The incredible shrinking operating system [Video]

OS makers adapt as virtualization and cloud computing redefine desktop

Credit: patpitchaya / Shutterstock

From the software concept called JeOS (pronounced “juice”), the Just Enough OS, to hardware concepts like Celio RedFly, an 8-inch screen and keyboard device running applications off a smartphone via a USB or a Bluetooth connection, there are increasing indications that the center of gravity is shifting away from the traditional massive operating systems of the past.

Even the major OS vendors themselves are saying that the next versions of their OS — Windows 7, Linux in its many distributions, and Mac OS X 10.6, aka Snow Leopard — are getting a smaller footprint.

There are many reasons for the traditional OS to shrink and for new OSes to start small, but two stand out:

One, a smaller code base is easier to manage and secure than a large one. For example, estimates for Vista’s development costs run around $6 …