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| DivideByZero |
 Posted: Wed Jun 25, 2008 4:59 pm Post subject: OS |
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Forum Junior
Joined: 02 Dec 2007
Posts: 256
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Where do I start if I want to create my own OS (w/ GUI)?
Where did the people who made linux start? |
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| SuperNatendo |
| Posted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 8:16 am Post subject: |
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Forum Masters Degree
Joined: 10 Dec 2007
Posts: 518
Location: Nashville, TN USA
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Well, in a nut-shell, linus torvalds made the linux kernel based off of the work done at berkley and the unix OS. He made linux to run on his new 32-bit processor since at the time no commercial 32-bit OS existed. He released the code under the GPL and now anyone can use the kernel in their own OS. I recommend you start out simply and make your own OS and GUI using existing Linux tools. You can go to http://custom.nimblex.net/ to make your own customized version of nimblex, or you can go to http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/ to learn how operating systems are made and make your own, though it will probably be much easier to just use the linux kernel and customize from there.
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“It’s no wonder that truth is stranger than fiction. Fiction has to make sense.” - Mark Twain |
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| DivideByZero |
| Posted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 6:09 pm Post subject: |
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Forum Junior
Joined: 02 Dec 2007
Posts: 256
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sure i'll do that first.
My long term goal is to create an OS from scratch (with custom GUI, etc). |
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| SuperNatendo |
| Posted: Fri Jun 27, 2008 8:16 am Post subject: |
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Forum Masters Degree
Joined: 10 Dec 2007
Posts: 518
Location: Nashville, TN USA
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well, as far as GUI, it is very easy to make a custom one for ANY operating system. You just need the right tools. The only reason I could see wanting to build an OS totally from scratch would be educational use, again, there are MUCH more things going on than the GUI, like driver support, thread/resource management, package management, software libraries/dependencies, Networking Protocols, File system Structure, Disk Mounting, Shell integration, and many many more. This is why Linux was started, to ensure that not just a small handful of software companies had access to the procedures and code allowing for the complexities of compiling modern-day Operating System.
Linux has tons of GUI's to choose from and you could feasibly make your own as well, not only that, but some of these GUI's are ultra customizable! KDE, GNOME, Enlightenment, XFCE are the most popular ones, but you could make your own if none of these GUI's or Distros fit your tastes/needs. (some of these GUIs have been ported to Windows and MAC OS X as well.)
If everyone tried building from nothing into a fully-functional OS for the sole purpose of making their own GUI, we would have to wait decades for innovation, whereas in Linux and FreeBSD you can build on and learn from existing code. Innovation comes much faster that way.
None of the existing Operating Systems started totally from scratch, they were all built on previous code and research. In fact, most Operating systems today are based on work done by AT&T UNIX and Berkley, DOS had its roots in CP/M. Ever wonder why the internet uses forward slashes / and Windows uses backslashes \ and Drive lettering? Its a move they now regret since most servers on the web are UNIX based partly due to the fact they are not limited to 26 total drives.
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“It’s no wonder that truth is stranger than fiction. Fiction has to make sense.” - Mark Twain |
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| MoltenWhale |
| Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 2:15 pm Post subject: |
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Forum Freshman
Joined: 29 Apr 2008
Posts: 60
Location: MI
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Not to bud in on this topic, but is there anything like that for Mac users?
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| iamhereintheworld |
| Posted: Thu Sep 04, 2008 5:30 am Post subject: Where did Linux Torvalds start |
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Forum Freshman
Joined: 04 Sep 2008
Posts: 4
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Linus Torvalds started off with a book called "The design of the Unix Operating System" by Maurice Bach, if memory serves me correctly.
If you want to make an OS, do so by all means, - start from scratch, and make one entirely your own - not a reimplementation of other's ideas. You can find the archives of alt.os.development (I think) at Google groups, that will have everything you need to get started. (and there's also alt.os.assembly in case you're truly crazy and want to make it in assembly language!  ) |
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