TL;DR (EN)
Prospero Software Archive documents the history and technical significance of Prospero Extended Pascal and related products developed by Prospero Software Ltd. (London, UK).
Maintained by a former authorized distributor of Prospero products in Germany.
Original software and manuals are preserved but not publicly distributed, as redistribution rights could not be clarified with the original rights holders or their successors.
This project exists for historical, educational, and preservation purposes only.
Kurzfassung (DE)
Das Prospero Software Archive dokumentiert Geschichte und technische Bedeutung von Prospero Extended Pascal und weiteren Produkten von Prospero Software Ltd. (London, UK).
Gepflegt von einem ehemaligen autorisierten Vertriebspartner von Prospero-Produkten in Deutschland.
Original-Software und Handbücher sind erhalten, werden aber nicht öffentlich verteilt, da die Weiterverbreitungsrechte mit den ursprünglichen Rechteinhabern bzw. Rechtsnachfolgern nicht geklärt werden konnten.
Dieses Projekt dient ausschließlich historischen, edukativen und archivischen Zwecken.
Public Project Page (EN)
Overview
This project documents and preserves historical information about Prospero Software Ltd. (London, UK) and its products, in particular Prospero Extended Pascal, an implementation of Extended Pascal (ISO 10206) developed and distributed during the 1980s and 1990s.
Prospero Software Ltd. was jointly operated by George Anthony Hetherington and Dr. Michael Oakes. Primary authorship of the Prospero Extended Pascal system is attributed to George Anthony Hetherington.
Background
Prospero Software Ltd. was a UK-based software company known for its Pascal, Fortran, and C toolchains, most notably its implementation of Extended Pascal for DOS, OS/2, and Windows.
During the active commercial lifetime of Prospero Software, I acted as an authorized distributor of Prospero products in Germany and retain original distribution media and printed documentation from that period.
Commercial operations of Prospero Software ceased in the late 1990s. No official maintenance, support, or distribution channels are known to exist today.
Rights and Legal Status
All Prospero software products, documentation, and related materials are copyrighted works.
Copyright ownership is believed to reside with the original rights holders associated with Prospero Software Ltd., including its principals George Anthony Hetherington and Dr. Michael Oakes, or their respective legal successors.
I do not claim ownership of any copyrights, trademarks, or licensing rights related to Prospero Software or its products.
Despite extensive and good-faith efforts — including historical business contacts, personal contact attempts, indirect approaches to possible legal successors, and searches of public and archival records — no clarification of redistribution rights could be obtained.
For this reason, no complete proprietary software packages and no original manuals or documentation are made publicly available for download through this project.
Contributor Note (minimal)
I also contributed software components that were incorporated into certain Prospero products under informal verbal agreements. No written rights transfer or redistribution permission exists for those components, and this archive does not distribute any Prospero proprietary software or manuals.
Purpose
This archive exists to document technical and historical significance, preserve metadata and context, and support research, compatibility studies, and re-implementation efforts. It is not intended to replace or compete with any commercial offering.
What Is Included
Publicly available content may include product lists and version histories, screenshots and photographs of original media and packaging, descriptions of architecture and language features, historical notes based on distribution and usage experience, and interoperability notes with other Pascal systems.
No executable software or full documentation is distributed publicly.
Access
Original distribution media and manuals exist in private archival holdings.
Access may be considered on a case-by-case basis for legitimate non-commercial purposes such as academic research, museum or institutional archiving, software preservation initiatives, or interoperability / re-implementation studies.
Any access is subject to withdrawal if rights are clarified or objections are raised by the rights holder or their representatives.
Attribution and Contact
Prospero Software Ltd. (London, UK)
Principals: George Anthony Hetherington; Dr. Michael Oakes
If the original rights holder, or a legitimate representative, wishes to make contact, clarify licensing terms, or request removal or restriction of materials, they are kindly invited to do so.
Contact information for this archive should be listed below (email / web form).
Disclaimer
This project is operated in good faith for historical, educational, and archival purposes only.
No claim is made that any Prospero software or documentation is abandoned, free of copyright, or in the public domain.
Öffentliche Projektseite (DE)
Hintergrund
Prospero Software Ltd. war ein britisches Softwarehaus, bekannt für Pascal-, Fortran- und C-Toolchains, insbesondere für Extended Pascal (ISO 10206) für DOS, OS/2 und Windows.
Während der aktiven kommerziellen Phase war ich autorisierter Vertriebspartner für Prospero-Produkte in Deutschland und besitze Original-Datenträger sowie gedruckte Dokumentation aus dieser Zeit.
Der kommerzielle Betrieb endete in den späten 1990er Jahren. Offizielle Wartung, Support oder Distribution sind heute nicht bekannt.
Rechte und rechtlicher Status
Alle Prospero-Softwareprodukte, Handbücher und zugehörigen Materialien sind urheberrechtlich geschützte Werke.
Die Rechte werden bei den ursprünglichen Rechteinhabern im Umfeld der Prospero Software Ltd. vermutet – insbesondere bei den Principals George Anthony Hetherington und Dr. Michael Oakes – oder bei deren jeweiligen Rechtsnachfolgern.
Ich beanspruche keinerlei Urheber-, Marken- oder Lizenzrechte an Prospero-Software oder Dokumentation.
Trotz umfangreicher Bemühungen in gutem Glauben – einschließlich historischer Geschäftskontakte, persönlicher Kontaktversuche, indirekter Ansprache möglicher Rechtsnachfolger sowie Recherche in öffentlichen und archivischen Quellen – konnte keine belastbare Klärung der Weiterverbreitungsrechte erreicht werden.
Daher werden über dieses Projekt keine vollständigen proprietären Softwarepakete und keine originalen Handbücher oder Dokumentationen zum Download bereitgestellt.
Hinweis zu eigenen Beiträgen (minimal)
Ich habe auch Softwarekomponenten beigetragen, die unter mündlichen Absprachen in bestimmte Prospero-Produkte eingeflossen sind. Schriftliche Rechteübertragung oder Erlaubnis zur Weiterverbreitung liegt dafür nicht vor; dieses Archiv verteilt keine proprietäre Prospero-Software oder Handbücher.
Zugang
Originale Datenträger und Handbücher sind in privater Archivhaltung vorhanden.
Zugang kann im Einzelfall für legitime nicht-kommerzielle Zwecke erwogen werden (Forschung, Museum/Archiv, Preservation, Interoperabilität/Re-Implementierung).
Jeder Zugang kann widerrufen werden, sobald Rechte geklärt sind oder berechtigte Einwände der Rechteinhaber bzw. Vertreter vorliegen.
FAQ (EN)
- Why is the software not available for download?
- Because redistribution rights could not be clarified with the original rights holders or their legal successors. Out of respect for copyright and authorship, no complete proprietary software or manuals are publicly distributed.
- Were you officially connected to Prospero Software?
- Yes. During the active commercial period of Prospero Software Ltd., I acted as an authorized distributor of Prospero products in Germany.
- Do you own the copyright to the software or manuals?
- No. I do not claim ownership of any copyrights or licensing rights related to Prospero Software or its products.
- Did you also contribute software to Prospero products?
- Yes, I contributed components under informal verbal agreements typical of the period; no written rights transfer or redistribution permission exists for those components. This does not change the legal status of the Prospero products, and this archive does not distribute Prospero proprietary software or manuals.
- Have attempts been made to contact the rights holders?
- Yes. Multiple good-faith efforts were made over an extended period, including historical business contacts, personal contact attempts, indirect approaches to possible legal successors, and archival research. These attempts did not result in clarification of redistribution rights.
- Can researchers or museums request access to the materials?
- Possibly. Access may be considered on a case-by-case basis for non-commercial research, academic, or institutional preservation purposes. Any access remains subject to withdrawal if rights are clarified.
- What happens if a rights holder comes forward?
- Any legitimate request by the original rights holder or their representative will be handled promptly, respectfully, and cooperatively, including modification, restriction, or removal of materials if requested.
Access Request Policy (EN)
Requesting Access to Original Materials
Original Prospero Software distribution media and printed manuals exist in private archival holdings.
Access may be considered on a case-by-case basis for legitimate purposes such as academic or historical research, museum or institutional archiving, software preservation initiatives, or interoperability / re-implementation studies.
Conditions
• No redistribution or publication rights are granted.
• Access does not imply any transfer of copyright or licensing rights.
• Access may be withdrawn at any time if rights are clarified or objections are raised by the rights holder or their representatives.
How to request access
Please include:
• your name and affiliation (if applicable)
• the purpose of your research or archival project
• which materials you are interested in
• how the materials will be used
• confirmation that the use is non-commercial
Requests that do not include this information may not receive a response.
Zugangsrichtlinie (DE)
Zugang zu Originalmaterialien anfragen
Originale Datenträger und gedruckte Handbücher zu Prospero-Produkten sind in privater Archivhaltung vorhanden.
Ein Zugang kann im Einzelfall für legitime nicht-kommerzielle Zwecke erwogen werden (Forschung, Museum/Archiv, Preservation, Interoperabilität/Re-Implementierung).
Bedingungen
• Es werden keine Weiterverbreitungs- oder Veröffentlichungsrechte eingeräumt.
• Zugang bedeutet keine Übertragung von Urheber- oder Lizenzrechten.
• Zugang kann jederzeit widerrufen werden, wenn Rechte geklärt sind oder berechtigte Einwände erhoben werden.
Bitte gib in deiner Anfrage an:
• Name und ggf. Institution
• Zweck des Projekts
• welche Materialien dich interessieren
• wie die Materialien genutzt werden sollen
• Bestätigung: nicht-kommerzielle Nutzung
Anfragen ohne diese Informationen werden ggf. nicht beantwortet.
Short Response Template (EN)
Thank you for your interest.
At present, Prospero software and manuals cannot be publicly distributed, as redistribution rights could not be clarified with the original rights holders.
Limited access may be considered for non-commercial research or archival purposes on a case-by-case basis.
Kurzantwort-Vorlage (DE)
Danke für dein Interesse.
Aktuell können Prospero-Software und Handbücher nicht öffentlich verteilt werden, da die Weiterverbreitungsrechte mit den ursprünglichen Rechteinhabern nicht geklärt werden konnten.
Ein begrenzter Zugang kann im Einzelfall für nicht-kommerzielle Forschungs- oder Archivzwecke erwogen werden.