Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!portal!cup.portal.com!Thomas_E_Zerucha
From: Thomas_E_Zerucha@cup.portal.com
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: About Atari's, Mac's, and IBM's
Message-ID: <4978@cup.portal.com>
Date: 30 Apr 88 17:22:09 GMT
References: <5419@ucbvax.Berkeley.EDU> <226500010@trsvax> <213@bdt.UUCP> <4738@cup.portal.com> <9790@ism780c.UUCP>
Organization: The Portal System (TM)
Lines: 12
XPortal-User-Id: 1.1001.3273


The problem I was getting at with "virtual" MS-DOS emulators, even in a UNIX
environment is how do you use the "virtual" MS-DOS devices?  Can I delete
your files (MS-DOS doesn't allow for protection) - can I read them?  What
about things like screen writes?  There is a BIG difference between PC
compatibility and MS-DOS compatibility, a and many PC programs are PC
specific (or would be slower or have other problems).  PC Ditto is useful
mainly because it is 98% PC compatible - I can boot games directly.  Can
I stick Flight Simulator into the '386 UNIX box and have it run properly?
     My main point is that having a multitasking system with all it's
protection is one thing - as soon as you try emulating a nonprotected,
nonmultitasking environment you must trade off compatibility for other
features.  It can be done - just not that simply, and not without tradeoffs.