[comp.windows.ms] windowing a DOS session

wct1@unix.cis.pitt.edu (William C Tom) (05/10/91)

I am using a commercial neural net program called "Brainmaker", which runs
under DOS and uses low graphics.  Since training a neural network takes
many hours, I want to run the program as a background process under
Windows 3.0.  However, despite extensive fiddling with the PIF
file, I can only get Brainmaker to run as the foreground process and a
full screen.  Attempts to do otherwise bring up a warning flag that
background running and windowing are not allowed.  I've been told by
the Brainmaker tech  support that some of its customers have managed to
do what I am trying to do, but they (tech support) don't know how.

Any help on this will be greatly appreciated.  (And, yes, I will be
one of the first to buy OS/2 v2.0 with its REAL multi-tasking abilities.)

Thanks.

PDS2@psuvm.psu.edu (Paul D. Shan) (05/10/91)

In article <126266@unix.cis.pitt.edu>, wct1@unix.cis.pitt.edu (William C Tom)
says:
>
>I am using a commercial neural net program called "Brainmaker", which runs
>under DOS and uses low graphics.  Since training a neural network takes
>many hours, I want to run the program as a background process under
>Windows 3.0.  However, despite extensive fiddling with the PIF
>file, I can only get Brainmaker to run as the foreground process and a
>full screen.  Attempts to do otherwise bring up a warning flag that
>background running and windowing are not allowed.  I've been told by
  One possible reason it won't work is that Brainmaker is trying to be
  intelligent by detecting the proper video mode to run in.  When Windows
  sees that Brainmaker is doind this, it says "hang on there" and doesn't
  allow the video switch.  There is no fix for this problem.  The only thing
  you might be able to do is START the application in fullscreen, and hit
  alt-enter to make a window out of it after it gets started.
  (I'm assuming Windows is running in 386 Enhanced mode.  If not, there's no
  way to run it in the background anyway).

Paul D. Shan
Microcomputer and Personal Workstation Support
Center for Academic Computing
12 Willard Building
University Park, PA  16802
(814) 863-4356
PDS2@PSUVM.psu.edu