Date: Fri, 12 Sep 1997 14:46:13 +1100
From: Bill Currie <billc AT blackmagic DOT tait DOT co DOT nz>
Subject: Re: DJGPP: DJ's GNU POSIX Platform
In-reply-to: <199709120207.WAA05897@delorie.com>
To: DJ Delorie <dj AT delorie DOT com>, djgpp AT delorie DOT com
Message-id: <199709120251.OAA05504@teleng1.tait.co.nz gatekeeper.tait.co.nz>
Organization: Tait Electronics Limited
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On 11 Sep 97 at 22:07, DJ Delorie wrote:

> 
> > Having worked with some of the many-featured aspects of DJGPP for over
> > a year, while watching this platform expand further, I would like to
> > offer a modest suggestion for a new interpretation of "DJGPP":
> > 
> > DJ's GNU POSIX Platform
> 
> We'd need a POSIX file system to claim this, and DOS is not it.
> 
> Maybe it's time for DJGPP to expand into the 32-bit DOS clone area?
> We could start with Freedos (it's gpl) and rewrite the FAT drivers
> for true long and case sensitive names, real symlinks, and FAT32.
> 
> Imagine a 32-bit DOS that uses up around 3k of conventional memory,
> leaving ALL high and upper memory available, even with all your
> drivers installed...
> 

I have the beginnings of such a beast and I know you (DJ) do from 
your web pages.  There's a slightly out of date version on Alaric 
Williams pages (kernel.zip).  I've got it to autodetect IDE drives 
(writing not yet tested) and dos partitions, support v86 mode, 
handle floppy drives (not fully tested), comm ports, screen (text 
only) and the keyboard.  It still needs a lot of work, but I would 
gladly donate it to the project (it's free anyway).

My OS's biggest advantage, IMHO, is that it doesn't use any tools 
other than those either supplied by djgpp or written by myself (with 
a little help from Shawn Heargraves (malloc) and Andy Hoffmeyer 
(kprintf), so I guess it qualifies to be somehow related to djgpp.


Bill
--
Leave others their otherness.