If you’re a seasoned RISC OS User, you’ll know all about the operating system’s history, and you’ll be familiar with the people that look after it today – but you’ll want to find out the latest news. If, however, you’re a new user, or if are thinking of trying it out, you’ll want to find out more about it.
In both cases, your needs will be met at RISC OS North.
RISC OS Developments Ltd is the company that owns the OS itself. They also maintain a ‘distro’ for the Raspberry Pi called RISC OS Direct, and also has other software available or in development, such as the Iris web browser.
For new users in particular, the company usually has a limited supply of SD cards available, already set up with RISC OS Direct, which comes with a wealth of free software. It’s ideal for new users who already have a Pi but haven’t yet tried the OS.
The second company to look out for is RISC OS Open Ltd (ROOL), who look after the main source tree for the operating system, and whose website includes a forum that serves as a central hub for RISC OS users online.
ROOL also makes the ‘stock’ RISC OS distro available, based on those sources and a standard set of applications and software, and which runs on a number of platforms in addition to the Pi. They also provide a set of development tools for people who want to get to grips with programming for the OS, as well as printed manuals, and lots of other useful things.