Why Windows Won’t Always Dominate
New devices will shrink Microsoft's OS market share, researcher predicts.
OS News Archive
VMware Pledges To Support 64-Bit Extended Windows, Linux
VMware has pledged to support the 64-bit extended architectures of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and Intel for its virtual machine software running on both Windows and Linux over the next 18 months. Update: This article covers changes in VMWare Workstation 4.5 compared to the previous version, 4.0.
Review: Serenity Virtual Station
Imagine this scenario: you need to run your favorite application under Linux but the application has not been ported to Linux yet and there is no other alternative that would completely suit your needs. Or you need to work with several operating systems.
MenuetOS 0.76 Released
Athene 3.4 – Now X11 Compatible
Athene 3.4 is now available for download. The major new feature is backwards compatibility with X11 programs. This is achieved by running a rootless X11 server, the same technique employed by Mac OS X & QNX. The need for a separate window manager has also been eliminated by merging the window management functionality into the server itself. Screenshots demonstrating all this are here and here.
Design Patterns for High Availability using an RTOS
This technical overview by veteran real-time instructor David Kalinsky examines a number of design patterns used to architect high-availability embedded systems that utilize a real-time operating system. The design of high availability systems is based on a combination of redundant hardware components and software to manage fault detection and correction, to achieve "five-nines" (99.999%) or greater availability, equivalent to less than 1 second of downtime per day.
Designing the Operating System of Tomorrow
How will the future operating systems look like? How the user interface, the inner workings, the security policies and the networking will interact? In any case, innovation is the key.
New Front Page Design for OSNews to Focus on Original Content
After about two years we decided to do a makeover of the front page of OSNews. This new design focuses more on the original content we host rather than the previous "newsbits"/portal nature of OSNews. Let's just say that we try to have a... mini focus shift.
QEMU Windows Port in the Works
QEMU, the free software PC emulator available, has a Win32 port (and another CygWin port) pending commit (screenshot). The port is "only" for the emulation of a complete x86 PC (QEMU supports two other modes too), and that is initially also the only mode considered.
DR-DOS Still ‘Does It’ at 8.0
Devicelogics, a company founded by former executives of Caldera and Lineo in Utah, says it has begun shipping version 8.0 of DR-DOS today. The company says the most significant enhancement in the latest version of this long-lived operating system is support for FAT32 large partitions, enabling DR-DOS "to keep up with market demand for DOS-based embedded solutions built on FAT32 platforms."
A Look at CrossOver Office 2.1.0
Last week I reviewed Win4Lin, a solution that makes it possible to run certain versions of Microsoft Windows on Linux. This week CrossOver Office is the next tool I am going to have a look at. Again my main focus will be programs I need to run myself.
VMWare 4.5.1 Released
VMWare 4.5.1 includes updates and fixes include changes to the EULA, a more reliable SCSI implementation, better support for Linux guest operating systems using kernels in the 2.6 series, and support for Windows 95 guest operating systems on high-speed processors. Some of the new features are an increased memory range up to 3.6GB per virtual machine (4GB to all vms), experimental support for Longhorn, support for PXE on virtual network hardware, and support for Novell NetWare 5.1, 6, and 6.5 and SUSE LINUX 9.0.
Business Process Virtualization, Outsourcing & Process Reengineering
Reengineering left a bad taste in many managers' mouths, and Business Process Virtualization looks very similar on the surface. However, as Martha Young and Michael Jude explain, BPV can deliver the benefits that reengineering promised, but never delivere. They also illustrate the differences and similarities of BPV to two earlier approaches: process reengineering and outsourcing.
Mobius Release 5 Available
Release 5 of Mobius (an open-source operating system for the IA-32 platform) is now available.
A Look at Win4Lin 5.1
As a student I am quite often confronted with (closed-source) Windows programs. These days there are a few tools that can help running Windows applications on Linux. One of these tools is Win4Lin, Win4Lin allowsone to install Windows 95, 98 and ME under Linux. The Windows NT branch is not supported yet, because Win4Lin sets up a special DOS environmentin which Windows runs.
Whitepaper: “Queueing Calculations for Real-Time OS Users”
This technical whitepaper by veteran real-time instructor David Kalinsky examines the queueing calculations that should be done as part of the design of application software for embedded systems using a real-time operating system. These calculations serve to properly configure message queues, linked lists, ring buffers, memory pools and partitions. Both capacity and queueing time issues are discussed, with emphasis on practical examples rather than mathematical proofs.
Introduction to MIR-OS
MIR-OS is a 32-bit multi-tasking GPL Operating System for the i386+ developed completely from scratch by a group of programmers in India. Some of the OS's features include full software multi-tasking, Memory Management (slab allocator), Modularized kernel (ELF module support), Semaphores, FAT12 filesystem, VESA graphics and many other features. Currently the OS is in version 0.0.4.
Some Implications of Software Commodification
This article explores the concept of commodification in a historical context while also seeking to discover lessons that might be applied to contemporary open source business efforts. I also wrote a similar editorial a few weeks ago.
VMware Workstation 4: More Virtual PCs, More Functionality
Imagine not one, but two, three or more separate operating systems loaded on a single PC, each of which functions as a separate OS on a separate physical machine. VMware Workstation 4 does just that by creating and managing one or more virtual machines on a single, physical host PC. Every virtual machine is a full-fledged virtual PC, where you can install a guest operating system of your choice, with network configuration and a full suite of PC software. Read the article at TomsHardware.
Introduction to NachOS
You want to build a thread system? Experiment with an OS with memory protection and virtual memory? You want to do that without a lot of rebooting, Bochs/VMWaremagic and writing drivers? Well, then Nachos (Not Another Completely Heuristic Operating System) is for you. Nachos is an Operating System simulator. Hmm... . If you're a bit like me, you'll be wondering what in the world that is.