Re: [Ql-Users] QXL 3.33, DOS and W98

[Thierry Godefroy via Ql-Users]

On Mon, 21 May 2018 00:41:47 +0200, Davide Santachiara via Ql-Users wrote:

> While it seems with my old SMSQ 2.90 I managed to run SMSQ under the Windows
> 98 DOS (i.e. starting DOS inside W98, which allowed with ALT TAB to move to
> Windows back and forth),

Bad idea... I never ran my QXL from within Windoze, only DOS: memory management
under DOS (and Windows) are bad enough as they are already. What you might be
experiencing is a lack of sufficient "low mem" (that 640Kb first block of
addresses that the totally retard x86 16 bits CPUs can only address via one
64Kb segment at any given time and that all DOS executables must fit).

> with the last SMSQE.EXE version 3.33 I had to force to run in as pure DOS
> program following a W98 reboot to have a proper QL boot.

Since newer SMSQ/E executables are much larger, and since W98 is already
using the low memory in part, it is not a big surprise that it cannot work
under W98.

You *might* be successful if using DOS memory optimizers (such as QEMM)
before launching W98, depending on the amount of DOS drivers you load
on boot.

> Linked to #1 after instructing W98 to restart in DOS mode there is a
> drawback: I did not find a way to kill SMSQE.EXE (like e.g. QPC_EXIT in QPC2
> in Windows mode of course).

You don't "kill" SMSQ/E in the QXL, you kill (or rather exit) the DOS process
that communicates with it, and this is done by hitting CTRL ScrollLock
under SMSQ/E. You can return back to SMSQ/E by relaunching the SMSQE.EXE
executable (i.e. SMSQ/E keeps running on the QXL even while you are doing
other stuff under DOS).

Thierry.
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[Ql-Users] QXL 3.33, DOS and W98

[Davide Santachiara via Ql-Users]

Hi all QXL users :-)

After probably 18 years I decided to try my QXL with the latest SMSQ/E version. 
I admit I was astonished when I saw my almost 20 years old multi-boot system 
starting smoothly 1024x768 high res with SMSQ/E 3.33 for QXL. I think this is 
quite impressive and I have to congratulate for maintaining a very high level 
of compatibility along such a long period where in any case quite a number of 
modifications have been introduced (as well as new hardware and software 
platforms).

I have a couple of questions though: 

# 1
While it seems with my old SMSQ 2.90 I managed to run SMSQ under the Windows 98 
DOS (i.e. starting DOS inside W98, which allowed with ALT TAB to move to 
Windows back and forth), with the last SMSQE.EXE version 3.33 I had to force to 
run in as pure DOS program following a W98 reboot to have a proper QL boot.

# 2
Linked to #1 after instructing W98 to restart in DOS mode there is a drawback: 
I did not find a way to kill SMSQE.EXE (like e.g. QPC_EXIT in QPC2 in Windows 
mode of course). Hence the only way to restat the system is via a hw reset. But 
W98 calls again the DOS mode launching SMSQE.EXE. The only way to restart the 
system in W98 was to modify autoexec.bat and REM the lines calling SMSQE.EXE. 
Has anybody a better solution?

Thanks and regards

Davide



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