Re: [OT] Free Software Company

[Biju Chacko <biju_chacko@xxxxxxxxx>]

--- On 18/09/00 10:08 -0700, Sudhakar Chandra wrote: 
> Babu Kalakrishnan proclaimed:
> > True - The president of Digital Research (forget his name) - riding high
> > on the success of CP/M - didn't believe that IBM was really serious in
> > stooping down to making lowly PCs !!
> 
> 
> Gary Kildall.  That story of Kildall playing Golf / flying instead of
> meeting the IBM suits is said to be an apocryphal one.
>

Yes. PC-XTs were available with three OSs: CP/M, PC-DOS, and another one lost 
in the mists of time (not to mention the mists of my memory).

IBM shipped PC-DOS as the default to counter the growing power of Digital 
Research in the PC market.

Earlier on in this thread was the statement (paraphrased) "If there was no 
Microsoft ... OS/2 would have been Windows"

As much as I would have liked that to be true (being an old OS/2 2.1 fan) it
rather ignores the fact that OS/2's original designation was MS-DOS 4.0 (until 
the *real* DOS 4 came out (and sucked) ) and that it too was a M$ product till 
v1.x. It was the crown jewel of the IBM-M$ alliance, which is why IBM got it 
when they broke up. Windows (then in 2.x) was M$'s consolation prize.

BillG hired Dave Cutler soon after, to build him a *real* OS (NT) to replace the 
MSDOS + Windows stopgap arrangement he was stuck with.

Boy -- this is a pointless thread. Now that I've impressed you all with my 
erudition, can I ask that we move on...

Biju

PS: People with something useful to do can stop reading here. Those who were
enjoying wallowing in nostalgia can read on...

Biju's List of Software he wishes hadn't sunk with out a trace.
---------------------------------------------------------------
1. DR-DOS 
2. OS/2
3. Stacker 
4. DESQview/X
5. Digger
6. Add your favorite here