home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
Shareware Overload
/
ShartewareOverload.cdr
/
windows
/
nghints.zip
/
README.TXT
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1990-05-17
|
29KB
|
820 lines
README.TXT
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Welcome To Northgate's Release of Microsoft Windows 3.0!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
IMPORTANT! THIS FILE CONTAINS ESSENTIAL INFORMATION. MAKE SURE YOU READ IT
ALL BEFORE USING WINDOWS. MAKE SURE YOU READ THE SECTION TITLED "CORRECTION
TO PAGE XI OF THE USER'S GUIDE."
===============================================================================
FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS BELOW TO USE NOTEPAD TO READ THE INFORMATION.
* If you enlarge Notepad to its maximum size, the following
document will be easier to read. To do so, click the
Maximize button in the upper-right corner of the Notepad
window. Or open the Control menu in the upper-left corner
of the Notepad window and choose Maximize.
* To move through the document, press PAGE UP and PAGE DOWN
or click the arrows at the top and bottom of the scroll bar
along the right side of the Notepad window.
* To print the document, choose Print from the Notepad File
menu.
* To read other on-line documents, choose Open from the File
menu.
* For Help using Notepad, press F1.
* If you are currently setting up Windows, choose Exit from
the Notepad File menu to continue with Setup.
NOTES ON WINDOWS 3.0
====================
This document contains important information that is not
included in the Windows User's Guide or in on-line Help. These
topics are covered:
* Correction to registration information on page XI of the Windows User's
Guide
* Copying files from the Windows 3.0 disks
* Running out of memory and how to increase available memory
* Using the Swapfile utility
* Using HIMEM.SYS
* Giving maximum priority to an application
* Using Windows 2.x drivers with Windows 3.0
* Running specific non-Windows applications
* Running specific Windows applications
* General notes about applications
* General notes about hardware
CORRECTION TO PAGE XI OF THE USER'S GUIDE
=========================================
Information in the User's Guide that tells you to fill out the registration
card is incorrect. Since you purchased this product from Northgate, you are
registered as a user of Northgate's version of Windows 3.0. You will not
need to register your software with Microsoft.
COPYING FILES FROM THE WINDOWS 3.0 DISKS
========================================
The files on the Windows 3.0 installation disks are compressed.
The files are not usable until they are expanded. Setup and
Control Panel expand the compressed files as they are copied
onto your hard disk.
If you need to copy files directly from a Windows 3.0 disk
without using Setup or Control Panel, follow these steps:
1. Copy EXPAND.EXE from Microsoft Windows Disk #2 onto your
hard drive. (This utility expands compressed files to a
useable format.)
2. Insert the disk with the file you want to expand into
drive A: (or any floppy-disk drive).
3. Type the following and press ENTER:
expand x:<filename> y:<filename>
where x: is the disk drive you are copying from (source)
y: is the disk drive you are copying to (destination)
The compressed file is expanded as it is copied onto your
hard-disk drive.
System files (.SYS) are named SY$ as compressed files. For
example, MOUSE.SYS is named MOUSE.SY$; HIMEM.SYS, HIMEM.SY$ and
so forth. When you use Windows Setup to install these files,
they are renamed with .SYS extensions automatically.
If you use the expand utility to copy .SY$ files onto your hard
disk, you must change their filename extensions to .SYS. You can
use the MS-DOS Rename command or you can rename each file as you
copy them from the Windows Disk with the Expand command.
To rename a file when you expand it, type the following command
and press ENTER:
expand x:filename.sy$ c:\windirectory\filename.sys
where x: is the source disk
filename.sy$ is the name of the compressed file you want
to copy
\windirectory is the name of your windows directory
filename.sys is the renamed file that will appear on your
hard disk
WHAT IF YOU RUN OUT OF MEMORY?
==============================
As you're running applications in Windows or are trying to start
an application, you might receive messages about being out of
memory. You can find out how much memory is available and of what
type by choosing the About command from the Help menu in either
Program Manager or File Manager. A dialog box containing memory
information appears.
The following list describes each memory category and suggests
how to increase available memory:
Amount of memory free This number is the amount of conventional
memory currently available for
applications.
When you run Windows in standard mode,
this number includes extended memory.
When you run Windows in 386 enhanced
mode, this number includes virtual
memory and could be much larger than the
physical amount of memory in your
computer.
If you need more memory or if the amount
of free memory is less than 30K, close
some applications.
Amount of EMS free When you run Windows in real mode with
an expanded memory driver installed,
this number shows the amount of expanded
memory currently available. It is
possible to have plenty of expanded
memory available, but be out of
conventional memory.
You can close some applications to free
up conventional memory.
SMARTDrive Amount This number is the amount of expanded
memory claimed by SMARTDrive. Windows
3.0 can allocate memory from SMARTDrive
as needed.
For more information on how to use
SMARTDrive, see Chapter 13, "Optimizing
Windows," in the Windows User's Guide.
System Resources This number is the percentage of system
resources available. This number never
reaches 100% because the system itself
takes up some system resources.
If this number is too low (about 15%),
you cannot run more applications
regardless of how much free memory you
have. Close some applications to free
system resources.
USING THE SWAPFILE UTILITY
==========================
Windows 3.0 includes a utility that can dramatically improve
Windows' performance on some computers when you are running in
386 enhanced mode. Swapfile turns a portion of hard disk space
into additional memory. However, Swapfile cannot be used with
all hard disk drives because of the way some drives interact
with MS-DOS.
If you want to run Swapfile with Windows, see Chapter 13,
"Optimizing Windows," in the Windows User's Guide for important
information.
USING HIMEM.SYS
===============
HIMEM.SYS is a driver required by Windows 3.0 for using extended
memory. It must be included in your CONFIG.SYS file. The method
HIMEM uses to access extended memory depends on your hardware.
When you boot your computer, HIMEM is loaded from your
CONFIG.SYS file. After it is loaded, you will see a message like
the following telling you the method HIMEM will use to access
extended memory on your computer.
Installed A20 handler number X.
where X is 1 through 8 which corresponds to one of the
following methods:
Number Name Computer type
--------------------------------------------------------------
1 at ; Northgate or other IBM AT or 100%
compatible
2 ps2 ; IBM PS/2
3 ptlcascade ; Phoenix Cascade BIOS
4 hpvectra ; HP Vectra (A & A+)
5 att6300plus ; AT&T 6300 Plus
6 acer1100 ; Acer 1100
7 toshiba ; Toshiba 1600 & 1200XE
8 wyse ; Wyse 12.5 Mhz 286
If HIMEM does not work properly, you can try a different method.
Specify the switch for your computer type on the
device=HIMEM.SYS line in your CONFIG.SYS file. Computer type
corresponds to either the number or the name of your computer
from the table.
For example the following lines are equivalent:
device=c:\himem.sys /M:ps2
device=c:\himem.sys /M:2
This entry forces HIMEM to use the IBM PS/2 A20 method for
accessing extended memory.
GIVING MAXIMUM PRIORITY TO AN APPLICATION
=========================================
Windows lets you set the specific amount of processing time
your applications will receive relative to other applications
that are running.
To ensure that a particular application receives all the
processing time it needs without interruption, set its Priority
Foreground option to 10000. With this setting, no background
applications will be allowed to run unless the foreground
application is idle.
See Chapter 12, "More About Applications," in the
Windows User's Guide for more information about this setting.
USING WINDOWS 2.X DRIVERS WITH WINDOWS 3.0
==========================================
Windows 3.0 will not start in standard mode or 386 enhanced
mode if you installed Windows 2.x display, mouse, sound, system,
or communications drivers. You must update these drivers to run
Windows 3.0.
To start Windows in real mode, type the following at the MS-DOS
prompt and press ENTER:
win /r
If you use Windows 2.x printer drivers with Windows 3.0, you
might see a warning when you print. As with Windows 2.x
applications, 2.x printer drivers work reliably only if you run
Windows 3.0 in real mode.
NOTE It is recommended that you install only the drivers
provided with Windows 3.0. If you want to use a special
device driver that was not provided with Windows, contact
the manufacturer for an updated driver that works with
Windows 3.0.
RUNNING SPECIFIC NON-WINDOWS APPLICATIONS
=========================================
This section describes some problems you might have running
non-Windows applications with Windows 3.0.
Microsoft Flight Simulator
--------------------------
Microsoft Flight Simulator cannot be run as a background
application. When you are running Windows in standard or real
modes, do not switch from Flight Simulator (ALT+TAB or ALT+ESC)
to any other application.
Using MultiSoft PC-Kwik Disk Accelerator
----------------------------------------
If you use PC-Kwik with Windows running in 386 enhanced mode,
make sure the version is 3.55 or later and that you use
PC-Kwik in extended memory, not expanded memory.
If you need to upgrade your version of PC-Kwik, call MultiSoft
at 1-800-888-KWIK in the United States. Outside the U.S., call
1-503-644-5644.
Professional Oracle
-------------------
You can run Oracle only in real mode, and without the
HIMEM extended memory driver loaded.
QModem
------
If you have problems running QModem with Windows, create a
program information file (PIF) for QModem that specifies a
limit of 0 for EMS memory. Specifying 0 disables EMS for
QModem, freeing that memory for use by Windows.
Borland Reflex
--------------
If you have performance problems running Borland Reflex with
Windows in 386 enhanced mode, include the following line in the
[386Enh] section of your SYSTEM.INI file:
VirtualHDIrq=FALSE
Microsoft Word
--------------
You might have problems using ALT+TAB with Microsoft Word 5.0
and also using ALT+SPACEBAR to transfer data into Microsoft Word
5.0 from the Windows 3.0 Clipboard. If so, contact Microsoft
Customer Service for an updated version of Microsoft Word 5.0.
The updated version contains a keyboard driver that lets you use
ALT+TAB and ALT+SPACEBAR.
RUNNING SPECIFIC WINDOWS APPLICATIONS
=====================================
This section describes some problems you might have running
some Windows applications.
Control Panel
-------------
If you are running Windows 3.0 in real mode and using expanded
memory, a new desktop wallpaper selection will not take effect
immediately. You must quit and then restart Windows to see the
new selection.
Print Manager and Network Printers
----------------------------------
The availability of several features in Print Manager depends
on the support provided by your Network software. The
NETWORKS.TXT on-line document contains important information
about the networks you can use with Windows and which features
are available in Print Manager for each network type. See
NETWORKS.TXT for more information.
Paintbrush
----------
You can print color images from Paintbrush only if you are
using a color PostScript printer or an HP PaintJet printer.
These are the only printers that currently recognize Device
Independent Bitmaps (DIBs), the color file format Paintbrush
uses.
In addition, when running Windows in real mode, you might
receive out-of-memory messages when you try to print. If so,
try one of the following:
* Close all other applications and try printing again.
* Save the Paintbrush file and exit Windows. Start Windows
again in standard mode or 386 enhanced mode, and then print
the Paintbrush file.
* If you can run only in real mode, you can convert the color
image and save it to a black and white format, then open
the converted file, and print the monochrome bitmap.
GENERAL NOTES ABOUT APPLICATIONS
================================
This section includes important information about other problems
you might encounter running applications with Windows 3.0.
Running non-Windows Applications
--------------------------------
If you have problems with your display when you try to run two
non-Windows applications and Windows in 386 enhanced mode, add
the following line to the [386Enh] section of your SYSTEM.INI
file:
local=EGA$
Increasing Your Display's Update Speed
--------------------------------------
If a non-windows application running in 386 enhanced mode
Windows seems to be updating the display very slowly, try
creating or modifying the application's program information
file (PIF).
Check the application's PIF file to make sure none of the
Monitor Ports check boxes are selected in the Advanced Settings
dialog box. On some displays, canceling the Monitor Ports
options might mean that you cannot switch back to the
application after switching away. In this case, you must exit
the first application before starting another.
See "Specifying Advanced PIF Options for 386 Enhanced Mode" in
Chapter 12, "More About Applications" in the Windows User's
Guide for information on PIFs and the Monitor Ports options.
Using COM Ports for Communications
----------------------------------
If you are running a non-Windows application that uses COM
ports for communications, you might lose characters or receive
protection violations. If so, include the following setting in
your SYSTEM.INI file:
COMxProtocol=XOFF
where x is the number for the COM port
For information on this switch and instructions on changing
SYSTEM.INI settings, see the on-line document, SYSINI2.TXT.
Running Windows 2.x and Windows 3.0
-----------------------------------
* If you have both versions of Windows on your hard disk,
make sure that the directory containing Windows 3.0 is
included in the PATH command in your AUTOEXEC.BAT, not the
directory for Windows 2.x.
* Because Windows searches the current directory before it
searches other directories in the PATH command, when you
want to run an application, print, install a printer, or
install any other drivers in Windows 3.0, make sure the
Windows 2.x directory is not the current directory.
* If you want to run Windows versions 2.x and 3.0 on the same
computer at different times, make sure that your CONFIG.SYS
file includes the Windows 3.0 HIMEM.SYS driver.
* If you use SMARTDrive or RAMDrive with Windows/386 2.x,
make sure the drivers are 2.x drivers. The Windows 3.0
drivers for SMARTDrive and RAMDrive will not work with
Windows/386 2.x.
Omit the APPEND, JOIN, and SUBST MS-DOS Utilities
-------------------------------------------------
The MS-DOS utilities APPEND, JOIN, and SUBST can cause problems
when you are running Windows 3.0. If you included APPEND, JOIN,
or SUBST in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file, remove them and refrain from
running them within Windows.
Running Batch Files and Embedded Macros
---------------------------------------
If you want to run a batch file with a Windows application that
uses embedded macro language, do so from a PIF. If you will
be running it with Windows in 386 enhanced more, make sure that
the Background check box in the batch file's PIF is not selected.
That way the batch file will run exclusively, causing the
Windows application to pause until processing is complete. To
learn about creating PIFs, see Chapter 12, "More About
Applications," in the Windows User's Guide.
Using SHARE.EXE with Windows
----------------------------
To prevent two applications from modifying the same file, run
the MS-DOS utility, SHARE.EXE, before you start Windows. It will
not work correctly if you run it from within Windows. See your
MS-DOS documentation for details about what SHARE.EXE does and
how to install it.
Preventing Stack Overflow
-------------------------
Stacks are temporary data structures that MS-DOS and applications
use for processing hardware events. If you receive the Internal
Stack Overflow message when you are running Windows in 386
enhanced mode, you need to change your stacks= setting.
* If your system uses MS-DOS 3.2, include the following line
in your CONFIG.SYS file:
stacks=9,192
* If your system uses MS-DOS 3.3 or above, include the
following line in your CONFIG.SYS file:
stacks=0,0
Selecting a Port for a Serial Mouse
-----------------------------------
Do not try to run your serial mouse from a COM3 or COM4 port.
Windows supports serial mice on COM1 and COM2 only.
Running Windows from the OS/2 version 1.2 DOS Compatibility Box
---------------------------------------------------------------
* Do not allow Windows Setup to make changes to your
AUTOEXEC.BAT file or CONFIG.SYS file. Make the appropriate
changes yourself.
* To print, you must set the printer driver port to one with
an .OS2 extension as follows:
If your printer is physically connected to LPT1 or to LPT2,
when you configure your printer, make sure you set the
printer-driver port to LPT1.OS2 or LPT2.OS2.
If the printer is physically connected to LPT3 or LPT4, you
must create a line for LPT3.OS2 or LPT4.OS2 in the [ports]
section of your WIN.INI file and then set the printer
driver to the appropriate .OS2 port when you configure it.
For more information about WIN.INI settings, see the
on-line document called WININI.TXT.
Using Terminal from the OS/2 DOS Compatibility Box
--------------------------------------------------
If you want Terminal to communicate through COM ports from the
OS/2 DOS compatibility box, you must set the port before you
start Windows. To do so, you can run the SETCOM command from
the DOS prompt or you can include the initialization in your
CONFIG.SYS file.
To set the COM port from the DOS prompt, type the following
before you start Windows:
SETCOM40 COMx=ON
For example, if you want to use COM1, you would type the
following command:
SETCOM40 COM1=ON
To set the COM port automatically, you can add a line in your
CONFIG.SYS file. See your OS/2 documentation for instructions.
Running Applications that Require Expanded Memory
-------------------------------------------------
If you have an 80386 system and use applications that require
expanded memory, you can use EMM386.SYS, the expanded memory
emulator that comes with Windows 3.0. See Chapter 13,
"Optimizing Windows," in the Windows User's Guide for
information on using EMM386.SYS.
Setting the D= Switch for EMM386
--------------------------------
If you install EMM386, before you can start Windows in 386
enhanced mode, you must include the following setting on your
EMM386 command line:
d=48
GENERAL NOTES ABOUT HARDWARE
============================
More than 16 megabytes (MB) of RAM
----------------------------------
If your computer has over 16MB of RAM, you must run the
HIMEM.SYS that you received with Windows 3.0, not other XMS
drivers.
Adaptec Controller Boards *** Note: This Includes All Northgate SuperMicro
and Elegance Disk Controllers Except Northgate SCSI Controllers.
(SlimLine Systems Are Not Included.) If You Have a SCSI Disk Drive Refer to
the Section on SCSI Drives. ***
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you are using an Adaptec controller board, you might need to
turn off double-buffering in SMARTDrive. You can do this by
adding the /B- switch at the end of the SMARTDrive device line
in your CONFIG.SYS file.
The following is an example of such an entry:
device=c:\windows\smartdrv.sys 1024 512 /B-
SCSI Hard Disk Drive using DMA *** This Includes Northgate SCSI Drives ***
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
If your computer has an SCSI hard disk that uses DMA, you must
include the following entry in the [386Enh] section of your
SYSTEM.INI file:
VirtualHDIRQ=FALSE
In addition, you must have SmartDrive installed and you must NOT
disable double-buffering by using the /B- option.
The All ChargeCard with a 3Com Network
---------------------------------------
If you have problems running the All ChargeCard in standard mode
with a 3Com network, remove ALLEMM4.SYS from your CONFIG.SYS file.
Alternately, you can keep ALLEMM4.SYS and start Windows in real
mode. To start in real mode, type WIN /r at the DOS prompt and
press ENTER.
AST Rampage Boards
------------------
You need to upgrade your AST RAMTYPE.SYS driver if both the
following conditions are true:
* You have an IBM PS/2 or micro-channel architecture computer.
* Your board is configured for expanded and extended memory.
RAMTYPE drivers before version 1.20 will not coexist with other
applications that use extended memory. This makes them
incompatible with the HIMEM.SYS, which is required by Windows
3.0.
The Windows Setup procedure removes RAMTYPE.SYS from your
CONFIG.SYS file. This might cause error messages to appear when
you start your computer, as other drivers that rely on RAMTYPE
cannot load. This also means that no application can use the
expanded memory on your system. However, with RAMTYPE.SYS
removed, Windows 3.0 runs correctly.
If you have a version of RAMTYPE newer than 1.20, or if you
upgrade to a newer version, you can include the RAMTYPE command
line in your CONFIG.SYS file. If you are installing an upgrade,
you can simply copy this entry from CONFIG.OLD made by Setup
when you installed Windows.
CD-ROM Extensions
-----------------
If you are using CD-ROM Extensions, include the following entry
in the [386Enh] section of your SYSTEM.INI file:
device=LANMAN10.386
You also need to activate the drive by sending it a command
before you start Windows. For example, type the following at
the DOS prompt and then start Windows:
dir x:
where x is the drive letter for the CD ROM drive.
Hitachi Amdek Drives
--------------------
These drives do not work reliably with Windows 3.0. To resolve
this problem access the drive before you start Windows by typing
the following at the DOS prompt:
dir x:
where x: is the drive letter for the Amdek drive
Logitech Bus Mouse
------------------
If you have a Logitech bus mouse on your computer, Setup will
identify it as a Microsoft or PS/2 mouse. This is correct.
The Logitech bus mouse is compatible with the Microsoft mouse
driver.
The Logitech serial mouse uses its own driver.
LCD displays
------------
If you use an LCD display, set it for white text on a black
background instead of black on white. When you are using Windows,
black on white is hard on LCD displays. See the documentation
that came with your display for instructions on changing it.
Plus Hardcard
-------------
To run Windows 3.0 with a Hardcard you must include the
following line in your SYSTEM.INI file in the [386Enh] section:
VirtualHDIRQ=off
See the on-line document SYSINI3.TXT for information about the
procedure.
It is also a good idea to use SMARTDrive with a Hardcard. See
Chapter 13, "Optimizing Windows," in the Windows User's Guide
for more information on using SMARTDrive.
Columbia Data Products SCSI
----------------------------
To use the Columbia Data Products SCSI hard disk controller with
Windows 3.0 in 386 enhanced mode, you must update the Columbia
Data Products SCSI software to version 3.35 or higher.
Using VGA Display Adapters
--------------------------
* If you use a VGA-compatible display adapter and have
difficulties running Windows in 386 enhanced mode, you
might need to include the following line in the [386Enh]
section of your SYSTEM.INI file:
EMMEXCLUDE=C400-C7FF
This is because some VGA compatible cards use additional
memory to enhance the performance of their cards.
Manufacturers of these cards include Video 7 and Paradise.
Display adapter boards with the main chip(s) manufactured
by Tseng Labs, Chips and Technologies, Paradise, and
Headland Technologies also function this way.
When Windows is running in 386 enhanced mode and is
configured for VGA, Windows detects most of these cards
and automatically excludes the additional memory. However,
you must add the line to SYSTEM.INI yourself if:
- You have both an 8514 and a VGA display adapter and
configured Windows for the 8514.
- You have an enhanced VGA adapter that Windows does
not recognize.
See the SYSINI2.TXT on-line document for the procedure.
* If you have both a VGA display adapter (primary) and an
8514 (secondary), you might have problems switching between
full-screen non-Windows applications when running Windows
in 386 enhanced mode.
If an application does not display properly, the digital
to analog converter (DAC) on your VGA card needs to be
updated. Contact the manufacturer for an upgrade.
In the meantime, if your application has a command to
refresh the screen, you might be able to temporarily
correct the display so you can use the application. For
example, if your display is a color display, you can type
the following at the DOS Prompt and press ENTER:
MODE CO80
See your application's documentation for information about
commands that refresh the screen.
Using Self-Configuring Display Adapters
---------------------------------------
Some display adapters can change their configurations to match
what an application tries to do. For example, if an application
tries to use a VGA display, the adapter could switch from an EGA
configuration to VGA. This type of display adapter makes use of
non-maskable interrupts (NMIs) to reconfigure itself as you work.
To use this type of display adapter with Windows running in
386 enhanced mode, you must disable the NMI (self-configuring)
option. First configure the display adapter for the type of
monitor you have, then disable the NMI option. See your hardware
documentation for further instructions.
OTHER ON-LINE DOCUMENTS
=======================
The following are other on-line documents that contain important
information not included in the Windows User's Guide or in
on-line Help:
3270.TXT Information about using specific non-Windows
3270 emulation applications.
NETWORKS.TXT Very important information about running Windows with
specific network configurations.
PRINTERS.TXT Information about particular printers and fonts
that help you configure them to run in the
Windows environment.
SYSINI.TXT Procedures for modifying SYSTEM.INI settings
SYSINI2.TXT (for advanced users only).
SYSINI3.TXT
WININI.TXT Procedures for modifying WIN.INI settings
WININI2.TXT (for advanced users only).