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- Newsgroups: comp.os.os2.misc
- Path: sparky!uunet!utcsri!cdf.toronto.edu!g1nickut
- From: g1nickut@cdf.toronto.edu (Nick Zahariadis)
- Subject: OS/2 Boot Manager and NT incompatibility; Read on!
- Message-ID: <1992Dec14.034749.11780@cdf.toronto.edu>
- Sender: news@cdf.toronto.edu
- Nntp-Posting-Host: sass.cdf
- Organization: University of Toronto Computing Disciplines Facility
- References: <1992Dec12.192416.9499@ichips.intel.com> <sal8.246.724201910@po.cwru.edu> <1992Dec13.225515.9365@ichips.intel.com>
- Date: Mon, 14 Dec 1992 03:47:49 GMT
- Lines: 62
-
- In article <1992Dec13.225515.9365@ichips.intel.com> jburns@pdxgp1 (John Justin Burns Jr.) writes:
- >In article <sal8.246.724201910@po.cwru.edu> sal8@po.cwru.edu (Steve Luzynski) writes:
- >>
- >>The NT beta has code included that makes it absolutely refuse to install if
- >>it detects the OS/2 boot manager on your hard drive. Pretty rude of MS if
- >>you ask me (OS/2 does no such check for NT).
- >>
- >Does NT have a boot manager or something like it?
- >
- >I have just been given an article which describes how to install NT using
- >the OS/2 boot manager (Douglas Hamilton, Windows Magazine, OCT. 92). I
- >have not tryed the procedure. It is very specific and the biggest catch
- >for me is that NT must be the first thing put on the disk, something I can
- >not tolerate (Boot Manager must be first, then os/2 v2 on E:). NT must be
- >put on C: (OK with me). I assume this article is for the beta version just
- >previous to the one now out.
- >
- >OK, so it will not install with the boot manager. Another post on this
- >news group mentioned that there is a bit in the boot record that may be toggled
- >so that the boot manager would not be visible during NT installation.
- >Would this work?
-
- Yes, I've mentioned it and it is possible. There are ways of bypassing
- checks like this that install programs make (and shouldn't really make, if
- the reason is other than incompatibility).
-
- If someone is interested in working on this, go ahead. I may be a little
- too busy over the holiday season to do this. Of course, the usefulness of
- such a utility is left up to the user, i.e. I can't see why someone
- would want to have both OS/2 and NT installed on the same machine. Hard
- disk real estate and a lot of money is my only explanation of why.
-
- Also note, that sneaky little checks like that don't serve any purpose
- other than marketing strategies (or lack thereof). Software programs
- that run on a system along with other programs, don't have to fiddle
- around with other programs or system-wide configurations, operating
- systems included. Again, only incompatibility reasons should warrant
- such behaviour. It seems like certain vendors want to grab a hold of
- their buyer's system in a monopolistic way. Well, they will just have
- to learn - the hard way - that that's not things are done anymore.
- The industry has been talking about cross-platform integration for,
- oh say, the last five, maybe six years.
-
- End users are going to look at who offers them the ability to run
- software from two operating systems (DOS, OS/2) and one operating
- environment (Windows), under a single GUI. Did I mention the plan
- to allow OS/2 as an operating system to run *alongside* AIX on
- RS/6000 systems?
-
- Of course, NT is still vapourware. So until we see it, I think the
- marketing hype only serves the purpose of accumulating market share.
-
- Some issues I've touched upon may be more appropriate to other
- newsgroups, i.e. 'comp.os.os2.advocacy'. Please follow up accordingly.
-
- Nick.
-
- --
- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
- "Always put off until tomorrow what you are sure
- to mess up beyond repair today."
- Nick Zahariadis e-mail: g1nickut@cdf.utoronto.ca
-