Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!lll-tis!ames!pasteur!agate!ig!uwmcsd1!dogie!terranova
From: terranova@vms.macc.wisc.edu
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: Re: ProDOS vs. DOS 3.3 (was: SOFTSWITCH)
Message-ID: <366@dogie.edu>
Date: 12 Jun 88 03:55:10 GMT
Sender: news@dogie.edu
Organization: University of Wisconsin Academic Computing Center
Lines: 52

In article <8075@brl-smoke.ARPA>, gwyn@brl-smoke.ARPA (Doug Gwyn ) writes...
 
>In article <8806100851.aa03496@SMOKE.BRL.ARPA> SEWALL@UCONNVM.BITNET (Murph Sewall) writes:
>>Is there REALLY enough extra advantage to ProDOS ...
>>... to merit starting over from scratch?
> 
>I don't know what your problem is.  Removable media will boot whatever
>OS they happen to contain.  Fixed media are definitely better off with
>ProDOS.  Both my hard disks are set up as ProDOS file systems.  ProDOS
>is so much closer to a real OS than DOS 3.3 that I virtually never use
>DOS 3.3 (except when booting some old stand-alone disk built with DOS).

What?!?  ProDOS is close (anywhere near) a real OS?  Since when?
Have there been that many major changes to ProDOS from when I used
to use it all the time (a couple years ago)?  Sure, ProDOS is a
>>small<< step in the right direction, but it is meager, at best
(sorry, Apple).

Perhaps we don't agree as to what a real OS is.  Let me enumerate:
	- multi-tasking (I guess this rules out most micros)
	- I/O re-direction
	- device independence
	- piping (this can be done without m-t)
	- virtual memory (on a 6502?  yea, right)
Anyone care to add to this list?

It is interesting to note that I believe all of the above (except
virtual memory) can be done on a //e/c.  At one time (I'm talking
just a few weeks ago) I was half tempted to implement a shell to
overlay ProDOS and achieve most of the above.
Two things stopped me:
	1) I don't use a //c anymore (now it is my parent's)
	2) I hate assembly language
	  a. I have never seen any decent, cheap C/Pascal compilers

Perhaps someone out there will pick up my fallen cause and get the job
done.  (Personally, I'd rather waste my time programming a Mac than a
// [sorry]).  I would love to be able to type something like:
	ls /bin>out | more
on a // and have it function as expected.

Well, enough of my ranting and raving.  If anyone out there decides to
give this a try, mail me.  I'd love to share what I learned and give
any tips or hints that I think may help.

------------------------+------------------------------------------------
John C. Terranova       |  I'd start a revolution, but I don't have time.
  CS, BS to be		|      --Billy Joel,  "Close to the Boarderline"
------------------------+------------------------------------------------
I speak for myself as well as all those listed below.  And no one else.
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