, initially created by Microsoft
and IBM
, then later developed by IBM exclusively. The name stands for "Operating System/2," because it was introduced as part of the same generation change release as IBM's "Personal System/2
(PS/2)" line of second-generation personal computer
s. OS/2 is no longer marketed by IBM, and IBM standard support for OS/2 was discontinued on 31 December 2006.
Currently, Serenity Systems International sells OS/2 under the brand name eComStation
.
OS/2 was intended as a protected mode
successor of PC-DOS
.
"During the next 10 years, millions of programmers and users will utilise this system" — Bill Gates, November 1988, in the Foreword to the Inside OS/2 book by Gordon Letwin, Microsoft's architect for OS/2
"In the summer of 1988, I received an interesting call from Bill Gates at Microsoft. He asked whether I'd like to come over and talk about building a new operating system at Microsoft for personal computers. [...] What Bill had to offer was the opportunity to build another operating system, one that was portable [...]." — Dave Cutler in his introduction to the book Inside Windows NT
"I won't pollute it [NT] with crap!" -- Cutler to Bill Gates, upon being told that NT was to have an OS/2 "personality" as an alternative front-end.
Category:Technology|Technology