Tell me more ×
Unix & Linux Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for users of Linux, FreeBSD and other Un*x-like operating systems.. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 1 down vote favorite

I often wondered, why DOS became so succesful on the first PCs as it's less flexible and scalable than UNIX systems and UNIX has been broadly used before the existence of DOS. Also there could have been the possibility to do Windows NT on an UNIX base but Microsoft decided to write everything from scratch.

Can anyone tell me if there were any technical advantages of DOS over UNIX for PCs at that time or if all this was due to good marketing of Microsoft.

share|improve this question
4  
In a sentence: Unix didn't actually run on PC's back then - it ran on large mainframes that only corporations and universities could afford while Microsoft's MS-DOS rode to market dominance on the success of the IBM PC. – jw013 Oct 5 '12 at 21:33
Thats all? So what about Windows NT? – FSMaxB Oct 5 '12 at 21:48
What about Windows NT? It's a decade after your question. – jw013 Oct 5 '12 at 21:55
Thats what I mean, a decade later, PCs were slightly faster, so why not UNIX? – FSMaxB Oct 5 '12 at 22:05
3  
In the world of software it's mostly about inertia - the first one there tends to stay there. Just ask yourself how often you uproot your entire system so you can switch to something new? – jw013 Oct 5 '12 at 22:32
show 2 more comments

closed as not constructive by rahmu, jw013, jasonwryan, Renan, Ulrich Dangel Oct 5 '12 at 22:48

As it currently stands, this question is not a good fit for our Q&A format. We expect answers to be supported by facts, references, or specific expertise, but this question will likely solicit debate, arguments, polling, or extended discussion. If you feel that this question can be improved and possibly reopened, see the FAQ for guidance.

1 Answer

up vote 1 down vote

It was all marketing and Unix just had copyright issues and after Linux and copy left fixed that Microsoft had already laid things out to where Linux is still trying to catch up (Marketing Wise) it is not enough to be better anymore.

At&t owns the Unix name and original operating system. Even though it has been around since before copyrighted software AT&T had the developers sign over their rights to the code they had written. Than with the advent of copyleft and open source software comes in to play. People who wanted a Unix of their own started to look for alternatives then started to write their own (in the case of Richard Stallmen)Thus Linux was born. Some of the issues were resolved and BSD actually has some of the original code in it

share|improve this answer
Is this about MS-DOS or Windows-NT? Can you describe what you mean by copy write issues? – FSMaxB Oct 6 '12 at 7:04
But Linux was under developed as it was more intuitive than windows/MS-DOS. Then further marketing keep Microsoft where they are now. The only one to come close has been apple/mac (based on bsd). – Joe Oct 6 '12 at 20:36
Why this DOS was MS-DOS and not DR-DOS is a good story of its own - but way off topic here... – Nils Oct 6 '12 at 21:02

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.