KA9Q, also called KA9Q NOS or simply NOS, was a popular early implementation of

TCP/IP The Internet protocol suite, commonly known as TCP/IP, is a framework for organizing the set of communication protocols used in the Internet and similar computer networks according to functional criteria. The foundational protocols in the suit ...

and associated protocols for amateur packet radio systems and smaller

personal computer A personal computer (PC) is a multi-purpose microcomputer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. Personal computers are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or tec ...

s connected via serial lines. It was named after the amateur radio callsign of

Phil Karn Phil Karn (born October 4, 1956) is a retired American engineer from Lutherville, Maryland. He earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Cornell University in 1978 and a master's degree in electrical engineering from Carnegie Mel ...

, who first wrote the software for a CP/M system and then ported it to

DOS DOS is shorthand for the MS-DOS and IBM PC DOS family of operating systems. DOS may also refer to: Computing * Data over signalling (DoS), multiplexing data onto a signalling channel * Denial-of-service attack (DoS), an attack on a communicat ...

on the IBM PC. As the KA9Q package included source code, many radio amateurs modified it, so many different versions were available at the same time. KA9Q was later maintained by Anthony Frost (callsign G8UDV) and Adam Goodfellow. It was ported to the

Acorn Archimedes Acorn Archimedes is a family of personal computers designed by Acorn Computers of Cambridge, England. The systems are based on Acorn's own ARM architecture processors and the proprietary operating systems Arthur and RISC OS. The first mode ...

by Jonathan Naylor (G4KLX). Until 1995 it was the standard access software provided by British dial-up

internet service provider An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides services for accessing, using, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit, or otherwise privat ...

Demon Internet Demon Internet was a British Internet service provider, initially an independent business, later operating as a brand of Vodafone. It was List of UK ISPs by age, one of the UK's earliest ISPs, offering dial-up Internet access services from 1 June ...

. Most modern operating systems provide a built-in implementation of

protocol; Linux especially includes all the necessary kernel functions and support utilities for TCP/IP over amateur radio systems, as well as basic

AX.25 AX.25 (Amateur X.25) is a data link layer protocol originally derived from layer 2 of the X.25 protocol suite and designed for use by amateur radio operators. It is used extensively on amateur packet radio networks. AX.25 v2.0 and later occupies t ...

and NET/ROM functionality. Therefore, NOS is regarded as obsolete by its original developer. It still may have its uses for embedded systems that are too small for Linux. KA9Q is also a name for the IP-over-IP

Tunneling protocol In computer networks, a tunneling protocol is a communication protocol which allows for the movement of data from one network to another. It involves allowing private network communications to be sent across a public network (such as the Internet ...

References

External links

Phil Karn's web page on KA9Q NOS
Amateur radio software Internet protocols Packet radio {{amateur-radio-stub