FreeDOS 1.1 released after 17 years

[tweakboy]

http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/111755-freedos-1-1-released-after-17-years 😱 D:

 

[ViRGE]

I have to be honest: what's the point? It's not as if DOS users are dying to upgrade.

 

[lxskllr]

I have to be honest: what's the point? It's not as if DOS users are dying to upgrade.

Without looking at the change log, it could be to increase compatibility with MS-DOS. There's a shocking amount of old programs still running that require DOS, and whatever it is they changed in this version may make the difference between running a valuable piece of software, and having to abandon it, for ??? Some of that old stuff doesn't have a modern replacement, or the cost is excessive for the job that needs to be done.

 

[ViRGE]

Without looking at the change log, it could be to increase compatibility with MS-DOS. There's a shocking amount of old programs still running that require DOS, and whatever it is they changed in this version may make the difference between running a valuable piece of software, and having to abandon it, for ??? Some of that old stuff doesn't have a modern replacement, or the cost is excessive for the job that needs to be done.

But if you're already running MS-DOS, why would you switch? You're by definition a legacy user, which means you don't want to upgrade to newer software or newer hardware.

 

[lxskllr]

But if you're already running MS-DOS, why would you switch? You're by definition a legacy user, which means you don't want to upgrade to newer software or newer hardware.

Lack of a license maybe. At my old job, I had to rescue an old DOS based program when the machine died. I used a personal copy of Win98 for the install. If that weren't available, the options would be pirate a copy(not a good idea for a business), search for a copy to buy(I have no idea how difficult that would be), or download a copy of FreeDOS. The last option is the best if it works for your specific situation.