Arthur (operating system)

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A screenshot of Arthur's GUI desktop and its bundled accessory applications
A screenshot of Arthur's GUI desktop and its bundled accessory applications

Arthur is an early graphical user interface (GUI) operating system (OS) that was used on Acorn ARM-cpu-based computers from about 1987 until the much-superior RISC OS 2 was completed and made available in April 1989. It was the operating system of the earliest Archimedes ARM machines.

The desktop is very primitive. It features a colour-scheme typically described as "technicolour". Its earlier revisions were very buggy, and was only really meant to be a placeholder until RISC OS 2 (a name chosen instead of Arthur 2) was completed.

The graphical desktop runs on top of a command-line driven operating system derived from Acorn's earlier MOS operating system for its BBC Micro range of eight-bit microcomputers.

The "Arthur" name was supposedly dropped from version 2 because of the release at the time of a movie called Arthur 2: On the Rocks. Arthur is said to stand for "A Risc-based operating system by THURsday". Supposedly Arthur was put together in break-neck speed because a revolutionary operating system which Acorn had under development (ARX) wasn't going to be ready in time.

Most software made for Arthur can be run under RISC OS. A few titles will not work, however.


v • d • e
List of Acorn Computers microcomputers
Computers Microcomputer System • Atom • BBC Micro (aka Proton) • Electron • Communicator • Business Computer • BBC Master • Archimedes range • Risc PC • Network Computer • Set-Top Box • Phoebe
Operating systems Acorn MOS • Panos • Arthur • ARX • RISC iX • RISC OS
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_%28operating_system%29"
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