Content deleted Content added
Line 68:
Various [[copy protection]] schemes were developed for floppy disks; most were broken in short order. Many users would only tolerate copy protection for games, as wear and tear on disks was a significant issue in an entirely floppy-based system. The ability to make a "working backup" disk of vital application software was seen as important. Copy programs that advertised their ability to copy or even remove common protection schemes were a common category of [[utility software]] in this pre-[[DMCA]] era.
In another defining characteristic of the home computer, instead of a [[command line]], the [[BASIC programming language|BASIC]] [[interpreter (computer software)|interpreter]] served double duty as a user interface. Coupled to a character-based [[visual editor|screen]] or [[line editor]], BASIC's file management commands could be entered in [[direct mode]]. In contrast to modern computers, home computers most often had their [[operating system]] (OS) stored in [[Read-only memory|ROM]] chips. This made startup times very fast — no more than a few seconds — but made OS upgrades difficult or impossible without buying a new unit. Usually only the most severe bugs were fixed by issuing new ROMs to replace the old ones at the user's cost. Although modern operating systems include extensive [[API|programming libraries]] to ease development and promote standardization, home computer operating systems provided little support to application programs. However, professionally-written software often [[bank switching|switched out]] the ROM based OS anyway to free the [[address space]] it occupied and maximize RAM capacity. This gave the program full control of the hardware and allowed the programmer to optimize performance for a specific task. As [[Computer multitasking|multitasking]] was never common on home computers, this practice went largely unnoticed by users. Most software even lacked an exit command, requiring a reboot to use the system for something else.
In an enduring reflection of their early cassette-oriented nature, most home computers loaded their [[disk operating system]] (DOS) separately from the main OS. The DOS was only used for disk and file related commands and was not required to perform other computing functions. One exception was [[Commodore DOS]], which was not loaded into the computer's main memory at all — Commodore disk drives contained a 6502 processor and DOS in ROM.
| |||