS is a subsection of that already small scene, and two, that it is not a cheap investment, requiring both hardware and software, I'm actually surprised they have managed to sell this many copies thus far, and that sales are clearly not slowing down.
No, it won't make any of the developers rich, but it's not bad either.
The MorphOS development team is proud to announce the public release of MorphOS 3.5, which introduces support for PowerMac 7,2 machines and features various bug fixes as well as other improvements. For an overview of the included changes, please read our release notes.
They released 3.5.1 shortly after to fix a boot issue in 3.5.
The MorphOS development team is proud to announce the public release of MorphOS 3.4, which introduces faster R300 graphics drivers, improved video playback on G5-based systems, support for non-native display resolutions on various PowerBooks, screen blanker password protection, and numerous bug fixes and other improvements. For an overview of the included changes, please read our release notes.
Some serious improvements in there. Their market is probably small, but they release new versions at a relatively stable pace. One of the very few alternative operating systems that has managed to survive over the years where so many others fell.
Submitted by Andrea Maniero
2013-09-20
Morphos
A nice bugfix release for MorphOS users.
Submitted by Jacek Piszczek
2013-05-28
Morphos
"The MorphOS development team is proud to
announce the public release of MorphOS 3.2, which introduces support for Power Mac G5 workstations, iBook G4 laptops and additional PowerBook G4 models. The 3.2 release also has a strong focus on improved network support with a completely new and improved NetStack core as well as support for wireless networks. In addition, there are several new network-related tools such as VNC client, a Remote Desktop Client and a tool showing detailed network statistics as well as
many other fixes and improvements."
"So the status now is that
the G5 boots to MorphOS and seems to run stable, however only USB and the on-board IDE interfaces are support by MorphOS drivers right now. The next things I will focus on is getting the on-board NIC and fan control working. Hopefully neither of those two will be particularly difficult, so that will likely be done some time this week." MorphOS keeps getting wider hardware support, which is good. Often, it is EOL hardware, which is bad.
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