FreeDOS: Like MS-DOS, Except Free
By James Grahame
Fifteen years ago, Microsoft announced they were leaving DOS behind and pinning their hopes on a futuristic operating system called Windows 95 . Jim Hall wasn't happy about the change. He recalls, "In 1994, I was a physics student at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. Most of my work up to that time had been done using DOS. But then Microsoft announced they were moving off DOS in the next release of Windows. So I started an effort to recreate DOS. PD-DOS was announced to the world on June 28, 1994."
OK, so nobody in their right mind would pay for a copy of MS-DOS these days. But if you find yourself in need of such a beast, you need FreeDOS. This compact operating system is more-or-less MS-DOS compatible and incorporates modern enhancements such as a mouse driver, media player, multi-boot and USB support.
There. Now you have no excuse not to revisit 1994.
