Optimized Systems Software: Difference between revisions

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Optimized Systems Software was formed in early 1981 by Bill Wilkinson, Mike Peters, Paul Laughton, and Kathleen O'Brien.<ref name="savetz">{{cite web |last1=Savetz |first1=Kevin |title=Paul Laughton Interview |url=http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-the-atari-8-bit-podcast-paul-laughton-interview |website=ANTIC: The Atari 8-Bit Podcast |date=October 21, 2014}}</ref> Laughton, the primary author of [[Atari BASIC]], was still employed by Atari, Inc. at the time, and had permission to be involved with OSS from his manager. O'Brien wrote the [[Atari Assembler Editor]] for Atari. Laughton and O'Brien (married) were not as involved with the company and were bought out by Peters and Wilkinson.

OSS purchased [[Atari BASIC]], [[Atari DOS]], and the [[Atari Assembler Editor]] products from [[Shepardson Microsystems]] who had concluded that their versions of BASIC and DOS products were not viable.{{Citation needed |date=April 2024}} The new company enhanced the programs, renaming them OS/A+ (the Disk Operating System), BASIC A+ (a disk-based language), and EASMD (an update to the Assembler Editor). OSS continued to work with [[Atari, Inc.]] (who had previously contracted with SMI) on enhanced products, most of which never reached the market.

OSS debuted at the [[West Coast Computer Faire]] in March 1981. The products they released over the next several years became respected among Atari programmers, particularly the [[MAC/65]] assembler, the [[Action! (programming language)|Action!]] programming language, and BASIC XL. In a 1984 interview, Bill Wilkinson said the company consisted of 15 people.<ref name="ellison">{{cite journal |last1=Ellison |first1=Peter |title=Bill Wilkinson Interview |journal=ROM |date=August 1984 |volume=1 |issue=7 |page=13 |url=https://archive.org/details/ROM_Magazine_v1i7/page/n12}}</ref>

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==Applications==

=== The Writer's Tool ===

A word processing application available in a bank-selected cartridge and a double-sided disk (master disk on one side, dictionary disk on the other side).<ref name="wt-antic">{{cite journal|last1=Rainbow|first1=Tom|title=8-bit Product Reviews: Writer's Tool|journal=Antic|date=March 1985|volume=3|issue=11|url=http://www.atarimagazines.com/v3n11/reviews.html}}</ref> It was developed by Madison Micro and published by OSS in 1984.<ref name="wt_manual">{{cite book|title=The Writer's Tool Manual|date=1984|publisher=Optimized Systems Software, Inc.|url=http://www.atarimania.com/8bit/manuals/The_Writers_Tool_manual.pdf|archive-date=2016-02-09|access-date=2016-04-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160209103325/http://www.atarimania.com/8bit/manuals/The_Writers_Tool_manual.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> According to Bill Wilkinson, OSS was already building a word processor, but stopped when ''The Writer's Tool'' was submitted.<ref>{{cite web|title=Interview 7: Bill Wilkinson|url=http://ataripodcast.libsyn.com/antic-interview-7-the-atari-8-bit-podcast-bill-wilkinson-oss|website=ANTIC The Atari 8-bit Podcast}}</ref>

=== SpeedRead+ ===

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[[Category:Optimized Systems Software| ]]

[[Category:Defunct software companies of the United States]]

[[Category:Atari 8-bit familycomputers]]

[[Category:Software companies based in the San Francisco Bay Area]]

[[Category:Companies based in Cupertino, California]]