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From: phys169@canterbury.ac.nz
Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.misc
Subject: Re: PC-DOS vs. MS-DOS
Message-ID: <1990Oct19.234337.9458@canterbury.ac.nz>
Date: 19 Oct 90 10:43:37 GMT
References: <90290.111217ESR@SLACVM.BITNET> <1502.271df2f5@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com>
Organization: University of Canterbury
Lines: 21

In article <1502.271df2f5@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com>, browns@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com (Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems) writes:
> In article <90290.111217ESR@SLACVM.BITNET>, ESR@SLACVM.BITNET (Ed Russell) writes:
>> [Please explain the difference between PC-DOS and MS-DOS, not between
>> different-numbered versions]
> 
> The principal difference between PC-DOS and MS-DOS is in their BASICs,

Quite right. One bit of information to add is the reason - clone makers
couldn't put Microsoft's BASIC in ROM without infringing copyright - some how
the BASIC was better protected by copyright than the BIOS - I think the BASIC
keywords were the main thing.
> 
> More generally, PC-DOS is one version of MS-DOS.  Microsoft licenses
> MS-DOS to computer manufacturers, who make whatever mods they want and
> sell the result.  As far as I know, only IBM has actually given its
> version a separate name, PC-DOS. 

Trivial information dept: both Televideo and VCCP versions of DOS 2.1(1) have
separate names, (i.e. not MSDOS) and they share an oem number of 255. 

Mark Aitchison, Uni of Canterbury, New Zealand.