A note from Andrew Morton 1616/OS is written almost entirely in the C programming language. It is a fairly large program (the source code occupies over 3/4 of a megabyte) and I grudgingly concede that there may even be a bug or two in it. If you think you have found a programming error, please contact me at Applix, preferably by sending sufficient material for the suspected error to be reproduced. Enhancements, changes I have attempted to make the ROM code as flexible as possible, allowing your programs to control anything which they could possibly want to without having to directly manipulate the 1616’s hardware or the operating system’s data areas.
If you encounter limitations in the existing software or if you simply wish to see new features added, please write down your thoughts and send them along to me. Standards A problem which is seen time and again with computers of all sizes is that of data compatibility. Trying to transfer a file which was created under company XYZ’s database program over to company ABC’s word processor and then patching in a picture created under company BPL’s paint package can be relatively painless, as long as standards exist for the representation of the data files.
Applix has not attempted to define a ‘standard’ representation for a word processor file, a picture file, a compressed file, a sound file, a spreadsheet file, etc. What we propose is that you contact Applix before embarking upon an implementation of one of these things. If we know of, or have defined, a suitable data structure we will provide you with a description of it; otherwise we will use your proposed format (or a generalisation of it) as the future standard. Upgrades At Applix, we wish to keep you up to date as new features are added to the 1616’s operating system, particularly if these involve compatibility changes.
However thecost of EPROMS, and printing extensive documentation, and the time involved in preparing them, means that a charge must often be made. A small refund may be made for old EPROMS, if their size is such that they can still be used for current upgrades. Contact Applix for current prices and upgrade details. Theupgrade fromVersion 3 toVersion4 is $29.95. Thesechanges includeupdates for your manual sets, plus an updated User Disk. Within versions, changes are often made (Version 4.1a to 4.2d, for example), and updates within Versions are provided the original eproms are returned . Manuals are not updated with $5 upgrades. Disks may be an additional $5.
The latest version printed manuals are available at any time at per manual. If you have printing facilities, the Introduction User Tutorial Manual Page 9