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I've been looking all over for a source to buy AmigaOS 3.9. My A1200 has Workbench 3.2.2 and it would be nice to get OS 3.9 since I'm also adding an 68060 card and lots of RAM.

Where might I find OS 3.9 install media? I have Cloanto "Amiga Forever", but it doesn't seem to have it.

Peter Mortensen
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Chimera
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  • I have a vague memory that AmigaOS 3.9 hit legal troubles as it was bundling software that it did not have a license to. However I've not been able to confirm that just now. It was only ever available as a physical CD-ROM, not a download, and so I guess that once the stock is used up, it's gone, and all the usual Amiga retailers don't seem to have it any more. I'll try and research some more and post a full answer. – Richard Downer Sep 24 '23 at 12:43
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    I'm not sure I understand your comment about your 68060 card. Workbench 3.2.2 means you have AmigaOS 3.2.2, which is about 20 years newer than AmigaOS 3.9, so you'd be going a long way backwards. 3.2.2 will have no trouble with a 68060 and lots of RAM. (And yes, the version numbering is confusing - there's about four branches of AmigaOS development post-Commodore) – Richard Downer Sep 24 '23 at 12:46
  • @RichardDowner Thank you! I assumed the that 3.2.2 was older than 3.9. I appreciate you setting me straight on this matter! – Chimera Sep 24 '23 at 14:59
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    I’m voting to close this question because it’s a shopping question — see https://retrocomputing.meta.stackexchange.com/q/166/15334 – user3840170 Sep 24 '23 at 18:20
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    @user3840170 Bad shopping questions are about shopping around, where to get for the best price etc. Don't vote to close just because you see the word "buy". This question is about "I can't find this thing anywhere" - not about going shopping and looking for the best bargains. – hippietrail Sep 24 '23 at 18:54
  • @hippietrail If only. Unfortunately shopping questions like this one are just as much likely to get rapidly-aging answers of limited usefulness as those seeking bargains. – user3840170 Sep 24 '23 at 19:47
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    @Chimera added a new Q&A about "what is the most recent version of AmigaOS?" which should help clear up any confusion - or perhaps, after reading it, make it worse...! – Richard Downer Sep 24 '23 at 21:06
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    This being a shopping question is a fair point, and I would understand if it was closed under the rules for not having a definitive answer. However there is an almost-certainly definitive answer, which is "you can't buy it". – Richard Downer Sep 24 '23 at 21:16
  • @RichardDowner Even that is only a contingent state of affairs. Some random company could one day acquire the rights and start selling it, even if only as a digital download. – user3840170 Sep 26 '23 at 06:32
  • If it's still relevant, you can buy it here: https://amigastore.eu/en/261-amiga-os-39.html – Bruno Oct 30 '23 at 02:16

2 Answers2

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You probably can't buy AmigaOS 3.9 any more.

For a time, various Amiga retailers had stock of the physical AmigaOS 3.9 CD-ROM - the only format it was available in - but it would seem to have sold out.

The legal owner of 3.9 could probably initiate a new production run of CD-ROMs, or offer it for download, if they wanted to. However the legal owner is not easy to determine. It was developed by Haage & Partner, a company which no longer exists. Even if their successor could be identified, Haage & Partner were developing it under license so they may not have the rights to make another production run. The licensor also no longer exists, as its corporate entity has changed hands several time in that time frame and subsequently.

If you want a legal copy of AmigaOS 3.9, your best chance is to watch the second-hand marketplaces.

However, AmigaOS 3.2.2 (which you are currently running) is actually more recent than 3.9, so there's probably no need for you to seek out 3.9 unless you are interested in historical versions of AmigaOS. See What's the most recent version of AmigaOS?

Richard Downer
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Oh, and by the way... it's confusing with the version numbers, indeed.

3.9 was launched by Haage many years ago as an upgrade for midrange and highend Amigas; however, it doesn't work on 68000 or 68010 CPU's.

A couple of years ago, Hyperion released a newer version (3.2) which runs on all 68K CPU's; the reason for the lower version number is that it's a logical continuation of the 3.0, 3.1 and 3.1.4 version, which were the last ones running on these CPU's.

Bruno
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