Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ukma!rutgers!uwvax!astroatc!nicmad!brown
From: brown@nicmad.UUCP (Mr. Video)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: advice wanted on VM/386
Message-ID: <3250@nicmad.UUCP>
Date: 30 Sep 88 03:44:48 GMT
References: <23061@amdcad.AMD.COM>
Reply-To: brown@nicmad.UUCP (Mr. Video)
Distribution: na
Organization: Mr. Video's Hangout
Lines: 47

In article <23061@amdcad.AMD.COM> phil@amdcad.AMD.COM (Phil Ngai) writes:
<
<  [...]            And most of the programs I use don't understand
<extended or expanded memory. 

MS-DOS program do not understand extended memory at all.  I have never found
a program that will use extended memory.  Lotus 1-2-3 can use expanded
memory though.  The ProBas QuickBASIC programming utilities have calls
that allow detection and use of extended memory.  I haven't used them yet.
Also, one shouldn't try in virtual 8086 mode.  There would probably be some
conflict of interest.

<Having heard of the 80386's virtual 8086 mode, I wonder if I could use
<a 386 clone to give each of my applications the bare 640K machine they
<seem to require. What kind of software do I need? VM/386 sounds like
<the right thing. Windows is more than I need. I've also heard of
<DESQView. Which one will let me run my applications without running
<out of memory? What do they do if I run out of physical memory? Do any
<of them know how to swap or page?

I am a current user of VM/386.  It is a great (well, I like it anyway)
multitasking program.  Each DOS partition looks exactly like a 640K
machine, whereby each machine can be booted with it's own operating system.
If you press ALT-CTL-DEL in a partition, it only reboots that partition.
I have yet to lock up VM/386.  I have locked up partitions tighter than
a drum, but not VM/386.  If you do lock up a partition, you just enter the
VM/386 manager and reboot it that way.

Basically, you want to have 1MB for each partition that you want to run.
There is screen management overhead.  Also, you can allocate expanded
memory for things like Lotus 1-2-3.

The only problem I have had is with RBBS-PC.  For some reason it tends
to just die, when some data displaying is being done.  The ALT-CTK-DEL
still works, but RBBS-PC just stops.  IGC (the VM/386 company) and I
haven't been able to find a pattern yet to narrow it down.  They seem
to be a great place to call and get help.

<Would PC-NFS work with any of the above?

There are hooks provided for networking.  I don't have a board in yet,
so I can't discuss that issue.
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