Author: Nick Bales (antero.stortek.com)
Date: 06-28-1999 06:02
1) Unix is Unix, you know what that is. There are several flavours of this, usually taylored to work on specific hardware, like Solaris, HPUX, etc... Atari used to have their own Unix System V for the TT, but that's history.
2) Linux is a Unix, but a free. Therefore anyone can legally compile it for any platform. Linux can run on Atari hardware, but you need an 030. Also you can say goodbye to any Atari software you have. Linux is pretty huge.
3) Magic. It's a multitasking TOS compatible OS, including everything you need, easy to set up and to use. It's commercial and runs on any Atari
4) MiNT. Also a multitasking TOS compatible kernel, but with lots of Unix-like features. Much more difficult to install and mainly aimed at advanced users. It's free, but it doesn't include all that TOS has. It's a kernel, not a TOS replacement. MiNT requires an AES such as N.AES (commercial) or GEM.SYS (the one that comes with MultiTOS) to be able to run GEM programs. Runs on any Atari.
5) MiNTos. A multiuser add-on to MiNT. Makes it really look like a Unix environment, with the same multiuser features and filesystem.
6) TOS. Well, that's what you get when you switch on the ST. It actually is made of various components: Gemdos, VDI, AES, GEM, Desktop, etc...
The Desktop is actually just an application like any other one. The main difference is that the one that comes with the machine is in ROM, and is crap. If you are running a multitasking environment you need a good one like Jinnee or Thing. Do not mix the desktop with the OS.
The AES is the part of the OS that deals with windows, buttons, mouse clicks, drop downs, popups, icons, etc... The original one, like the desktop, doesn't handle multitasking, so with MiNT, you need to use another AES, like N.AES or GEM.SYS (AES 4.1). MagiC includes it's own AES.
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