A2osX - Multi-Tasking OS for Apple II

[BigEd]

As seen elsewhere, an announcement and request for contributors and testers, an OS based on "a cooperative, event-driven multitasking kernel", "including IP Stack & HTTPD/TELNETD..., GUI & graphical tools":

Quote:

A2osX is designed to work on any "stock" 128k Apple //e, with no additional hardware. As VBL signal is NOT available as an IRQ on //e (it is on //c & IIgs) it makes preemptive multitasking impossible.

Kernel, loading in Aux LC on top of ProDOS provide API inspired from Linux/Unix World to allow writing applications & command line tools on top of it. This kernel provides an advanced "Memory Manager" able to relocate 65c02 code. "Event Manager" makes TCPIP stack able to listen on several ports, manage ARP,DNS...cache expiration and any background processes. "Task Manager" is responsible to "distribute" CPU time to several loaded processes. "Device Manager" handles event collected from builtin devices as well as devices added by loadable drivers.

Also seen on Usenet:

Quote:

Rémy Gibert is working on a new multitasking OS for the 8-bit enhanced
Apple IIe and has made *quite* a lot of progress, and also has developed a
TCP/IP stack within this OS that can do DHCP and DNS resolution. There is
also a screen editor and an assembler. Everything is done in assembly
language.

He has put out a call for assembly language developers. If you have an
enhanced IIe, a IIc, or a IIgs, you can also help by running the system on
your machine (not emulator) and reporting what works and what doesn't.

Download the boot disk here and test it out on real hardware:
https://github.com/burniouf/A2osX/blob/ ... SX.BOOT.po

He will welcome your feedback about what works and what doesn't work.

Edit: update to wayback copies of G+ URLs

[whartung]

Yea I saw this the other day, didn't get a chance to link it. Pretty impressive. I glanced at the source code, but wasn't able to really find the task switching mechanism, which I'm particularly keen on how they managed. They also have a relocating 6502 loader that they use, which is the other key component. Curious how that works out for them as well.

All seems to be built with local tools on the //e. Makes it an exercise in patience if nothing else nowadays.

[cbmeeks]

I have an army of Apple computers. Perhaps I could help out. I will ping them and see what they need.

Thanks!

[Dog Cow]

cbmeeks wrote:

I have an army of Apple computers. Perhaps I could help out. I will ping them and see what they need.

Thanks!

As far as testing goes, just download the boot disk image, put it on your real Apple IIe or IIc or IIgs (not emulator) and report back what happens when you try the different command line utilities. We need people to test various hardware configurations, including RamWorks, clock cards, Super Serial cards, LanceGS and Uthernet cards. There is also going to be support for the AppleTalk workstation card, so if you have one of those for your IIe, you will be asked to test your configuration.