14 Jul
2016
14 Jul
'16
6:50 p.m.
I don't get the significance of any of this.
CP/M-80 is what, less than 16K of code (not counting the very few
utilities that come bundled with it)? It's not rocket science and pales
in comparison with the mainframe and mini OSes that were around at the
time--and indeed, some of the more advanced OSes for microcomputers.
It's ridiculously simple to reverse-engineer (I know, I've done it),
given nothing more than the published documentation and a running system.
Everyone seems to forget about the work-alikes, such as TPM for the
Epson QX-80.
GEM for the Atari ST is essntially a clone of MS-DOS functionality for
the 68K with a graphics enhancement tacked on. Yet I've never heard any
accusations that DRI "pirated" MS-DOS.
A tempest in a teapot.
At least from where I sit,
Chuck