What is TempleOS?
A lot of people ask me; Austin, exactly what is TempleOS?
TempleOS is a revolutionary operating system made by one man, Terry Andrew Davis. It uses a lightweight design philosophy in order to enable incredibly fast processing speeds despite the inherent lack of dedicated video graphics processors, and the entire OS is less than 2MB.
The most critical aspect of any operating system is the kernel. TempleOS’ kernel consists of about 22,000 lines of source code and has several crucial responsibilities: initialization and hardware interfacing, memory management, I/O services (such as file management), and task management for multi-tasking. Additionally, it provides a standard library of functions for operations like compression, date/time handling, math, and string manipulation.
One Platform
The more complicated an operating system becomes, the more points there are for failures. When the OS has an error, the entire system crashes which is why despite decades of dominance in the market of computer operating systems, Microsoft has never completely eliminated the blue screen of death.
TempleOS is one platform. It has one language with one font, with one word processor. There is one memory map for all tasks on all cores with no pagination, no cryptography, no networking, no object files, no child windows with no permissions, no namespaces or restrictions. These limitations are purposefully imposed on the design charter; a 640×480 resolution and 16 colors gives more than enough possible screen configurations, at 16^(640×480) or approximately 4.56×10^369905 possible images, assuming a fixed palette limit.
Limiting Factors in Creative Problem-Solving
In terms of hardware many critics have chastised the operating system for its lack of device support. While this presents many challenges in the distribution and installation of TempleOS to home devices, it also challenges users to implement drivers and integrations of their own. Utilized here is the rule of the “least common denominator,” that by retaining a simple, single line of support for each device class, TempleOS sacrifices universal support upon the altar of mitigating software complexity and servicing the design doctrine; keep it simple in TempleOS.
The clearest demographic that TempleOS thrives to attract is computer hobbyists. Stated inspirations by Terry Davis in its design stem from the era of Commodore 64 and Atari computer systems, granting a particularly nostalgic feel that attracts retro computing and music enthusiasts. A compatibility with modern programming paradigms and virtualization technology gives a new generation access to low-level system programming and computer architecture design. The people who can most benefit from the use of TempleOS are people of all ages who enjoy tinkering on hobby projects.
Use Cases
Still, there are many environments that TempleOS shows the potential of thriving in, but due to the lack of general knowledge, have yet to be tried. The lack of networking and the fact it fits on a CD-ROM makes it ideal for environments such as churches, libraries, prisons and elementary schools. TempleOS provides a secure workspace to store educational materials like books and databases. A comparison could be made to headless server setups, but still providing a ‘headed’ setup due to the low resolution and similarities to traditional control system configurations.
Terry Davis received his bachelor’s in Computer System Engineering from Arizona State University with a specialty in embedded systems, and a master’s in Electrical Engineering from ASU. During his career, he worked as a software, hardware and mechanical engineer at various organizations, inventing a multitude of devices designed for both craft and industrial manufacturing and automation. Much of the code for these inventions eventually made their way into TempleOS. There are many things that stand to be improved about TempleOS from a technical perspective, but there is no question that the design is incredibly consistent, even if the practical applications are still somewhat unforeseen.
An Inspiring Future
On a personal note, as an educator in the HolyC space now for over three years, I can anecdotally add that many students who have a profound interest in TempleOS are inspired by Terry Davis’ struggles with his diagnosed mental illness and his generally perceived experience as an outcast in society. Despite those impressions, these students find inspiration in his overall ability to persevere through his disability and to create a highly advanced, excellently operable programming environment. In the sense that a product is able to inspire awe, growth and change in human beings- TempleOS is priceless.