10 retro operating systems you can try out for a shot of nostalgia

10 retro operating systems you can try out for a shot of nostalgia

Retro gaming is having a huge revival right now, with hardware emulating classic consoles so you can use original cartridges, to emulators to create retro PCs, and Atari releasing a modern version of the 7800 from the mid-80s for you to use any old cartridges you still have in the attic. It’s a fantastic time to be a classic gaming fan, but what about the operating systems that we used to use?

Before Windows and macOS came and took over the computing landscape, computers ran various versions of DOS or competing versions of GUIs with differing architectures under the hood. Some of these classic OSes have been either faithfully maintained and modernized somewhat or recreated with the Linux kernel underneath, and some of this list is truly one-of-a-kind.

If you feel nostalgic for how you used to write documents in the 1980s or want to remind yourself how much better modern operating systems are, take a trip down this list. You might find something you want to use daily.

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10

ProDOS

Did you know you could still use the OS from the Apple IIc?

prodos showing bitsy bye program launcher running in an emulator

My personal computing journey started on an Apple IIc, not that long after it was released in the early 80s. Before the days of Intel x86 chips being in every computer, the Apple II range was among the powerhouses of personal computing, with productivity apps and games all rendered in glorious 8-bit. While Apple stopped officially releasing ProDOS in 1993, it got resurrected by an Apple ][ developer called John Brooks in 2016, the 30th anniversary of the Apple IIgs.

While you might need Apple II hardware to run ProDOS in the form available from ProDOS8, you can download emulators like AppleWin or Epple-II and a disk image and enjoy the splendor of 8-bit, green monochrome or high-resolution color graphics in 80-column text. The monochrome green calls to me more, but maybe that’s because I was always jealous of the color monitor owners.

prodos logo

9

SerenityOS

Want to play with a Unix-like OS from the 90s?

serenityos screenshot
Source: SerenityOS

While many retro-feeling operating systems are reskins of *nix kernels, SerenityOS is different. It’s not a skin but was built from the ground up to be totally different. It’s the brainchild of Andreas Kling, who started dabbling in low-level operating system stuff after getting out of rehab in 2018. He set a goal to build his “own dream system for daily use,” and SerenityOS was born. It’s a strange mashup of retro Windows UI simplicity but with a deep open-source philosophy under the hood, with a bunch of common applications for web browsing and code editing.

If you don’t want to jump into a full retro OS, you could try the Ladybird web browser, another project by Andreas that’s written to be cross-platform. He used his experience working at Apple to write full new browser engines for the web engine, graphics, JS replacement, and more, but be warned that it’s not ready for daily use. The edges are many and they are rough.

serenityos logo

8

Chicago95

Now you can (sort of) use Windows 95 on modern hardware without all the malware

Want to experience what Windows 95 felt like without having to install your internet from a demo disc of Netscape Navigator? Well, you’re in luck because Chicago95 is a deeply customized Linux theme that gives you all the 32-bit goodness of Win95 while saving you from the dial-up tones of a modem connection that always seemed louder at night.

It’s not a simple reskin either, with everything from the Start menu and taskbar faithfully recreated for you to use. There’s even an automated installer that mimics the installers of Windows from that era. It is truly a work of mad passion by its developer, and it is worth checking out just for that.

Chicago95 Desktop screenshot

7

Not so Common Desktop Environment (NsCDE)

Get a feel for how the Unix CDE used to be

One of the main aspects of Linux that attracts users is how much choice it offers. It’s not just in applications, but the desktop environment can be changed, tweaked, and otherwise adjusted to fit how you want to use your computer. You can make it feel more modern, or more like macOS, or if you really desire, like a classic throwback to Unix computing.

Not so Common Desktop Environment is a desktop environment to run over a Linux installation that looks and feels like the Common Desktop Environment (CDE) that ran on HP Unix systems. Enjoy a desktop full of 90s-era pastel shades while enjoying the modern conveniences of a recent Linux distro.

nscde screenshot

Not so Common Desktop Environment

6

Snowdrop

This 16-bit OS built for the IBM PC architecture is fully homebrew and written in x86 assembly

snowdrop os on two x486 devices
Source: Sebastian Mihai

While most operating systems are built by teams of developers, Snowdrop OS is the creation of one man, Sebastian Mihai. It’s completely coded in x86 assembly for bare metal access, runs on a potato (figuratively speaking), and is fairly functional if you don’t mind tweaking things yourself.

The full source code is available, and you can boot it from a floppy disk image (if you have vintage hardware around), or as a CD-ROM image that can be installed onto a hard disk. Again, everything was hand-coded from scratch, from the boot loader to the kernel, the GUI, and the programs that run on it. It’s a fascinating glimpse into how things were at one time and how operating systems don’t have to be built in the same way, even if they use similar concepts and abstractions.

snowdrop hellogui

5

Haiku

Inspired by BeOS and made for speed and ease of use

Ahh, the 90s. Neon, mullets, cartoons designed to sell toys to kids—what a time! It was a heady environment for multiple competing personal computing OSes. Be Inc. used to make BeBox computers and BeOS, the operating system that ran on them, when PowerPC CPUs were the rage. BeOS outlived the hardware but didn’t outlive a sale to Palm, Inc. in 2001. One developer decided to keep BeOS alive by creating an open-source, backward-compatible replacement, and what became Haiku OS was born.

haiku os logo

4

Amiga Forever

Relive the Amiga with this official emulator that keeps getting new featuresscreenshot of amiga forever desktop with apps open

Emulation often gets a bad reputation because there’s a thorny situation where retro apps and games are no longer developed and abandoned by their rights holders but still available to download and run in emulators. But Amiga Forever takes a different stance, as officially licensed emulation and preservation for the Amiga and its apps, games, and more. As such, it’s the only operating system on this list that costs money, but it does come with every version of the official Amiga ROM and OS files, and it’s even got an Android app, if you prefer to do your emulation on the go.

amiga forever logo

3

ARAnyM

Run the operating system from the Atari on pretty much any machine you own

aranym desktop screenshot
Source: ARAnyM

ARAnyM is a shortened acronym for Atari Running on Any Machine, to emulate the operating systems used on various Atari machines on modern hardware. That means you can easily install it (and there are many pre-compiled versions to do so) and enjoy the feel and look of the classic Atari home computers of the company’s heyday.

Aranym Logo

2

KolibriOS

Run an entire operating system on only a few MB of disk and memory space

While most modern operating systems are sprawling beasts that eat up disk space, KolibriOS is tiny. It can fit on one 1.44MB floppy disk, which is a staggering achievement on its own to have modern connectivity and file systems. It boots in seconds, has hundreds of inbuilt apps, a GUI, and support for common USB devices like mice, hubs, keyboards, and flash drives. Oh, and it only needs 8MB of RAM, so it can run on almost anything with a CPU inside.

kolibrios logo

1

ReactOS

Run Windows applications and drivers in an open-source operating system written from scratch

Windows might be the most used operating system for home users, but what if you don’t want to use Microsoft’s OS but do want to use the apps written to run on it? Before SteamOS and the Proton compatibility layer added that functionality to Linux, ReactOS was the only answer to that question. It’s an open-source clone of Windows NT that is fully compatible with any app, driver, and service that also runs on Windows NT.

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As such, it’s probably the easiest retro-feeling OS to install and use because it feels familiar while offering modern conveniences and stability. It can also be run from a live USB, so you don’t even have to install it on your internal hard drive if you prefer to test-drive things before proceeding.

ReactOS logo

These are only a few of the classic operating systems you can still use today

Whether you want to experience how BASIC some of the early operating systems used on computers of yesteryear or prefer the modern conveniences of today’s OSes with a retro feel, there are plenty of people maintaining classic operating systems that still run on current hardware. However, the best way, in my experience, is by running them in a virtual machine, so you abstract the hardware requirements out. It’s also often a more pleasant experience to emulate classic games for the same reason, and many retro OSes were before the UX (user experience) field was quantified.

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