make a better OS please

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shadowcaster
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Nov 11, 2005 4:19 am

make a better OS please

Post by shadowcaster »

Hello.

I installed react and can't do anything now. It loads and works but...

I have a USB mouse only so I can't click anything because only normal mouse is supported
I find no way of navigating using the keyboard only
There is nothing on react OS and it is ugly and I can't install anything because I have no mouse to click the install buttons.
There are barely any options in control panel - Can't even change resolution!

my cpu is an old cyrix p166+ so no other linux runs on it and I don't have a windows CD. To make react OS decent you need to solve the problems above and add more features. Honestly 13MB is too small - it's like you're not trying to make a decent OS. Keep up with the work.
mikedep333
Posts: 167
Joined: Sat Oct 01, 2005 1:48 am
Location: United States

Post by mikedep333 »

Hello, welcome to the forums.

The simple answer to all your complaints is that ReactOS is an an alpha (early work in progress) state at this point, it is not really usable as an OS yet and we don't pretend it to be. Nevertheless, we are working everyday to make it better. As an openly developed operating system, you are welcome to do something about it's current state, which you consider unimpressive, and contribute yourself.


USB mouse and keyboard support will most likely be added in version .3.0.

Maybe one day we will add more keyboard commands so that you don't absolutely need a mouse, but support for USB mice is more important at the moment.

We will add stuff like a media player and a web browser in time, or leave those to distros.

We're sorry to hear that you consider it ugly, but
1. it's alot similiar to the classic windows theme,
2. they are making it look better gradually
3. There are more important things than making it look nice right now, like networking support.

There aren't many options in control panel because much functionality has yet to be implemented.

The resolution can be changed, it just requires a reboot normally. There is a workaround though.


I'm sure ReactOS will run on your hardware once it is in a usable state provided there are compatible drivers, although there's only so much you can do on that with any OS on that. Nevertheless, I know that certain linux distros like debian can run on that. Perhaps you should ask around on freenode for support.
We are implementing all of the functionality that you consider problems. The OS is really 45 megs or so once installed, and it will be much larger with a fully loaded distro. It is also small because we also make ReactOS as efficient as possible, surely you want an efficient OS for your old machine. :wink: Every one of us can assure you that we're working hard to make a decent OS though, and once again, you can do something about it.
StringCheesian
Posts: 31
Joined: Mon Mar 28, 2005 11:37 pm

Post by StringCheesian »

mikedep333 wrote:We're sorry to hear that you consider it ugly, but
1. it's alot similiar to the classic windows theme,
Ha! It differs from the classic windows theme in small but incredibly annoying ways. A line that's just a pixel or so too low, a gray that's too dark, a caption that's badly centered, etc. It may look the same to you, but it struck me as hideously ugly the instant I saw it. Maybe you don't notice detail.

If it matched Win 9x or 2000's UI pixel for pixel (at least as well as WinXP's classic theme does), it would look ok. Not that ReactOS would have to go that far.

I agree though that superficial problems shouldn't be priorities yet. Just don't say it's not ugly - it is ugly to most people, but that's understandable because it's still alpha.
mikedep333
Posts: 167
Joined: Sat Oct 01, 2005 1:48 am
Location: United States

Post by mikedep333 »

"A line that's just a pixel or so too low" "a caption that's badly centered", those are examples of bugs in the UI, they will be fixed after bugs like ones that cause ROS to not install at all on systems at all are fixed, unless you would care to help out. "A gray that's too dark", give me a break, colors are subjective.

At least we can agree about priorities, but I'd just like to let you know that in my opinion, which is just as good as everyone else's is, it isn't ugly. A discussion about such subjective matters is not going to go anywhere.
shadowcaster
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Nov 11, 2005 4:19 am

Post by shadowcaster »

Thanks for taking notice of these problems. I would help but I'm not a programmer like you, I only use PHP. I hope you get it sorted, but when will it be done?
shadowcaster
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Nov 11, 2005 4:19 am

Post by shadowcaster »

Take a look at this great OS: http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/
mikedep333
Posts: 167
Joined: Sat Oct 01, 2005 1:48 am
Location: United States

Post by mikedep333 »

I've heard good things about damn small linux, it might be perfect for your machine.

As for when ReactOS will be done, well, 1.0 is several years away probably. But I'd bet it will be alot more usable in a year or two.
phalanks
Posts: 1
Joined: Sat Dec 10, 2005 4:33 am

Post by phalanks »

ReactOS is still new, but I must say for a group of volunteers to work their collective butts off to make a new OS that is a very Windows user friendly alternative to Windows itself is amazing.

And creating a new OS from practically the ground up is no small feat, so development of this will take time.

I am content with ReactOS's current look, and I have seen some work on these forums for some new icon work and wallpapers and they are impressive.

But as mikedep333 said above, looks aren't exactly important right now. What matters is making a good OS, the fluff can come later.
Schorhr
Posts: 6
Joined: Fri Dec 02, 2005 7:29 pm

Post by Schorhr »

I can not believe people actually post things like this.
They want a working and perfect system right away.
Its allways a work in progress.
However, ReactOS is allready a working system.
Most people who critizise it probably never programmed or scripted a single line, and, the worst part, are incapable of constructive critizism.

I do not care about the shade of gray, nor will I expect my mouse or what-ever device to work.

What I do not understand is why the current size of reactOS has anything to do with how powerfull it is shadowcaster.
I have seen just as small or smaller linux distros, and without all its included programms windows would be lots smaller too.
You are getting a pre-release version of a operating system here, not a done windows alternative.

And, just a side note, I have installed linux on systems less powerfull then a cyrix p166+, this is just silly.
Apal
Posts: 155
Joined: Wed Nov 02, 2005 1:13 am
Location: Greece

Post by Apal »

Hellooooooooooo? We're dealing here with an OS in its ALPHA (A L P H A) builds. See Win Longhorn build 4053. Alpha build of an already working OS and.. still lots of bugs and leaks etc. Even Vista Beta 1 has lots of bugs. ReactOS is small in size till now and a lot of effort is done to finish the MAJOR subjects (like network printer etc) not the COLOR!!! loool! Anyway, I test it in VMware and lots of apps are working. A lot of work is done since ROS 0.2.0 ;). I think that in a few months lots of new stuff will be implemented and we will have a better release with more feats.
So... don't critisize it, just help it to become better. Some ppl just want everything in their plate... :twisted: :twisted: :twisted: :twisted:
menn
Posts: 94
Joined: Tue Dec 27, 2005 10:22 am

and ####it!

Post by menn »

why isn't rome built yet? you said you'd have it up by a couple years from now and here it is today and you're right on schedule! what's wrong with you people? lol...

seriously, i've never seen a project move so fast. ever. complaining about the speed just seems alien :) now about abandoning i486...

but i'm going to give you practical, useful advice regarding your complaint. there are two ways around your problem, that work even better when combined:

1. some of the problems can be fixed *now* by learning more about ros as-is. there are fixes and tricks and hacks that make it even nicer :) that's kinda what this forum is here for.

2. do absolutely nothing (except wait.) in time the problem with be solved. and they won't even charge you for the labor and new version!

so cheer up! not even MS can offer all that! not for all the nt in china!
Last edited by menn on Wed Dec 28, 2005 12:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.
FOSS="MY Computer"
drm="NOT My Computer" http://eff.org
jmmercy
Posts: 35
Joined: Thu Dec 15, 2005 10:55 am

Post by jmmercy »

Hi.

It is good to see such post, however irritating it can be for a tired and
sore programmer who post to the svn version after version as soon as
someone reports a bug that can be fixed. At least, it shows that people
are interested. The advice i would give (having been caught a few times)
is to read a few if not a lot of the discussions in the forum. It gives a
good ground to understanding the beast.
The simple answer to the complaints is given in those posts: only part of
the windows API have been ported yet and if a program needs one of the
unimplemented APi, then it will crash. It is pointless to ask for something
well decorated if the foundation is made of sand (look at the early
versions of windows! :lol: ). There is so much that someone can do in
a day and the skilled programmers writing the code can not do more.
So please be kind and respect their work. There is something that could
be done, though. In some posts, there are suggestions on what to
improve,be it documentation or drawings or icons or anything. Pick you
own. An unskilled-programmers-but-good-at-something-else coordination
could be setup ? Send ideas. That will be construtive criticism.
TOTMS
Posts: 112
Joined: Thu Sep 29, 2005 3:00 pm
Location: London, UK
Contact:

Re: make a better OS please

Post by TOTMS »

shadowcaster wrote:Hello.

I installed react and can't do anything now. It loads and works but...

I have a USB mouse only so I can't click anything because only normal mouse is supported
I find no way of navigating using the keyboard only
There is nothing on react OS and it is ugly and I can't install anything because I have no mouse to click the install buttons.
There are barely any options in control panel - Can't even change resolution!

my cpu is an old cyrix p166+ so no other linux runs on it and I don't have a windows CD. To make react OS decent you need to solve the problems above and add more features. Honestly 13MB is too small - it's like you're not trying to make a decent OS. Keep up with the work.
Its good we are getting more and more people trying ROS natively, however the comments with regards the state of ROS are a little irritating. As people have already said, this os is in alpha stage. All the releases are designed for use by developers and testers, NOT end users. I do agree with you on the fact we need proper keyboard support, but again, same with the USB mouse support, is on its way. Either help by coding, submitting bugreports, spreading the word etc or dont complain!

:)
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