What will the next OS look like - Some design thoughts

[Red Shaya]

I think everyone in here started with some kind of a "beginner OS developer path". Probably writing a basic text interface with or without a boot loder. We all cheered when we saw the little text message that said our little OS has completed the boot sequence. Then followed issues like protected mode, file system etc.

I've just looked in sourceforge.com. There are about 530 different OS projects. Most of them in alpha stage.
I've started to follow the "beginners path" but have stopped a few months ago. I could become the 535'th abandoned project, but I think there is more in it than leaving an abandoned project behind me.

I started to experience in OSDEV becuse I think there is a place for a better OS. Win-dos is (relatively) friendly but cost money and is SLOW. Linux is less friendly which prevents it from penetrating the home market. Commercial companies can either pay for windows and have Unix oriented people and usually need more server like OS, but the home market would love a free reliable OS that is both free and friendly.

Both Win-dos and Linux are getting old. they were both designed in the days where web browsers, free internet access and fast cable modems were a wet dream. It is my feeling that EASY internet access will be the entrance key for the home market.

Simple people don't want to be bothered about firewalls, anti-virus configuration, disk partitioning, installing upgrades, configuring internet connection, making backups etc. They want to switch on the computer and start surfing. They want to click a button and start writing e-mail and send it with another button. They want to hit a link and have their favorite software updated automatically. They want a reliable system that doesn't need rebooting to get it back on tracks.

I think that before designing something you need to have a picture in you head and that was the idea I had. I Picture an OS that will have network as a resource just like the keyboard, screen, memory and disk components we have today. The network will have protection just as we protect memory and files. this means we could eliminate the use of firewalls and anti-viruses (and spyware cleaners) as the system will be designed and protected against them , the same way as we files and memory are protected against programs and attcks today.

As a result of integrating the network as an integral component the browser *COULD* become the window manager. I'm not sure IF this is such a great idea, but I'm trying to think of new ideas and ways to make the system friendlier.

I would like to implement a 64bit file system. One idea would be to place all the files in virtual memory as 64bit address space would be more than a physical disk could hold in the near future.
The problem is that in the near future the home market will continue to use 32bit computers. Further more, I would like my OS to help keep people satisfied with their current hardware instead of pushing them into driving faster and expensive equipment just to be able to run a "fat" heavy OS.

Yet being network oriented, does open a door for new ideas about file systems. What about treating all the files as URL's? So the different between local and remote files is transparent. You could even update and save remote (static) files so you have your personal copy on your comp (I'm not sure its such a great idea, I'm just throwing my ideas out).

I've talked about easy updates at the begining. I think M$ did a nice and friendly job with the concept of OS updates. Some SW companies also adopted the internet update for their software and I think integrating an internet update feature in the OS is an excelent idea.

Games platform: I'm not a gamer, so my ideas here might be less interesting, but basically the picture I had in mind would be to consider games a single user operating mode. I think that an internet machine that would enable multi-player games but will shut the browser mode, would be some kind of a break through.
What I basically mean is a mode like the text mode linux have today, with no window manager running. Ideally this would be a direct graphic mode, but of course it could run also "plain" text mode programs.

dual processors : like 64bit. This issue should be taken into consideration when designing the OS, but the OS should operate on single processors as I predict it will take a few good years before multi-processors get to be common in the home market.

Those are some of my ideas. Please comment on the concept and add your own ideas about things that should be included in a fresh modern designed home desktop OS.

[Kemp]

A quick point about multi-processor systems, we already have dual-core ones making a lot of headway into the market so you may have to consider them a lot sooner than you estimate.

I would like to implement a 64bit file system. One idea would be to place all the files in virtual memory as 64bit address space would be more than a physical disk could hold in the near future.

Not quite getting this one. You want to pretend that all the files on the disk are in memory? You'd have a hell of a time translating commands from a memory access to a hard drive access and etc, but I guess it could be possible. Would this be part of your "make everything unified" philosophy? Where there are no longer two types of memory, just RAM and (emulated) static RAM.

I don't quite see it, but you make good points overall especially about users, they do want to just switch the computer on and do stuff, but you have to let the application programmers take some responsibility for that, the OS is there to support the applications rather than do their job (in my opinion at least).

[GLneo]

i like the idea of super simple os, we use windows but still all my parents + brothers know how to do is push the little AOL button, so if enything is diferent(even a window in the way of the button) they are clueless, so once my os goes graphical it will be ultera simple, a monkey could use it(and that should be my logo)

[Crazed123]

I'm already designing my OS to be a gamer's OS. The principle of the thing is that you just boot to a 5-line or so console on the bottom of the screen and use the rest for graphical functions. SDL and OpenGL will be implemented as drivers and to use the thing should be as simple as booting it and typing "Run X", where X is a program that installed itself to a special quickstart folder, or even just "Run Disk" to look for a CD-ROM containing the desired software, which would adapt well to games.

[Dex4u]

@Crazed123, Your OS is very similar to "Dex4u" consept .
Screenshot : http://www.dex4u.com/guinew.PNG

[Crazed123]

Not really, it will be more based on command line than a menu. The point is that a n00b user should only have to know one or two commands to run a common program.