Slashdot Mirror
Walking Through SkyOS 5.0 Beta
Hexydes writes "TechIMO has published the first preview of the next-generation SkyOS platform. The article includes a first-look at what users can expect in the next version of SkyOS, a review of how development has progressed from previous versions, and many screenshots." SkyOS is a free operating system for x86 systems; it looks very polished for being "mainly (99.9%) a one man project."
"With no clear advantage over other free unixes, [like Linux?] why is this hobbyOS getting so much attention? i tried a beta disc a few months back, and i didn't see anything special...i mean, a one man OS is impressive, [see Linus Torvalds] but i can't see anyone actually using it...[like everyone uses linux now?]"
Not trying to blow your argument out of the water, but do you have to immediately assume that there is no use for this because you can't find one? Gee, if nobody else uses my web portal software, why should I bother to develop and release it, too? Maybe I should just give up programming cuz nobody will ever see a use for it. I think it's great that someone can find a hobby, stick with it, and share it with everyone else.
Sometimes I doubt your commitment to Sparkle Motion.
Okay, come on... there is value to other OS projects, yes, linux is the big thing, and everyone should concentrate on it, yadda, yadda...
But, if people don't do other small OS's, or even dead end crazy projects, then a lot of stuff could be missed. For example if I'm going to write an OS, then I'd have to worry about a bootloader... Now let's say I write one from scratch... Great, a total waste, as me and maybe 4 other people on the planet will ever use it... But if LILO (or whatever the latest bootloader for Linux is), would have a problem, it's quite possible that my bootloader may have a fix for it, and then the experience gained from writing my own useless OS, would pay off by being used to fix the current popular OS.
And posting about these projects on slashdot may be what is required to get enough attention that someone examines it's functionality, and discovers that the useless project has something working, that their project does not...
---
Programming is like sex... Make one mistake and support it the rest of your life.
Linux was once the same way. People doing stuff like this (imho) is what pushes the computing world further. There may not be a real good production use for it now, but who knows what will happen in the future. 10 years from now we might be talking about another hobby OS and asking what benefits it would offer over SkyOS? :)
The reason it gets so much attention is that people are now convinced that hobby OSs can actually become more.
Finkployd
Your point is valid but not a rebuttal to his statement. He is questioning why this specific OS, out of the myriad hobby systems, is getting so much attention. He is yearning for knowledge of what qualities distinguish SkyOS from the pack to the degree that it should be repeatedly highlighted on Slashdot.
He is NOT questioning why somebody would develop this. He is NOT saying there is no use. He merely wants to know what makes SkyOS special.
Maybe you should actually read posts before trying to make clever responses.
I don't mind seeing spots on SkyOS; I just wish other hobby systems were highlighted also. It reminds me of an earlier Slashdot.
Just a few little question:
If we manage to slashdot all these sites all the time:
how come /. never gets /.'d? /. running over at /. to maintain /.'s high speed at all times allowing /. readers access? /. site so the /. site must be hammered at least as much as other sites...
What the hell are
Everyone must come through the
Karem
When all is said and done, nothing changes...
The difference is that Linux was never a proprietary OS. SkyOS is a closed source proprietary OS. It's unlikely to get the support or development effort that Linux got.
Oolite: Elite-like game. For Mac, Linux and Windows
Sweet merciful crap. What is nerdier than writing your own operating system?! I mean honestly, if Lego can make the frontpage then this guy's work most assuredly should be there too.
My patience is infinite, my time is not.
I was under the impression that Linux has a large community of developers.
"Who are in control, they are not in control of anything - they don't even control themselves!" - Glen Beck
to quote the author, he "will never" release the source code. At least with a big company like Microsoft you've got some security that they're not going to suddenly shutdown -n and disappear. But if you're planning to invest your eggs in SkyOS as anything more than a toy, you're doing so without security, much like how BeOS users had with an OS from a small company.
SkyOS is receiving tons of attention. Whereas Syllable, which is being developed openly, under the GPL, and at a faster rate, is not. And why? Maybe because SkyOS's website burns through ~35gb of screenshot bandwidth per month, or its geekcooler or something. But it isn't fair to compare this project with Linux in 1991. Linus liberalised his licence from what it was originally to make it freer for others to use for their own purposes. Whereas SkyOS was relicenced and has withdrawn source-code availability with the de facto promise to "never" release it again.
Yep. Linus has been probably the major contributer of code and design, but the simple kernel he wrote all by himself has probably long since been rewritten many times over. He certainly never got Linux as far as SkyOS has come, all by himself.
A deep unwavering belief is a sure sign you're missing something...
Or maybe they're afraid to release the source until the OS has evolved its basic design far enough that it can't be ignored by contributors who don't understand or don't agree with it. See, Linux's success has partially been a result of its being a "Unix Like" system. One of the ideas of SkyOS was to get away from trying to make a clone. Therefore, it needs to have precedents in programming and user interface design, or else contributors will donate their own arbitrary, and possibly incongruous, designs.
In short: it is easier to create a strong system by following loose rules and methodologies than it is to create one with no rules or methodologies.
Hey freaks: now you're ju