VOGONS


Reply 20 of 49, by telecommand

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Thanks for this, Phil! Everything is working perfectly.

Question: Is there a way I can set DOS to start at c:\ when I boot? Currently it starts at c:\Windows - not a big deal but saves a CD command every time I boot up 😀

Reply 21 of 49, by jesolo

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Just edit your relevant startup file and add the command line "CD\" (without the quotation marks).

Reply 22 of 49, by Sjollico

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Thanks Phil! This worked excellent for setup of my PNP Sound Blaster AWE64! Just an FYI I have a couple things to note:

1. Using 95DossApp only did not work as mentioned in the comments below the tutorial as I did not have a CTCM folder in my windows directory from the AWE64 Drivers bundled in the Windows 98 Install. I stuck with SBBASIC and CTCMBBS files as you described for install. (You can download these from Phil's website here https://www.philscomputerlab.com/creative-labs-drivers.html)
2. I had skipped the first part of this tutorial by downloading "MS-DOS Mode Super Easy" from Phil's website at https://www.philscomputerlab.com/ms-dos-mode-super-easy.html
PROBLEM: The "Restart in MS-DOS mode" Shortcut doesn't have the "SETVER" command line in the config.sys file so I could not run the install by spoofing the DOS version as instructed
SOLUTION: If you do download "MS-DOS Mode Super Easy", simply right click on the shortcut that you moved to your desktop in Win98 and select "properties" click on the "program" tab and add in the following command below the LASTDRIVE=H in the CONFIG.SYS sectoin

DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\SETVER

Press OK and clsoe the file and you are good to continue with the tutorial as explained!

Thanks again! Everything is working butter smooth now in windows and dos!

Reply 24 of 49, by Intel486dx33

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Where was Phil back in 1998 ?
Could have used him then. Would have made my life allot easier.
But it's good to have him today too.
Now appears to be the best time to build a retro computer because there is allot of help and resources available.

Thanks Phil.

Reply 25 of 49, by dr_st

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Nice, but, again, overly complicated.

A single startup configuration is fine for 99.9% of the cases, no need to have six.

No need to use "restart in MS-DOS mode" at all. Simpler to just use BootGUI=0 to always boot to DOS, run WIN manually to load Windows, and reboot to get back to pure DOS if you want it.

Even though I find Phil's resources and guides awesome, in this particular case he unfortunately overcomplicated things too much with these startup files and unnecessary boot menus, and I see many folks just use them without thinking.

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Reply 26 of 49, by 9646gt

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I followed the guide, minus the sound card setup stuff as my sound card works fine under DOS already. But, I'm trying to install SimCity 2000 and it keeps saying I only have 1024k of memory no matter which option I chose. How can I easily fix this!?

Reply 27 of 49, by odd144

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Hello

Phil is a legend, I have a new(18 year old Dell L933r) PC recently acquired with Win 98 SE installed, works beautifully.

For MS-Dos games, I used Phil easy setup for MS-Dos, almost everything works but I can't get the sound working for the installed 'Sound blaster AudioPCI 64' as when loading from Phils menu it says "Error: "SNDSCAPE" environment variable not found. PCI audio driver NOT loading".

My question is will Phils sound workaround work with my card(Sound blaster AudioPCI 64)?

Phil says it is for "SB 16/32/64 PnP and sem-Pnp or software configurable cards", does my card fit into those cards or is there another way I can get sound working with Phils MS-Dos menu?

Thank you for any help.

Reply 28 of 49, by RetroLizard

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PhilsComputerLab wrote:

Windows 98 however can support hard drives up to 128 MB natively.

Do you perhaps mean 128 GB? 128 MB isn't a lot for a Windows 98 gaming pc.

Reply 29 of 49, by swaaye

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Phil doesn't post here anymore.

I've moved this thread over to Software.

Reply 30 of 49, by odd144

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odd144 wrote:
Hello […]
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Hello

Phil is a legend, I have a new(18 year old Dell L933r) PC recently acquired with Win 98 SE installed, works beautifully.

For MS-Dos games, I used Phil easy setup for MS-Dos, almost everything works but I can't get the sound working for the installed 'Sound blaster AudioPCI 64' as when loading from Phils menu it says "Error: "SNDSCAPE" environment variable not found. PCI audio driver NOT loading".

My question is will Phils sound workaround work with my card(Sound blaster AudioPCI 64)?

Phil says it is for "SB 16/32/64 PnP and sem-Pnp or software configurable cards", does my card fit into those cards or is there another way I can get sound working with Phils MS-Dos menu?

Thank you for any help.

I think I found a interim solution by using the below config/Autoexec configuration but its not perfect as conventional memory drops to 540kb and another game I want to play "Wizardry VIII" wont run at all but, I am getting there! Also noticed when I try exit MS-DOS it hangs but a reset, loads windows.

Config file:
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE RAM
DOS=HIGH,UMB,NOAUTO
STACKSHIGH=0,0
BUFFERSHIGH=10,0
FCBSHIGH=1
FILESHIGH=30
LASTDRIVE=H
DEVICEHIGH=C:\WINDOWS\IFSHLP.SYS
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DRIVERS\VIDECDD.SYS /D:OPTICAL

AUtoexec file:
@ECHO OFF
LH C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\MSCDEX.EXE /D:OPTICAL
LH C:\WINDOWS\SMARTDRV.EXE
LH C:\DRIVERS\CTMOUSE.EXE /R2
LH C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\DOSKEY /INSERT
SET DIRCMD=/OGE
SET BLASTER=A220 I5 D1 T2
SET SNDSCAPE=C:\EAPCI
C:\EAPCI\APINIT.COM

Reply 31 of 49, by retardware

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Leaving out smartdrv and using the dead BIOS ROM as UMB, if possible, will give you the memory you need.

When using good HDDs that have megabytes of cache and can saturate the bus, using smartdrv is quite pointless.

Reply 32 of 49, by dr_st

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retardware wrote:

Leaving out smartdrv and using the dead BIOS ROM as UMB, if possible, will give you the memory you need.

The dead ROM is a fair advice, as will work in many situations, but you can't assume it will work on his PC. I recall you said it can work on standard BIOS, but his appears to be a Dell-branded PC. Are you sure it will work? The monochrome region may be a safer bet after all... In any case I would try both and see what works.

retardware wrote:

When using good HDDs that have megabytes of cache and can saturate the bus, using smartdrv is quite pointless.

That's assuming he has such an HDD. On all machines from that era I found SMARTDRV useful.

odd144 wrote:

I think I found a interim solution by using the below config/Autoexec configuration but its not perfect as conventional memory drops to 540kb and another game I want to play "Wizardry VIII" wont run at all but, I am getting there! Also noticed when I try exit MS-DOS it hangs but a reset, loads windows.

Let's try to improve those startup files a bit...

odd144 wrote:
Config file: DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE RAM You need some switches (see below) DOS=H […]
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Config file:
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE RAM You need some switches (see below)
DOS=HIGH,UMB,NOAUTO Remove the NOAUTO
STACKSHIGH=0,0 I would remove this and the next 2 lines; stay with the defaults.
BUFFERSHIGH=10,0
FCBSHIGH=1
FILESHIGH=30
LASTDRIVE=H
DEVICEHIGH=C:\WINDOWS\IFSHLP.SYS If you remove NOAUTO, Windows should load it automatically
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DRIVERS\VIDECDD.SYS /D:OPTICAL

AUtoexec file:
@ECHO OFF
LH C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\MSCDEX.EXE /D:OPTICAL Add /E switch; it will allow MSCDEX to use EMS and less RAM
LH C:\WINDOWS\SMARTDRV.EXE
LH C:\DRIVERS\CTMOUSE.EXE /R2
LH C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\DOSKEY /INSERT
SET DIRCMD=/OGE
SET BLASTER=A220 I5 D1 T2
SET SNDSCAPE=C:\EAPCI
C:\EAPCI\APINIT.COM

For EMM386, I would try the following switches (I= tells EMM386 which regions to use):

DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE RAM I=B000-B7FF I=F000-F7FF AUTO

If you experience crashes/instability, try the B000-B7FF and F000-F7FF regions one at a time.

If you still don't get enough memory, please post contents of MEM /C /P and MEM /D /P outputs. You can redirect them to a file (MEM /C /P >FILE1.TXT), then paste/upload it here.

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Reply 33 of 49, by odd144

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dr_st wrote:

For EMM386, I would try the following switches (I= tells EMM386 which regions to use):

DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE RAM I=B000-B7FF I=F000-F7FF AUTO

If you experience crashes/instability, try the B000-B7FF and F000-F7FF regions one at a time.

Thanks for looking into this, I am a noob at Dos!

My PC did not like DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE RAM I=B000-B7FF I=F000-F7FF AUTO , at all, kept restarting.

I have settled on the below configuration which gives me 595k I am sure I have stuff in there that I don't need but just dont want to touch it as its at 595k but I would like more 😊

Config: DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE RAM HIGHSCAN I=B000-B7FF DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\IFSHLP. […]
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Config:
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS /TESTMEM:OFF
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE RAM HIGHSCAN I=B000-B7FF
DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\IFSHLP.SYS
DOS=HIGH,UMB
REM ** FILES=30
BUFFERS=20
LASTDRIVE=Z
DEVICEHIGH=C:\DRIVERS\VIDECDD.SYS /D:OPTICAL
FILES=40

Autoexec:
SET SNDSCAPE=C:\EAPCI
SET BLASTER=A220 I5 D1 T2
C:\EAPCI\APINIT.COM
@ECHO OFF
PROMPT $p$g
PATH C:\WINDOWS
SET TEMP=C:\WINDOWS
C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE AUTO

LH C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\MSCDEX.EXE /E /D:OPTICAL
LH C:\DRIVERS\CTMOUSE.EXE /R2

Also still for whatever reason it doesn't allow me to reset the computer if I type "Exit", just hangs, until I reset manually via power button and it boots into windows.

dr_st wrote:

If you still don't get enough memory, please post contents of MEM /C /P and MEM /D /P outputs. You can redirect them to a file (MEM /C /P >FILE1.TXT), then paste/upload it here.

I have done this. see attached.

Reply 34 of 49, by dr_st

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I understand from your comment "Also still for whatever reason it doesn't allow me to reset the computer if I type "Exit", just hangs, until I reset manually via power button and it boots into windows." that you are using Win98 restart-to-MSDOS mode.

I must confess that I am not accustomed to using this mode, and in the past when I tried it a few times, I found it unreliable, with similar symptoms to what you describe. Also, from analyzing your MEM output, I suspect that at least some of the memory is wasted because you are using this mode (which essentially loads a DOS environment, on top of the already existing DOS environment created during initial boot). For example - why is IFSHLP loaded low? Why are there two instances of COMMAND? That alone eats 9KB of conventional memory. Also, it may be (although far from certain) that EMM386 would find more free memory blocks if you booted it clean rather than from 'restart to MSDOS'.

My Win98 SE system is set up not boot into pure DOS without loading Windows (BootGUI=0 in MSDOS.SYS); then if I want to run Windows, I do so manually (WIN.COM), and if I want to get back to DOS, I just restart the PC. All the configuration I want is set in CONFIG.SYS / AUTOEXEC.BAT.

If you find that you still need (not just want) more conventional memory (or need/want to use Smartdrive/Doskey, which you took out of your startup files), I would suggest you try the pure DOS approach, just to see if it makes a difference.

In the meanwhile, I can suggest the following additional changes:

  1. I would try EMM386 without the HIGHSCAN flag; this may actually decrease free upper memory (if it does, restore the flag)
  2. No need to run EMM386 AUTO from Autoexec; you can specify AUTO when first loading it in Config.sys (will not affect memory usage, though)
  3. Looks like APINIT is taking 2KB of conventional memory. Use LH to try to put it in upper memory.
  4. Load MSCDEX/CTMOUSE before APINIT (unless it was causing instability for you); generally it is best to load the large programs first, then the small ones, to reduce memory fragmentation (or you may end up with a situation where you have enough upper memory, but no contiguous block large enough to fit the program you're trying to load there.

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Reply 35 of 49, by odd144

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Thanks Dr_St

I will check out the pure dos boot sometime, thanks for your suggestion regarding my current registry unfortunately it didn't change it from my 595k.

Where do I put the AUTO for EMM386.exe in config , I put it at the end?

Thanks

Reply 36 of 49, by sadosp

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Hi to all.
I can not find a way to proceed with the installation of SB drivers for DOS. Every time the installer program say me that I try to do the installation through Win95, even I use the setver command.

I have installed Win98 SE operating system, and a SB PCI card.

Any help welcome.

Reply 37 of 49, by CrimsonMachete

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So, have run into a weird problem.

Followed the very useful guide above last night, had my AWE64 working perfectly in MS-DOS mode on my P2 system, but after returning to Windows and back to DOS all my settings reverted and my autoexec and config were made into .bak files, long story short but when trying to fix that I borked my install with a reboot loop and decided to start from scratch.

This time round when trying to use SETVER command on the DOS installation files have been running into trouble; first it says DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\SETVER.EXE in the CONFIG.SYS from the Exit to Dos.pif is missing, when it isn't. Using Phil's standalone restart_in_msdos.pif the SETVER command now works, however when running the Install.exe from sbbasic I for some reason DON'T get the script error code (which I got yesterday), and the install won't progress past the next screen.

Sorry about the wall of text, but any ideas what might be going wrong here? I'm not understanding why the SETVER command isn't working with the Exit to Dos.pif when it clearly (I think) should be. Getting frustrated here, probably going to have to start from scratch again.

Reply 38 of 49, by pentiumspeed

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PS: someone mentioned no problems on 160GB. Actually not smart.

Take care that you are installing on any storage drive no larger than 127GB. Be safe and use 120GB or less.

Cheers,

Great Northern aka Canada.

Reply 39 of 49, by hyznth

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Thanks Phil! It works like a charm. Just applied this to my IBM 300GL with an AWE64 and thanks to the flexible memory options already can enjoy Second Reality Demo. So good! Many thanks!