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大愚：FreeDOS是穿上开源马甲的DOS
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http://www.sina.com.cn 2006年07月06日 11:58 ChinaByte
作者：大愚
据国外媒体报道，MS-DOS的开源版本FreeDOS在月底即将发布1.0版。据有关资料表明，FreeDOS的开发始自1994年，当时微软公司宣布将发布Windows 95并停止对MS-DOS的支持。
从历史的角度来说，Windows 95的发布使PC第一次被普通大众所接受，PC这位昔日的“王榭堂前燕”，终于大规模地“飞入寻常百姓家”。然而Windows虽然有其GUI带来的许多优势，但时其臃肿的身材也使许多程序员不满，不少人更怀念MS-DOS的小巧，于是继续开发MS-DOS软件，FreeDOS就是若干个仍在不断发展和更新中的DOS的一种，它与MS-DOS是完全兼容，国内外已经开发的绝大多数 DOS软件也可以在它上面正常的运行。
如大愚到国外FreeDOS网站上(freedos.sourceforge.net/freedos/about/)看到不少原先MS-DOS没有的功能，当然也保持了MS-DOS原先的功能，如与Win95-2003及NT/XP/ME多重启动功能;LBA的支持及在LBA模式下的磁盘缓存支持;多到4个硬盘的支持;DVD-ROM、鼠标、游戏摇杆等设备的支持;能直接播放MP3文件及读取ZIP压缩文件。另外，内核为32位的DOS操作系统FreeDOS 32，已经可以直接读取U盘，支持多任务、长文件名，可以上网，也支持DVD-ROM、鼠标、游戏摇杆等设备。从以上的功能可以看出，FreeDOS简直就是当前不少版本Linux发展初期的翻版!
如果把现在FreeDOS与当前最新版的Linux、Windows相比，很容易发现，FreeDOS从功能不上不如Linux丰富，获取的支持也比Linux要少得多;从界面上来看，由于FreeDOS虽然也有一些界面仿真器如Seal，Qube，WinDOS等，在界面上做得比较漂亮，但与Windows XP相比还略有逊色。
总体而言，FreeDOS所的道路就是当前Linux所正在走或已走的道路。FreeDOS是程序员出于对Windows的不满所推出的，是为了针对抵制Windows所推出的，因此无意之中与Linux走到了同一战壕。往大里说或者说将来FreeDOS发展到一定程度时，FreeDOS有可能作为Linux的竞争者面目出现。
然而与Linux相比，FreeDOS的唯一优势就是与以前的MS-DOS兼容，这在某种程度上能使以前的不少为DOS开发的软件重新得到使用，但是我们不妨想想如下的问题:如果这些软件真的必须要仍被使用，MS-DOS现在已开始免费了，而且用的好好的，为什么非要用FreeDOS呢?另外，与Linux相比，FreeDOS的劣势太明显了，那就是没有业界大腕的支持。要想进一步发展，发展到当前Linux的水平，难!
Linux在服务器领域发展的相当不错，但是在个人桌面操作系统领域，与Windows相比就要差得远了。有人可能把之归结于没有GUI界面，如果这样想就大错特错了，有些Linux借助于图形仿真界面，其操作模式与界面与Windows一模一样，甚至有的比Windows XP还要漂亮，因此界面不是导致Linux在个人桌面操作系统领域与Windows产生如此大差距的原因，那么到底是什么原因呢?大愚认为根本原因是基于两者所开发的应用软件数量及质量根本不在一个数量级上。对于绝大部分普通用户而言，他们才不关心用什么操作系统呢，他们关心的是在电脑上能安装什么样的应用软件!与Windows相比，支持Linux的应用软件数量太少了。
从当前FreeDOS与Linux从功能方面比较，FreeDOS还略显薄弱，Linux在个人桌面操作系统领域都没有斗过Windows，因此大愚认为如果没有业界大腕的支持及硬性吹捧，FreeDOS的发展空间不会很大!相信不少人会以“以前的DOS软件都可重用”来加以反对，但是不要忘了，以前的只要有生命力的DOS软件，现在大都开发出了相应的Windows版本，功能也大大拓展了，谁也不会为了在FreeDOS上运行，再去针对FreeDOS对原来的DOS版本进行升级吧?
基于以上分析可以看到，FreeDOS就象穿上当前比较时尚的开源马甲的DOS，对于以前曾接触过DOS的人来说也许会产生“小样!穿上马甲我依然认识你”的感觉，但对那些从来没有用过DOS的人来说，无论你套上什么样的马甲，他们该不认识你还是不认识你，对这些人而言，“以前的DOS软件重用”根本毫不意义。前有不同类型的Windows与基本同类型Linux，FreeDOS要想超越两者，难!
Da Yu: FreeDOS is DOS Wearing an Open Source Vest
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http://www.sina.com.cn July 06, 2006 11:58 ChinaByte
Author: Da Yu
According to foreign media reports, the open source version of MS-DOS, FreeDOS, is about to release version 1.0 at the end of this month. According to relevant information, the development of FreeDOS started in 1994 when Microsoft announced that it would release Windows 95 and stop supporting MS-DOS.
From a historical perspective, the release of Windows 95 made PCs first accepted by the general public. PCs, which were once "swallows in Wang Xie's hall", finally "flew into the homes of ordinary people" on a large scale. However, although Windows has many advantages brought by its GUI, its bloated size also makes many programmers dissatisfied. Many people miss the compactness of MS-DOS even more, so they continue to develop MS-DOS software. FreeDOS is one of the DOS systems that are still continuously developed and updated. It is completely compatible with MS-DOS, and the vast majority of domestic and foreign developed DOS software can also run normally on it.
For example, when I went to the foreign FreeDOS website (freedos.sourceforge.net/freedos/about/), I saw many functions that were not originally in MS-DOS. Of course, it also maintained the original functions of MS-DOS, such as dual-boot functions with Win95-2003 and NT/XP/ME; support for LBA and disk cache support in LBA mode; support for up to 4 hard disks; support for devices such as DVD-ROM, mouse, game joystick; can directly play MP3 files and read ZIP compressed files. In addition, the 32-bit kernel DOS operating system FreeDOS 32 can directly read USB flash drives, supports multitasking, long file names, can surf the Internet, and also supports devices such as DVD-ROM, mouse, game joystick. From the above functions, it can be seen that FreeDOS is simply a copy of the early development of many current versions of Linux!
If you compare the current FreeDOS with the latest versions of Linux and Windows, it is easy to find that FreeDOS is not as rich in functions as Linux, and gets much less support than Linux; in terms of interface, although FreeDOS also has some interface emulators such as Seal, Qube, WinDOS, etc., which are relatively beautiful in interface, they are still slightly inferior to Windows XP.
Overall, the path that FreeDOS takes is the path that current Linux is taking or has taken. FreeDOS was launched by programmers out of dissatisfaction with Windows and to resist Windows, so it inadvertently came to the same front as Linux. In a broader sense, or when FreeDOS develops to a certain extent in the future, FreeDOS may appear as a competitor of Linux.
However, compared with Linux, the only advantage of FreeDOS is its compatibility with previous MS-DOS. To a certain extent, this can make many previous software developed for DOS be used again. But let's think about the following question: If these software really need to be used, MS-DOS is now free and works well. Why must we use FreeDOS? In addition, compared with Linux, the disadvantages of FreeDOS are too obvious, that is, there is no support from industry giants. It is difficult to further develop and reach the current level of Linux!
Linux has developed quite well in the server field, but in the personal desktop operating system field, it is far worse than Windows. Some people may attribute this to the lack of a GUI interface. If you think so, you are completely wrong. Some Linux systems use graphical emulation interfaces, and their operation modes and interfaces are exactly the same as Windows, and some are even more beautiful than Windows XP. Therefore, the interface is not the reason for the large gap between Linux and Windows in the personal desktop operating system field. Then what is the real reason? Da Yu believes that the fundamental reason is that the number and quality of application software developed based on the two are not at the same level. For the vast majority of ordinary users, they don't care what operating system they use. What they care about is what application software can be installed on the computer! Compared with Windows, the number of application software supporting Linux is too small.
Comparing FreeDOS and Linux from the aspect of functions, FreeDOS is still relatively weak. Linux has not defeated Windows in the personal desktop operating system field. Therefore, Da Yu believes that without the support and hard promotion of industry giants, the development space of FreeDOS will not be very large! I believe that many people will object with "all previous DOS software can be reused", but don't forget that as long as there are viable DOS software, most of them have now developed corresponding Windows versions, and the functions have been greatly expanded. Who would upgrade the original DOS version for FreeDOS just to run on FreeDOS?
Based on the above analysis, it can be seen that FreeDOS is like DOS wearing the current fashionable open source vest. For those who have been in contact with DOS before, they may have the feeling "Hey! I still recognize you even if you wear a vest", but for those who have never used DOS, no matter what vest you put on, they still don't recognize you. For these people, "reusing previous DOS software" is completely meaningless. There are different types of Windows and basically the same type of Linux. It is difficult for FreeDOS to surpass both!
