ReactOS 0.3.0 released

[Josh]

The ReactOS®  project is dedicated to making Free Software available to everyone by providing a ground-up implementation of a Microsoft Windows® XP compatible operating system. ReactOS aims to achieve complete binary compatibility with both applications and device drivers meant for NT and XP operating systems, by using a similar architecture and providing a complete and equivalent public interface.

Although Free Software advocates agree that free software operating systems improve the state of the art by fostering competition, ReactOS has practical benefit for others, too; ReactOS is the most complete working model of a Windows® like operating system available. Consequently, working programmers will learn a great deal by studying ReactOS source code and even participating in ReactOS development.

Check it out below for the changelog

http://www.reactos.o....php/ChangeLog-0.3.0

[f0dder]

I wonder at which point Microsoft will shut ReactOS and http://tinykrnl.org/ down :/ - both are pretty interesting projects.

[Josh]

They cant shut them down unless they infringe on copyrights in place by MS or use MS code (from the leak several years ago). Neither of the projects have code from the MS Source (with the exception of a WHILE ( INKEY$ <> "" ) WEND statement ;-)

[f0dder]

They cant shut them down unless they infringe on copyrights in place by MS or use MS code (from the leak several years ago). Neither of the projects have code from the MS Source (with the exception of a WHILE ( INKEY$ <> "" ) WEND statement ;-)

-Josh (August 28, 2006, 07:20 PM)

Are you sure about this?

It used to be that people could do "clean-room reverse engineering" and whatnot, but with the nasty laws coming from the US (and being forced onto other countries)...

And Projects like tinykrnl and ReactOs do need some reverse engineering; while a lot can be constructed from public information (DDK, PlatformSDK, Inside Windows 2000/XP), et cetera, achieving binary driver compatibility requires a bit more...

[mwb1100]

The ReactOS people have thought about these issues, and seem to have a pretty good handle on it:

http://www.reactos.org/xhtml/en/dev_legalreview.html

Clearly, there is enough amibiguity that if MS decided to challenge the project, it would almost certainly fold under the weight (both time and money) of fighting the challeges.

My guess is that MS is not concerned, since Windows has a head start of many years, and the project poses little real commercial threat.  Going after the project would just waste MS resources and cause bad publicity with no real upside.

However, I'm sure that would quickly change if  MS found evidence that Windows source was misappropriated...