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Hi I'm looking for a good book that will go indepth into real-mode OS development? Perhaps someone can recommend something to read that isn't all modern. I've read some beginner stuff on the subject but looking for something to continue that knowledge so i can start a project.

IIRC, the original version of Minix was able to run in real mode. So I would recommend the original Minix book.

Hi orchid ,

Few good books in my library are given below, hope that you find them useful as well.
One good thing to do is make use of emu8086 , it is very easy to test and write simple real mode operating systems with it.

• Free DOS Kernel

• Dissecting DOS

• MicroC-OS 2

--Thomas

Real mode really?

Real mode on the 8086 is a evil land of segments, unless its for education I would recommend staying away from that area. At least you get the BIOS to help out

As for books the original MINX book is pretty good, the new one gives a great overview to operating system design thats a little past beginner stage.

There is no good book, but theres a good alternative called MikeOS, thats has great doc's and will teach you all you need to know.
Also take a look at MiniDos, A 2K dos clone.

hall123 wrote:Real mode on the 8086 is a evil land of segments, unless its for education I would recommend staying away from that area. At least you get the BIOS to help out

Yes, segments are pretty horrible, but if you think small you can avoid them. For instance, in my OS -- http://mikeos.berlios.de -- everything is in a single, 64K segment. The kernel lives in the first 32K, and apps run in the seconds 32K.

Sure, this is very limiting for any kind of serious OS, but it's plenty of space for learning about a basic project. In 64K we have a BASIC interpreter, text editor, games, image viewer, serial terminal app etc., so you can do quite a few things without worrying about segments.

M