MS-DOS 4.0 Source Code Fails to Compile

Plus: Source comments, by Microsoft, calling the creator of DOS "brain-damaged" get censored.

Yesterday, Microsoft released the source code for MS-DOS 4.0... an action which I have encouraged Microsoft to take for many years (including when I worked at Microsoft).

And, while this source code release is most definitely a win for the preservation of computer history, there are some rather ridiculous issues with it.

Most notably:

• The source doesn't actually fully compile.  It is not usable in its current state.

• The source code has been modified by Microsoft -- even after the publication this week -- reducing the historical value of the code.

• Also Microsoft claims to have lost some source code.

Yeah.  You read that first bullet point right.  It does not compile.  I'll walk you through the details (including a step-by-step guide for how you can fail to compile MS-DOS 4.0 yourself).

But, first, a little backstory.

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