5/12/06

I'm doing all my OS/compiler work under Linux and even Windows now... just
prototyping... First of all, there's no point writing lots of hardware code
for an OS until it's capable of running useful software... Second, in a few
years we'll all be using something like USB3 for the mouse, keyboard, disks,
video, networking and everything... that would make this OS a whole lot
simpler.


2/8/05

All this programming stuff is on the back burner now (obviously)... I just
haven't had the time for it, or rather, I've had other more interesting
things to do.  Well, maybe someday I'll take another crack at OS and
compiler writing, if someone else doesn't perfect everything in the
meantime.


3/23/04

This "file archive" of mine is taking shape.. you'll notice that files have
descriptions shown now. HTTP file uploading isn't ready yet... I need to
work out security issues.. there's so much potential for abuse. It sure
would be convenient, though.

I'm happy with the way my newest OS project is shaping up.. it's written
primarily in C and it's compiled in ELF format.. pretty standard stuff, in
other words. The neat thing is, it compiles using only NASM and TCC (Fabrice
Bellard's Tiny C Compiler). I use HTGET.EXE (HTGET102.ZIP) in a batch file
to boot it from my DOS box over the LAN.

I'm interested in buying or building a simple computer to go along with this
simple new OS.. ideally it would be an E-paper or LCD touchscreen with an
integral "all in one" motherboard.. you could sketch and scribble on it with
a stylus. No mouse, no hard drive, no moving parts.. just a regular keyboard
and some USB flash drives. I'd use USB for everything.. I wouldn't need all
those other interfaces taking up space on the motherboard, and I wouldn't
need to write drivers for them.

I keep coming up with better user-interface ideas.. Hypertext Notebook
stuff.. visual/associative filesystem.. task management.. I'm doing a little
prototyping under Linux, but it's mostly in the design stage.

Back burner projects:
   ABC music previewer/editor
   Graphics library & font engine
   Compilers, libraries, utilities for my own OS
   Hypertext notebook

I'm gradually creating my own library of routines I find myself needing
again and again.. it's mostly a sound/graphics/font engine at this point,
like Shawn Hargreaves did with Allegro, except I have the benefit of
hindsight so I'm not gonna worry about what other people might want to use
it for... I think it's important for any programmer to "own" the tools of
his trade, instead of using some all-purpose library with a name and a web
site and mailing list.

I still mean to finish the ABC program.. it'd be really nice to have a
split-screen thing, text editor on top, music displayed on the bottom.. like
BarFly or Abacus, for Linux.