This was originally a kind-of welcome letter to a new OS-9 user. I
  think what I sent him may help you get started too. So, as you enter
  the world of OS-9, welcome. 
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  Hi. Just a couple of quick thoughts that can help you keep OS-9 from
  becoming too big of a headache as you get into it. Some of this stuff
  may seem silly to you, or obvious or whatever. If so, fine. But I'm
  not sure how much you might already know, so I'll say it anyway.
  
1. First thing to remember is that OS-9 is an operating system, not an
   application. You'll need to download, buy, or write the programs to
   do the jobs or play the games.
   
2. Next thing to remember is that OS-9 carries quite a bit of power with
   it. The effect on you as a user, the main effect, is going to be the
   increase in complexity and confusion. There's a completely different
   style to doing things in OS-9 than there is to doing things in RS-DOS.
   The difference can seem annoying at first, but after awhile you'll get
   the hang of it. Everybody (EVERYBODY!) that's gone from RS-DOS to OS-9
   has had some trouble getting started. Pretty much all of us are willing
   to point things out and give help where we can. If nobody online at the
   moment can help, which does happen from time to time, then just post a
   question in the forum and you'll usually have your answer in a day or so.
   
3. Next general idea to remember is that OS-9 is hardware oriented and you
   will find alot of the programs are written to take advantage of that.
   To get the most out of it you'll end up putting some more hardware on 
   your system. You don't have to add the extra hardware to use the system,
   but to use it fully you will. If you don't already have 2 double sided
   drives you're going to want them; it's almost a necessity. Also highly
   recommemded are; a no-halt controller; a rs-232 port; a real-time clock;
   a mouse; a printer interface (with buffer if possible); and a hard-disk.
   A multi-pak or it's replacement isn't necessary to do this, but it will
   allow you to add extra things later if you like. Either the Disto SC-II
   with a 4-in-1 board or the Eliminator with some of it's options fills
   the bill nicely for runing most of the external hardware I mentioned.
   
4. Final general idea to point out is that there's changes and additions to
   OS-9 that you'll end up puting on your system. Some of the changes can't
   work together, and some of them require a previous change. Sometime there
   are replacements for stock commands that have the same name as the stock
   one did. In other words; after awhile you'll be working with something
   that's very different than what you start off with. To keep from going
   nuts later on; KEEP TRACK OF EVERYTHING YOU CHANGE AND ADD! Get yourself
   a cheap notebook that's dedicated strictly to this information. For every
   change you make and everything you add keep track of:
     a. The name of what's being changed.
     b. The name of the change if it has one, and who wrote it, and when.
     c. Where you got the change from, and the file name if downloaded.
     d. What the change is supposed to do.
     e. Ident information from before and after making the change. At least:
        1. Header for:  _________
        2. Module size: _________
        3. Module CRC:  _________
        4. Edition:     _________
     f. The date you make the change.
     g. Any notes that help you know what's new, better, different, etc.

5. The really final general idea to keep things smooth and as painless as 
   possible is to always make backups of everything as soon as possible.
   Don't use the original disks of purchased programs other than to back
   them up. If you get a hard disk get in the habit right from the start
   of backing up any additions on a regular schedule. If you start writing
   programs (pretty much everyone does) keep backups of your work as you
   go through the program. (When finished you can always backup the end
   version and get rid of the inbetweens.) Backup, backup, backup!! It
   can't be emphasised enough. There's many ways of messing things up, and
   you can lose so many hours/days/weeks worth of work. MAKE BACKUPS!
   
6. Ok. Some specific suggestions of software you should get right off the
   bat. These are just some of my favorites. Other OS-9ers may disagree or
   may suggest others, but for now this is a reasonable list to start with.
   One good point about the things on this list: they're all here on Delphi.
   
    Utilities Database
      AR VERSION 1.3                Needed to unarchive many files.
      PAK V2.02                     Same reason.
      SCF EDITOR PLUS - LEVEL TWO   Much improved over the standard. Get it.
      CP-COPY/LINK/MOVE FILES       Quick and easy file handling.
      IPATCH.AR                     Many patches use this routine. Get it.
      TYPE.AR                       Fire up a new window (snap!) that fast.
      DMODE-XMODE FOR DISKS         Easy way to change disk descriptors.
      ARCHIVE/RESTORE FACILITY      For backups. BACKUP, BACKUP, BACKUP!
      
    Patches Database
      GFX2 IPATCH                   Fixes a small bug in the next listing.
      ENHANCED GFX2                 Adds power features to GFX2 for Basic09.
      FAST GRFDRV PATCH & DEMO      Much faster graphics. Very nice to have.
      GSHELL+ PATCHES               Makes Multi-Vue a reasonable GUI.
      CP IPATCH FOR VER.01.01       Fixes a small mistake. Worth fixing up.
      L-II BUGS & PATCHES           You'll want this information pretty soon.
      
    Applications
      SHELL+ V2.1                   Forget the standard Shell. Use this one.
      
   There's dozens, or maybe even hundreds of other programs, utilities, 
   patches, etc. that you'll want to have. There's drivers for almost all
   hardware you may end up getting. There's patches to fix various bugs in
   OS-9 itself. There's patches for modules that have already been patched
   once or twice. They can't all be listed here, but they are listed in the
   descriptors in the databases. If you think you've found a flaw with 
   something, take a look in the database. You'll probably find a patch for
   it. Plus, you can always ask questions in forum.
   
   I hope this helps you get things together a little easier. OS-9 L2 is a
   wonderful operating system. I think you're going to like it. 
   
Bob Kemper
13 Apr. 91