4 ms·
BeOS did some tricks with the MMU to catch overruns but didn't have proper memory protection (in 1999 anyway, when I last used it). Any app could scribble on t
by bronson 9y ago
BeOS did some tricks with the MMU to catch overruns but didn't have proper memory protection (in 1999 anyway, when I last used it). Any app could scribble on the kernel and hardware devices.
This was part of why the graphics felt so flippin fast: appkit just wrote to the GPU & framebuffer itself. No need for any context switches.
- qubex 9y agoThat’s not what I remembered, but upon reflection you’re probably right since lack of multiuser support is difficult to reconcile with a true protected memory model. I’ve still got The BeOS Bible on my bookshelf so I’ll go have a read through the relevant chapters and take a trip down memory lane (ahem) just for nostalgia’s sake.
- bronson 9y agoThinko: I last used BeOS in 1997, not 1999. Curious to hear what you find.
- waddlesplash 9y agoHaiku, BeOS' open-source successor, has proper memory protection and we're still "flippin' fast" when our latency is compared to literally any other OS, so that wasn't the sole reason at any rate.