From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sat, 23 Feb 2019 15:55:17 -0800 (PST), Harry Potter wrote:

I have a problem, though: the DOS network configuration on the Win98
computer *eats* DOS memory.

What network configuration?

For now, I tried QEMM: as soon as the driver loads, the computer stops booting.

Isolate the problem. Use switches to disable QEMM features in order to use minimum features. If everything is already disabled but still froze/crash
the system, it means that QEMM is not compatible with the computer (which usually, the motherboard chipset). If it loads OK, remove the switches one
by one to enable one feature at a time, so that you'll know which feature is causing the problem.

I have two programs to treat VGA memory as extra DOS memory. These should
be able to help with some DOS programs.

Windows 9x might need to be configured to exclude the VGA memory ranges. Otherwise, it may not be able to start.

devicehigh=c:\dos\furd19_i\xmsdsk.exe 110000

Depending on how much is uses the 1MB memory, consider checking other RAM drive provider tools which may use lesser memory. Judging from the DOS configuration files, the RAM drive is not used during DOS startup. So,
consider using an unloadable RAM drive tool. Load it only when it's needed
then unloads it when it's no longer used.

lh MSCDEX.EXE /D:mscd001 d:

Use expanded memory. If the CD drive is not used frequently, use a small buffer. Also check FreeDOS' version of MSCDEX. IIRC, it uses less memory.

BTW, I should be using the DOS laptop tomorrow, so I should have the
memory layout then.

Use the output of: MEM /D
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Monday, February 25, 2019 at 7:31:44 AM UTC-5, JJ wrote:

On Sat, 23 Feb 2019 15:55:17 -0800 (PST), Harry Potter wrote:

I have a problem, though: the DOS network configuration on the Win98 computer *eats* DOS memory.

What network configuration?

I use NSLAN.

For now, I tried QEMM: as soon as the driver loads, the computer stops booting.

Isolate the problem. Use switches to disable QEMM features in order to use minimum features. If everything is already disabled but still froze/crash the system, it means that QEMM is not compatible with the computer (which usually, the motherboard chipset). If it loads OK, remove the switches one by one to enable one feature at a time, so that you'll know which feature is causing the problem.

Removing the RA parameter helped, but I *need* UMBs. :(

I have two programs to treat VGA memory as extra DOS memory. These should be able to help with some DOS programs.

Windows 9x might need to be configured to exclude the VGA memory ranges. Otherwise, it may not be able to start.

I know thst. I didn't use it yet.

devicehigh=c:\dos\furd19_i\xmsdsk.exe 110000

Depending on how much is uses the 1MB memory, consider checking other RAM drive provider tools which may use lesser memory. Judging from the DOS configuration files, the RAM drive is not used during DOS startup. So, consider using an unloadable RAM drive tool. Load it only when it's needed then unloads it when it's no longer used.

I think that the tool I use is *both* unloadable *and* efficient. However, it is needed later on.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 24 Feb 2019 19:06:22 GMT, Harry Potter <rose.joseph12@yahoo.com>
wrote:

Here's the memory layout of the Win98 PC during network mode as
promised: --------------------------

Conventional Memory Detail:

Segment Total Name Type
------- ---------------- ----------- --------
00000 1,024 (1K) Interrupt Vector
00040 256 (0K) ROM Communication
Area 00050 512 (1K) DOS
Communication Area 00070 1,424 (1K) IO
System Data
CON System Device Driver
AUX System Device Driver
PRN System Device Driver
CLOCK$ System Device Driver
A: - C: System Device Driver
COM1 System Device Driver
LPT1 System Device Driver
LPT2 System Device Driver
LPT3 System Device Driver
CONFIG$ System Device Driver
COM2 System Device Driver
COM3 System Device Driver
COM4 System Device Driver
000C9 5,760 (6K) MSDOS System Data
00231 177,232 (173K) IO System Data
1,152 (1K) XMSXXXX0 Installed
Device=HIMEM 4,304 (4K) EMMXXXX0
Installed Device=EMM386
51,392 (50K) D: Installed
Device=STACKER 36,048 (35K) MSCD001
Installed Device=OAKCDROM
83,152 (81K) DBLSBIN$ Installed
Device=DBLSPACE

Clearly the easy win is to dump Dblspace and Stacker

544 (1K) Sector buffer
512 (1K) BUFFERS=20
02D76 80 (0K) MSDOS System Program
02D7B 19,280 (19K) GUEST Program
03230 96 (0K) COMMAND Data
03236 304 (0K) MEM Environment
03249 46,128 (45K) MSDOS -- Free --
03D8C 7,152 (7K) ASPIPPM1 Program
03F4B 4,688 (5K) DOSKEY Program
04070 30,736 (30K) DOSNET Program
047F1 90,464 (88K) MEM Program
05E07 268,160 (262K) MSDOS -- Free --

Upper Memory Detail:

Segment Region Total Name Type
------- ------ ---------------- ----------- --------
0B15C 1 26,880 (26K) IO System Data
0B7EC 1 80 (0K) COMMAND Data
0B7F1 1 208 (0K) MSDOS -- Free --

0C801 2 624 (1K) IO System Data
592 (1K) E: Installed
Device=XMSDSK
0C828 2 21,968 (21K) IO System Data
2,848 (3K) IFS$HLP$ Installed
Device=IFSHLP
464 (0K) Block device tables
688 (1K) Drive map table
1,488 (1K) FILES=30
256 (0K) FCBS=4
10,720 (10K) BUFFERS=20
2,288 (2K) LASTDRIVE=Z
3,072 (3K) STACKS=9,256
0CD85 2 8,624 (8K) COMMAND Program
0CFA0 2 1,440 (1K) COMMAND Environment
0CFFA 2 64 (0K) MSDOS -- Free --

0E401 3 288 (0K) GUEST Environment
0E413 3 1,280 (1K) SERIAL Program
0E463 3 5,536 (5K) COMMAND Program
0E5BD 3 1,440 (1K) COMMAND Environment
0E617 3 3,728 (4K) MSDOS -- Free --

Memory Summary:

Type of Memory Total Used Free
---------------- ----------- ----------- -----------
Conventional 653,312 248,560 404,752
Upper 72,192 68,192 4,000
Reserved 0 0 0
Extended (XMS)* 133,096,960 113,288,704 19,808,256
---------------- ----------- ----------- -----------
Total memory 133,822,464 113,605,456 20,217,008

Total under 1 MB 725,504 316,752 408,752

Handle EMS Name Size
------- -------- ------
0 060000

Total Expanded (EMS) 33,947,648 (32M)
Free Expanded (EMS)* 20,054,016 (19M)

* EMM386 is using XMS memory to simulate EMS memory as needed.
Free EMS memory may change as free XMS memory changes.

Memory accessible using Int 15h 0 (0K)
Largest executable program size 358,608 (350K)
Largest free upper memory block 3,728 (4K)
MS-DOS is resident in the high memory area.

XMS version 3.00; driver version 3.95
EMS version 4.00
---------------------------

--
Bah, and indeed, Humbug.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On 2/25/19 1:55 PM, Kerr-Mudd,John wrote:

Clearly the easy win is to dump Dblspace and Stacker

Would DoubleSpace / Stacker / DriveSpace mount an image that comes from
a network drive?

Not that I would want to.

I'm just wondering if it would work.



--
Grant. . . .
unix || die
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Mon, 25 Feb 2019 23:14:56 GMT, Grant Taylor
<gtaylor@tnetconsulting.net> wrote:

On 2/25/19 1:55 PM, Kerr-Mudd,John wrote:

Clearly the easy win is to dump Dblspace and Stacker

Would DoubleSpace / Stacker / DriveSpace mount an image that comes from
a network drive?

Not that I would want to.

I'm just wondering if it would work.

Dunno; never tried. It'd depend on what which program gets there first
and the level at which file redirection gets intercepted, I'd imagine.



--
Bah, and indeed, Humbug.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 24 Feb 2019 11:06:22 -0800 (PST), Harry Potter wrote:

Here's the memory layout of the Win98 PC during network mode as promised: --------------------------

[snip]

Which program loads ASPIPPM1, DOSNET, and SERIAL? I don't see them being
loaded in AUTOEXEC.BAT. And what is their actual execution order?

You're already using Stacker. Don't load DoubleSpace. Use DoubleSpace only
if you're having problem with Stacker.

Isolate the problem. Use switches to disable QEMM features in order to use >> minimum features. If everything is already disabled but still froze/crash >> the system, it means that QEMM is not compatible with the computer (which >> usually, the motherboard chipset). If it loads OK, remove the switches one >> by one to enable one feature at a time, so that you'll know which feature is
causing the problem.

Removing the RA parameter helped, but I *need* UMBs. :(

Of course you need the UMB. What you need to disable is everything except
UMB support or its required features. QEMM is an optimistic memory manager.
Its changes to crash the system is pretty high. Especially for hardwares
which are released after that QEMM version is released.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Tuesday, February 26, 2019 at 2:13:42 PM UTC-5, JJ wrote:

Which program loads ASPIPPM1, DOSNET, and SERIAL? I don't see them being loaded in AUTOEXEC.BAT. And what is their actual execution order?

GUEST loads ASPIPPM1, and DOSNET and SERIAL are loaded by a batch file that initializes the network.

You're already using Stacker. Don't load DoubleSpace. Use DoubleSpace only
if you're having problem with Stacker.

I thought DriveSpace was disabled. I guess I was wrong. :(

Of course you need the UMB. What you need to disable is everything except
UMB support or its required features. QEMM is an optimistic memory manager. Its changes to crash the system is pretty high. Especially for hardwares which are released after that QEMM version is released.

I pretty much narrowed down the problem to UMB support, because removing the RAM parameter works, and X=F000-FFFF doesn't.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sat, 23 Feb 2019 22:35:48 -0800 (PST), Harry Potter <rose.joseph12@yahoo.com> wrote:

I'm aware of no program to share Win98 drives with a DOS computer.

See Microsoft LAN Manager 2.2c. It's a NETBEUI client for DOS. The basic redirector can mount Win98 shares, using 40k of DOS memory. Plus your
LAN card driver will take another 30-50k. But if you can get some things
loaded high, it's not bad.


--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

After killing DriveSpace, how else can I free up some DOS memory?
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

Okay. I'm at my mother's house right now and can try to disable DriveSpace DOS. The proper lines in the MSDOS.SYS file are DblSpace=0 and DrvSpace=0, right?
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Saturday, March 2, 2019 at 10:12:03 AM UTC-5, Harry Potter wrote:

Okay. I'm at my mother's house right now and can try to disable DriveSpace DOS. The proper lines in the MSDOS.SYS file are DblSpace=0 and DrvSpace=0, right?

I did, and now, I have 437k free conventional memory. :) What more can I do? --- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On 2-3-2019 20:38, Harry Potter wrote:

On Saturday, March 2, 2019 at 10:12:03 AM UTC-5, Harry Potter wrote:

Okay. I'm at my mother's house right now and can try to disable DriveSpace DOS. The proper lines in the MSDOS.SYS file are DblSpace=0 and DrvSpace=0, right?

I did, and now, I have 437k free conventional memory. :) What more can I do?

Use 32 bit Watcom compiler.

I have an astro program with 400.000 stars and galaxys in t.
Using about 45 megabyte memory.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Saturday, March 2, 2019 at 3:52:42 PM UTC-5, Sjouke Burry wrote:

Use 32 bit Watcom compiler.

I have an astro program with 400.000 stars and galaxys in t.
Using about 45 megabyte memory.

Uhh...I have a lot of 3rd-party software to run. For example, I want to run a MIDI file player in the background while I'm playing on my DOS laptop. The compiler would only be useful if I have the sources, and most programs don't include them. :(
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

I'm *still* looking for more RAM from my Win98 computer's network DOS configuration. At the very least, I want to get QEMM's VidRAM utility to give me only 64k as my config. uses the mono video buffer for UMBs.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sat, 23 Mar 2019 20:08:58 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter <rose.joseph12@yahoo.com> wrote:

I'm *still* looking for more RAM from my Win98 computer's network DOS configuration. At the very least, I want to get QEMM's VidRAM utility
to give me only 64k as my config. uses the mono video buffer for UMBs.

DOS networking and Win98 don't mix well. It's a recipe for frustation.

Many older network cards have a Win98 driver. What network card do you
have?


--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On 3/23/19 9:22 PM, T. Ment wrote:

DOS networking and Win98 don't mix well. It's a recipe for frustation.

I agree if you're trying to run DOS networking (TSRs) for the Windows GUI.

I didn't think there was any problem running DOS networking on MS-DOS
7.x ('98 MS-DOS mode). Which is what I think the OP is doing.

Many older network cards have a Win98 driver. What network card do you
have?

Not all NICs that have drivers for Windows GUI mode also have drivers
for '98 MS-DOS mode.



--
Grant. . . .
unix || die
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sat, 23 Mar 2019 22:20:20 -0600, Grant Taylor
<gtaylor@tnetconsulting.net> wrote:

I didn't think there was any problem running DOS networking on MS-DOS
7.x ('98 MS-DOS mode).

OK.

Which is what I think the OP is doing.

I didn't know.

But why suffer QEMM? himem and emm386 from Win98 are stable, DOS low
memory should not be a problem with a network driver loaded high. A lot
depends on the network card though. Some drivers are good, others bad.

The RTL8139 DOS driver works well, takes about 35k memory.


--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On 3/23/19 11:25 PM, T. Ment wrote:

But why suffer QEMM?

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I think that some of an answer to your question is in the rest of this
thread.




--
Grant. . . .
unix || die
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sat, 23 Mar 2019 23:29:21 -0600, Grant Taylor wrote:

But why suffer QEMM?

I think that some of an answer to your question is in the rest of this thread.

One thing I like about Usenet is, you can drop in and out of groups and
threads at will. It's not a mailing list constantly pushing posts you
don't want. Presently, I don't have enough interest to read the thread
history.

Win98 himem and emm386 should work (QEMM is dubious) unless you have
hardware problems with an old computer, like bad capacitors.

I invite the OP to (re)post details on NIC, NIC driver, startup files,
and desired network connectivity. On Usenet you can start over. Nobody
can stop you.


--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

The following is the CONFIG.SYS file:
-----------------------
DOS=HIGH,UMB
Device=C:\WINDOWS\Himem.Sys
device=C:\WINDOWS\emm386.exe RAM i=b000-b7ff
DEVICEHIGH=C:\STACKER4\STACKER.COM F:
devicehigh=c:\dos\furd19_i\xmsdsk.exe 110000
DEVICEHIGH=C:\STACKER4\Screate.sys e:
rem DEVICEHIGH=C:\STACKER4\redirect.com devicehigh=C:\WINDOWS\command\ebd\oakcdrom.sys /D:mscd001
rem devicehigh/l:1 =c:\guest95\aspippm1.sys
rem devicehigh=C:\network\palmzip\0221\palmzip.sys
-------------------------
The AUTOEXEC.BAT file:
-------------------------
@echo off
SET TMP=C:\WINDOWS\TEMP
SET TEMP=C:\WINDOWS\TEMP
SET PROMPT=$p$g
SET winbootdir=C:\WINDOWS
SET PATH=C:\WINDOWS;C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND;c:\dosnet;c:\network;c:\stacker4;c:\network\rar

lh guest95\guest

stacker e:
stacker f:

lh MSCDEX.EXE /D:mscd001 d:
lh doskey /insert
------------------------
The output from MEM/D:
------------------------

Conventional Memory Detail:

Segment Total Name Type
------- ---------------- ----------- --------
00000 1,024 (1K) Interrupt Vector
00040 256 (0K) ROM Communication Area
00050 512 (1K) DOS Communication Area
00070 1,424 (1K) IO System Data
CON System Device Driver
AUX System Device Driver
PRN System Device Driver
CLOCK$ System Device Driver
A: - C: System Device Driver
COM1 System Device Driver
LPT1 System Device Driver
LPT2 System Device Driver
LPT3 System Device Driver
CONFIG$ System Device Driver
COM2 System Device Driver
COM3 System Device Driver
COM4 System Device Driver
000C9 5,760 (6K) MSDOS System Data
00231 177,232 (173K) IO System Data
1,152 (1K) XMSXXXX0 Installed Device=HIMEM
4,304 (4K) EMMXXXX0 Installed Device=EMM386
51,392 (50K) D: Installed Device=STACKER
36,048 (35K) MSCD001 Installed Device=OAKCDROM
83,152 (81K) DBLSBIN$ Installed Device=DBLSPACE
544 (1K) Sector buffer
512 (1K) BUFFERS=20
02D76 80 (0K) MSDOS System Program
02D7B 19,280 (19K) GUEST Program
03230 96 (0K) COMMAND Data
03236 304 (0K) MEM Environment
03249 46,128 (45K) MSDOS -- Free --
03D8C 7,152 (7K) ASPIPPM1 Program
03F4B 4,688 (5K) DOSKEY Program
04070 30,736 (30K) DOSNET Program
047F1 90,464 (88K) MEM Program
05E07 268,160 (262K) MSDOS -- Free --

Upper Memory Detail:

Segment Region Total Name Type
------- ------ ---------------- ----------- --------
0B15C 1 26,880 (26K) IO System Data
0B7EC 1 80 (0K) COMMAND Data
0B7F1 1 208 (0K) MSDOS -- Free --

0C801 2 624 (1K) IO System Data
592 (1K) E: Installed Device=XMSDSK
0C828 2 21,968 (21K) IO System Data
2,848 (3K) IFS$HLP$ Installed Device=IFSHLP
464 (0K) Block device tables
688 (1K) Drive map table
1,488 (1K) FILES=30
256 (0K) FCBS=4
10,720 (10K) BUFFERS=20
2,288 (2K) LASTDRIVE=Z
3,072 (3K) STACKS=9,256
0CD85 2 8,624 (8K) COMMAND Program
0CFA0 2 1,440 (1K) COMMAND Environment
0CFFA 2 64 (0K) MSDOS -- Free --

0E401 3 288 (0K) GUEST Environment
0E413 3 1,280 (1K) SERIAL Program
0E463 3 5,536 (5K) COMMAND Program
0E5BD 3 1,440 (1K) COMMAND Environment
0E617 3 3,728 (4K) MSDOS -- Free --

Memory Summary:

Type of Memory Total Used Free
---------------- ----------- ----------- -----------
Conventional 653,312 248,560 404,752
Upper 72,192 68,192 4,000
Reserved 0 0 0
Extended (XMS)* 133,096,960 113,288,704 19,808,256
---------------- ----------- ----------- -----------
Total memory 133,822,464 113,605,456 20,217,008

Total under 1 MB 725,504 316,752 408,752


Handle EMS Name Size
------- -------- ------
0 060000

Total Expanded (EMS) 33,947,648 (32M)
Free Expanded (EMS)* 20,054,016 (19M)

* EMM386 is using XMS memory to simulate EMS memory as needed.
Free EMS memory may change as free XMS memory changes.

Memory accessible using Int 15h 0 (0K)
Largest executable program size 358,608 (350K)
Largest free upper memory block 3,728 (4K)
MS-DOS is resident in the high memory area.

XMS version 3.00; driver version 3.95
EMS version 4.00
----------------------
BTW, I'm using a .PIF file in DOS mode for the config.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 24 Mar 2019 10:16:44 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter <rose.joseph12@yahoo.com> wrote:

You have a lot of stuff in your config. The first thing I do is get rid
of everything and start over, adding one piece at a time until I see
where the problem is.

I don't use stacker, I can't help you with that. Can you get rid of it
for testing?

I see dosnet, network, and network\rar in your path. Please explain each
piece and its intended use. Without the big picture, I can't help much.

BTW, I'm using a .PIF file in DOS mode for the config.

A .PIF file in DOS mode? I'm not sure what that means. Are you booting
into DOS using a shortcut from the Windows GUI? Not that it matters, but
I never do that. I either boot to DOS command line or boot the Windows
GUI, using MDSOS.SYS file directives:


WinDir=D:\WINDOWS
WinBootDir=D:\WINDOWS
HostWinBootDrv=D

[Options]
BootMulti=1
BootGUI=1
DoubleBuffer=0
AutoScan=1
WinVer=4.10.2222
BootMenu=1
BootMenuDelay=5
; BootMenuDefault=5
Logo=0
DisableLog=1
SystemReg=0
DblSpace=0
DrvSpace=0
Network=0
;


--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sunday, March 24, 2019 at 2:00:57 PM UTC-4, T. Ment wrote:

You have a lot of stuff in your config. The first thing I do is get rid
of everything and start over, adding one piece at a time until I see
where the problem is.

The problem is low Conventional memory.

I don't use stacker, I can't help you with that. Can you get rid of it
for testing?

I can get rid of it for testing, but it is needed for the network.

I see dosnet, network, and network\rar in your path. Please explain each piece and its intended use. Without the big picture, I can't help much.

dosnet is the network software; IIRC network is the stuff used by the network, and network\rar is the DOSRAR archiver.

BTW, I'm using a .PIF file in DOS mode for the config.

A .PIF file in DOS mode? I'm not sure what that means. Are you booting
into DOS using a shortcut from the Windows GUI? Not that it matters, but
I never do that. I either boot to DOS command line or boot the Windows
GUI, using MDSOS.SYS file directives:

Yes, I did. I do this because the network I'm using requires an extra setup.

WinDir=D:\WINDOWS
WinBootDir=D:\WINDOWS
HostWinBootDrv=D

[Options]
BootMulti=1
BootGUI=1
DoubleBuffer=0
AutoScan=1
WinVer=4.10.2222
BootMenu=1
BootMenuDelay=5
; BootMenuDefault=5
Logo=0
DisableLog=1
SystemReg=0
DblSpace=0
DrvSpace=0
Network=0
;

--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 24 Mar 2019 11:25:45 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter <rose.joseph12@yahoo.com> wrote:

The problem is low Conventional memory.

That's the one thing I do understand.

stacker ... Can you get rid of it for testing?

I can get rid of it for testing, but it is needed for the network.

Stacker is disk compresssion. What that has to do with a network, is a
mystery to me.

dosnet is the network software; IIRC network is the stuff used by the network, and network\rar is the DOSRAR archiver.

Your replies are cryptic. Please explain what you want.

A .PIF file in DOS mode? I'm not sure what that means. Are you booting
into DOS using a shortcut from the Windows GUI?

Yes, I did. I do this because the network I'm using requires an extra setup.

An extra setup? You mean it won't work unless you boot the GUI first?
That's messed up.

I can't spend much time untangling this mess, I have my own messes to
untangle. I can give you ideas on how to proceed, but you have to get
dirty and do the work.

Tell me the big picture, what you want to do.



--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sunday, March 24, 2019 at 2:47:16 PM UTC-4, T. Ment wrote:

Stacker is disk compresssion. What that has to do with a network, is a mystery to me.

One of the networked drives is compressed using Stacker.

dosnet is the network software; IIRC network is the stuff used by the network, and network\rar is the DOSRAR archiver.

Your replies are cryptic. Please explain what you want.

I'm sorry. :(

A .PIF file in DOS mode? I'm not sure what that means. Are you booting
into DOS using a shortcut from the Windows GUI?

Yes, I did. I do this because the network I'm using requires an extra setup.

An extra setup? You mean it won't work unless you boot the GUI first?
That's messed up.

Actually, yes, but I could use a floppy to start the system.

I can't spend much time untangling this mess, I have my own messes to untangle. I can give you ideas on how to proceed, but you have to get
dirty and do the work.

Tell me the big picture, what you want to do.

I just want to buy myself some more Conventional RAM. At least 500k if possible.

BTW, is there a utility to increase the Conventional RAM by 64k if the mono graphics buffer is used as UMBs?
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 24 Mar 2019 12:02:32 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter <rose.joseph12@yahoo.com> wrote:

One of the networked drives is compressed using Stacker.

A compressed network drive. That sounds like fun.

An extra setup? You mean it won't work unless you boot the GUI first?
That's messed up.

Actually, yes, but I could use a floppy to start the system.

What's that got to do with anything.

I just want to buy myself some more Conventional RAM.
At least 500k if possible.

Should not be a problem with himem and emm386.

BTW, is there a utility to increase the Conventional RAM by 64k
if the mono graphics buffer is used as UMBs?

32k with emm386 and a i=b000-b7ff parameter. But if your video card is
VGA or higher, don't do it, it's unstable.

I'm not sure you're serious, but if you are, explain your network
requirements in detail. Otherwise, I'm losing interest.



--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sunday, March 24, 2019 at 3:17:34 PM UTC-4, T. Ment wrote:

I just want to buy myself some more Conventional RAM.
At least 500k if possible.

Should not be a problem with himem and emm386.

Yes, but I'm not getting the memory I want.

BTW, is there a utility to increase the Conventional RAM by 64k
if the mono graphics buffer is used as UMBs?

32k with emm386 and a i=b000-b7ff parameter. But if your video card is
VGA or higher, don't do it, it's unstable.

I do that, but I want to map A000-AFFF to Conventional memory if possible.

I'm not sure you're serious, but if you are, explain your network requirements in detail. Otherwise, I'm losing interest.

Basically, the network treats a Stacker-compressed Zip100 disk and a RAM-drive as extra simulated hard drives for a DOS laptop with no hard drive along with a local Zip100 disk and RAM drive. I'm doing this to add more usable drive space to the DOS laptop. The DOS laptop works fine with QEMM, but QEMM doesn't work properly on my Win98 computer. That's why I'm asking.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 24 Mar 2019 12:46:12 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter <rose.joseph12@yahoo.com> wrote:

BTW, is there a utility to increase the Conventional RAM by 64k
if the mono graphics buffer is used as UMBs?

32k with emm386 and a i=b000-b7ff parameter. But if your video card is
VGA or higher, don't do it, it's unstable.

I do that

I already told you, don't do that.

but I want to map A000-AFFF to Conventional memory if possible.

Don't do that either, unless you have a really old computer with a CGA
or mono video card.

explain your network requirements in detail

Basically, the network

What network? After all these posts, you won't say.

treats a Stacker-compressed Zip100 disk and a
RAM-drive as extra simulated hard drives for a DOS laptop with no hard
drive along with a local Zip100 disk and RAM drive. I'm doing this to
add more usable drive space to the DOS laptop. The DOS laptop works
fine with QEMM, but QEMM doesn't work properly on my Win98 computer.

Sounds like expert help is needed.

That's why I'm asking

Good luck with that mess, Hairy.



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On 3/24/19 1:02 PM, Harry Potter wrote:

One of the networked drives is compressed using Stacker.

So do you use Stacker to mount a compressed drive image and then load
the network driver from there?

Why can't you store this driver on the hard drive and avoid the
complexity and memory consumption that comes with it?

Or is your ultimate end target to get this working on a boot disk?

If so I'd suggest looking at extracting a CAB (et al.) file to a RAM drive.



--
Grant. . . .
unix || die
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On 3/24/19 1:46 PM, Harry Potter wrote:

Basically, the network treats a Stacker-compressed Zip100 disk and a RAM-drive as extra simulated hard drives for a DOS laptop with no hard
drive along with a local Zip100 disk and RAM drive. I'm doing this to
add more usable drive space to the DOS laptop. The DOS laptop works
fine with QEMM, but QEMM doesn't work properly on my Win98 computer.
That's why I'm asking.

What are you booting the notebook off of? A floppy disk?

I take it that you're loading the guest driver to access the Zip disk,
and then are loading additional things off of the Zip disk, possibly
even a Stacker compressed drive off of the Zip disk.

I guess somewhere in there, you're loading networking off of something
(boot floppy, zip disk, compressed image living on the zip disk).

What networking technology are you using? What is "dosnet" that you
keep referring to?

Elsewhere in this thread you indicated that you were networking across
the serial port and not Ethernet (or Token Ring). Is that still the case?

Does your notebook have a CD-ROM? Do you /need/ to use the CD-ROM /in/
the notebook? Or could you access the CD-ROM via network share from the Windows '98 machine? That might give you some more memory. (Though I
don't know what type and if it's of value to you or not.)



--
Grant. . . .
unix || die
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 24 Mar 2019 14:56:49 -0600, Grant Taylor
<gtaylor@tnetconsulting.net> wrote:

On 3/24/19 1:02 PM, Harry Potter wrote:

One of the networked drives is compressed using Stacker.

So do you use Stacker to mount a compressed drive image and then load
the network driver from there?

After many posts, Hairy never said what the network card, driver, or
software is. I can't take that seriously.


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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 24 Mar 2019 15:07:12 -0600, Grant Taylor
<gtaylor@tnetconsulting.net> wrote:

On 3/24/19 1:46 PM, Harry Potter wrote:

Basically, the network treats a Stacker-compressed Zip100 disk and a
RAM-drive as extra simulated hard drives for a DOS laptop with no hard
drive along with a local Zip100 disk and RAM drive

Elsewhere in this thread you indicated that you were networking across
the serial port and not Ethernet

If that's true, Hairy has a world of pain. A challenge can be fun, but
this one may require professional help.



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I'm sorry for not being clear. I'm using NetSoft LAN with a null-modem serial connection. I'm booting the laptop from a floppy. The laptop doesn't have a CD-ROM drive, but I plan on sharing the Win98 computer's USB CD-ROM drive. To do that, I need more RAM on the Win98 PC. I'm using the mono video buffer for UMBs because I don't use that RAM for video: my first PC did that. I know the hazards of using the VGA video buffer for UMBs: switch to a graphics mode, and you will *overwrite* all that information, at best causing the computer to crash. QEMM has VidRAM, which *temporarily* extends Conventional memory into the video buffer, giving up to 96k more memory. However, it doesn't work on my Win98 computer: I get an error stating that the top of memory is *not* 640k. I have another program to do it, but I don't remember its name. Does this help?
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On 3/24/19 4:03 PM, Harry Potter wrote:

I'm sorry for not being clear. I'm using NetSoft LAN with a null-modem serial connection.

Okay.

I'm booting the laptop from a floppy. The laptop doesn't have a CD-ROM drive, but I plan on sharing the Win98 computer's USB CD-ROM drive.

How well does (what I'm going to call) DOS'98 like the USB CD-ROM? Is
there a reason that you're using USB instead of IDE / SCSI in the machine?

I say this because I think you're going to need another driver to get
DOS'98 to see the USB CD-ROM. Yet something else fighting you for memory.

To do that, I need more RAM on the Win98 PC. I'm using the mono video buffer for UMBs because I don't use that RAM for video: my first PC did that. … Does this help?

Yes, it does help.

I don't recall, why are you booting the '98 machine into MS-DOS mode?
So that you can run the NetSoft LAN?

I ask because I'm wondering if there's a chance that INTERLNK & INTERSVR
might be made to work inside of Windows. I want to say that I had
INTERSVR working in a MS-DOS window on my '98 machine back in the day.
But it's been too long for me to say with any degree of certainty.

If INTERSVR will run in a MS-DOS window on '98, then you should be in a
better place as '98 will use all of the system memory and you won't have
to worry about 640 kB entertainment.

I don't think '98's Direct Cable Connection is compatible with INTERLNK.
They are similar but different. DCC will actually support traditional networking.

Are you using serial instead of parallel because of the parallel port
Zip drives?

Do you /need/ the Zip drive on the DOS laptop? Or could it be moved to
the '98 machine and shared with the DOS laptop via network? - Or am I conflating where your memory problem is again?

--------

Please back up and refresh me / us on what is running on what machines,
what mode they are running in, and why.



--
Grant. . . .
unix || die
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 24 Mar 2019 16:39:43 -0600, Grant Taylor
<gtaylor@tnetconsulting.net> wrote:

Please back up and refresh me / us on what is running on what machines,
what mode they are running in, and why.

Compressed network drives on a serial port lan? I know when to quit and
move on.


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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On 3/24/19 4:59 PM, T. Ment wrote:

Compressed network drives on a serial port lan? I know when to quit and
move on.

You do you.

Harry's got a unique scenario. It involves networking, something I
like, and some other things I know a little bit about.

This thread's been on going for a month. So it's not like it is
anything fast or time demanding.



--
Grant. . . .
unix || die
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sunday, March 24, 2019 at 6:39:43 PM UTC-4, Grant Taylor wrote:

On 3/24/19 4:03 PM, Harry Potter wrote:

I'm booting the laptop from a floppy. The laptop doesn't have a CD-ROM drive, but I plan on sharing the Win98 computer's USB CD-ROM drive.

How well does (what I'm going to call) DOS'98 like the USB CD-ROM? Is
there a reason that you're using USB instead of IDE / SCSI in the machine?

I don't know yet, as I didn't try it. I want more memory first.

I say this because I think you're going to need another driver to get
DOS'98 to see the USB CD-ROM. Yet something else fighting you for memory.

Pretty much so.

To do that, I need more RAM on the Win98 PC. I'm using the mono video buffer for UMBs because I don't use that RAM for video: my first PC did that. … Does this help?

Yes, it does help.

I don't recall, why are you booting the '98 machine into MS-DOS mode?
So that you can run the NetSoft LAN?

Yes.

I ask because I'm wondering if there's a chance that INTERLNK & INTERSVR might be made to work inside of Windows. I want to say that I had
INTERSVR working in a MS-DOS window on my '98 machine back in the day.
But it's been too long for me to say with any degree of certainty.

I did at first, but I prefer NSLAN, as I get to share specific folders, not just drives.

Are you using serial instead of parallel because of the parallel port
Zip drives?

Yes.

Do you /need/ the Zip drive on the DOS laptop? Or could it be moved to
the '98 machine and shared with the DOS laptop via network? - Or am I conflating where your memory problem is again?

The local Zip drive acts as a simulated hard drive before the network is in place. The network loads from there.
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 24 Mar 2019 17:23:43 -0600, Grant Taylor
<gtaylor@tnetconsulting.net> wrote:

This thread's been on going for a month. So it's not like it is
anything fast or time demanding.

Like I said, on Usenet you can drop in or out, at will. Have fun.



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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On 3/24/19 5:25 PM, Harry Potter wrote:

I don't know yet, as I didn't try it. I want more memory first.

Okay.

I suspect that getting USB to work in DOS'98 is going to take some of
the (conventional) memory that I think you are working so hard to gain.

Pretty much so.

Hence (one of the reasons) why I'd avoid attaching the CD-ROM via USB if possible.

Yes.

ACK

So you really are working with MS-DOS 6.<something> and MS-DOS 7.<something>

I did at first, but I prefer NSLAN, as I get to share specific folders,
not just drives.

Okay.

This may turn into a chosen limitation. I don't know.

Yes.

Have you tried the parallel cable between the two Zip drives? Does it
work? Does it error out? What happens?

The local Zip drive acts as a simulated hard drive before the network
is in place. The network loads from there.

Do you mean anything special by "simulated hard drive"? Because to me,
it's just another drive letter. One that happens to be on something
other than an internal hard drive.



--
Grant. . . .
unix || die
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

Have you tried the parallel cable between the two Zip drives? Does it
work? Does it error out? What happens?

I need the Zip drive attached to the Win98 PC for other purposes as well, so I can't attach it directly to the other Zip drive. :(

Do you mean anything special by "simulated hard drive"? Because to me,
it's just another drive letter. One that happens to be on something
other than an internal hard drive.

When I say by "simulated hard drive" I mean something to take the place of a real hard drive wher none exists.
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On 3/25/19 9:07 AM, Harry Potter wrote:

I need the Zip drive attached to the Win98 PC for other purposes as well,
so I can't attach it directly to the other Zip drive. :(

I think you misunderstand.

I'm asking about using the parallel port LapLink cable (I assume that
will work with NetSoft LAN / INTERLNK/INTERSVR) in place of the serial
cable.

Thus each ZIP drive will stay connected to the computer they are on.
Just put the communications cable between the out port of the ZIP drives.

Computer 1 Parallel Out <-> ZIP In
ZIP Out <-> communications cable

Computer 2 Parallel Out <-> ZIP In
ZIP Out <-> communications cable


Remember, you're supposed to be able to access parallel printers /
scanners / et al. through the ZIP drive. I'm wondering if NSLAN can
also work that way.

When I say by "simulated hard drive" I mean something to take the place
of a real hard drive wher none exists.

Okay. So, just another drive letter.



--
Grant. . . .
unix || die
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

I am looking for a way to use the memory at $A000-$AFFF but not $B000-$B7FF as extra Conventional memory. What program can do that? Where can I find it on-line?
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Fri, 5 Apr 2019 15:54:32 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter wrote:

I am looking for a way to use the memory at $A000-$AFFF

That only works for an old computer with a CGA or mono card. If you have
a VGA or SVGA card, forget it. It won't work.

I already told you how to solve your low memory problem, but you refuse
to do the diagnostic work. There is no magic, Harry.


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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Fri, 5 Apr 2019 15:54:32 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter wrote:

I am looking for a way to use the memory at $A000-$AFFF but not
$B000-$B7FF as extra Conventional memory. What program can do that?
Where can I find it on-line?

IIRC, you can do some DOS programming. So, why not make your own program? You'll just need to hack the MCB chain and some interrupt hooking.
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Fri, 05 Apr 2019 22:54:32 GMT, Harry Potter <rose.joseph12@yahoo.com>
wrote:

I am looking for a way to use the memory at $A000-$AFFF but not
$B000-$B7FF as extra Conventional memory. What program can do that?
Where can I find it on-line?

emm386.exe. But you'll have to run all your programs in B&W monochrome
text. (so no w98)

--
Bah, and indeed, Humbug.
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Saturday, April 6, 2019 at 4:06:03 PM UTC-4, Kerr-Mudd,John wrote:

emm386.exe. But you'll have to run all your programs in B&W monochrome
text. (so no w98)

QEMM comes with a utility called VidRAM that temporarily allows the use of the VGA video buffer as Conventional memory. That is what I want: *temporary* use of the RAM at $A000-$AFFF as Conventional memory.
BTW, I'm sorry about the confusion. The Win98 computer can run a .PIF file that sets up a temporary network with a DOS/Win16 laptop. The DOS laptop runs QEMM which gives me a *lot* of memory. The laptop starts up from a floppy that contains enough software to set up a ZIP100 drive as a hard drive. From there, a batch file sets up the network. I'm sorry I can't give the techs.: I'm not at my mother's house where the two computers reside. :(
T. Ment, can you repeat the help, please? I can't find it. :(
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I use a Zip100 drive on the Win98 computer. I could buy some memory if I can load the ASPIPPM1.SYS file, loaded by the Zip100 GUEST driver, high. I could buy *more* memory if I could use PalmZip instead, but PalmZip is unreliable. :( I can't seem to load the .SYS driver high from the CONFIG.SYS file. Any help?
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sat, 6 Apr 2019 13:50:20 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter wrote:

QEMM comes with a utility called VidRAM that temporarily allows the use
of the VGA video buffer as Conventional memory. That is what I want: *temporary* use of the RAM at $A000-$AFFF as Conventional memory.

VidRAM may work with CGA video cards, but they are rare now. I doubt you
have one. It's unstable with VGA.

The Win98 computer can run a .PIF file that sets up a temporary
network with a DOS/Win16 laptop.

You don't need a Win98 PIF file. I setup a Netsoft serial port LAN
between two computers, and I did not need Win98. My low DOS memory was
600K+. Your setup is too complicated. Simplify it.

T. Ment, can you repeat the help, please? I can't find it.

Strip everything out of your config and boot to bare DOS, See how much
memory you have. Reinstall Netsoft LAN with minimum options. See again
how much memory you have. Add things back into your config, one at a
time, until you see which one is the memory hog.

It's a step by step process anyone can do. But you seem unwilling to do
the work.


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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Saturday, April 6, 2019 at 5:30:37 PM UTC-4, T. Ment wrote:

VidRAM may work with CGA video cards, but they are rare now. I doubt you
have one. It's unstable with VGA.

The reason I want to use VidRAM is for text-based programs that don't need VGA graphics. You're right, though: it may not be worth the risk.

The Win98 computer can run a .PIF file that sets up a temporary
network with a DOS/Win16 laptop.

You don't need a Win98 PIF file. I setup a Netsoft serial port LAN
between two computers, and I did not need Win98. My low DOS memory was
600K+. Your setup is too complicated. Simplify it.

I *could* use a start-up floppy to start the network. I use a PIF file because the network is temporary, and, when I'm done with the network, I want to reboot to Win98.

T. Ment, can you repeat the help, please? I can't find it.

Strip everything out of your config and boot to bare DOS, See how much
memory you have. Reinstall Netsoft LAN with minimum options. See again
how much memory you have. Add things back into your config, one at a
time, until you see which one is the memory hog.

It's a step by step process anyone can do. But you seem unwilling to do
the work.

The reason I am unwilling to do the work is because I want *all* the programs to be loaded at start-up.

BTW, the files listed in my second post here are for the Win98 DOS mode network configuration.
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sat, 6 Apr 2019 15:03:28 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter wrote:

I *could* use a start-up floppy to start the network. I use a PIF
file because the network is temporary, and, when I'm done with the
network, I want to reboot to Win98.

You don't need to boot from floppy, and you don't need to boot from a
Win98 PIF file. Configure MSDOS.SYS to give you the Win98 startup menu.
You will see.

1. Normal (Win98)
...
5. Command prompt only (DOS)

After using DOS, reboot the machine and choose 1 for Win98. Simple as
pie. Here's a sample MSDOS.SYS to get you started. My Win98 is on drive
D, change that to C if that's where your Win98 is.

[Paths]
WinDir=D:\WINDOWS
WinBootDir=D:\WINDOWS
HostWinBootDrv=D

[Options]
BootMulti=1
BootGUI=1
DoubleBuffer=0
AutoScan=1
WinVer=4.10.2222
BootMenu=1
BootMenuDelay=5
BootMenuDefault=1
Logo=0
DisableLog=1
SystemReg=0
DblSpace=0
DrvSpace=0
Network=0
;

BootMenuDefault=1 makes Win98 the default. You can change that to =5 if
you want DOS as the default.

The reason I am unwilling to do the work is because I want *all* the
programs to be loaded at start-up.

You can't have what you want Harry. Do what I said to learn who the
memory hog is. After discovering that, then you can decide what to do
about it.

BTW, the files listed in my second post here are for the Win98 DOS mode network configuration.

I won't analyze your config to solve your problem for you. That's your
job. Get to work and stop being a pest. You're like a nagging female.


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I just looked at my config. files as posted here and can only remove DOSKEY and the CD driver, but DOSKEY is very small and the CD driver may be needed soon.
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sat, 6 Apr 2019 16:47:25 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter wrote:

I just looked at my config. files as posted here and can only
remove DOSKEY and the CD driver, but DOSKEY is very small and
the CD driver may be needed soon.

You don't listen do you. You must be female. All talk no listen. I don't
give much time to nagging females.


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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On 4/6/19 6:38 PM, T. Ment wrote:

You don't listen do you. You must be female. All talk no listen. I don't
give much time to nagging females.

Not cool.

Please hold the insults and keep it friendly.



--
Grant. . . .
unix || die
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sat, 6 Apr 2019 20:12:27 -0600, Grant Taylor wrote:

Not cool.
Please hold the insults and keep it friendly.

"Harry" won't do any work to solve the problem. If "Harry" is female,
saying so is not an insult.

Philistine warriors could not defeat Samson, but a nagging female broke
his will. I avoid them.


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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Saturday, April 6, 2019 at 8:38:19 PM UTC-4, T. Ment wrote:

You don't listen do you. You must be female. All talk no listen. I don't
give much time to nagging females.

I'm *not* a female. I don't understand what I'm doing wrong. :( Again, I don't know what I can remove from the setup, as I need most of the items in the setup.

BTW, I don't need the CD driver right now. Maybe I'll remove it.
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 7 Apr 2019 04:55:49 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter wrote:

I'm *not* a female.

Hmmm.

I don't understand what I'm doing wrong.

You don't listen. I showed you how to use MSDOS.SYS to configure the
Win98 boot menu. Do that, instead of using a PIF file to boot into DOS
from Win98. That simplifies things, so that Win98 is not involved in
your low memory problem.

Again, I don't know what I can remove from the setup

Stop thinking about what you want, and start working to diagnose the
memory hog. Temporarily, remove everything. Make copies of your startup
files to keep backups of them, then strip everything out of the working
copies and start from scratch.

I need most of the items in the setup.

Saying that over and over won't fix the problem. Stop complaining, and
do the diagnostic work, If you won't, you're just nagging, like a woman.
And I have no interest in that.


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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On 4/7/19 9:56 AM, T. Ment wrote:

… use MSDOS.SYS to configure the Win98 boot menu … instead of using
a PIF file to boot into DOS from Win98. That simplifies things, so that Win98 is not involved in your low memory problem.

I agree that booting into Windows and then rebooting into MS-DOS mode is largely unnecessary for the OP's stated goal. But I don't see how that sequence alters what is (not) loaded in the MS-DOS mode's configuration.

I also agree that tweaking the boot menus is a nice idea. But don't
think it's necessary.

Stop thinking about what you want, and start working to diagnose the
memory hog. Temporarily, remove everything. Make copies of your startup files to keep backups of them, then strip everything out of the working copies and start from scratch.

If you're going the boot menu route, you can leverage the config.sys
menu and the associated environment variable to control autoexec.bat's execution to do some of this debugging. I.e. one config that includes
what's currently loaded and another config that is minimal for troubleshooting.

And I have no interest in that.

So ignore it.



--
Grant. . . .
unix || die
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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 7 Apr 2019 10:05:03 -0600, Grant Taylor wrote:

I agree that booting into Windows and then rebooting into MS-DOS mode is >largely unnecessary for the OP's stated goal. But I don't see how that >sequence alters what is (not) loaded in the MS-DOS mode's configuration.

You can't be sure Win98 has no effect on DOS memory rebooted from a PIF.
To make sure, don't do that. Use the Win98 boot menu to go straight into
DOS after power up.

The book DOS Internals discusses problems of warm rebooting.

And I have no interest in that.

So ignore it.

If you don't like them, you can ignore my posts too.



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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sunday, April 7, 2019 at 12:53:21 PM UTC-4, T. Ment wrote:

You can't be sure Win98 has no effect on DOS memory rebooted from a PIF.
To make sure, don't do that. Use the Win98 boot menu to go straight into
DOS after power up.

Windows doesn't boot up in the custom config. as the .PIF file containing the config. boots in DOS mode.

The book DOS Internals discusses problems of warm rebooting.

And I have no interest in that.

So ignore it.

If you don't like them, you can ignore my posts too.

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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Mon, 8 Apr 2019 03:50:50 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter wrote:

Windows doesn't boot up in the custom config. as the .PIF file
containing the config. boots in DOS mode.

Solving a problem is not your intention. Have fun trolling.


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From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

I understand that I haven't been doing my job while asking for help. I have here the memory layout of DOS memory:
-------------------

Conventional Memory Detail:

Segment Total Name Type
------- ---------------- ----------- --------
00000 1,024 (1K) Interrupt Vector
00040 256 (0K) ROM Communication Area
00050 512 (1K) DOS Communication Area
00070 1,424 (1K) IO System Data
CON System Device Driver
AUX System Device Driver
PRN System Device Driver
CLOCK$ System Device Driver
A: - C: System Device Driver
COM1 System Device Driver
LPT1 System Device Driver
LPT2 System Device Driver
LPT3 System Device Driver
CONFIG$ System Device Driver
COM2 System Device Driver
COM3 System Device Driver
COM4 System Device Driver
000C9 5,760 (6K) MSDOS System Data
00231 177,232 (173K) IO System Data
1,152 (1K) XMSXXXX0 Installed Device=HIMEM
4,304 (4K) EMMXXXX0 Installed Device=EMM386
51,392 (50K) D: Installed Device=STACKER
36,048 (35K) MSCD001 Installed Device=OAKCDROM
83,152 (81K) DBLSBIN$ Installed Device=DBLSPACE
544 (1K) Sector buffer
512 (1K) BUFFERS=20
02D76 80 (0K) MSDOS System Program
02D7B 19,280 (19K) GUEST Program
03230 96 (0K) COMMAND Data
03236 304 (0K) MEM Environment
03249 46,128 (45K) MSDOS -- Free --
03D8C 7,152 (7K) ASPIPPM1 Program
03F4B 4,688 (5K) DOSKEY Program
04070 30,736 (30K) DOSNET Program
047F1 90,464 (88K) MEM Program
05E07 268,160 (262K) MSDOS -- Free --

Upper Memory Detail:

Segment Region Total Name Type
------- ------ ---------------- ----------- --------
0B15C 1 26,880 (26K) IO System Data
0B7EC 1 80 (0K) COMMAND Data
0B7F1 1 208 (0K) MSDOS -- Free --

0C801 2 624 (1K) IO System Data
592 (1K) E: Installed Device=XMSDSK
0C828 2 21,968 (21K) IO System Data
2,848 (3K) IFS$HLP$ Installed Device=IFSHLP
464 (0K) Block device tables
688 (1K) Drive map table
1,488 (1K) FILES=30
256 (0K) FCBS=4
10,720 (10K) BUFFERS=20
2,288 (2K) LASTDRIVE=Z
3,072 (3K) STACKS=9,256
0CD85 2 8,624 (8K) COMMAND Program
0CFA0 2 1,440 (1K) COMMAND Environment
0CFFA 2 64 (0K) MSDOS -- Free --

0E401 3 288 (0K) GUEST Environment
0E413 3 1,280 (1K) SERIAL Program
0E463 3 5,536 (5K) COMMAND Program
0E5BD 3 1,440 (1K) COMMAND Environment
0E617 3 3,728 (4K) MSDOS -- Free --

Memory Summary:

Type of Memory Total Used Free
---------------- ----------- ----------- -----------
Conventional 653,312 248,560 404,752
Upper 72,192 68,192 4,000
Reserved 0 0 0
Extended (XMS)* 133,096,960 113,288,704 19,808,256
---------------- ----------- ----------- -----------
Total memory 133,822,464 113,605,456 20,217,008

Total under 1 MB 725,504 316,752 408,752


Handle EMS Name Size
------- -------- ------
0 060000

Total Expanded (EMS) 33,947,648 (32M)
Free Expanded (EMS)* 20,054,016 (19M)

* EMM386 is using XMS memory to simulate EMS memory as needed.
Free EMS memory may change as free XMS memory changes.

Memory accessible using Int 15h 0 (0K)
Largest executable program size 358,608 (350K)
Largest free upper memory block 3,728 (4K)
MS-DOS is resident in the high memory area.

XMS version 3.00; driver version 3.95
EMS version 4.00
-------------------------
I can remove the CD driver as I don't currently need it, but I may want it in the future. Does this help?
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

I found the memory hog: DriveSpace boots with the system. I disabled it and now have 517k Conventional memory. :D I want to load the ASPIPPM1 driver high but had no success. :( I'll try again.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Saturday, April 13, 2019 at 12:52:02 PM UTC-4, Harry Potter wrote:

I found the memory hog: DriveSpace boots with the system. I disabled it and now have 517k Conventional memory. :D I want to load the ASPIPPM1 driver high but had no success. :( I'll try again.

Uhh...I have a problem: there is a costly memory hole that is eating up free memory and preventing over 40k from being used by DOS programs. The current memory layout follows:
-----------------------

Conventional Memory Detail:

Segment Total Name Type
------- ---------------- ----------- --------
00000 1,024 (1K) Interrupt Vector
00040 256 (0K) ROM Communication Area
00050 512 (1K) DOS Communication Area
00070 1,424 (1K) IO System Data
CON System Device Driver
AUX System Device Driver
PRN System Device Driver
CLOCK$ System Device Driver
A: - C: System Device Driver
COM1 System Device Driver
LPT1 System Device Driver
LPT2 System Device Driver
LPT3 System Device Driver
CONFIG$ System Device Driver
COM2 System Device Driver
COM3 System Device Driver
COM4 System Device Driver
000C9 5,120 (5K) MSDOS System Data
00209 58,000 (57K) IO System Data
1,152 (1K) XMSXXXX0 Installed Device=HIMEM
4,304 (4K) EMMXXXX0 Installed Device=EMM386
51,392 (50K) D: Installed Device=STACKER
512 (1K) BUFFERS=20
544 (1K) Sector buffer
01032 80 (0K) MSDOS System Program
01037 19,280 (19K) GUEST Program
014EC 96 (0K) COMMAND Data
014F2 304 (0K) MEM Environment
01505 46,128 (45K) MSDOS -- Free --
02048 7,152 (7K) ASPIPPM1 Program
02207 30,736 (30K) DOSNET Program
02988 90,464 (88K) MEM Program
03F9E 392,720 (384K) MSDOS -- Free --

Upper Memory Detail:

Segment Region Total Name Type
------- ------ ---------------- ----------- --------
0B15C 1 21,264 (21K) IO System Data
2,848 (3K) IFS$HLP$ Installed Device=IFSHLP
464 (0K) Block device tables
1,488 (1K) FILES=30
256 (0K) FCBS=4
10,720 (10K) BUFFERS=20
2,288 (2K) LASTDRIVE=Z
3,072 (3K) STACKS=9,256
0B68D 1 288 (0K) GUEST Environment
0B69F 1 5,536 (5K) COMMAND Program
0B7F9 1 80 (0K) MSDOS -- Free --

0C801 2 624 (1K) IO System Data
592 (1K) E: Installed Device=XMSDSK
0C828 2 4,688 (5K) DOSKEY Program
0C94D 2 1,280 (1K) SERIAL Program
0C99D 2 26,128 (26K) MSDOS -- Free --

0E401 3 8,624 (8K) COMMAND Program
0E61C 3 80 (0K) COMMAND Data
0E621 3 1,440 (1K) COMMAND Environment
0E67B 3 1,440 (1K) COMMAND Environment
0E6D5 3 688 (1K) MSDOS -- Free --

Memory Summary:

Type of Memory Total Used Free
---------------- ----------- ----------- -----------
Conventional 653,312 124,000 529,312
Upper 72,192 45,296 26,896
Reserved 0 0 0
Extended (XMS)* 133,096,960 113,288,704 19,808,256
---------------- ----------- ----------- -----------
Total memory 133,822,464 113,458,000 20,364,464

Total under 1 MB 725,504 169,296 556,208


Handle EMS Name Size
------- -------- ------
0 060000

Total Expanded (EMS) 33,947,648 (32M)
Free Expanded (EMS)* 20,054,016 (19M)

* EMM386 is using XMS memory to simulate EMS memory as needed.
Free EMS memory may change as free XMS memory changes.

Memory accessible using Int 15h 0 (0K)
Largest executable program size 483,168 (472K)
Largest free upper memory block 26,128 (26K)
MS-DOS is resident in the high memory area.

XMS version 3.00; driver version 3.95
EMS version 4.00
----------------------
Also, when I try to load the ASPIPPM1 driver high and manually, it can't find the cable that connects the Zip drive to the PC. :(
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

Try using SlimWin, it makes windows from 1GB to 46MB.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sunday, April 14, 2019 at 11:21:26 AM UTC-4, olliet...@gmail.com wrote:

Try using SlimWin, it makes windows from 1GB to 46MB.

How will that help?
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sun, 14 Apr 2019 10:07:17 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter wrote:

On Sunday, April 14, 2019 at 11:21:26 AM UTC-4, olliet...@gmail.com wrote:

Try using SlimWin, it makes windows from 1GB to 46MB.

How will that help?

Obviously, he misunderstood your problem.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

I found out why VidRAM wouldn't give me extra RAM: the Conventional memory is 638k. :( I also *still* need to close the RAM gap on the Win98 computer in the network configuration DOS mode. What could be causing it? I have until Sunday night to fix it: if I don't fix it by then, I'll have to wait a while to fix it.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

Uhh...I still have the memory hole, and Windows keeps resetting MSDOS.SYS and its D*Space entries when I exit the network mode. :(
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sat, 27 Apr 2019 12:35:04 -0700 (PDT), Harry Potter wrote:

Uhh...I still have the memory hole,
and Windows keeps resetting MSDOS.SYS
and its D*Space entries when I exit
the network mode. :(

Computers are not for everyone. It's only a passing fad anyway. Don't
worry about it.

Soon, the earth will return to the way God intended. No more industrial carcinogens. No more high tech. If traveling by foot and donkey was good
enough for Jesus, that's what we can expect.


--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

I think the cause of the memory hole is due to ASPIPPM1.SYS file being loaded on *top* of the Guest driver. I want to load the .SYS file high from the CONFIG.SYS file. I tried to do that, but the display said that the connection couldn't be found. How do I load the driver high?
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

I added to the EMM386 command line the NOEMS parameter, and it bought me a lot of memory. :)
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Sat, 27 Apr 2019 23:48:57 GMT, Harry Potter <rose.joseph12@yahoo.com>
wrote:

I added to the EMM386 command line the NOEMS parameter, and it bought
me a lot of memory. :)

64k I'd imagine.

--
Bah, and indeed, Humbug.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Mon, 29 Apr 2019 10:04:24 -0000 (UTC), Kerr-Mudd,John wrote:

64k I'd imagine.

Yes, but using EMM386 without EMS is problematic, IME. It'd be better to use plain UMB manager.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Tue, 30 Apr 2019 15:18:53 +0700, JJ wrote:

Yes, but using EMM386 without EMS is problematic

What problem?

It'd be better to use >plain UMB manager

You mean UMBPCI? It's not always compatible with ISA DMA in UMBs.
Depends on the chipset. EMM386 does not have the problem.


--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Tue, 30 Apr 2019 14:01:53 +0000, T. Ment wrote:

What problem?

Some protected mode programs will fail to run. As if the VM86 mode that
EMM386 have set up, got crippled.

You mean UMBPCI? It's not always compatible with ISA DMA in UMBs.
Depends on the chipset. EMM386 does not have the problem.

Yes. I'm aware that it's not for all systems. I mean, if it's applicable,
it's better to use it than EMM386 if UMB is the priority. EMM386 is more successful on providing UMB, but it uses VM86 mode for that.
--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110

From Newsgroup: comp.os.msdos.misc

On Wed, 1 May 2019 19:48:27 +0700, JJ wrote:

Some protected mode programs will fail to run. As if the VM86 mode that EMM386 have set up, got crippled.

That requires a DOS extender. That's not the purpose of EMM386. A DOS
extender may conflict with EMM386, or not. That gets deep. It becomes a
case by case question.

You mean UMBPCI? It's not always compatible with ISA DMA in UMBs.
Depends on the chipset. EMM386 does not have the problem.

Yes. I'm aware that it's not for all systems. I mean, if it's applicable, it's better to use it than EMM386 if UMB is the priority. EMM386 is more successful on providing UMB, but it uses VM86 mode for that.

So does QEMM.

The idea of UMBPCI is to leave the CPU in real mode, because that's
faster than protected mode. But how much difference does it make? For
most things, on as fast CPU, not much.

On my P3V4X with UMBPCI, DMACHK says all ISA-DMA ok. But all my Athlon
boards fail ISA-DMA.

And UMBPCI gets weird with PCI busmastering on Athlons. You can't load
device drivers high. Like ANSI.SYS. Jack Ellis XMGR/UHDD seems to work
around that problem somehow.

UMBPCI may work, but beware of its flaws and quirks. And don't avoid
EMM386, just because it puts the CPU in protected mode. For most things,
that's harmless.


--- Synchronet 3.17c-Linux NewsLink 1.110