[Atomos-discuss] Atomic OS Manifesto
Status: Pre-Alpha
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From: Scott E. <ps...@gm...> - 2007-07-18 20:13:51
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Here is the first draft of the Atomic OS Manifesto, as posted on www.psema4.com with minor modifications (sections are numbered for clarity in text-only format). Comments and thoughts would be appreciated. TIA! - Scott The Atomic OS Manifesto 1.0 - What is AOS or Atomic OS? In a nutshell, "Atomic OS is a responsive Web 2.0 operating environment & development platform. Based on AJAX techniques, it emulates/provides standard operating system features including a command-line shell, interpreter, filesystem, database access and GUI services." 2.0 - What it isn't! Atomic OS is not a program. By itself, Atomic OS isn't capable of doing anything. Developers use AOS as a library to make web-based applications. Atomic OS is not an Operating System! Instead, it is a library that, when combined with custom JavaScript code and executed within Mozilla Firefox, simulates an OS-like environment that web developers can leverage. The base AOS "distribution" comes with a set of tools (such as the WASH shell) that allow developers to interactively explore Atomic OS and it's features. This doesn't make it an OS. A desktop-interface / window-manager does not change things either. The reference to "Operating System" in the project's name is nothing more than a convenient metaphor. 3.0 - Why write it? As a web administrator (/master/developer) I was frequently frustrated by the limitations imposed by browser and WWW programming technologies. Creating intuitive (and responsive) User Interfaces for end-users was very difficult. DHTML (AJAX without the server interaction) applications are capable, but they can become very complex very quickly. Atomic OS aims to make things a little more clear by following the examples of data organization (file systems) and user interfaces (shells and desktops) used by virtually every modern Operating System. The complete AOS library, the filesystem, supporting tools and utilities, custom application(s), and end-users' data are all stored within one HTML file =96 providing an extremely flexible solution to several difficult issues I've faced with developing web-based applications. 4.0 - Why everyone will benefit. Programmers benefit from the OS-like API. Programmers may also find the embedded development tools useful. Although preferred, it is not necessary to "open-source your applications." The GNU LGPL license allows for linking to non-free software; this feature may be useful for some businesses. Administrators benefit from enhanced organization, self-containment of run-time data and logs, and improved management interfaces. End-users benefit from lower learning curves. By mimicking the look and feel of modern desktop Operating Systems and applications, users find themselves in a familiar and intuitive environment. 5.0 - How will Atomic OS be available? Atomic OS is available from SourceForge. Please visit http://sourceforge.net/projects/atomos for more information and downloads. 6.0 - How you can contribute. If you are a JavaScript programmer, consider helping out by porting GNU utilities. If you are a graphics designer, we could use your help in creating desktops and themes. If you are a technical writer, we could really use more concise documentati= on. Any monetary donations will be put towards paying developers for their time and efforts. Depending on resource availability and circumstances, such funding may also be used towards creating and/or maintaining an Atomic OS Foundation. Please send inquiries, broken links, other corrections and/or suggestions to psema4@... Copyright (c) 2007 Scott Elcomb Revision: 0.1 - 07/18/2007 --=20 Scott Elcomb [ http://www.psema4.com/ ] "Our Founders' faith in the viability of representative democracy rested on their trust in the wisdom of a well-informed citizenry, their ingenious design for checks and balances, and their belief that the rule of reason is the natural sovereign of a free people." - Al Gore (The Assault on Reason, 2008) "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin '"A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes." - Mark Twain |