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Odd, the 32-bit version is GPL.

Chill guys, MenuetOS is not at all a new project - I wonder how it made it to /. homepage *now* - maybe, slow news day (or years, perhaps)? :)
It's been under development since (pre?) 2005.

Also, for all the FOSS fans, the 32-bit version is available under GNU GPL, although, doesn't seem to be maintained anymore (last update being from Aug, 2007):
http://www.menuetos.org/stuff32.htm

The first table on that page gives you kernel + apps sources.

Yeah, well, then, don't install this OS . You'll hate it.

There's Menuet OS and Ada OS to start with. You might also have fun doing some of the Debian experiments with other kernels such as NetBSD/Debian or Debian/HURD. There's a project that runs Linux on L4 (a microkernel). Naturally, since microkernels are far, far superior to monolithic kernels, you should also try Minix. ;)

Which language feels like something running on ritalin and xanax, cuz i like that feeling

Knock yourself out :-)

Look, congrats and all, but if I'm going to run a pointless operating system, it's going to be one that's actually impressive, like MenuetOS .

You can pay for Microsoft products, or you can not use a computer.

I see...so you can not run Linux on said computer either?

Or MenuetOS?

I mean, I'm sure there must be some other choice for an x86 right? Or television with Internet access for that matter...

>Really, when you think about it, we only really need C.
We don't need C, not even Assembler, to be precise. Machine language is, technically, sufficient. :-)
Don't believe me?
Well, the lazy guys over at Menuet have coded a graphic OS, including alpha transparency in assembler (that's why I said "lazy", should've done it in machine language for extra geek-points :-).
It fits a floppy and is rumored to be ultra-fast...

You just confused a lot more people. I'll try to help you a bit.

"The OS that was written in pure assmebly was, I think, SkyOS."

Wrong. SkyOS is coded completely from scratch. It was written in the 'C' language (except for small necessary parts, written in ASM). What you are thinking of is MenuetOS.

Syllable's web browser is based off of KHTML, the engine that runs KDE's browser, as well as Apple's Safari. This engine is also used in SkyKruzer, SkyOS's current web browser.

yup ... MenuetOS was the assambler thing

Checkem out.

menuetos
Unununium Operating System

Nasm is the portable type assembler. Pretty cool.

You want the small OS? You got the small OS. No problem. Badda-bing, badda-boom.

...of making an os based 100% on one language, why not be super hard-core and make it assembly?

Menuet Homepage

Forget about v2os and try menuet OS.

I have problems seeing why an OS should take several gigabytes as well (as Windows XP for instance)

Take a look at MenuetOS for example (also mentioned on slashdot earlier). It's a pre-emptive multitasking OS with many apps, games and utilities..

..and the distro is on one floppy!

Ofcourse, it's all written in x86 assembly. Seriously, give it a try, I guarantee you some eyebrow exercise. :)

Im a fan of GTK+ but I would never think about doing decent demos with it so you could have left that opinion out *GDK/Xlib isnt very easy also*. :P

SDL would be really good for C but its alot cooler to do things with machine code *or some sort of assembly - even C and inline assembly* IMO as you can break limits by directly manipulating memory. The Linux FrameBuffer would be very interesting.

If you are a hardcore assembly and PC nut then all of the above are probably boring - MenuetOS probably needs some graphics routines added. ;P

BTW, I wouldnt rule 4G languages out as some of the flash demos floating around are really nice although youd probably need a recent computer to run them nicely.

The definition of "winning" is different for both MS-Windows and Linux. Microsoft indicates (through actions) it will win only when there are no competitors. Linux will win when it is accepted as a viable alternative.

There are third alternatives: Mac OS X, AmigaOS, BSD, Hurd, Menuet, Plan 9, Inferno, etc. There are hundreds of operating systems out there, many of which are very good for general-purpose computing.

By Microsoft's definition (world domination), Linux will most likely never win. But, neither will MS-Windows. The djinn is free, Pandora's box has been cracked.

And everyone but Microsoft will win, because Microsoft has made it a "Microsoft versus everyone else" fight.

Do the install demo the last day. Show them all the wonderful things non-Micr0s0ft platforms can achieve first, then show them how to harness all that power on their own system at home by demonstrating how to dual boot a box. NOT! Be sure to include a big disclamer - write letters to parents to back up their data, etc. Or give out demo CD's like the Knoppix distro and maybe figure out a way for people to store their data somehow. Messing with people's parents' hard drives would not be advised for a bunch of high schoolers. Fried hard drives are not the right way to send a good message about Linux and other alternatives to parents, etc.

Use debian for the majority of your demos. Debian is used as a base for a lot of other distros out there, so this would be a terrific learning platform. apt-get is extremely popular and easy to use and would be a great way to build confidence. "Gee! That's even easier than windows!" It is, again, used in a number of debian-based distros and this is a plus. Messing with RPM dependencies I would say would be less conducive to learning. It should be experienced, but you don't want to spend a lot of time with a headache like this. Let them figure it out when they get to a real RPM based system and they overload their harddrive with unnecessary packages. We needn't worry their little minds with this now.

I would suggest, if you've got a bunch of spare computers for your use, installing a selection of operating systems. Maybe just have them around, for kids to explore on their own time if they seem interested. A selection of the common Linux distros would be good - Red Hat, Mandrake, etc. If you've got the money, do some installs of Xandros, Lindows or Lycoris. Show an install of Gentoo and demonstrate the portage build system. Put YellowDog or LinuxPPC on some older Mac machines that the school is sure to have laying around. Install something fun on a new G4. You're wide open here. If you've got the time, do installs of NetBSD, OpenBSD, and FreeBSD. Actually, I'd move FreeBSD up the ladder a bit, even into the linux distros above. This one I think is going to become pretty important in the next few years. It's clean, stable and very security concious. It also runs linux binaries and, all in all, is a tremendous platform. The flexible workhorse.

Linux and *BSD aren't the only alternative operating systems. Try doing an install of SkyOS, AtheOS, or MinuetOS. Read about those here.
There's also Syl-la-ble, QNX[review], and, lest not forget, the Wonderful! the Amazing! MacOS X. Amiga, Minix, VMS, on and on. Find a local LUG with someone in it that likes these obscure operating systems. See if he (she?? --nahh...) will lend a hand. No. Not that hand.

Show them the GUI. Copy some files around or perform some other common tasks using the GUI's helpful tools. Then show them how much faster and more efficiently they can do the same after clicking on gnome-terminal (or Kterm or whatever). Show them the virtual terminals that are availible if X isn't around. Show them that you can start up two instances of X, each with a different user, and switch between them [after you have one going, type "startx -- :1" in a virtual terminal as the user you want running the second instance, then Alt-Fx to find it. Switch back and forth). Then ask them if they can do that on dad's windows box. Give them a printed reference of some of the more common unix command and have them figure out how to perform a selection of tasks. Do the shuffle about pipes and redirection and all that and have them do some "homeworks," maybe working together. Then tell them to use the man pages for command xxxxx and yyyy, integrate the knowledge found there with the printed references you gave them, to complete another task. Do speed trials. Ask them to try the same task with only the GUI. Point made.

Hand them a Knoppix disk. Let them find debian if they are feeling adventerous. Suggest to them if they think they know what they are doing, and can stand being grounded or whatever if they break mom's computer, to try an install of Mandrake - with the easy repartitioning and all built in so nicely. Easy to use from the get go, but quite fully functional linux distro as well. Easier still, and based on debian, would be Xandros. Apt-get to your hearts content, and can even resize NTFS partitions.

"Am I wearing my pants?"

Don't forget this one before you walk into your first day of class.

On a similar topic, MenuetOS is a full OS written in assembly and fits on a floppy. Yeah, lots of OS's used to fit on floppies, but it's still cool. It's amazing what all you can fit into a small space if you're careful.

Yes, it's true. I like the Menuet Operating System enough to change my whole computing world around.* Here's the bottom line: Menuet gives me more opportunities to write 32-bit assembly code. It's about more and better...

I can read my files, I can write my files, I can even write to video memory. To my surpise, the process of switching was as easy as all the Menuet OS marketing hype had promised. I was up and running as fast as I could format the floppy, Girl's Scouts Honor taken. First, let me tell you more about why I converted...

I'm an assembler geek. All those high-level abstractions found in other operating systems are for pansy-assed sissies. I want an OS that required that I coded my own TCP/IP stack before I coded a web browser. In assembler. Menuet delivered.

I discover more treats daily. For example, I have to reverse engineer Microsoft's .doc file format if I want to implement a word processor whose data files can be infected with viruses. It will be an ongoing process, but I'm thrilled so far.

*Editor's Note: Now that we've successfully converted our writer to using Menuet OS, we will be working on getting her to try writing a Befunge interpreter for it! Stay tuned for more developments!

• AROS
  
• Virtual Acorn (an emulator but which emulates an OS, indeed)
  
• MenuetOS
  
• Debian GNU/Hurd
  
• Plan9
  

Check out MenuetOS, "a fully 32 bit assembly written, graphical OS for asm programming, distributed under General Public License". My friend joked that it ran faster under VMware than Windows does natively.

You can also look at MenuetOS for an example of an ASM OS. It's a complete OS with GUI that fits on a 1.44" floppy. It is very nice to see.

The only reason to really have a floppy drive anymore, for me, is when I want to play around with the Menuet OS, which is designed to fit onto a floppy.

Sayeth the website:
"Menuet is a fully 32 bit assembly written, graphical OS for asm
programming, distributed under General Public License.

- Graphical UI with 16 M colours up to 1280x1024
- Pre-emptive multitasking, multithreading
- Ide: editor/compiler for applications and _kernel_
- application and kernel sources included (GPL)
- Ethernet; tftp (& music stream)
- Free-form application windows
- Hard real-time data fetch
- All this in a single floppy !

Since Menuet fits to a single floppy, you only need one blank 1.44 M diskette.
Your hard disks are not affected in any way. Assembly programmers unite!

1. I've been playing DOS games (under PC-DOS). Settlers II and Ultima Underworld I/II play perfectly. Populous is unplayably fast. Tomb Raider was reasonably fast though it did keep stopping for a while every 10 seconds.
   
2. Playing games under Windows 98 is tricky. Age of Empires II and Red Alert play. They're a little slow but not so slow you can't play.
   
3. I installed Debian with no problem. In some tests the emulated X server is faster than the Native XDarwin. (I'm serious! XDarwin sucks and I guess the there's no reason for the emulated S3 card to be that slow.) Couldn't get networking to work. Did some numeric speed tests (eg. echo "2^100000"|time bc) and found the emulated machine to be half the speed of running natively. Really! That dynamic compilation stuff works well sometimes. XGalaga worked fine!
   
4. Also tried FreeBSD (did an FTP install, flawless), Plan 9 (3 or 4 hours to install but it seemed to work) and MenuetOS (pretty nippy).
   

Goes to show you can emulate the hardware completely and still get good results. Bochs has a long way to go.

UNIX is 30 years old! Time to replace it with menuetos ! Makes about as much sense....

I have ad blockers in my machine, and I only saw an X where the big, ugly banner should be. I then saw the source of the page and found this addresses:

Index

General info

Screen shots

I have ad blockers in my machine, and I only saw an X where the big, ugly banner should be. I then saw the source of the page and found this addresses:

Index

General info

Screen shots

I have ad blockers in my machine, and I only saw an X where the big, ugly banner should be. I then saw the source of the page and found this addresses:

Index

General info

Screen shots

If you are having trouble with the link, try this one.

Need to whore me some karma....