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| {{Infobox
| | resist 1984 |
| | title = TempleOS
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| | type = Operating system (experimental)
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| | region = Developed in the United States; globally accessible
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| | purpose = Standalone personal computing environment with explicit religious and aesthetic constraints
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| | method = Custom kernel; integrated language; constrained graphics and hardware model
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| | verification = Community analysis; archival examination of released source and binaries
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| | references = Not embedded by default (except footnote system for internal notes)
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| | language = English (HolyC programming language)
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| | access = Freely available source code and binaries
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| | website = https://templeos.org/
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| }}
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| '''TempleOS''' is a lightweight, experimental operating system created and maintained primarily by a single developer, Terry A. Davis, between approximately 2003 and 2017.<ref>Dates are approximate and are reconstructed from released artifacts and public documentation rather than from a single authoritative project ledger.</ref> It was designed as a standalone computing environment rather than a general-purpose platform, and its architecture reflects explicit religious, aesthetic, and technical constraints.<ref>The system’s constraints are part of its definition: they shape what the OS is, not merely what it lacks.</ref>
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| TempleOS combines a custom kernel, an integrated programming language (HolyC), and an intentionally restricted execution model. It is often discussed as a case where an operating system is best understood not only as engineering, but as a deliberately constrained artifact with a narrowly defined purpose and internal coherence.<ref>“Coherent artifact” here means a system where purpose, constraints, and implementation align, even if the result is not general-purpose.</ref>
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| __TOC__
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| == Purpose ==
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| TempleOS was developed to serve a specific, self-defined purpose: to provide a computing environment for programming and creative output under a religious framing stated by its creator.<ref>This refers to stated intent and framing, not to a claim that the system’s purpose should be accepted or adopted by readers.</ref> It was not intended to optimize for adoption, compatibility, security, or integration with contemporary software ecosystems.
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| On its own terms, the system’s purpose is achieved by minimizing external dependencies and reducing the number of moving parts a user must trust. The result is an environment that favors immediacy and authorial control over generality and defensive engineering.<ref>“Authorial control” describes a design posture: minimizing dependencies and prioritizing a small, inspectable environment over breadth.</ref>
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| == Scope ==
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| TempleOS focuses on:
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| * a self-contained operating system environment
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| * a single-user interaction model
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| * tight coupling between kernel, language, and user-space tools
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| * a constrained graphics model and simplified assumptions about hardware
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| * direct, transparent behavior over layered abstractions
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| Its scope excludes many features treated as standard in modern operating systems, such as robust networking, privilege separation, process isolation, memory protection, and a broad driver ecosystem.<ref>Excluded features are excluded as scope decisions; comparison to mainstream OS goals requires acknowledging that difference in scope.</ref>
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| == Editorial approach ==
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| TempleOS is not optimized for extensibility, portability, or defense-in-depth. It is optimized for a kind of transparency: a small world in which the system, the programming language, and the primary tools are comprehensible as a single coherent object.
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| In practice this means:
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| * source code is treated as an interface rather than an implementation detail;
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| * abstractions are minimized in favor of direct expression;
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| * constraints are intentional design parameters, not incidental limitations.<ref>A “constraint” is treated as a design parameter that defines the object, not as a defect by default.</ref>
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| == Technical characteristics ==
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| TempleOS is implemented as a monolithic kernel written largely in HolyC, a C-like language integrated into the system’s workflow and toolchain.<ref>HolyC is a C-like language integrated into TempleOS workflows; the key point is tight coupling between language and OS environment.</ref> Programs are typically written, compiled, and executed within the same environment, with limited separation between “system” and “application” layers.
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| Commonly described technical characteristics include:
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| * fixed 640×480 graphics with a 16-color palette;
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| * limited or absent memory protection between executing components;
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| * execution assumptions aligned with older x86 hardware environments;
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| * a simplified model of system services compared to mainstream OS designs.
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| These characteristics should be interpreted as part of the system’s constraint set rather than as incomplete versions of mainstream features.<ref>Interpreting TempleOS as an “incomplete mainstream OS” misreads the role of its constraints.</ref>
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| == Interpretation and dispute ==
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| Interpretations of TempleOS differ depending on what is treated as primary: technical design, authorial intent, or biographical context.
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| One interpretation treats TempleOS primarily as outsider software art: the system is valued for aesthetic coherence, symbolic structure, and constraint-driven design.<ref>This frame treats software as a medium in which constraint and symbolism can be primary evaluative criteria.</ref> Another interpretation treats it as a cautionary case in which the surrounding personal circumstances dominate the analysis, sometimes reducing the artifact to an illustration of pathology rather than a technical object.<ref>This frame prioritizes biography and surrounding context; it can illuminate context but can also collapse technical description into narrative.</ref>
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| A third interpretation treats TempleOS as an operating-system demonstration of alternative priorities: it shows what happens when compatibility, security hardening, and general-purpose feature breadth are explicitly rejected in favor of a minimal, self-contained environment.<ref>This frame treats TempleOS as a demonstration of alternative design priorities rather than as a candidate general-purpose system.</ref>
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| == Community discussion and external input ==
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| TempleOS does not have a conventional collaborative development model. Post hoc engagement typically occurs through commentary, preservation, analysis, or forks that recontextualize the code rather than extend it within the original design constraints.
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| External input commonly focuses on:
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| * operating system trade-offs and omitted features;
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| * language/toolchain integration and developer experience;
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| * criteria for evaluating technical artifacts with strong authorial intent;
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| * ethical considerations in how biographical context is used in interpretation.<ref>Ethical considerations include how strongly biographical context is emphasized and whether it replaces technical description.</ref>
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| == Boundary conditions ==
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| TempleOS should not be treated as secure or production-ready. It assumes cooperative use, trusted code execution, and narrow operating conditions.
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| Claims about its “quality” or “viability” depend strongly on the evaluation frame. If judged by mainstream requirements (multi-user security, networking, isolation, hardware support), it fails by design. If judged by coherence under constraints and transparency of behavior, it can be treated as a deliberately bounded system with different success criteria.<ref>Boundary conditions specify where a claim applies and where it fails; they are part of the description, not an afterthought.</ref>
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| == Footnotes ==
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| <references />
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