Free DOS is an operating system that is fully compatible with the Microsoft-released DOS, but the project is distinguished by the fact that this development is distributed under a free license, which is GNU. The platform was released back in 2006 and is installed on computers and laptops from various manufacturers as the system selected by default.
Design principle
The Free DOS
operating system was created as a full-fledged alternative to the previously existing MS-DOS, because the latter is distributed under the rights of a paid license. The development of the project began in 1994, however, the platform was prepared in the first stable version with an index of 1.0 only by 2006. The OS is absolutely free and can be run on almost any outdated and new equipment.
In addition, for its implementation, you can use emulators, which will allow you to run the necessary applications under DOS. At the same time, the system code is open, which means that, if desired, any developer can modify it to suit his own needs.
About using the system
At the moment, the system version 1.1 can easily be downloaded on the official website of the developers as an image of a CD for installation. Free DOS is used by laptop and computer manufacturers as a free alternative to MS-DOS, as well as other products from Microsoft, which can significantly increase the cost of the device, which will negatively affect the sales of certain computer equipment. ASUS, HP and Dell provide users the opportunity to buy computers with preinstalled FreeDOS system.
About specifications
The OS works with
the FAT32 file system. Free DOS supports the execution of absolutely all basic operations on files on a PC that are available in other well-known operating systems.
In addition, the system supports working with archives (7-ZIP, ZIP), editing various text documents using additional programs, working with mouse pointers, which has a scroll wheel, and viewing HTML pages. If we talk about what Free DOS is and what its features are, it should be noted that there are a large number of programs that have been ported from Linux.
This system has its own browser, BitTorrent-client and even anti-virus software. The project supports work on any modern computer, mainly on the x86 architecture. The device must be equipped with at least 2 MB of internal memory, and approximately 40 MB is required to install this system.
The operating system can be launched not only upon completion of installation, but also through special virtual machines (for example, VirtualBox), they can be deployed on standard Mac, Linux or Windows platforms.
In addition, it is possible to start the system directly from the browser window, thanks to the Java emulator, which is available to the user for downloading on the official website of the developer.
To ensure direct installation of the platform on a computer, you need to download the latest version of the system, then burn the image to an empty CD-ROM, restart the computer, and then boot the PC from the disk.
About picking
The distribution package of the system includes a significant number of various free programs, among them are written specifically for the DOS project and ported from Unix-like platforms using DJGPP: a graphical system, several games, text editors, browsers, utilities. Thanks to DOS / 32, as well as Open Watcom, FreeDOS is an easy solution for any industrial computers that are based on
PC architecture. FreeDOS can be easily installed on Samsung and ASUS laptops. As part of this project, a replacement has been developed for the MS-DOS shell.