Native
Apple Silicon Mac
- An M-series Mac. Tested.
- Git, CMake and make to build the runtime.
- SDL2.
- Python 3 for the build script.
Requirements
What you need.
Today you build from source. This is the honest list, including the numbers we have not measured.
Needs
Classic
QEMU and an ISO
- QEMU.
- A TempleOS V5.03 ISO, which you supply.
- Python 3 for the helper scripts.
- About 2.5 minutes the first time, to build a saved image kept in your cache folder.
Measured on one Mac.
Numbers from a real run, with what they do and do not tell you.
| What we measured | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Test machine | MacBook with an Apple M3 Max, 36 GB, macOS 27.0 | One machine only. These are observations, not minimums. |
| Native: memory while running | about 344 MB, steady over 30 seconds | Resident memory of the runtime with the desktop open, at 2880x1800. |
| Native: idle processor use | about 6 to 8 percent of one core | Desktop open and untouched. |
| Native: time to the desktop | 510 ms | The desktop reports ready. |
| Native: runtime size | 452 KB | The built app. Source and build files are larger. |
| Classic: saved image on disk | 125 MB at 1440x900, 169 MB at 2880x1800 | Each scale builds its own image, kept in your cache folder. |
| Classic: memory given to the VM | 1024 MB | The setting in the launch script. Actual use was not measured. |
| Tool versions used here | QEMU 11.0.2, CMake 4.0.3, SDL2 2.32.74, Python 3.13.2 | Older versions may work. Not tried. |
Classic could not be run for this measurement because no TempleOS ISO was on the test machine. The ISO comes from you.
What we still do not know.
| Still unknown | Status |
|---|---|
| The oldest macOS that works | Not measured |
| The least memory that works | Not measured |
| Classic memory use while running | Not measured |
| Linux and Windows hosts | Untested |
| A browser engine for the Browser app | Chrome on the host, driven over a pipe |