OpenGEM is a distribution of FreeGEM, a graphical user interface (GUI) for DOS. OpenGEM is a non-multitasking 16bit GUI. FreeGEM is a computer GUI first released in 1985. ... A graphical user interface (or GUI, sometimes pronounced gooey) is a method of interacting with a computer through a metaphor of direct manipulation of graphical images and widgets in addition to text. ... The acronym DOS stands for disk operating system, an operating system component for computers that provides the abstraction of a file system resident on hard disk or floppy disk secondary storage. ... In computing, multitasking is a method by which multiple tasks, also known as processes, share common processing resources such as a CPU. In the case of a computer with a single CPU, only one task is said to be running at any point in time, meaning that the CPU is...

OpenGEM is designed to provide commerical quality software for DOS users. In this it differs from projects like the now defunct SEAL GUI, or the unmaintained Desktop2 GUI. For the OpenGEM development team usability and support has always been as important as the code itself. This is because OpenGEM is intended to provide a GUI system and windowing framework for the FreeDOS operating system.

OpenGEM has been developed since 2001 by the Shane Land website, and is released under the GNU GPL licence. This means that the software is free, and the source code is available for download as well as the finished product. The source code to OpenGEM is included in the OpenGEM SDK, which can be found on the Shane Land OpenGEM website. The GNU logo, drawn by Etienne Suvasa GNU is a recursive acronym for GNUs Not Unix. The GNU project was announced in 1983 by Richard Stallman with the goal of creating a complete UNIX-compatible operating system -- called the GNU system or simply GNU -- that is free software, meaning... The reversed c is the copyleft symbol. ...

Versions

OpenGEM is available in several different forms:

OpenGEM Core is a small, compact GUI that requires less than one megabyte of space to install. It is designed to run on Intel 8086 and above PCs. OpenGEM Core uses a combination of code from Digital Research GEM 3.13 and the FreeGEM community to provide a simple but powerful windowing system. Gui is a French form of the male name Guy. ... An Intel 8086 Microprocessor The 8086 is a 16-bit microprocessor chip designed by Intel in 1978, which gave rise to the x86 architecture. ... The tower of a personal computer. ... Digital Research, Inc. ... See also GEM. See also Jem. ...

OpenGEM Complete contains all the files packaged with OpenGEM Core, along with word processing, spreadsheet, DTP, graphical tools, an experimental web browser, and other applications. Word processing, in its now-usual meaning, is the use of a word processor to create documents using computers. ... A spreadsheet is a rectangular table (or grid) of information, often financial information. ... Desktop publishing, or DTP, is the process of editing and layout of printed material intended for publication, such as books, magazines, brochures, and the like using a personal computer. ... A web browser is a software application that enables a user to display and interact with HTML documents hosted by web servers or held in a file system. ...

OpenGEM Deutsch is the German version of the OpenGEM software. Its functionality is comparable to OpenGEM Core, though the desktop currently used in OpenGEM Deutsch is slightly older.

Project Liberation is the current Beta software project. It is almost identical to OpenGEM Core in size, but uses the experimental FreeGEM community code to provide AES, VDI and Desktop services. It has modern GUI features like automatic drive detection, new icons, a new system font and 3D windows. It's fully functional, though users are encouraged to choose OpenGEM Core or Complete if they want a throughly tested system. FreeGEM is a computer GUI first released in 1985. ...

OpenGEM Core, Complete, Deutsch and Project Liberation have a system for updating system code, and installing new applications through packages on the Shane Land OpenGEM website. All four versions of OpenGEM also feature configuration tools, and a special feature to recover the system if code becomes corrupted.

Compatibility

OpenGEM works with FreeDOS Beta 9 and above, DR DOS 5 and above, MS DOS 3.3 and above, PC DOS 3.3 and above, and REAL/32. OpenGEM will function on Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows 98SE, Windows ME, Windows 2000, Windows NT and Windows XP systems, though there are reports of the system hanging, especially under Windows 2000 and Windows XP. FreeDOS is an effort to create a free DOS operating system which is compatible with MS-DOS applications and drivers, yet have some features that are missing in MS-DOS. The software is currently in beta status, but the release of the first official version - FreeDOS 1. ...

External links

• Shane Land OpenGEM site
• Project Liberation page
• OpenGEM FAQ
• FreeDOS site