
Installing NextStep OS (OpenStep) in VirtualBox (2018) - gjvc
http://stuffjasondoes.com/2018/07/25/installing-nextstep-os-openstep-on-virtualbox-in-2018/
======
homarp
You can also emulate a whole NeXT via the Previous emulator:
[http://previous.unixdude.net/about.html](http://previous.unixdude.net/about.html)

"previous"ly on HN:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19084769](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19084769)
and
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8745943](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8745943)

And the Previous Forum (not much activity lately):
[http://www.nextcomputers.org/forums/index.php?topic=2642.121...](http://www.nextcomputers.org/forums/index.php?topic=2642.1215)

~~~
pmarreck
Silly question though, how do I obtain a NeXT Install iso disk?

~~~
gjvc
[https://winworldpc.com/product/nextstep/3x](https://winworldpc.com/product/nextstep/3x)
[https://archive.org/details/Openstep4.2](https://archive.org/details/Openstep4.2)

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xiaomai
This is really cool. I never got to play with a proper NeXT machine, but
WindowMaker was my window manager of choice for several years in the late
90s/early 2000s. I always wished that GNUStep could have gotten more traction
on the desktop.

I love the NeXT aesthetic, I'm ready for the the next UI design trend to go
retro.

~~~
ken
As someone who used a real NeXT machine, I could never figure out the appeal
of window managers like WindowMaker. It's like those Aqua 'themes' for Windows
XP. It's superficially similar (more or less) but it's missing the guts.
Window managers are an add-on, and consistency isn't something you can get
with an add-on.

~~~
mhd
This is a bit of a nirvana fallacy issue. The Next-like window manager family
wasn't sold on purely visual merits, and thus even just having the window
managers themselves provided some benefit. I don't see that as much in the
Aqua-likes, as the functional changes are pretty minimal (scroll-bar buttons
on the same side, back when that still was a thing) or even counter-productive
(keeping all the window buttons together).

Back when bowman/afterstep/wmaker came out, pretty much no one who used them
was familiar with the NeXt interface, beyond having seen one in a magazine or
knowing its look-and-feel via Win95 copying some of it.

As far as I can remember, the popularity rested on a few pillars: For one,
it's a pretty sleek look compared to twm or mwm. It also had a rather good
resize functionality -- big enough handles to grab at the bottom, while saving
a few valuable pixels at the sides.

A lot of people also like(d) the dock apps that came with it. Even other
window managers adopted them.

Can't say a lot about general dock/shelf usage, as I never got into that.

Window shading was nice and probably introduced into common usage by that
family of WMs.

------
jamesfmilne
I used these instructions to install on VMWare, although it's pretty similar
to the above. It works really well in VMware, including networking. I had to
use a static IP as DHCP wasn't working.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVCxfoG8bv4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVCxfoG8bv4)

You can download the drivers for VMware graphics, mouse, sound and networking
here:

[http://www.nextcomputers.org/NeXTfiles/Software/NEXTSTEP/Dev...](http://www.nextcomputers.org/NeXTfiles/Software/NEXTSTEP/Developer/VMWare_Image_Tools/)

------
TickleSteve
If anybody wants to try the real thing instead of virtualised, I have two
nextstations available for a small fee if you're close to Cambridge, UK.

~~~
TickleSteve
(My email is in my profile) I'm trying to offload them, as they're taking up
far too much room in my garage.

~~~
gjvc
I can't see it. (Is that because I have lower HN karma than you?)

edit: think it might be because one needs to put it in the "about" box as I
have just done.

~~~
TickleSteve
Updated my bio.

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galonk
Note that the instructions say you can have _either_ the normal install ISO
_or_ the Install-Dev ISO in the optical drive, but this does not seem to be
correct -- using the Install-Dev ISO causes an error trying to read /etc/init.
You need to use the normal install ISO instead.

~~~
gjvc
This is absolutely correct.

~~~
boudewijnrempt
Do you also know how to use the install-dev iso to install the development
tools?

~~~
gjvc
mount the install-dev CD and run as root

    
    
        /NextAdmin/Installer.app/Installer /OPENSTEP_4.2_DEVELOPER/NextCD/Packages/*.pkg

~~~
boudewijnrempt
Thanks!

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AdmiralAsshat
I'm surprised we've had several front-page articles in the past few weeks
about getting NextStep installed on a VM or on hardware, but nothing on
GNUStep, which has standard installers.

~~~
mattl
GNUStep is a framework for writing applications not a GUI/desktop environment.

~~~
AdmiralAsshat
This is true. I probably should've clarified that nothing about etoile has
reached the front page, which IS more of a desktop environment written in
GNUStep:

[http://etoileos.com/](http://etoileos.com/)

But to be fair, the project looks like it's stagnated.

~~~
JulianMorrison
Recent headlines, one in 2014, the rest in 2012.

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forgotmypw
Does anyone know if there is a copy of WorldWideWeb floating around out there
somewhere? Or was it exclusive to TBL's computer?

~~~
adjagu
Is this what you are searching for?
[http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/LineMode/Defaults/Distribu...](http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/LineMode/Defaults/Distribution.html)

There is more available at the following website:
[http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html](http://info.cern.ch/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html)

~~~
1_player
The FTP server at info.cern.ch mentioned in the first link is offline :(

~~~
adjagu
Apologies. I should have tested the ftp server. I did find another source and.
I tested the WWWLineMode_x.xx.tar.Z and they worked for me.
[https://www.w3.org/2016/11/ftp-
shutdown/info.html](https://www.w3.org/2016/11/ftp-shutdown/info.html)

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Jaruzel
Last time I tried this, the mouse was so laggy it was impossible to use. I
might give it another go at some point tho, maybe even on a mini-iTX
motherboard in a cube case ... for that full NeXT experience. :)

~~~
Narishma
The mouse lag is probably because of the lack of guest-additions for the OS.
Same thing happens for Windows 3.1 or 9x in VirtualBox.

------
Macuyiko
Very cool -- on a semi-unrelated tangent: I really hope SerenityOS takes off
(contributors, supporters), as I've been itching to run some old-looking OS on
newer hardware.

~~~
umanwizard
OpenBSD works fine on a lot of new hardware :)

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bloopernova
Please, please examine closely the license for VirtualBox before using it.
It's Oracle, after all.

~~~
zymhan
Uh, unless you're building a money-making venture on it, you're fine.

There is also VirtualBox Open Source Edition that would be fine for this.

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pndy
Looks more promising and easier to deploy than Rhapsody DR2 installation in
VMWare I did once

~~~
scruffyherder
I have a VM running OS X Server 1.0's kernel & userland rebuilt using DR2 for
over 900 days!

[darwin:~] root# uptime 12:34PM up 922 days, 15:02, 2 users, load averages:
2.71, 2.16, 2.03 [darwin:~] root# hostinfo Mach kernel version: Kernel Release
5.5: Sun Apr 30 10:53:53 SGT 2017; root(rcbuilder):kernel-7/BUILD/RELEASE_I386
Copyright (c) 1988-1995,1997-1999 Apple Computer, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Kernel configured for a single processor only. 1 processor is physically
available. Processor type: pentium (Intel Pentium) Processor active: 0 Primary
memory available: 512.00 megabytes. Default processor set: 36 tasks, 61
threads, 1 processors Load average: 2.33, Mach factor: 0.30

It's on VMWare ESXi 5.5 ... It's been surprisingly stable.

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choiway
That GUI has aged well.

