iDOS: Official DOSpad app for iOS devices! (update: not no more)
iDOS running Solitaire
Somehow, someone got a version of DOSpad approved by Apple and released for $0.99 on the iOS App Store. That, in and of itself, is already beyond insane, especially considering that:
…it…does everything that DOS does, including, as you can see in the picture, running Windows 3.0 complete with the Solitaire game.
The app is a 99 cent universal app for iPhone and iPad, and unfortunately, it’s not user friendly at all — if you don’t remember your old DOS commands, the app’s not set up to make things easy for you. The app also includes what the description calls “freeware/abandonware” like Ms. Pac Man PC, and DigDug, but you can upload other games and files through iTunes.
But there’s a catch (besides the price):
Honestly, this is awesome, but it seems a little too open for Apple’s tastes. I can’t see how it would ever hurt the iOS device (you’re running everything from within the app, and Apple could simply assume that you own any copies of software that you install on there), but this is one app that may have snuck through the gates.
I’m honestly surprised this app got approved; don’t be surprised, Dragons and Dragonettes, if it goes the way of the Grooveshark app in short order. But until it does…
Update: Yup, saw that coming. It looks like the app has been pulled. If you managed to grab it, enjoy it…and check the Aiera Twitter timeline for some links to folks who got various Ultima games running using it.
Arg! I’m getting a “not currently available in the US Store” error. 🙁
Yup, looks like it’s gone.
Hopefully it’ll be back. Not that I’m holding out hope.
Aw, crud. I was really hoping this would remain available (at least until I got home from WORK!)
Would’ve been cool to set up Ultima 7 for my son.)
Yeah. I was grabbing a bite to eat, away from my desk, when I saw the news on TUAW (I’m constantly checking news sites on my iPhone, y’see). It was one of those “too good to be true” moments, and I didn’t expect it would last once news broke, so I just grabbed it via 3G.
I’ve got 500 MB of data per month…that’s what it’s for.
I got Ultima VII running on my 3G after some hacking the cfg file, but its terribly slow so as not to be playable. However it has got me yearning for a version of Ultima VII on my iPhone as I think it would be a great platform. Hopefully things change in the future and we can see a proper port of Exult on the iPhone platform…
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v406/kahdmus/3c08621a.jpg
That’s pretty good, though it’s sad to hear that it runs like a pig. But I guess that’s the price to pay for adding a layer of emulation to things.
I’m just playing around with Ultima 6 at present; it seems to run without any config hacking, but I haven’t had more than a minute or two at a time to test it…which isn’t quite enough to get into the game proper.
It never ceases to amaze me why consumers continue to put up with these sorts of things from companies like Apple and Microsoft. Maybe that’s why Android-based devices are dominating the market; they generally let you do whatever you like. Since most consumers aren’t techies, maybe the “freedom” versus “lockdown” vibes are being felt subconsciously.
Apple’s attitude toward the app store and their devices in general is analogous to a dictator’s policies and practices toward their citizens. Saddam Hussein, Hugo Chavez and Kim Jong-il come to mind. I suppose the silver lining is that Jobs, Ballmer and Gates aren’t politicians or military generals.
Yeah, it was brilliant seeing U7 on my iPhone I have to admit to getting a real kick out of it! Sadly, after talking to Iolo, the mayor and visiting the murder scene, I couldn’t stand the pain of the slow-as-molasses gamneplay any longer…still, brilliant though!
I agree with you Kevin and hopefully a future loss of market share will make them see this. As it stands, Apple created such a brilliant distribution model for devs and got such a head-start in terms of install base that its still where most of the action is. What makes me laugh is when you watch decades old Apple commercials that show them as the peoples champion overthrowing the establishment…oh the irony! 😀