Disk nibbler
Drive them disks!
Is this a rainy day?
Confusion rules OK
Q I originally had three questions to ask; however, page 195 of your June edition has given me some clues to the Extremely Low on Memory message & black icons problems I have been encountering when trying to use more than 256 colours on my Cirrus Logic display. I now need to try and find an updated driver.
The other two questions are as follows:
1. When doing a CHKDSK on my hard drive, I noticed it referred to about 20Mb in system and hidden files. Being an inquisitive soul, I ran XTree, which displays these files, and found a file in the root directory - 386spart.par - about 20Mb in size.
What is this disk gobbler? Can I do something about it?
2. I am considering upgrading the memory on my existing system, a 486SX-33 with 4Mb RAM, to 8Mb RAM. Having a look inside the box, I see 4 SIMMs and 4 free slots. What are my options? Do I add one 4Mb SIMM, four 1Mb SIMMs or replace the whole lot with some other configuration? I am on a limited budget.
Also, what is involved in installing these? Can I do it myself?
Incidentally, do you think it worthwhile buying a DX2-66 processor to replace the SX-33?
- Stephen Boyd, Wangaratta, Vic
A Your disk gobbler is your good friend, the Windows swap file (virtual memory). It may take up disk space, but it's a lot cheaper than 20Mb of RAM, which is what it pretends to be. If you're really squeezed for space, you can reduce it via the "386" icon on the control panel (and NO other way!) but that will slow down your system. A better option is to install Stacker 4.0 (make sure it says "compatible with 32-bit file access" on the box - for reasons of its own, Stac didn't change the version number when that upgrade was introduced). Stacker will not only double your disk space but will also allow your swap file to reside on a compressed volume. Incidentally, you don't need third-party utilities to see hidden files; in File Manager, choose View-By file Type... and check Show hidden files in the dialogue box that comes up.
As for your RAM upgrade question, it depends entirely on your particular motherboard design. Some allow you to mix SIMMs, some don't. I'm afraid I'll have to refer you to the hardware manual, and if you don't have one, go and scream at the people who sold you the machine until you get one. Once you know what you can use and have the parts, installation is very simple.
Just make jolly sure you get rid of any static electricity by firmly touching the PC chassis before you touch the SIMMs. Insert the SIMM vertically into its socket, then tilt it over gently on its back until it snaps into the retaining clips - that's all. Removal is just the reverse.
Upgrading the processor is a knotty matter; again, it depends on the motherboard specification. There are two upgrade options (with two chips or one) and again you'll have to check the manual. Is it worth while? Well, that depends on what work you do. The DX2 includes a math co-processor, which will really speed up CAD and large spreadsheets, but if you're mainly doing word processing, small spreadsheets and bitmapped graphics, the difference will be much smaller. The pure processing speed increase will be about two-thirds, but disk and memory access will be the same as before, so you may only see an overall gain of 40 or 50 per cent. However, your machine will feel much nicer for the extra speed, and you must look at that, too.
Q I have found your column extremely useful in the past, and I hope that you will be able to help me with a couple of problems which seem to defy even the experts at Digital.
Firstly, we are running Microsoft Word 6 for Windows on one of our computers. The problem that we are facing is that when we go to save a file (or the computer attempts an autosave), an error message appears saying that the disk is full, or too many files are open. However, the disk has nearly 40Mb free (with Windows running), and we are only editing one file. In addition the FILES statement in my CONFIG.SYS is set at 100. It has been suggested to me that setting up a permanent swap file may help (as opposed to my temporary setting), but I have been unable to do this as Windows tells me that it cannot set up a permanent swap file on a non-interrupt 13h drive. (I am unsure as to why my drive is like this, unless LANtastic v6.0 is interfering with it). This is not a major problem as once OK is clicked, Word goes on to save the file anyway, but it is very annoying.
Secondly, I am unable to set 32-bit disk access on two of my computers, but I am able to on the third. The two drives which I cannot set it on are a Quantum Maverick 540Mb running on a 486DX-2 machine using a VL Bus multi-I/O card, and an IBM 170Mb running on a 386SX machine using a 16-bit multi-I/O card. The one drive that will allow 32-bit access is a Western Digital Caviar 210Mb running on a 486DX machine using a 16-bit multi-I/O card. Once again, this is not a major problem, but I would like to be able to speed things up a little.
Thirdly, because I have upgraded my computers many times, I now have several fully functional hard drives which are not being used, simply because they are too small.
Unfortunately, none of them show the correct jumper settings to allow them to be used in conjunction with another drive. I have enclosed a list of these drives, and would be grateful if you could send me a list of settings for master/slave/stand-alone running.
- Andrew Vaschina, Loganholme, Qld
A Your WinWord problem is a bit of a mystery. However, you might try Tools-Options... and choose the File Locations tab; it's possible that Autosave and DOC files are pointed at some unsuitable location. If you have a lot of little files in a lot of directories, it's also possible that your directories are getting uncomfortably full without the disk being anywhere near full. Temp files can be a nuisance in Windows; shut down WinWord and do a global delete of all files starting with ~ and/or having the type TMP. This is quite safe; if one of them is currently in use, Windows will simply refuse to delete it.
I find it easier to manage temporary files and directories since I created a special TEMP directory and set the TEMP= pointer in AUTOEXEC to that (the silly default is TEMP=DOS).
The 32-bit disk access is a matter of what hard disk controller card you have. It's not a big deal as long as you can use 32-bit file access. That's the bad news; the good news is that Windows 95 looks like solving all your HD handling problems. I'm running the beta on a machine that doesn't allow 32-bit disk access under 3.11 and it absolutely flies - Symantec's database simulator shows the drive running three times faster than under SmartDrive.
I'm afraid I can't help you a lot with your leftover hard disks; you need to get hold of the original instructions. Try these phone numbers: Conner: ACA Pacific, (03) 9388 0477; IBM, (02) 951 9334; Seagate: Cosmotec, (03) 9888 8133; Quantum Australia, (02) 959 2356.
Q I know everyone says it, but what the hell, great magazine! I've been accumulating these questions over the past year but haven't actually sent it out, hoping I'll solve them somehow. But the fact you're reading this letter means I didn't make it. So please bear with the following questions:
• How come my pop-up help always starts up unaligned? ie part of it seems to be hidden already, and I have to do a maximize to fit it to the screen. I think I've tried changing the section in WIN.INI file where it has 4 number startup coordinates, but it sets itself back to the annoying coordinates later again.
• Is there a way to launch progman.exe in maximized mode? I have an application similar to HP's Dashboard which allows you to launch program by clicking on a button. The problem is, you have to specify a command for the button, and simply putting progman.exe will only start it up in restored mode, no maximized mode.
• In your Dec/Jan 95 issue, p177, you mentioned that the memory manager will allocate a portion of Expanded Memory (EMS) and leave the rest Extended Memory (XMS). I thought even though you have the EMS allocated, when Windows requests XMS it will still get it (assuming the EMS hasn't been used up). Is my assumption wrong?
I hear if you use a memory manager like EMM386, you have to preallocate EMS and you cannot change your mind after start-up, unless you re-boot. In this case, can Windows "unallocate" EMS and turn it into XMS when it fires up from DOS? (Because Windows runs better with XMS.) What about a memory manager like QEMM, I thought it could dish out EMS or XMS upon request and didn't need to be pre-allocated.
In Windows, do minimised icons imply that those processes are running in background? What about non-minimised windows that are not active (behind the current window), are they running in background too?
My system clock is not functioning properly, probably because the battery went flat. How much does it cost to replace it?
If I decide to write a computer column in a newspaper-like publication (eg a local council newspaper), can I write about what I read in your magazine? I won't copy it word for word of course, but the content could turn out to be very similar . . . am I infringing copyright laws?
Do you always get back to the readers? What happens to the mail that doesn't get printed?
I see Internet addresses with some but not everyone in PC World. Will it be possible for you to list the writers' addresses in one location within the mag eg the contents page? This way, we might communicate more effectively, and you can never say "Australia Post lost the mail". I realise giving away addresses has its downside, especially when idiots start sending you junk mail or asking you about the weather, not to mention turning PC World into a free on-line help desk. Just my 2 cents worth anyway.
Regarding the letter from Jason Ng (April 1995) who inquired about ARJ's multi-volume archiving capability, I think you are incorrect in saying it doesn't support it. The command to archive everything under the current directory (files + subdirectories) into the archive file MYDATA.ARJ is listed below. Refer to on-line help for more info.
ARJ a -r -jm -va A:MYDATA *.*
a: Add to archive
-r: Recurse subdirectories
-jm: Max compression
-va: Span multiple volumes
That's it, thanks for your time. May thy fortunes go with thee.
- Cygnus Hyoga, Wantirna South, Vic
A The Help window is supposed to remember where it was last, and within one session it does - but it won't remember until next session unless you save settings (either turn on Save Settings on Exit or hold down <Shift> while going through the Windows shut-down motions). As for the start-up coordinates in WIN.INI, it's twice five numbers, not four - and I think it's the last one of each group (0) that sets the help window always on top.
I can't comment on launching Progman maximised; it depends on what parameters your Dash-board-like program accepts. However, if Progman was maximised the last time you used it and you save settings as above, it should come up maximised again.
Depending on the parameters set (such as the RAM switch), you can tell EMM386 to allocate a fixed or variable EMS memory block. Even if you've set a variable allocation, however, there's a minimum Windows can't touch (I think it's 64K). The point is that you don't need EMS under Windows, so you should always set the NOEMS switch.
If you need to run a game or some other DOS item that needs EMS, it's usually so memory-hungry that you have to get out of Windows anyway. This is where a multiple-start menu is useful; it lets you boot NOEMS for Windows or with total EMS for DOS applications that need it. Of course, Windows 95 will change all that . . .
Usually, a minimised program has only a small foothold in RAM and does nothing, although there are exceptions, typically in fax and comms programs (and let's not forget CLOCK.EXE).
Open windows normally run if there's something for them to do and you have allocated resources for some reasonable background work (Control Panel-386 Enhanced-Scheduling), but Windows 3.x is not very good at this sort of thing if two programs try to access peripherals (disk drives, printer etc.) at the same time.
So if you're downloading a big file through your modem, for example, you can do something else in the foreground only as long as you don't need to do a lot of hard disk access.
Sorry, but that depends. If it's a snap-in battery, it costs only the price of the battery; if it's soldered in, it depends on who does the soldering.
You need to look at something else here: if your clock is gone but the computer still runs OK, you probably have a separate battery for your CMOS setup memory; if the clock battery is dying, it's a fair assumption that the CMOS battery is about to go belly up as well, so if you change one, you should change both.
Just remember to write down or print all your CMOS settings first, especially the hard disk details, because you'll lose them.
If you pick up and transmit facts, that's OK - there's no copyright on facts, as long as you file off the serial numbers. Opinions are a bit more of a grey area, and as you're aware, you shouldn't copy the actual text. The exception here is that nobody will object if you pass on the occasional snippet, as long as you acknowledge the source.
Do I always get back to the readers? No, I'm very sorry to say. I'd like nothing better, but I have limited space and especially limited time. I can only say I do my best. As for what happens to the letters I can't deal with - ever heard of black holes? You must have, there's a famous one in Cygnus . . .
At the moment, our Ethernet situation is a little fluid. Most of us are on CompuServe and my CompuServe number appears in the introduction box as of the July issue.
Thanks for the info; as you've probably noticed by now, we've received this information a couple of times already. Don't be discouraged, though - the more the merrier, and there is a long delay between writing and publication, unfortunately.
Q Could you please do something about the SmartDrive confusion? I think I understand to use the latest version available, be it DOS or Windows, and to place it after the CD-ROM driver.
However, at various times in setting up the one computer, I have had extensions such as /S, /X, 2048, 2048, and others not remembered. What should I have? Would this change for a similar setup for a Pentium?
What is IFSHLP.SYS? I have looked at the manuals, and the DOS help screen, and find no (useful) answer to any of these questions.
I'm not sure why, but the EMM386 line in the CONFIG.SYS gives me the same amount of drivers in upper memory and free base memory as MEMMAKER. Does anyone understand how this memory system works?
Do you have any other suggestions for improvement to get a little extra life out of this elderly machine?
- Peter Harries, Hay, NSW
A SmartDrive is very easy to set up: don't add any switches or numbers to the command line except the CD drive letter (E in your case). When you do that, you get the default setup, under which SmartDrive itself calculates the best buffer sizes and so on for your system. If you're an expert and you use your computer for some highly specialised work, you may be able to tinker with the settings for a smidgen of extra speed - at the expense of all other types of operation.
If your system lets you set up 32-bit disk and file access (check Control Panel-386Enhanced-Virtual Memory-Change), Windows will add buffer sizes to the command line automatically; this is because 32bfa takes over from SmartDrive under Windows.
IFSHLP.SYS is an Installable File System (IFS) driver. IFS is a file system interface standard that is part of the Windows API (application program interface). It particularly arbitrates access to file system devices and Windows 3.x and 95 won't work without it.
EMM is an EMS (extended memory system, I think) driver, chiefly intended to manage memory in a way digestible to DOS programs. As such, it's of no interest under Windows, but it also allows access to the Upper Memory Blocks (UMB), which is leftover bits within the range 640K-1Mb after the system ROM and video memory have been given their needs. Memmaker is a utility that tries to allocate UMBs to drivers and TSR (Terminate and Stay Resident) programs, which you can also do by hand (this is what the DEVICEHIGH and LOADHIGH commands are for; you can read up on them in the DOS on-line help (just type HELP on the command line).
What you can do to extend the life of your machine depends on what you need, of course. Getting 32-bit file access on (if your system is compatible) will help a lot, and you can do a little fine- tuning, such as rearranging your PATH statement.
When DOS looks for a file where no directory is specified, it searches the path in the order written.
This means that for speed, you should have the most commonly-called-for directory first. This is always WINDOWS, followed by DOS and C:\, and you can rearrange the rest according to your own judgement.
You have enough RAM (8Mb) for most uses except heavy-duty graphics, but I'd guess your disk space is getting a little tight.
The least expensive cure there is to get Stacker 4.0; the latest version is compatible with 32bfa, but check the small print on the box; early copies of 4.0 were not compatible.
The typical result on a system like yours, which has a fairly geriatric hard disk, is to speed up disk read operations (writes may be slightly slower). This is because most files will be so much shorter that the saved read/write time will make up for the compression processing time with a bit left over. Note that Stacker 4.0 will let you place a permanent swap file on a compressed drive, which saves on complications.
The other important improvement for relatively little money is to upgrade the graphics card, but yours is already pretty OK. You may want to discuss this with your hardware dealer; if he's willing to let you do a WinTach test in your own machine, you can compare directly and decide if the speed-up is worth the price.
I wouldn't go beyond that in hardware upgrading; you'll come up against a steep diminishing returns function and you'll find buying a whole new system will give you far more bang for the buck than, say, changing the motherboard. This is because the new motherboard will be held back by slow disk drives and primitive accessory boards. Not to mention that it most likely won't accept your old memory chips.
Anyway, Windows 95 is going to change the whole ball game. Hardware distributors may not be happy with me for saying this, but Windows 95 supercharges old systems astonishingly.
One of my (elderly) systems has speeded up its graphics by 20 per cent and disk access by a stunning 200 per cent, by the simple expedient of loading on the Windows 95 beta in default trim. Its single-speed CD reader runs large-frame videos without sound interruptions and without dropping frames, which is quad-speed style performance.