Windoware/WINDOWARE_1_6.iso/misctext/faqw9101/faqw9101.txt

Internet Message Format | 1991-03-09 | 24KB

From comp.windows.ms Thu Jan 17 10:41:49 1991
From: [e-mail] (Tom Haapanen)
Date: 2 Jan 91 12:42:24 GMT
Newsgroups: comp.windows.ms
Subject: Frequently Asked Questions, comp.windows.ms edition

TABLE OF CONTENTS

    1.  Windows newsgroups
    2.  Free Windows applications
    3.  Getting Windows video drivers
    4.  Using a mail server instead of ftp
    5.  Windows memory requirements
    6.  Standard mode vs. 386 enhanced mode
    7.  Running Windows 2.x applications
    8.  DOS in a window
    9.  Environment space in DOS sessions
    10. Lotus 1-2-3 under Windows
    11. QEMM/386 with Windows
    12. Protected-mode software vs. Windows
    13. Windows, MKS Korn shell and switchar
    14. Windows network compatability
    15. Using COM3 or COM4 from Windows
    16. Accessing the mouse in DOS sessions
    17. Using TSRs for DOS sessions
    18. 256 colors in Windows
    19. Windows communications programs
    20. Changing an application's icon
    21. Creating new icons
    22. Icon and bitmap directories
    23. Installing new fonts
    24. FaceLift, ATM and TrueType
    25. Converting a GIF or MS-Paint file to a bitmap
    26. Using a bitmap as wallpaper
    27. Permanent swapfiles and using SUBST
    28. Installation problems with SHARE
    29. Windows and large hard disks
    30. Using Windows as "runtime" only
    31. Windows Terminal and using the keypad
    32. Date/time in Notepad

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1.  Why are there two newsgroups for windows?

    comp.windows.ms.programmer is for discussion about developing Windows
    software. It is  not intended for discussions  about Windows software
    or for  questions about the  Foobar SVGA drivers.  comp.windows.ms is
    for  any  Windows discussions  that  do  not concern  development  of
    Windows software.

2.  Are there free Windows applications available?  How can I get them?

    Yes, there  are quite a  few. Of  course, there is  always CompuServe
    (which has a LOT of them) and  your local BBS, but for us net.junkies
    the  Windows  Heaven  is  located at  cica.cica.indiana.edu,  and  is
    accessed using  a program  called "ftp".  This program  is accessible
    from most  Internet sites, but is  not usable through uucp  links. If
    you do  have ftp available to  you, follow the instructions  below to
    connect to cica; do not type in the // comments!

     $ ftp cica.cica.indiana.edu       // make connection
     Connected to ... blah blah blah   // cica responds
     Userid (user@cica): ftp           // enter "ftp" as userid
     Password: real_userid@site        // enter your own userid
     ftp> tenex                        // for binary transfers
     ftp> cd /pub/pc/win3              // where the goodies are
     ftp> get ls-ltR                   // get the current index
     ftp> quit                         // we're done
     $ _

    Of course, you can  get multiple files at a time --  read the ftp man
    page for more information. Please do not access cica.cica.indiana.edu
    between 8am  and 6pm EST to  prevent overloading the system.  If your
    ftp program complains  about an unknown site, you  can substitute the
    numeric address,  129.79.20.22, for cica.cica.indiana.edu in  the ftp
    command.

    Remember that shareware is not free: register the software you use to
    encourage the development of more low-cost software.

3.  Are there Windows drivers available for  my Frobozz Super VGA Turbo X
    clone display card?

    First,  unless the  card is  one of  the major  brands (ATI,  Orchid,
    Paradise, Video-7)  find out  which chipset the  card has,  either by
    looking  at   the  manual  or   the  card  itself.  Then   check  the
    /pub/pc/win3/video directory at cica  for the appropriate driver. The
    generic SVGA  driver will let  you use  800x600x16 on just  about any
    SVGA card  as long  as you  can find out  the appropriate  video mode
    number. Finally, if  you get desperate, you could call  up your video
    card  manufacturer/vendor  and ask  them  why  the drivers  were  not
    included with the card, and to send them to you.

4.  Is it possible to use a mail server instead of ftp?

    There  are  a  number  of  sites  that  archive  the  Usenet  sources
    newsgroups and  make them  available via an  email query  system. You
    send a  message to  an automated server  saying something  like "send
    comp.sources.unix/fbm", and  a few  hours or days  later you  get the
    file in the mail.

    There are several sites that  will perform general FTP retrievals for
    you in response to a similar mail query. For information on using one
    of them, send a message like this to [e-mail] :

     request: info
     topic: help-ftp
     request: end

    (NOTE: this  server is currently  "down for repairs". No  estimate on
    when or if it will return.)

    And for info on another one, send this message to [e-mail]:

     help

    Please be considerate,  and don't over-use these  services. If people
    start using them to retrieve hundreds of megabytes of GIF files, they
    will probably disappear.

5.  How much memory do I need to run Windows?

    The more the better! You can run in real mode with 640K (assuming you
    don't  have  a  lot  of  device drivers  or  TSRs),  but  many  large
    applications will run *very* slowly. Standard mode requires 1 MB, but
    2 MB is much  better. For 386 enhanced mode, you need  a minimum of 2
    MB. However,  you should really  have 3-4  MB available for  good 386
    enhanced mode performance, especially if  you wish to run several DOS
    sessions. In addition  to the memory above, you might  wish to have a
    disk cache  (such as  SmartDrive, included  with Windows)  to improve
    Windows performance. Some applications (such  as WingZ, Excel or Word
    for Windows) are either impossible or impractical to run in real mode
    due to lack of memory.

6.  Is there  any advantage to  running in  standard mode instead  of 386
    enhanced mode?

    Yes -- speed. Windows run  substantially faster in standard mode than
    in 386 enhanced  mode. You lose virtual memory, but  if you have suf-
    ficient  physical   memory  and  don't   have  a  need  to   run  DOS
    applications,  you may  be  happier in  standard  mode. Do  remember,
    though, that some applications require  386 enhanced mode (wdeb386 is
    one example).

7.  Can I run Windows 2.x applications in 3.0?

    Yes. If  you run in real  mode, the applications behave  just like in
    2.x,  but  have  somewhat  less  memory available  to  them.  If  the
    applications are "well-behaved",  they will also run  in standard and
    386 enhanced  modes, but  Windows will  first warn  you with  a "nag"
    message that the  application wasn't written for Windows  3.0. If you
    run a ill-behaned  application in standard or 386  enhanced mode, the
    application will likely crash with Unrecoverable Application Error.

    If you have  a 2.x application that  runs well in all  modes, you can
    mark it Windows 3.0-compatible using  either the mark3.exe (?) or the
    nonag.exe utility. Both are available freely by ftp.

8.  Can I run DOS in a window?

    Strictly speaking,  you're running DOS  even when you're  in Windows.
    However,  you can  run a  command.com session  from Windows.  In real
    mode, you are limited to a  single session. In standard mode, you can
    have multiple sessions,  but they must still run  full-screen. In 386
    enhanced mode, you can have multiple  sessions, and they can run in a
    window.

    You  can control  the  starting up  in a  window  vs. full-screen  by
    setting up  a .pif file  for the program (command.com  or otherwise).
    You can also switch the state by pressing Alt-Enter.

9.  Why do I  run out of environment space  when I run a batch  file in a
    DOS session?

    When  Windows starts  up a  DOS session,  it by  default gives  it an
    environment of 224 bytes, or the  space required to hold your current
    environment, whichever is  larger. If you need more  space, there are
    two methods of circumventing this. In order of desirability:

    1)   Use a  .pif file for each  DOS application you run.  In this you
         can specify the environment size by using the /e:nnn option (see
         your DOS  manual). You will  need a  separate DOS file  for each
         program. (You  can, however,  just create  a command.pif  with a
         suitable /e:nnn, and then specify in the win.ini a line such as
               "Extensions"
               bat=command.pif ^.ksh
          With this,  you can create  batch file icons freely,  and still
          get the options specified in command.pif.

    2)    Specify  a  dummy  variable  such  as  DUMMY1=xxxxx....  before
          starting  up Windows.  Then, as  the  first thing  in each  DOS
          session, do
               set DUMMY1=
          to  reclaim the  space  used by  DUMMY1  for other  environment
          variables.

10. Does Lotus 1-2-3 work under Windows?

    Versions 1.x, 2.x and 3.1 run in all modes, but do not support any of
    the  features  of  the  Windows  environment.  For  all  intents  and
    purposes, version 3.0 doesn't run  under Windows. [Buy Excel or WingZ
    instead! --ed.]

11. Can I use DesqView/386 with Windows?

    You can use versions 5.0 of QEMM/386 and below with real-mode Windows
    only. QEMM/386  version 5.1 provides  XMS services for  Windows, thus
    allowing Windows to  run in all modes under  QEMM/386, plus providing
    compatability with VCPI applications (see below). Windows will run in
    standard and real modes as a DesqView/386 task.

12. Why won't my protected-mode software run under Windows?

    Most  protected-mode  applications currently  on  the  market use  an
    extended-memory  interface  called   VCPI  (Virtual  Control  Program
    Interface), which  is incompatible with Windows'  DPMI (DOS Protected
    Mode Interface  (?)). Microsoft went against  an established standard
    in choosing DPMI, but there are  valid technical reasons why VCPI was
    not chosen for Windows. At this point, you have three choices:

    1)    Run your protected-mode software under DOS. This means that you
          must NOT  use Windows  or SmartDrive  before running  your VCPI
          software, and may require you  to have two different config.sys
          files.

    2)    Plead   with    your   software   developer   to    develop   a
          Windows-compatible version.  They should already be  working on
          it anyway, given the momentum that Windows 3.0 has.

    3)    Buy QEMM/386, which  provides VCPI. You'll be able  to run your
          protected-mode software as well as Windows 3.0.

13. Why can't I use Windows from the MKS Korn shell?

    There  are two  possible problems.  First,  with versions  up to  and
    including 3.1c of the MKS Toolkit, the use of login.exe precludes the
    use of Windows 3.0 in any but the real mode. To avoid this, have your
    machine boot directly into the Korn shell or command.com.

    Second,  somebody at  Microsoft had  a brain  fade, and  Windows gets
    confused if  it is started  with a forward  slash path. Thus,  if you
    simply  type "win"  in Korn  shell,  the shell  invokes Windows  with
    something like
          "c:/usr/windows/win.com"
    and Windows doesn't know where to  find itself! To cure this, specify
    an alias for Windows: I use
          alias -x win="c:"\usr"\windows"\win.com"
    Note that the double backslashes are necessary for the Korn shell.

    The newer  versions of MKS  Toolkit allow (standard and  386 enhanced
    mode) Windows to run directly from  the login: prompt; but they still
    won't let  you run standard/386  enhanced Windows from the  shell (if
    you used login). An updated version of init.exe is available from MKS
    for users of older versions of the MKS Toolkit.

14. Which networks are compatible with Windows 3.0?

    The  following are  known  to  work; see  also  networks.txt in  your
    Windows directory
          Network           earliest version
          --------------    ----------------
          3Com 3 Plus       1.0
          3Com 3+Open       1.0
          Banyan Vines      4.0
          BW NFS            ?.?
          IBM PC LAN        1.1 "except server"
          LAN Manager       1.0
          LANtastic         2.57 "server can not use enhanced mode"
          Novell Netware    2.15 "shell & utilities must be version 3.01"
          Sun PC-NFS        ?.?

15. How can I use COM3 or COM4 from a Windows communication package?

    This is a generally a problem only in 386 enhanced mode. To use these
    ports, you  will need  to tell  Windows where  they are  located; the
    instructions for doing  this can be found in the  Windows readme file
    sysini2.txt, which  should be located  in your Windows  directory. In
    summary, what  you need to do  is tell Windows what  memory addresses
    and interrupts (IRQs) your COM3 and COM4 ports use. This should work,
    but is  not guaranteed to:  COM3 and  Com4 are not  standardized, and
    this is one of the most difficult things to get working with Windows.
    If possible, move your devices to COM1 or COM2.

16. Why doesn't my mouse work in a DOS window?

    If you are running a DOS application in a window, Windows will retain
    control of the mouse for cutting and  pasting. You can use a mouse in
    a full-screen  DOS session if you  install a mouse driver  by running
    mouse.com  (either  before  starting   Windows,  or  inside  the  DOS
    session), or by including 'device=mouse.sys' in your config.sys file.

17. Why don't my TSRs work in DOS sessions?

    Some TSR  programs will not work  if you install them  before running
    Windows. Some of them will not work  if you install them inside a DOS
    session. Generally the  best idea is to avoid  TSRs completely unless
    you really need them. See also the description of winstart.bat in the
    Windows .txt files.

18. Can I use 256 colors in Windows?

    Yes, given two caveats: First, your  display card and its driver must
    support  256 colors.  Second, your  application must  know about  256
    colors,  as  this  requires  palette switching  and  some  additional
    programming. Most  applications currently on the  market only support
    16 colors. In order  to get 256 colors, your video  card will need at
    least 320K (for  640x480), 512K (for 800x600) or  768K (for 1024x768)
    of RAM. 256-color drivers are also much slower than 16-color drivers.

19. Are there any good communication programs for Windows?

    Well, maybe.  There is not yet  a consensus about any  of the current
    products.  There are  a number  of free  or shareware  ones: Terminal
    (included with Windows),  WinQVT, Unicom and WinKermit,  but all have
    their  problems and  lack  in some  features. All  of  them are  also
    available  on  cica.  Commercial   packages  include  DynaComm  ("big
    brother" of Terminal), MicroPhone, CrossTalk for Windows and Wincomm.
    Again,  none of  them  stands  out as  the  perfect choice,  although
    several have shown promise.

20. How do I change the icon for a program?

    Choose the item in Program  Manager, and then select File Properties.
    Click on  "Icon...", and then enter  the name of the  file containing
    the new icon.  If the icon file  is a DLL or  EXE containing multiple
    icons, you can cycle through the icons by clicking "Next Icon". Click
    "OK", and then "OK" again. You can also use icons from other programs
    by the same method: just specify the name of the .exe file instead of
    an icon or DLL file.

    The icon that is displayed by the application when it is minimized is
    controlled by the application. It is not possible to change that.

21. Can I create my own icons?

    Yes. You can  use either IconDraw (shareware) or SDKPaint  (a part of
    the Windows  SDK). Simply draw  your icon, and  save it as  an ".ico"
    file.

22. Do  I have  to keep  my icons  and wallpaper  bitmaps in  the Windows
    directory?

    Wallpaper bitmaps  have to be  kept in the Windows  directory (unless
    you use a utility such as PaperBoy for changing the wallpaper). Icons
    may  be  kept anywhere;  it  may  be  convenient  to create  an  ICON
    subdirectory under the Windows directory.

23. I installed some more fonts using Control Panel.  Why can't I access
    them in Word for Windows (or another application)?

    Word for Windows shows in its font menu the fonts currently available
    for the selected  *output* device, not the *display*  device. You can
    still use, say,  vector fonts that you installed, by  typing the name
    of the font  in the edit box.  Windows will draw vector  fonts on the
    output  device without  problems  --  you may  or  may  not like  the
    results.  Screen  fonts are  also  used  for printing  on  dot-matrix
    printers.

    In some cases, you may also  need to force the application to refresh
    its output device font list. The easiest way to do this is to do File
    Printer Setup, click Setup, then click OK, and finally OK again.

24. Do Bitstream FaceLift,  Adobe Type Manager (ATM)  and TrueType really
    work? Are they worth the money?

    Yes, they  work -- except for  TrueType, which is not  yet available.
    Both ATM and FaceLift also  have some problems with Ami Professional,
    which  does strange  things  with  its screen  fonts.  On the  whole,
    FaceLift will support more applications  and output devices than ATM,
    but the  difference may  not be significant.  FaceLift also  lets you
    generate soft  fonts for the  LaserJet series (for  faster printing);
    ATM does  not give you  that option. Both provide  high-quality fonts
    and much better WYSIWYG at the cost of somewhat slower screen updates
    and slightly slower printing.

    And at street prices not much above  $50, yes, both of them are worth
    the money you'll pay for them.

25. How can  I convert a GIF  or MS-Paint file to  a .bmp to use  it as a
    wallpaper in Windows?

    You  can save  a .msp  file as  a .bmp  from Windows  Paint. You  can
    convert a .gif file to a .bmp using the gif2bmp utility from cica.

26. Why won't my .bmp wallpaper display correctly?

    Well, it could be a number of reasons.  The most likely are:
    1)    Your .bmp file is corrupted.  Try reading it into Paintbrush to
          verify that it is readable.
    2)    You  are trying  to display  256 colors  with a  16-color video
          driver.
    3)    You  have   insufficient  memory  to  display   the  bitmap.  A
          800x600x16 bitmap  requires 256K of memory;  1024x768x256 would
          require 768K!
     For 256-to-16 color dithering, you may wish to try using PicLab 1.82
     with the help of wincnv.zip (available from cica).

27. I can't create a permanent swapfile.  What could be the cause?

    First of all, you must be running in real mode to be able to create a
    permanent swapfile. Second,  You must not have any  SUBSTed drives or
    Windows  won't  create  the  swapfile. Once  the  swapfile  has  been
    created, you can re-SUBST your drives.

    You also  can't create  a permanent swapfile  on a  drive partitioned
    with third-party software such as SpeedStor (see question 30). If you
    are  installing  on a  Novell  client,  you  must first  disable  the
    "receive network  messages" feature  (using the  network icon  in the
    Control Panel) and reboot. Once you have installed the swapfile, turn
    messages back on again.

28. Why do I get floppy drive errors installing Windows or Windows apps?

    If you have SHARE installed, you must rename share.exe (to, something
    like   noshare.exe)  and   reboot.  Once   you  have   completed  the
    installation, you can rename share.exe back to its original name.

29.  Are there problems with using Windows 3.0 on large hard disks?

    Yes, but only in rare cases.  Your system is at risk IF:
    - You are using third-party partitioning software, such as:
    - Disk Manager (dmdrv.bin)
    - InnerSpace (edvr.sys)
    - SpeedStor (sstor.sys or hardrive.sys)
    - Vfeatures Deluxe (fixt_drv.sys)
    - *AND* you are using SmartDrive (smartdrv.sys) as your disk cache
    - *AND* your hard disk has more than 1023 cylinders
    If your hard disk has fewer than  1024 cylinders, you may still be at
    risk if the first two conditions hold true, you are using DOS 3.30 or
    later, *AND* your hard disk is not supported by your BIOS.

    To avoid problems, you can  either stop using SmartDrive, or reformat
    your disk using the DOS FDISK utility.

    Note that in 386 enhanced mode,  Windows 3.0 supports only ST-506 and
    ESDI (and IDE?) disk controllers. If  you have a SCSI controller, you
    need to load  SMartDrive in order to allow Windows  to recognize your
    hard disk.  As an alternative, you  may insert the following  line in
    your system.ini file, in the [386ENH] section:
          VirtualHDIRQ=off

    If  you are  still having  problems, call  Microsoft Tech  Support at
    [phone].

    There  are no  problems with  large partitions  created by  the FDISK
    program included with MS-DOS 4.0 and some versions of MS-DOS 3.3.

30. How can  I make  Windows 3.0  act like the  runtime versions  of 2.x,
    which exit Windows when you exit your application?

    You can  do this  as follows  (the example is  for Excel;  others are
    similar):

    1)    Create a new  directory called c:"excel (it doesn't  have to be
          distinct; it could  be your normal Excel directory,  as long as
          it's not the main Windows 3 directory).

    2)    Copy  the  following to  the  new  directory from  the  Windows
          directory:
               win.com
               win.ini
               system.ini

    3)    In the new directory modify  the "boot" section of 'system.ini'
          by  changing  the shell=  line  to  point to  the  one-and-only
          program you want to run. The original line should read:
               shell=progman.exe
          and the modified line should be something like:
               shell=c:"excel"excel.exe
          Remember  to type  the complete  fileid  of the  program to  be
          executed, including the '.exe' suffix.

    4)    To  execute the  dedicated  Windows session  just  put the  new
          directory ahead  of the normal  Windows directory in  your path
          and issue the 'win' command,  or start Windows with the command
          'c:"excel"win'.

    What  we're doing  here is  making Windows  think it's  running on  a
    network  where the  actual executable  files  etc. are  on a  network
    server, and  only the basic  control files  (and win.com) are  on the
    user's local disk.

    Note  that  this  technique  isolates  any  changes  in  WIN.INI  and
    SYSTEM.INI made in the dedicated task from any changes made in normal
    Windows; this may  or may not be  desirable. If you need  to keep the
    two flavors  of Windows in  sync you'll  have to provide  an outboard
    copy function to refresh the files.

31. How do I use the keypad in Windows Terminal?

    Press ScrollLock to toggle the  keypad between local and remote mode.
    Default is local mode.

32. Why does F5 in Notepad insert only a date and not the time as well?

    It's a bug.  Maybe Windows 3.1 will fix it...

[ \tom haapanen --- university of waterloo --- [e-mail] ]
[ "i don't even know what street canada is on"               -- al capone ]
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