Live Demo CD of Microkernel-Based TUD:OS Released

Norman Feske writes "The OS Group of Technische Universität Dresden (TUD:OS) has released a live demo CD of their custom operating system project. TUD:OS is a microkernel-based operating system targeted at secure and real-time systems. Some highlights of the demo CD include a new approach for securing graphical user interfaces called Nitpicker, multiple L4Linux kernels running at the same time on top of a custom L4 microkernel, a survey on the reuse of device drivers on the TUD:OS platform, native Qt-applications, the DOpE windowing system, games, and a lot more. More information is available at the demo CD website demo.tudos.org. And yes, there are screenshots, too!"

Comments

you convinced me

[gEvil (beta)]

...the DOpE windowing system...

That's all I needed right there. I'm checking this out right now.

If they managed to create something like this...

[10Ghz]

Why is HURD still nowhere near finished (as in: ready to be used)?

Anyone have a torrent?

[jarom]

Anyone have a torrent, or has downloaded the ISO and can make one?

Explanation of the naming

[Florian]

"TUD:OS" is simply an acronym of "Technical University Dresden Operating System". Their computer science department has done amazing work on the l4 microkernel, and continues to release all its code under free licenses, btw.

Re:If they managed to create something like this..

[Anonymous Coward]

They keep having to rewrite it, because the hardware is improving faster than the ability of EMACS to bog it down.

I trust myself.

[js_sebastian]

That's assuming the user can be trusted

I don't care if they trust me. I'm the one buying the computer and I trust myself to use it however I see fit (and if I break any laws with it I can be tried for it, same as with my kitchen knife if I use it to stab someone).

Aside from this, it's true that having a hardware safe for cryptographic private keys (the fritz chip) is sound from a security perspective (while takign control of what the chip will or will not sign away from the user is bad).

The reason I was comparing this TUD OS with TC is that the intel and AMD TC platforms both implement memory curtaining to isolate programs from one another, which this project seems to do quite nicely with a software-only solution.

And let me rebuke this OT but blatantly false line:

DRM is irrelevent to those who don't possess or have any intention of possessing illegal copyrighted content.

It is relevant to anyone who has any interest to legally buying content which is sold with DRM restrictions. Even in the best of worlds, where the content sellers play nice, DRM stops me from playing something I bought from company X on anything but the players approved by company X. (iTunes audio files on anything but an iPod?). And if company X goes out of buisness or just decides not to support that format anymore you may be unable to play those files ever again.

And in the real world, companies which can effectively write a different copyright law for each piece of content will use this to their advantage and to the user's disadvantage: to milk more money by selling the same stuff multiple times, and to hinder interoperability in anti-competitive ways.

HURD delays

[Anonymous Coward]

http://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/bug-hurd/2006-03 /msg00091.html seems to indicate that the devs are still discussing HURD...

...of course HURD is the Gargantuan Ancient Granddaddy of Cathedral vs Bazaar style development ...

http://www.catb.org/~esr/writings/samizdat-respons e.html

...I can tell you exactly why the HURD tanked. It was listening to a presentation by HURD's project lead in 1996, and realizing the project was doomed, that started me on the train of thought that led to "The Cathedral and the Bazaar". They were trying to do engineering and pure R&D at the same time; they lacked focus or any drive to actually ship code; and their development group was too small and inbred.