We owe a lot to mcCoy's venerable disk images collection (https://mega.nz/file/F0Q22KKb#WiceqJA2LIhPbWJZvR6CmJstPZwOdZrun8gYo1e-Row), which covers most versions of NEXTSTEP and OPENSTEP for 68k. However, they are very spartan, as they were intended as pristine known-good copies to be used when starting an installation. Consequently their use in e.g. infinitemac.org's NeXT emulations paints a rather dour picture of what the NeXT was capable of.
For this and other reasons I'd like to formally start a project to build some new disk images of OPENSTEP 4.2 which can serve as base systems for hobbyists and tourists. The goals would be:
1. OPENSTEP Black Developer: A 2.0 GB HDD for m68k hardware that is fully-patched with the Developer software installed, but no third-party software. (Maybe some community patches like t-rexky's gcc, if we can get it working properly (https://www.nextcomputers.org/forums/index.php?topic=5697.0), or maybe it would just be better to roll a 3.3 distro specifically for it.)
2. OPENSTEP White Developer: A 2.0 GB HDD for i486 hardware that is fully-patched with the Developer software installed, but no third-party software.
3. OPENSTEP White Dual Developer: A 2.0 GB HDD for Intel hardware with the DualDeveloper package installed and set up, allowing development and testing of i486 drivers (and both 3.3 and 4.2 binaries) on a single system. Also an updated toolchain from community sources.
4. OPENSTEP <?> (needs a cool name!): At least one HDD image, probably for Intel but maybe also 68k, containing everything from the above, plus the best third-party software we can find (with licenses or freeware) that doesn't overlap too badly in functionality, plus some optional packages in Installer format:
a) a Reference Supplement package, containing NeXTanswers, selected Literature from Project Gutenberg, and other resources. (Probably not Usenet—it's simply too big.)
b) a Graphics Supplement package, containing touch-ups to the images in the OS in line with existing observations about defects in the OS artwork—missing pixels on radio buttons, stray flood fills, etc.
c) a Black Hardware Graphics package that replaces the icons (including inside application binaries) where relevant with the assets from NS 3.0.
d) a Modernization package that actually makes the OS look "better," while still being faithful to the core of the NeXT aesthetic. This installs .dir.tiff images with overlay icons (like in Rhapsody), converts the NeXT logo on the sidebar to the jewel look, replaces the Open Sesame icon with something less placeholder-y, and improves other GUI resources where possible. This would also provide assets like fonts, sounds, login skins, and NeXT-themed wallpapers to be employed at the user's discretion.
I'm particularly keen to offer some variation of #4 to Mihai so the NeXT offerings on infinitemac.org can stop being so spartan and actually catch up to the relatively plus Classic Mac images.
(I have no objection to building PA-RISC or SPARC images, just a lack of expertise and no access to working emulation.)
I wonder how mcCoy made his images such that you still had to "login" through the final steps of the install. In previous, the only way I can get a "fat" install. One with all the extra packages is to first log into the me account after a minimal install, and then install the packages by hand. Same with the dev disk.
Of course under next hardware there was no problem doing the full install. To be fair, I think last time I tried to do a clean install Previous might have been in the 2.x range, so perhaps thats not as much of an issue.
One thing I'd like to propose is to make an "EVERYTHING" 2nd disk. Meaning you'd have a boot disk that is 2gb, but maybe make a 4GB additional disk that mounts as /LocalLibrary and /Applications that has EVERYTHING in super fat binaries.
I'm also hoping to make 4GB bootable drive (where you format the drive with 1kblocks instead of 512). I used to have and do this via floppy kick disk on real NeXT and Intel based hardware. With previous the kick floppy is super easy to emulate and will operate at full drive speed so it makes it an extra great solution.
Regardless of my above potential tangent, sounds like a great idea to me! Maybe we can draft @mccoy into it! :D
Quote from: ZombiePhysicist on Sep 15, 2025, 01:16 AMI wonder how mcCoy made his images such that you still had to "login" through the final steps of the install. In previous, the only way I can get a "fat" install. One with all the extra packages is to first log into the me account after a minimal install, and then install the packages by hand. Same with the dev disk.
I'm guessing he might have edited
/etc/rc.cdrom which is on the install disk? I think there might be a line on there when it copies to the HDD it checks the arch then strips the binaries? I can't remember it's been a couple of months since I had to do a manual install which involved me editing
/etc/rc.cdrom. I remember I used to copy that file to the HDD and then use
pico(8) on it to edit it so it would skip over some parts as that was quicker than typing everything manually.
Quote from: ptek on Sep 15, 2025, 06:35 AMQuote from: ZombiePhysicist on Sep 15, 2025, 01:16 AMI wonder how mcCoy made his images such that you still had to "login" through the final steps of the install. In previous, the only way I can get a "fat" install. One with all the extra packages is to first log into the me account after a minimal install, and then install the packages by hand. Same with the dev disk.
I'm guessing he might have edited /etc/rc.cdrom which is on the install disk? I think there might be a line on there when it copies to the HDD it checks the arch then strips the binaries? I can't remember it's been a couple of months since I had to do a manual install which involved me editing /etc/rc.cdrom. I remember I used to copy that file to the HDD and then use pico(8) on it to edit it so it would skip over some parts as that was quicker than typing everything manually.
I think it's simpler than that—he simply never finished the installation process! Each image shows the "Welcome" keyboard-select screen when booted up for the first time, which is exactly what you'd see the first time you reboot into the OS after installation is complete.
Quote from: Rhetorica on Sep 15, 2025, 05:07 PMI think it's simpler than that—he simply never finished the installation process! Each image shows the "Welcome" keyboard-select screen when booted up for the first time, which is exactly what you'd see the first time you reboot into the OS after installation is complete.
That's more or less what he said over at Discord:
https://discord.com/channels/1407498171453538366/1410068967716028437/1410544441898569758
Quote: »I wanted them to be as clean / unmolested / small as possible. they've never been booted after install. my intention was to create images that can be used as a starting point for everybody. so there are no patches or dev-tools installed.«
Perfect demonstraton showing how Discord is a complete information sink (and why lots of people dislike it)... ;D
Is it possible to set up a NS system and then install dev tools and patches and software, etc and then reset the NetInfo system, delete the me user and then reset that setup screen so its runs again? This is possible on OS X, but not sure about OpenStep/NextStep?
I am not sure and can't test it right now. But this might reset things to a point where the configuration screen appears:
HOWTO: Reset network configuration:
1. If you have a system that does not seem to be configured properly and you
can't fix it by using the above instructions you can try resetting system
configurations. Note that all configurations including passwords will be
reset.
2. Boot into ROM Monitor and use the following command to boot into single user
mode (replace "bsd" with "bod" for Optical Disk):
bsd -s
3. During the boot process you will be dropped to the single user mode console.
Use this command to restore "/private/etc" and continue booting:
(cd /usr/template/client/etc; tar cf - .)|(cd /private/etc; tar xpBf -)
exit