gallo@cs.albany.edu (Andrew Gallo) (05/13/91)
I'm considering running Windows 3.0. I've read the "frequently asked questions" file but still have a few questions: 1) Apparently there are 3 modes for MS Windows. Can somebody explain in greater detail what each is and what each does? 2) Can somebody explain the interaction between Windows and DOS? For example, I run Procomm for terminal emulation, not a Windows product. I often download stuff to my PC - big stuff takes a long time. Can I start up a FULL SCREEN Procomm session, start the download, and then switch back to Windows and do something else? If this is possible, are there any downfalls I should know about? The "frequent file" touched on this, but I'm looking for a better explanation - this is all new to me. 3) Can I run Procomm in a window? (I think I can, but I need a PIF, right?) 4) Windows allows time slicing, right? This is REAL multiprocessing, right? Also, it is my understanding that you can assign priorities to jobs. Is this correct? Please send responses to gallo@cs.albany.edu. Thanks. >-----------------------------------------------------------------------------< > Andy Gallo | State University of | "If six, turned out to be < > gallo@cs.albany.edu | New York at Albany | nine, I don't mind..." 8-) < >-----------------------------------------------------------------------------<
rickc@agora.rain.com (Rick Coates) (05/14/91)
(the Problem mentioned in the subject line comes after the discussion of multi-tasking) In article gallo@cs.albany.edu (Andrew Gallo) writes: > > I'm considering running Windows 3.0. I've read the "frequently >asked questions" file but still have a few questions: ... (I'll just deal with the multi-tasking questions - and add one of my own) >in greater detail what each is and what each does? > > 2) Can somebody explain the interaction between Windows and DOS? For >example, I run Procomm for terminal emulation, not a Windows product. ... > > 4) Windows allows time slicing, right? This is REAL multiprocessing, >right? Also, it is my understanding that you can assign priorities to jobs. >Is this correct? > Windows 3.0 in its fullest mode ('386 enhanced' - only available on 386 processors) uses two kinds of multitasking. 1. for Windows applications (those that do not use a DOS command.com shell) Windows simply performs tasks in sequence, ignoring how long any one task takes. If your window takes an hour to re-draw, and you cover it and uncover it - forcing a redraw - you have no option that I know of to interrupt it. Many (most?) commercial applications obviously have had to deal with this problem on their own, but it is the _application_ than has to do it, not the operating system (Windows 3.0). 2. for DOS applications running in a window, Windows offers true 'preemptive' multitasking, that is, Windows will interrupt the application every so often no matter what it is doing and let another task access to resources. This lets you have two scrolling windows open at once, say one to run a compile of a library and another to edit your source file. THE PROBLEM: When I run two DOS windows on my computer(1), within twenty minutes or less the system crashes. Ususally, I am running a make and editing a file as described above. The symptom is some keystrokes from the edit window show up in the make window, the make window crashes DOS in that window, then very soon Windows reports an unrecoverable error, etc. I have had this happen several times, enough to convince me to be very suspicious of using Windows in a working environment (I do Unix work most of the time, I am curious about Windows and am writing an application just for the experience). Any comments? 1. My computer: a AMI BIOS 16 MHz 386SX machine with 5 megabytes of RAM - Windows HIMEM.SYS installed with no errors or warnings. Rick Coates ...!tektronix!tessi!agora!rickc Contract HW/SW engineer (Graphics - Sun - ASIC design - imbedded systems)