New Operating System

[boss_nate]

Alright guys, so here I am, I have had this dream since I first used Windows ME, I want to program my own operating system, now before you go and say "ARE YOU ******* CRAZY?!" no, I am not, I've compiled a complete Linux From Scratch system with bare minimum packages more than once, and even made my own adjustments. I've used just about every single operating system there is, and I still am not happy with what I see, Windows keeps coming out with "newer" "faster" "sleeker" designs, but really it hasn't changed at all. I have made sketches of the UI and what's so different about it compared to Mac OS X, Linux, and Windows. I want this to be a fresh operating system built from scratch, meaning that, I don't want to make a Linux/Unix mod and call it perfection. I am very good at Java, C, and C++ programming.

I don't really know where to start other than keep designing it in my head and sketching the layout of it. I am not going to say the name of what i want to call it, because i don't want anyone to steal my idea, for now lets just refer to it as "H". OS "H" has been with me since I first began dreaming about this. Now that you guys know about my dream/idea could someone please give me some hints/pointers on where to start programming it?

Thanks this means so much to me if you can help!

 

[Zenthar]

Yeah, i think i understand it though, stay tuned if it's okay i will make a ROUGH and i mean ROUGH sketch tomorrow on what the gui windows and Desktop environment look like in my OS

No problem, I get notified when new messages are posted on this thread.

 

[boss_nate]

Okay, I will post a link to it when i get it all done thanks!

 

[boss_nate]

Alrighty I have made the window UI (doesn't look very different from mac or windows lol but it's all i could come up with at the time, (i need some images/icons for the close and window management icons) ) i made a background i like it, i will posts the links, im still designing the dock and such (dock menu, program tabs etc.)

 

[boss_nate]

http/imageshack.us/photo/my-images/221/windowsi.jpg/ --window UI with background
http/imageshack.us/photo/my-images/3/background01v.jpg/ --background

 

[Zenthar]

Alrighty I have made the window UI (doesn't look very different from mac or windows lol but it's all i could come up with at the time, (i need some images/icons for the close and window management icons) ) i made a background i like it, i will posts the links, im still designing the dock and such (dock menu, program tabs etc.)

No problem, take your time

 

[boss_nate]

Okay thanks the dock is different than you would think i'd have to show you it when it's done

 

[boss_nate]

Okay I have finished the Full GUI of the OS i want to design, yes it's a rough sketch of it i know i tried to make it semi-presentable which it is, there are a few tweaks i want to talk about, the orb, the orb is like a planet basically, it has moons, the little circles around it, the "moons" act like the windows 7 start menu, they are links to programs and there will be at most 7 "moons that will float around the orb. the dock (has docked windows in it) will be almost like mac os x's but it won't hold applications that you can launch, that's the orb's job, there are two different sizes of the orb, one is bigger than the other, (havent decided on an exact size yet but it's relatively close to it) and the dock i think may be a little too thick (i kind of messed up my photoshop's default image settings but i will fix it later) i just wanted to give you, or anyone who reads this an idea of it.

Links:

Smaller Orb: http/imageshack.us/photo/my-images/32/fulldesktopenvv20.jpg/

Larger Orb: http/imageshack.us/photo/my-images/801/fulldesktopenv.jpg/

Please tell me what you think of it, and what you'd like to see changed, thanks bud ohhhh and fyi the "moons" will have the app's icon instead of the grey color and the color can be changed if they want inside the OS. Hope this will help!!!

 

[Zenthar]

I guess the "docking" is the smaller window area on the right? As for the orbs, I get what the smaller are for. but what is the use of the big one? If there are at most 7 moons, how do you access your other programs?

Just questions as I'm trying to get a better "dynamic" perspective of the UI.

 

[boss_nate]

I know what you mean Sorry i couldn't answer them in my last post i was being rushed by my friend. anyways, the dock is the sidebar to the right that your minimized programs go to, (like the windows and linux taskbar). they get smaller as you have more and more programs minimized. the bigger orb basically brings up your utilities (Games (if anyone even decides to make a game for my system) Tools, word processing, network, or administration type programs) the big orb is like basically a button to bring up the window with all the installed programs you have and it acts like a planet for the moons.

and thank you for asking these questions i know im not good at explaining everything at once, and since you can't really see the OS and UI of it yet, it does suck to have to type it all out.

Thanks again!

 

[boss_nate]

I also think that the "docking" area should be smaller, it just seems too large

 

[Zenthar]

I know what you mean Sorry i couldn't answer them in my last post i was being rushed by my friend. anyways, the dock is the sidebar to the right that your minimized programs go to, (like the windows and linux taskbar). they get smaller as you have more and more programs minimized. the bigger orb basically brings up your utilities (Games (if anyone even decides to make a game for my system) Tools, word processing, network, or administration type programs) the big orb is like basically a button to bring up the window with all the installed programs you have and it acts like a planet for the moons.

and thank you for asking these questions i know im not good at explaining everything at once, and since you can't really see the OS and UI of it yet, it does suck to have to type it all out.

Thanks again!

Ok so the big Orb would be a bit like the Windows "All programs" and the smaller ones would be the "Quick Launch" ones?

 

[Zenthar]

BTW, I don't know how flexible it is, but if you want to try prototyping your UI in Windows, you might want to take a look at Rainmeter. This small article was published on LifeHacker about it today.

 

[boss_nate]

Ok so the big Orb would be a bit like the Windows "All programs" and the smaller ones would be the "Quick Launch" ones?

Yes that's pretty much like it and i took a look at rainmeter and the article that followed and it seems quite interesting, but does it cover linux? because i would like to make my OS fully Distributable, but i prefer the linux file system over the mac, or windows versions... They just don't have the feel that I like /: (Also linux seems to be the most powerful system, but windows is the most commercialized/: )

 

[boss_nate]

Hi, I'm back. So after I had been thinking a while, would it be possible to modify the linux desktop environment, then call it my own after stripping linux down to the bar minimum and changing some kernel process and such? or does the EULA prevent me from doing so?