Help with installing 1980s DOS program
Someone posted on my local Facebook town page in need of ordinary PC support. I replied because that stuff is usually quite easy to fix -- easy/quick cash on the side, or so I thought!! Turns out it's an elderly attorney running a mid-1980s DOS version of Leading Edge Word Processor installed on Windows XP. Seriously????? The problem was it keeps giving him an error message about unable to read drive a: (3.5") even when he's not trying to use that drive. The error pops up randomly and prevents him from continuing to use the program. I confirmed that the drive reads/writes fine. Rather than trying to chase down an inconsistent bug, he asked me if he can dump Windows and just run the program under straight DOS. Okay, sure. I figured it would be fun to do this even if the guy wasn't paying me. After all, if I don't promote semi-vintage computing then who will? :) I downloaded DOS 6.22 at home and put the image files onto disks via a USB floppy drive. Went to install that on an old PC that I happened to have, and it gave errors about lack of memory space when I ran setup, which is bizarre but whatever .... I downloaded version 5.0 instead and that installed without any trouble (not counting one damaged disk; I used another disk and it worked that time). So now I've got a bare-metal DOS 5.0 installation on an older PC for this guy. His son pointed me to the word processor program at an abandonware site (I put a copy of the files at http://snarc.net/lewp/ if anybody wants to play along at home). I copied the files onto a disk via DOSbox (thanks to Dean for the tip to use emulation there!). The files read/write fine on the DOS computer. Currently I'm stumped at how to install this program on the computer. I copied them all into the same directory structure on the DOS computer. The install.bat file requires a second floppy drive, which I don't have but I am getting one tomorrow. (Local FB marketplace seller has another external USB floppy drive for eight bucks.) I have two questions: 1. Is there a way around needing a second drive? 2. If the second drive is required, is it even the correct procedure to just run the install.bat or must I do something else to install the program?
It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not... - Glenn
-----Original Message----- From: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic-bounces@lists.vcfed.org> On Behalf Of Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic Sent: Monday, May 13, 2019 7:30 PM To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> Cc: Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Help with installing 1980s DOS program
Someone posted on my local Facebook town page in need of ordinary PC support. I replied because that stuff is usually quite easy to fix -- easy/quick cash on the side, or so I thought!!
Turns out it's an elderly attorney running a mid-1980s DOS version of Leading Edge Word Processor installed on Windows XP. Seriously?????
The problem was it keeps giving him an error message about unable to read drive a: (3.5") even when he's not trying to use that drive. The error pops up randomly and prevents him from continuing to use the program. I confirmed that the drive reads/writes fine.
Rather than trying to chase down an inconsistent bug, he asked me if he can dump Windows and just run the program under straight DOS. Okay, sure. I figured it would be fun to do this even if the guy wasn't paying me. After all, if I don't promote semi-vintage computing then who will? :)
I downloaded DOS 6.22 at home and put the image files onto disks via a USB floppy drive. Went to install that on an old PC that I happened to have, and it gave errors about lack of memory space when I ran setup, which is bizarre but whatever .... I downloaded version 5.0 instead and that installed without any trouble (not counting one damaged disk; I used another disk and it worked that time).
So now I've got a bare-metal DOS 5.0 installation on an older PC for this guy. His son pointed me to the word processor program at an abandonware site (I put a copy of the files at http://snarc.net/lewp/ if anybody wants to play along at home). I copied the files onto a disk via DOSbox (thanks to Dean for the tip to use emulation there!). The files read/write fine on the DOS computer.
Currently I'm stumped at how to install this program on the computer. I copied them all into the same directory structure on the DOS computer. The install.bat file requires a second floppy drive, which I don't have but I am getting one tomorrow. (Local FB marketplace seller has another external USB floppy drive for eight bucks.)
I have two questions:
1. Is there a way around needing a second drive?
2. If the second drive is required, is it even the correct procedure to just run the install.bat or must I do something else to install the program?
It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
Forgot to mention that I did try this. It says "Invalid number of parameters" -- what the heck does that mean? On Mon, May 13, 2019, 8:45 PM Glenn Roberts <glenn.f.roberts@gmail.com> wrote:
It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
- Glenn
-----Original Message----- From: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic-bounces@lists.vcfed.org> On Behalf Of Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic Sent: Monday, May 13, 2019 7:30 PM To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> Cc: Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Help with installing 1980s DOS program
Someone posted on my local Facebook town page in need of ordinary PC support. I replied because that stuff is usually quite easy to fix -- easy/quick cash on the side, or so I thought!!
Turns out it's an elderly attorney running a mid-1980s DOS version of Leading Edge Word Processor installed on Windows XP. Seriously?????
The problem was it keeps giving him an error message about unable to read drive a: (3.5") even when he's not trying to use that drive. The error pops up randomly and prevents him from continuing to use the program. I confirmed that the drive reads/writes fine.
Rather than trying to chase down an inconsistent bug, he asked me if he can dump Windows and just run the program under straight DOS. Okay, sure. I figured it would be fun to do this even if the guy wasn't paying me. After all, if I don't promote semi-vintage computing then who will? :)
I downloaded DOS 6.22 at home and put the image files onto disks via a USB floppy drive. Went to install that on an old PC that I happened to have, and it gave errors about lack of memory space when I ran setup, which is bizarre but whatever .... I downloaded version 5.0 instead and that installed without any trouble (not counting one damaged disk; I used another disk and it worked that time).
So now I've got a bare-metal DOS 5.0 installation on an older PC for this guy. His son pointed me to the word processor program at an abandonware site (I put a copy of the files at http://snarc.net/lewp/ if anybody wants to play along at home). I copied the files onto a disk via DOSbox (thanks to Dean for the tip to use emulation there!). The files read/write fine on the DOS computer.
Currently I'm stumped at how to install this program on the computer. I copied them all into the same directory structure on the DOS computer. The install.bat file requires a second floppy drive, which I don't have but I am getting one tomorrow. (Local FB marketplace seller has another external USB floppy drive for eight bucks.)
I have two questions:
1. Is there a way around needing a second drive?
2. If the second drive is required, is it even the correct procedure to just run the install.bat or must I do something else to install the program?
Looking at the BAT file I think it wants source and destination drives Try INSTALLXT A: C: Sent from my iPad
On May 13, 2019, at 8:51 PM, Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> wrote:
It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
Forgot to mention that I did try this. It says "Invalid number of parameters" -- what the heck does that mean?
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 8:45 PM Glenn Roberts <glenn.f.roberts@gmail.com> wrote: It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
- Glenn
-----Original Message----- From: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic-bounces@lists.vcfed.org> On Behalf Of Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic Sent: Monday, May 13, 2019 7:30 PM To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> Cc: Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Help with installing 1980s DOS program
Someone posted on my local Facebook town page in need of ordinary PC support. I replied because that stuff is usually quite easy to fix -- easy/quick cash on the side, or so I thought!!
Turns out it's an elderly attorney running a mid-1980s DOS version of Leading Edge Word Processor installed on Windows XP. Seriously?????
The problem was it keeps giving him an error message about unable to read drive a: (3.5") even when he's not trying to use that drive. The error pops up randomly and prevents him from continuing to use the program. I confirmed that the drive reads/writes fine.
Rather than trying to chase down an inconsistent bug, he asked me if he can dump Windows and just run the program under straight DOS. Okay, sure. I figured it would be fun to do this even if the guy wasn't paying me. After all, if I don't promote semi-vintage computing then who will? :)
I downloaded DOS 6.22 at home and put the image files onto disks via a USB floppy drive. Went to install that on an old PC that I happened to have, and it gave errors about lack of memory space when I ran setup, which is bizarre but whatever .... I downloaded version 5.0 instead and that installed without any trouble (not counting one damaged disk; I used another disk and it worked that time).
So now I've got a bare-metal DOS 5.0 installation on an older PC for this guy. His son pointed me to the word processor program at an abandonware site (I put a copy of the files at http://snarc.net/lewp/ if anybody wants to play along at home). I copied the files onto a disk via DOSbox (thanks to Dean for the tip to use emulation there!). The files read/write fine on the DOS computer.
Currently I'm stumped at how to install this program on the computer. I copied them all into the same directory structure on the DOS computer. The install.bat file requires a second floppy drive, which I don't have but I am getting one tomorrow. (Local FB marketplace seller has another external USB floppy drive for eight bucks.)
I have two questions:
1. Is there a way around needing a second drive?
2. If the second drive is required, is it even the correct procedure to just run the install.bat or must I do something else to install the program?
Out of memory errors in DOS could indicate extended or high memory may not be configured properly, leaving too little for the application. On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:04 PM Glenn Roberts via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
Looking at the BAT file I think it wants source and destination drives
Try INSTALLXT A: C:
Sent from my iPad
On May 13, 2019, at 8:51 PM, Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> wrote:
It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
Forgot to mention that I did try this. It says "Invalid number of parameters" -- what the heck does that mean?
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 8:45 PM Glenn Roberts <glenn.f.roberts@gmail.com> wrote: It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
- Glenn
-----Original Message----- From: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic-bounces@lists.vcfed.org> On Behalf Of Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic Sent: Monday, May 13, 2019 7:30 PM To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> Cc: Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Help with installing 1980s DOS program
Someone posted on my local Facebook town page in need of ordinary PC support. I replied because that stuff is usually quite easy to fix -- easy/quick cash on the side, or so I thought!!
Turns out it's an elderly attorney running a mid-1980s DOS version of Leading Edge Word Processor installed on Windows XP. Seriously?????
The problem was it keeps giving him an error message about unable to read drive a: (3.5") even when he's not trying to use that drive. The error pops up randomly and prevents him from continuing to use the program. I confirmed that the drive reads/writes fine.
Rather than trying to chase down an inconsistent bug, he asked me if he can dump Windows and just run the program under straight DOS. Okay, sure. I figured it would be fun to do this even if the guy wasn't paying me. After all, if I don't promote semi-vintage computing then who will? :)
I downloaded DOS 6.22 at home and put the image files onto disks via a USB floppy drive. Went to install that on an old PC that I happened to have, and it gave errors about lack of memory space when I ran setup, which is bizarre but whatever .... I downloaded version 5.0 instead and that installed without any trouble (not counting one damaged disk; I used another disk and it worked that time).
So now I've got a bare-metal DOS 5.0 installation on an older PC for this guy. His son pointed me to the word processor program at an abandonware site (I put a copy of the files at http://snarc.net/lewp/ if anybody wants to play along at home). I copied the files onto a disk via DOSbox (thanks to Dean for the tip to use emulation there!). The files read/write fine on the DOS computer.
Currently I'm stumped at how to install this program on the computer. I copied them all into the same directory structure on the DOS computer. The install.bat file requires a second floppy drive, which I don't have but I am getting one tomorrow. (Local FB marketplace seller has another external USB floppy drive for eight bucks.)
I have two questions:
1. Is there a way around needing a second drive?
2. If the second drive is required, is it even the correct procedure to just run the install.bat or must I do something else to install the program?
INSTALLXT A: C:
That did it! No second drive required. It went through the whole setup program. Then I ran the LEWP by just typing "le" at c:\lewp. Now all I need to do is edit (autoexec.bat?) with a path line, if fuzzy college memory serves me correctly, in order for this to work right from c:\. Thanks Glenn! On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:04 PM Glenn Roberts <glenn.f.roberts@gmail.com> wrote:
Looking at the BAT file I think it wants source and destination drives
Try INSTALLXT A: C:
Sent from my iPad
On May 13, 2019, at 8:51 PM, Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> wrote:
It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
Forgot to mention that I did try this. It says "Invalid number of parameters" -- what the heck does that mean?
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 8:45 PM Glenn Roberts <glenn.f.roberts@gmail.com> wrote:
It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
- Glenn
-----Original Message----- From: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic-bounces@lists.vcfed.org> On Behalf Of Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic Sent: Monday, May 13, 2019 7:30 PM To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> Cc: Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Help with installing 1980s DOS program
Someone posted on my local Facebook town page in need of ordinary PC support. I replied because that stuff is usually quite easy to fix -- easy/quick cash on the side, or so I thought!!
Turns out it's an elderly attorney running a mid-1980s DOS version of Leading Edge Word Processor installed on Windows XP. Seriously?????
The problem was it keeps giving him an error message about unable to read drive a: (3.5") even when he's not trying to use that drive. The error pops up randomly and prevents him from continuing to use the program. I confirmed that the drive reads/writes fine.
Rather than trying to chase down an inconsistent bug, he asked me if he can dump Windows and just run the program under straight DOS. Okay, sure. I figured it would be fun to do this even if the guy wasn't paying me. After all, if I don't promote semi-vintage computing then who will? :)
I downloaded DOS 6.22 at home and put the image files onto disks via a USB floppy drive. Went to install that on an old PC that I happened to have, and it gave errors about lack of memory space when I ran setup, which is bizarre but whatever .... I downloaded version 5.0 instead and that installed without any trouble (not counting one damaged disk; I used another disk and it worked that time).
So now I've got a bare-metal DOS 5.0 installation on an older PC for this guy. His son pointed me to the word processor program at an abandonware site (I put a copy of the files at http://snarc.net/lewp/ if anybody wants to play along at home). I copied the files onto a disk via DOSbox (thanks to Dean for the tip to use emulation there!). The files read/write fine on the DOS computer.
Currently I'm stumped at how to install this program on the computer. I copied them all into the same directory structure on the DOS computer. The install.bat file requires a second floppy drive, which I don't have but I am getting one tomorrow. (Local FB marketplace seller has another external USB floppy drive for eight bucks.)
I have two questions:
1. Is there a way around needing a second drive?
2. If the second drive is required, is it even the correct procedure to just run the install.bat or must I do something else to install the program?
Now all I need to do is edit (autoexec.bat?) with a path line, if fuzzy college memory serves me correctly, in order for this to work right from c:\.
Done! It works! I used to know all this by heart. Then 20+ years passed... On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:29 PM Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> wrote:
INSTALLXT A: C:
That did it! No second drive required.
It went through the whole setup program. Then I ran the LEWP by just typing "le" at c:\lewp.
Now all I need to do is edit (autoexec.bat?) with a path line, if fuzzy college memory serves me correctly, in order for this to work right from c:\.
Thanks Glenn!
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:04 PM Glenn Roberts <glenn.f.roberts@gmail.com> wrote:
Looking at the BAT file I think it wants source and destination drives
Try INSTALLXT A: C:
Sent from my iPad
On May 13, 2019, at 8:51 PM, Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> wrote:
It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
Forgot to mention that I did try this. It says "Invalid number of parameters" -- what the heck does that mean?
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 8:45 PM Glenn Roberts <glenn.f.roberts@gmail.com> wrote:
It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
- Glenn
-----Original Message----- From: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic-bounces@lists.vcfed.org> On Behalf Of Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic Sent: Monday, May 13, 2019 7:30 PM To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> Cc: Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Help with installing 1980s DOS program
Someone posted on my local Facebook town page in need of ordinary PC support. I replied because that stuff is usually quite easy to fix -- easy/quick cash on the side, or so I thought!!
Turns out it's an elderly attorney running a mid-1980s DOS version of Leading Edge Word Processor installed on Windows XP. Seriously?????
The problem was it keeps giving him an error message about unable to read drive a: (3.5") even when he's not trying to use that drive. The error pops up randomly and prevents him from continuing to use the program. I confirmed that the drive reads/writes fine.
Rather than trying to chase down an inconsistent bug, he asked me if he can dump Windows and just run the program under straight DOS. Okay, sure. I figured it would be fun to do this even if the guy wasn't paying me. After all, if I don't promote semi-vintage computing then who will? :)
I downloaded DOS 6.22 at home and put the image files onto disks via a USB floppy drive. Went to install that on an old PC that I happened to have, and it gave errors about lack of memory space when I ran setup, which is bizarre but whatever .... I downloaded version 5.0 instead and that installed without any trouble (not counting one damaged disk; I used another disk and it worked that time).
So now I've got a bare-metal DOS 5.0 installation on an older PC for this guy. His son pointed me to the word processor program at an abandonware site (I put a copy of the files at http://snarc.net/lewp/ if anybody wants to play along at home). I copied the files onto a disk via DOSbox (thanks to Dean for the tip to use emulation there!). The files read/write fine on the DOS computer.
Currently I'm stumped at how to install this program on the computer. I copied them all into the same directory structure on the DOS computer. The install.bat file requires a second floppy drive, which I don't have but I am getting one tomorrow. (Local FB marketplace seller has another external USB floppy drive for eight bucks.)
I have two questions:
1. Is there a way around needing a second drive?
2. If the second drive is required, is it even the correct procedure to just run the install.bat or must I do something else to install the program?
Now all I need to do is edit (autoexec.bat?) with a path line, if fuzzy college memory serves me correctly, in order for this to work right from c:\.
If dos is in C:\DOS: PATH=C:\DOS;C:\yourprogram;etc PROMPT $P$G It's amazing how much we forget about things we grew up using and hacking around on everyday! Apparently lawyers were big on DOS era word processors (Word Perfect) because of forms they have where they fill in items and it populates them or something. The same thing exists of course in modern systems but change is hard and not always better. - Ethan
PROMPT $P$G
What is that part? On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:40 PM Ethan O'Toole <telmnstr@757.org> wrote:
Now all I need to do is edit (autoexec.bat?) with a path line, if fuzzy college memory serves me correctly, in order for this to work right from c:\.
If dos is in C:\DOS:
PATH=C:\DOS;C:\yourprogram;etc PROMPT $P$G
It's amazing how much we forget about things we grew up using and hacking around on everyday!
Apparently lawyers were big on DOS era word processors (Word Perfect) because of forms they have where they fill in items and it populates them or something. The same thing exists of course in modern systems but change is hard and not always better.
- Ethan
It displays the current path in the C: prompt e.g. C:\DOS On Mon, May 13, 2019 at 9:43 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
PROMPT $P$G
What is that part?
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:40 PM Ethan O'Toole <telmnstr@757.org> wrote:
Now all I need to do is edit (autoexec.bat?) with a path line, if fuzzy college memory serves me correctly, in order for this to work right from c:\.
If dos is in C:\DOS:
PATH=C:\DOS;C:\yourprogram;etc PROMPT $P$G
It's amazing how much we forget about things we grew up using and hacking around on everyday!
Apparently lawyers were big on DOS era word processors (Word Perfect) because of forms they have where they fill in items and it populates them or something. The same thing exists of course in modern systems but change is hard and not always better.
- Ethan
It displays the current path in the C: prompt e.g. C:\DOS
Oh, okay. No need for that. On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:47 PM Dean Notarnicola <dnotarnicola@gmail.com> wrote:
It displays the current path in the C: prompt e.g. C:\DOS
On Mon, May 13, 2019 at 9:43 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
PROMPT $P$G
What is that part?
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:40 PM Ethan O'Toole <telmnstr@757.org> wrote:
Now all I need to do is edit (autoexec.bat?) with a path line, if fuzzy college memory serves me correctly, in order for this to work right from c:\.
If dos is in C:\DOS:
PATH=C:\DOS;C:\yourprogram;etc PROMPT $P$G
It's amazing how much we forget about things we grew up using and hacking around on everyday!
Apparently lawyers were big on DOS era word processors (Word Perfect) because of forms they have where they fill in items and it populates them or something. The same thing exists of course in modern systems but change is hard and not always better.
- Ethan
$p$g was pretty standard at the time. It was very helpful when navigating through the directory structure. On Mon, May 13, 2019 at 9:49 PM Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> wrote:
It displays the current path in the C: prompt e.g. C:\DOS
Oh, okay.
No need for that.
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:47 PM Dean Notarnicola <dnotarnicola@gmail.com> wrote:
It displays the current path in the C: prompt e.g. C:\DOS
On Mon, May 13, 2019 at 9:43 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
PROMPT $P$G
What is that part?
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:40 PM Ethan O'Toole <telmnstr@757.org> wrote:
Now all I need to do is edit (autoexec.bat?) with a path line, if fuzzy college memory serves me correctly, in order for this to work right from c:\.
If dos is in C:\DOS:
PATH=C:\DOS;C:\yourprogram;etc PROMPT $P$G
It's amazing how much we forget about things we grew up using and hacking around on everyday!
Apparently lawyers were big on DOS era word processors (Word Perfect) because of forms they have where they fill in items and it populates them or something. The same thing exists of course in modern systems but change is hard and not always better.
- Ethan
At one point I had ansi.sys installed and did all sorts of stuff with jazzy prompts. On my systems now I always add “@echo off”, the prompt command above, a modified PATH, install Norton Commander and “reboot.com”. Get Outlook for iOS<https://aka.ms/o0ukef> ________________________________ From: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic-bounces@lists.vcfed.org> on behalf of Dean Notarnicola via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> Sent: Monday, May 13, 2019 10:01 PM To: Evan Koblentz Cc: Dean Notarnicola; vcf-midatlantic Subject: Re: [vcf-midatlantic] Help with installing 1980s DOS program $p$g was pretty standard at the time. It was very helpful when navigating through the directory structure. On Mon, May 13, 2019 at 9:49 PM Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> wrote:
It displays the current path in the C: prompt e.g. C:\DOS
Oh, okay.
No need for that.
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:47 PM Dean Notarnicola <dnotarnicola@gmail.com> wrote:
It displays the current path in the C: prompt e.g. C:\DOS
On Mon, May 13, 2019 at 9:43 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
PROMPT $P$G
What is that part?
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:40 PM Ethan O'Toole <telmnstr@757.org> wrote:
Now all I need to do is edit (autoexec.bat?) with a path line, if fuzzy college memory serves me correctly, in order for this to work right from c:\.
If dos is in C:\DOS:
PATH=C:\DOS;C:\yourprogram;etc PROMPT $P$G
It's amazing how much we forget about things we grew up using and hacking around on everyday!
Apparently lawyers were big on DOS era word processors (Word Perfect) because of forms they have where they fill in items and it populates them or something. The same thing exists of course in modern systems but change is hard and not always better.
- Ethan
It might be worth mentioning that if the user is getting this app up-and-running in order to get access to existing files, there are tools out there which can convert Leading Edge files into more modern formats. At least, that's what a Google search found: http://www.classiccmp.org/pipermail/cctech/2015-March/003841.html https://sourceforge.net/p/transformenator/git/ci/master/tree/src/org/transfo... I would assume there's a good chance that the user isn't so much interested in using an ancient word processor for nostalgia, but rather to gain access to some old documents. Devin On Mon, May 13, 2019 at 9:43 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
PROMPT $P$G
What is that part?
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:40 PM Ethan O'Toole <telmnstr@757.org> wrote:
Now all I need to do is edit (autoexec.bat?) with a path line, if fuzzy college memory serves me correctly, in order for this to work right from c:\.
If dos is in C:\DOS:
PATH=C:\DOS;C:\yourprogram;etc PROMPT $P$G
It's amazing how much we forget about things we grew up using and hacking around on everyday!
Apparently lawyers were big on DOS era word processors (Word Perfect) because of forms they have where they fill in items and it populates them or something. The same thing exists of course in modern systems but change is hard and not always better.
- Ethan
-- Devin J. Heitmueller http://www.devinheitmueller.com
It might be worth mentioning that if the user is getting this app up-and-running in order to get access to existing files
Nope. He refuses to upgrade! He had it running for eons on XP, then that went haywire, so he was desperate for someone to get it back running for him. On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:49 PM Devin Heitmueller <devin.heitmueller@gmail.com> wrote:
It might be worth mentioning that if the user is getting this app up-and-running in order to get access to existing files, there are tools out there which can convert Leading Edge files into more modern formats.
At least, that's what a Google search found:
http://www.classiccmp.org/pipermail/cctech/2015-March/003841.html
https://sourceforge.net/p/transformenator/git/ci/master/tree/src/org/transfo...
I would assume there's a good chance that the user isn't so much interested in using an ancient word processor for nostalgia, but rather to gain access to some old documents.
Devin
On Mon, May 13, 2019 at 9:43 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
PROMPT $P$G
What is that part?
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 9:40 PM Ethan O'Toole <telmnstr@757.org> wrote:
Now all I need to do is edit (autoexec.bat?) with a path line, if
fuzzy
college memory serves me correctly, in order for this to work right from c:\.
If dos is in C:\DOS:
PATH=C:\DOS;C:\yourprogram;etc PROMPT $P$G
It's amazing how much we forget about things we grew up using and hacking around on everyday!
Apparently lawyers were big on DOS era word processors (Word Perfect) because of forms they have where they fill in items and it populates them or something. The same thing exists of course in modern systems but change is hard and not always better.
- Ethan
-- Devin J. Heitmueller http://www.devinheitmueller.com
I installed this on virtualbox today. Couldn't figure a way around the two drive requirement. I needed to setup two virtual drives; a blank disk in B: and the install disk in A: Ran install.bat and it installed to the blank floppy (it asks for a DOS system diskette to make the finished disk bootable.) This creates the working diskette. I didn't take the last step to copy the working disk to a directory on C: and run it from there, but I imagine it would work. You would want to copy the spell check disk to its own directory on C: and add a SUBST command to autoexec.bat to assign drive B: to the spell check path on the hard drive. This would eliminate the need for a second floppy drive to run spell check. On Mon, May 13, 2019 at 8:52 PM Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> wrote:
It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
Forgot to mention that I did try this. It says "Invalid number of parameters" -- what the heck does that mean?
On Mon, May 13, 2019, 8:45 PM Glenn Roberts <glenn.f.roberts@gmail.com> wrote:
It looks like there's a separate install batch file already set up for installing from floppy to hard drive - back then "XT" meant a PC XT or clone (i.e. hard drive system). perhaps try INSTALLXT.BAT (which calls I0XT.BAT). you may have to tweak the batch file to get it to work but perhaps not...
- Glenn
-----Original Message----- From: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic-bounces@lists.vcfed.org> On Behalf Of Evan Koblentz via vcf-midatlantic Sent: Monday, May 13, 2019 7:30 PM To: vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vcfed.org> Cc: Evan Koblentz <evan@vcfed.org> Subject: [vcf-midatlantic] Help with installing 1980s DOS program
Someone posted on my local Facebook town page in need of ordinary PC support. I replied because that stuff is usually quite easy to fix -- easy/quick cash on the side, or so I thought!!
Turns out it's an elderly attorney running a mid-1980s DOS version of Leading Edge Word Processor installed on Windows XP. Seriously?????
The problem was it keeps giving him an error message about unable to read drive a: (3.5") even when he's not trying to use that drive. The error pops up randomly and prevents him from continuing to use the program. I confirmed that the drive reads/writes fine.
Rather than trying to chase down an inconsistent bug, he asked me if he can dump Windows and just run the program under straight DOS. Okay, sure. I figured it would be fun to do this even if the guy wasn't paying me. After all, if I don't promote semi-vintage computing then who will? :)
I downloaded DOS 6.22 at home and put the image files onto disks via a USB floppy drive. Went to install that on an old PC that I happened to have, and it gave errors about lack of memory space when I ran setup, which is bizarre but whatever .... I downloaded version 5.0 instead and that installed without any trouble (not counting one damaged disk; I used another disk and it worked that time).
So now I've got a bare-metal DOS 5.0 installation on an older PC for this guy. His son pointed me to the word processor program at an abandonware site (I put a copy of the files at http://snarc.net/lewp/ if anybody wants to play along at home). I copied the files onto a disk via DOSbox (thanks to Dean for the tip to use emulation there!). The files read/write fine on the DOS computer.
Currently I'm stumped at how to install this program on the computer. I copied them all into the same directory structure on the DOS computer. The install.bat file requires a second floppy drive, which I don't have but I am getting one tomorrow. (Local FB marketplace seller has another external USB floppy drive for eight bucks.)
I have two questions:
1. Is there a way around needing a second drive?
2. If the second drive is required, is it even the correct procedure to just run the install.bat or must I do something else to install the program?
participants (7)
-
Dean Notarnicola -
Devin Heitmueller -
Ethan O'Toole -
Evan Koblentz -
Glenn Roberts -
jsalzman＠gmail.com -
Richard Cini