Windows FAQ: ASCII format, 01/09
Tom Haapanen
Microsoft Windows FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions). While some of you
may find this the best format, the more popular format is the WinHelp
file. These are posted simultaneously with the ASCII version to
comp.binaries.ms-windows.
You can also FTP the FAQs from the following sites:
ftp.nimh.nih.gov /pub/win3/FAQ
wuarchive.wustl.edu /usenet/comp.binaries.ms-windows/faqs
ftp.metrics.com /faq
BEGIN--------------cut here--------cut here------------cut here----------
Microsoft Windows FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Copyright
This document is compilation copyright (c) 1990-1994 by Tom Haapanen. It
may be freely copied and/or distributed in its entirety as long as this
copyright notice is not removed. It may not be sold for profit or
incorporated into commercial products without the author's written
permission. [Compilation copyright means that you can freely use
individual sections of this document, but any significant collection of
sections is subject to the copyright.]
Note: Revision dates for each section are shown next to the section names
on each index page! To find updated sections for a particular date,
click the Search button in WinHelp and enter "Updated:" to see the
various update dates available.
CONTENTS
========
1. Credits
2. Microsoft Windows
2.1. Windows 1.0
2.2. Windows 2.0
2.3. Windows/386
2.4. Windows 3.0
2.5. Windows 3.1
2.6. Windows 3.11
2.7. Windows for Workgroups 3.1
2.8. Windows for Workgroups 3.11
2.9. Windows NT 3.1
2.10. Win32s for Windows 3.1
2.11. Windows 4.0 ("Chicago" and Win32c)
2.12. Windows NT 3.5 ("Daytona")
2.13. Windows NT 4.0 ("Cairo")
2.14. Windows for Pen Computing 3.1
2.15. Multimedia Windows
2.16. Modular Windows
2.17. Win-OS/2
2.18. Chicago Q&A
2.18.1. What is Chicago?
2.18.2. What is Cairo?
2.18.3. Why does Microsoft have multiple Windows products?
2.18.4. When will Chicago and Cairo ship?
2.18.5. What is Daytona?
2.18.6. How will Chicago make the projected ship date?
2.18.7. What if Chicago ships before Cairo?
2.18.8. What are Chicago's key benefits?
2.18.9. What different Chicago packages will be available?
2.18.10. What will Chicago be called?
2.18.11. What will happen to MS-DOS?
2.18.12. How will Chicago perform on 4 MB?
2.18.13. Will Chicago run current applications?
2.18.14. Will I need to get new device drivers?
2.18.15. Will my current applications work well on Chicago?
2.18.16. When will Chicago's new UI be ready?
2.18.17. Will the new user interface mean a lot of retraining?
2.18.18. What is Plug and Play?
2.18.19. What hardware changes does Plug and Play require?
2.18.20. Won't it take a long time for Plug and Play?
2.18.21. Is the Chicago API different from the Windows NT API?
2.18.22. Will vendors need separate Chicago and NT versions?
2.18.23. When will Chicago applications be available?
2.18.24. Is Chicago completely 32-bit?
2.18.25. How do the 16-bit components fit in?
2.18.26. Will existing networking software work with Chicago?
2.18.27. What about Netware with Chicago?
2.18.28. Will vendors there be Chicago "server" version?
2.18.29. What about Chicago's portability?
2.18.30. What about systems management?
2.18.31. Will there be mobility features?
2.18.32. How will file synchronization work?
2.18.33. Will there be separate NT and Chicago SDKs?
2.18.34. What benefits are there to developers?
2.18.35. Will Visual Basic for Applications be included?
2.18.36. Will Chicago and NT use common device drivers?
2.18.37. Will WOSA services be included?
3. Internet and Usenet
3.1. Usenet
3.2. Usenet Windows newsgroups
3.3. Alternatives to Usenet
3.4. Windows-related mailing lists
3.5. Freeware and shareware by ftp
3.6. Popular Internet ftp sites
3.7. Using archie
3.8. Ftp by email
3.9. FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
3.10. More about Internet and Usenet
3.11. FTP archives on CD-ROM
4. Setting Up and Configuring Windows
4.1. System Configuration
4.1.1. Minimum Windows 3.1 configurations
4.1.2. Minimum Windows 3.0 configurations
4.1.3. Minimum Windows NT pre-release configuration
4.1.4. Standard mode vs. 386 Enhanced mode
4.2. Selecting a hardware configuration for Windows
4.2.1. Selecting a CPU/FPU
4.2.2. Selecting the memory size
4.2.3. Selecting a hard disk
4.2.4. Selecting a video adapter
4.3. System BIOS compatability
4.4. Video drivers
4.4.1. Identifying your video card
4.4.2. Locating a driver
4.4.3. Video card manufacturers
4.4.4. Using 256 (or more) colors in Windows
4.4.5. Panacea Winspeed
4.4.6. CGA drivers
4.5. Printer drivers
4.5.1. Eliminating the Ctrl-D in PostScript output
4.5.2. EPS graphics print in portrait even on landscape pages
4.5.3. Hewlett-Packard DeskJet printing problems
4.5.4. PostScript printer uses incorrect fonts
4.5.5. Selecting a PostScript printer driver
4.5.6. Using an Apple Imagewriter or Imagewriter II with Windows
4.6. Math coprocessors and WIN87EM.DLL
4.7. Multimedia
4.7.1. AdLib cards and .wav files
4.7.2. Using MIDI cards with Windows 3.1
4.7.3. SoundBlaster Pro and Windows 3.1
4.7.4. Using the PC's built-in speaker
4.8. System resources
4.9. Networking
4.9.1. Compatible Networks
4.9.2. Windows for Workgroups
4.9.2.1. Accessing Windows for Workgroups drives prior to starting
Windows
4.9.2.2. Usin NetBIOS from MS-DOS
4.9.2.3. Sharing a CD-ROM drive with Windows for Workgroups
4.9.3. Windows for Workgroups with TCP/IP
4.9.3.1. DEC Pathworks with NDIS
4.9.3.2. FTP TCP/IP: general
4.9.3.3. FTP TCP/IP: NDIS setup
4.9.3.4. FTP TCP/IP: generic DOS kernel setup
4.9.3.5. SunSelect PC-NFS
4.9.3.6. WinQVT/Net
4.9.3.7. Wollongong Pathway Access/NFS
4.9.4. Novell's NWPOPUP utility won't initialize
4.10. WINSOCK.DLL-based TCP/IP networking
4.11. Integrating with Unix e-mail
4.12. Serial communications
4.12.1. Using COM3 and COM4
4.12.2. Using a high-performance 16550 serial port
4.12.3. DOS boxes and 16550 serial ports
4.12.4. SmartDrive and 16550 high-speed transfers
4.13. Disk drives and virtual memory
4.13.1. Virtual memory and swapfiles
4.13.2. Maximum swapfile size
4.13.3. Windows 3.x and Stacker
4.13.4. SCSI controllers
4.13.5. SmartDrive double buffering on SCSI drives
4.13.6. Windows 3.x and large hard disks
4.14. Troubleshooting
4.14.1. BMP wallpaper won't display correctly
4.14.2. Frequent GPFs (General Protection Faults)
4.14.3. File Manager won't format floppies
4.14.4. Incorrect system version; reinstall the 386 enhanced version of
Windows
4.14.5. Mouse hangs when using communications software
4.14.6. Object Linking and Embedding (OLE 2.0) does not work
4.14.7. Parity errors with Windows 3.1
4.14.8. Performance deterioration in a 386 Enhanced mode DOS session
4.14.9. Problems creating a permanent swapfile in Windows 3.0
4.14.10. Program Manager claims only 8 KB of free memory
4.14.11. Using a slow expansion memory board with Windows
4.14.12. Windows 3.0 refuses to run without a file called WINA20.386
4.14.13. Windows 3.1 hangs or crashes during startup
4.14.14. Windows 3.1 hangs or waits a long time on exit
4.14.15. Windows 3.1 Resource Kit won't install
4.14.16. Windows 3.x waits a long time on startup
4.14.17. Windows for Workgroups 3.11 claims ports are in use
5. Windows and DOS
5.1. Configuring DOS sessions
5.1.1. DOS in a window
5.1.2. Lotus 1-2-3 in Windows
5.1.3. Reducing the amount of "jerkiness" in DOS window updating
5.1.4. Extended memory in DOS sessions
5.1.5. Changing the font size for a DOS window
5.1.6. Changing the number of lines inr a DOS window
5.1.7. Mouse in a DOS window
5.1.8. TSRs in DOS sessions
5.1.8.1. VGA graphics in a windowed DOS session
5.2. Troubleshooting DOS applications
5.2.1. Can't run VGA graphics in a window
5.2.2. Corrupted diskettes when copying files in a DOS session
5.2.3. High color and true color modes run out of resources
5.2.4. Out of Environment Space
5.2.5. Protected-mode software
5.3. DOS shells and extenders
5.3.1. QEMM/386 and DesqView/386
5.3.2. MKS Toolkit: setting up
5.3.3. MKS Toolkit: maximizing DOS session memory
5.3.3.1. MS-SH
6. Windows Tips, Tricks and Secrets
6.1. General
6.1.1. Automatically opening applications on startup, with predefined
window positions
6.1.2. Changing or bypassing the startup logo
6.1.3. Changing the font used for the icon labels
6.1.4. Disabling the network warnings on startup
6.1.5. Limiting the size of the temporary swap file
6.1.6. Making Windows 3.x act like 2.x runtime
6.1.7. Printing PostScript files without a PostScript printer
6.1.8. Search path in Windows
6.1.9. Swapping the Ctrl and CapsLock keys
6.1.10. Minimizing Windows disk space usage
6.1.11. VT100 emulation for Windows
6.2. Program Manager
6.2.1. Assigning a hotkey to Program Manager
6.2.2. Changing the font used for the icon labels
6.2.3. Changing the program icon
6.2.4. Changing the title of the Program Manager window
6.2.5. Converting documents to PostScript format
6.2.6. Creating your own icons
6.2.7. Creating your own wallpaper
6.2.8. Previewing PostScript output
6.2.9. Restricting the Program Manager
6.2.10. Saving Program Manager settings without exiting Windows
6.2.11. Starting Windows without activating the applications in the
Startup group
6.2.12. Starting an application in a different directory
6.2.13. Using environment variables
6.3. Windows accessories
6.3.1. Cardfile: converting to ASCII text
6.3.2. Clock: Windows 3.1 Clock limitations
6.3.3. Control Panel: accessing control panels directly
6.3.4. Help: changing the default window size
6.3.5. Help: changing the keyword colors
6.3.6. Notepad: F5 and current time
6.3.7. Recorder: recording more than 60 seconds of sound
6.3.8. Terminal: keypad
6.3.9. General: "Can't open TEMP.WRI" (or similar message)
6.4. Changing default directories
6.4.1. Bitmaps
6.4.2. Fonts
6.4.3. Icons
6.5. Fonts
6.5.1. Accessing foreign/accented characters
6.5.2. Converting font formats
6.5.3. Converting Macintosh Type 1 (ATM) fonts to Windows
6.5.4. Replacing your System font with a serif font
6.5.5. ZIP code bar code fonts
6.6. Applications
6.6.1. Access: printing a database diagram
6.6.2. Ami Pro 3.0: getting a menu of special characters
6.6.3. DayBook: running on Windows 3.1
6.6.4. Excel: Calling DLL routines
6.6.5. Excel: Doing log-log graphs
6.6.6. Excel: Multiple X-Y graphs on shared X-axis
6.6.7. Improv: converting hexadecimal numbers
6.6.8. Norton Desktop: Wider listbox for Scheduler
6.6.9. Norton Desktop: Using smaller fonts for lists
6.6.10. Procomm Plus: Adding fonts
6.6.11. WinQVTNet: Hiding a gateway
6.6.12. Word for Windows: changing bullet paragraph indent
6.6.13. Word for Windows: centering equations
6.6.14. Word for Windows 2.0: converting batches of WP files to Word
6.6.15. Word for Windows 2.0: custom toolbar icons
6.6.16. Word for Windows: drop caps (large 1st characters of paragraphs)
6.6.17. Word for Windows: fonts larger than 127 points
6.6.18. Word for Windows: foreign-language dictionaries and thesauri
6.6.19. Word for Windows: getting rid of the list of last files edited
6.6.20. Word for Windows: inserting today's date
6.6.21. Word for Windows: linking in subdocuments
6.6.22. Word for Windows: numbering equations
6.6.23. Word for Windows: overlining words
6.6.24. Word for Windows: printing even and odd pages
6.6.25. Word for Windows: removing hard returns on downloaded text
6.6.26. Word for Windows: setting the find file default directory
6.6.27. Word for Windows: turning echo off in a macro
6.6.28. Word for Windows 2.0: using a watermark
6.6.29. Word for Windows: using date formats from [Intl] section in
WIN.INI
6.6.30. WordPerfect for Windows 1.0: changing the background color
6.6.31. WordPerfect for Windows 5.2: changing the button bar
6.6.32. WordPerfect for Windows: decrypting a password-protected file
6.6.33. WordPerfect for Windows 5.2: using smart quotes
6.6.34. WordPerfect for Windows 5.2: using bullets
6.7. Gang screens ("Easter Eggs")
6.7.1. Windows 3.0
6.7.2. Windows 3.1
6.7.3. Ami Pro 2.0
6.7.4. Borland (all Windows products)
6.7.5. Corel Draw! 3.0
6.7.6. Excel 3.0
6.7.7. Norton Desktop for Windows 2.0
6.7.8. PageMaker for Windows 4.0
6.7.9. Procomm Plus for Windows 1.0
6.7.10. Word for Windows 1.x
6.7.11. Word for Windows 2.0
7. Applications
7.1. Windows 2.x Applications
7.2. Troubleshooting
7.2.1. Access: version 1.1 upgrade
7.2.2. AllType: converted TrueType fonts not in same family
7.2.3. Ami Pro 3.0: can't read Word 2.0 or WordPerfect 5.2 files
7.2.4. Ami Pro: mixed landscape/portrait document eats system resources
7.2.5. Ami Pro: table of contents
7.2.6. Ami Pro 2.0: divide by zero error
7.2.7. Ami Pro 3.0: equation handling problems
7.2.8. Ami Pro 3.0: overlapped screen text
7.2.9. Ami Pro 2.0: printing with incorrect fonts
7.2.10. Ami Pro 3.0: slow printing
7.2.11. Ami Pro 3.0: unable to load Word or WordPerfect files
7.2.12. Corel Draw! 3.0: can't rotate bitmaps
7.2.13. Corel Draw! 4.0: can't install from CD-ROM
7.2.14. Excel 4.0: out of memory loading a workbook
7.2.15. FrameMaker: scrambled dot-matrix output
7.2.16. KA9Q: dropped packets
7.2.17. Norton Desktop for Windows: can't format in the background
7.2.18. Norton Desktop for Windows: crashes from selecting files
7.2.19. Mathematica 2.0 for Windows: problems with Windows 3.1, other
problems
7.2.20. Mathematica 2.1 for Windows: crashing problems
7.2.21. NCSA Telnet [in DOS session]: crashes in a window
7.2.22. PageMaker 4.0: font selection box won't scroll
7.2.23. PageMaker 4.0: text color changes to almost invisible
7.2.24. PageMaker 4.0: WordPerfect and Word for Windows import
7.2.25. Paradox for Windows: dialog boxes can't be killed
7.2.26. Pathway Access 1.x: terminal font
7.2.27. PC Tools 7.1: restore problems
7.2.28. Procomm Plus for Windows: Pasted text has extra CR/LFs
7.2.29. Procomm Plus for Windows: Zmodem transfer startup
7.2.30. Quattro Pro for Windows 1.0: Accessing drive D:
7.2.31. Quattro Pro for Windows 1.0: Cut and paste to other applications
7.2.32. Quattro Pro for Windows: High resource requirements
7.2.33. Quattro Pro for Windows: Numeric format alignment
7.2.34. Quattro Pro for Windows: OLE and DDE problems
7.2.35. Quattro Pro for Windows: Saving over foreign formats
7.2.36. Quicken for Windows: conflicts with communications software
7.2.37. Ventura Publisher 3.0: divide by zero errors
7.2.38. WinFax Pro 2.0
7.2.39. Word for Windows: accessing fonts
7.2.40. Word for Windows 2.0: can't install additional components
7.2.41. Word for Windows 2.0: can't print envelopes
7.2.42. Word for Windows 2.0: equation editor fonts
7.2.43. Word for Windows 2.0: equations have too much white space
7.2.44. Word for Windows 2.0: file too big to save
7.2.45. Word for Windows 2.0: headers and graphics
7.2.46. Word for Windows 2.0: mixed landscape/portrait document eats
system resources
7.2.47. Word for Windows 2.0b: printing from Print Preview
7.2.48. WordPerfect for Windows: mixed landscape/portrait document eats
resources
7.2.49. WordPerfect for Windows 1.0: floppy access
7.2.50. WordPerfect for Windows 1.0: button bar won't display
7.2.51. WordPerfect for Windows 1.0: crashes with 256-color display
driver
7.2.52. WordPerfect for Windows 5.2: incorrect table of contents
7.2.53. WordPerfect for Windows 1.0: mixing landscape and portrait pages
7.2.54. WordPerfect for Windows 1.0: printing with TrueType
7.3. Available Windows 3.x applications
7.3.1. Mainstream productivity applications
7.3.1.1. Desktop publishing
7.3.1.2. Integrated sofware
7.3.1.3. Spreadsheets
7.3.1.4. Word processing
7.3.1.5. Word processing utilities
7.3.2. Information management
7.3.2.1. Databases, non-programmable
7.3.2.2. Databases, programmable
7.3.2.3. Form processing and management
7.3.2.4. Project management
7.3.3. Graphics and illustration
7.3.3.1. Databases, image
7.3.3.2. Charting (flow and organizational)
7.3.3.3. Drawing and illustration
7.3.3.4. Graphics conversion
7.3.3.5. Image viewers
7.3.3.6. Painting and image editing
7.3.3.7. Presentation and business graphics
7.3.3.8. Technical and Scientific Plotting
7.3.4. Personal information and finance management
7.3.4.1. Financial Management
7.3.4.2. Personal Information Managers
7.3.5. Communications and networking
7.3.5.1. Networking and groupware
7.3.5.1.1. Groupware
7.3.5.1.2. Internet news and mail readers/utilities
7.3.5.1.3. Internet access utilities
7.3.5.1.4. TCP/IP Networking
7.3.5.1.5. X Window servers
7.3.5.2. Communications and terminal emulation
7.3.5.2.1. Communications (ASCII)
7.3.5.2.2. Communications (IBM mainframe)
7.3.5.2.3. Facsimile
7.3.5.2.4. Remote Access
7.3.6. Fonts
7.3.6.1. Font packages
7.3.6.2. Font managers
7.3.6.3. Font utilities
7.3.7. Utilities and fonts
7.3.7.1. Disk and file utilities
7.3.7.1.1. Archiving utilies
7.3.7.1.2. Backup software
7.3.7.2. Program launchers and desktops
7.3.7.2.1. Program Manager type
7.3.7.2.2. File Manager type
7.3.7.2.3. Integrated desktops
7.3.7.2.4. Icon docks/tool bars
7.3.7.2.5. Commandline utilities
7.3.7.2.6. Other program launchers
7.3.7.3. Other utilities
7.3.7.3.1. Benchmarking utilities
7.3.7.3.2. Clock utilities
7.3.7.3.3. Desktop enhancers
7.3.7.3.4. Miscellaneous
7.3.7.3.5. Task schedulers
7.3.7.3.6. Task managers
7.3.8. Technical and engineering
7.3.8.1. CAD software
7.3.8.2. Engineering
7.3.8.3. Mathematical
7.3.8.4. Simulation and modeling
7.3.8.5. Statistics
7.3.9. Home, entertainment and multimedia
7.3.9.1. Multimedia
7.3.9.1.1. CD audio players
7.3.9.1.2. Multimedia authoring
7.3.9.1.3. Multimedia playback
7.3.9.1.4. Sound editors
7.3.9.1.5. Video Editors
7.3.9.2. Entertainment
7.3.9.2.1. Games and entertainment
7.3.9.3. Home
7.3.9.3.1. Cooking
7.3.9.3.2. Fitness and Sports
8. Technical Support Contacts
8.1. Microsoft
8.1.1. Telephone
8.1.2. Internet
8.1.3. Compuserve
8.1.4. Microsoft Download Service
8.2. Wolfram Research
8.2.1. Internet
8.3. WordPerfect
8.3.1. Telephone
8.3.2. Bulletin Board Service
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
1. CREDITS
===========
The author may be contacted by the following means:
Internet: tomh@ metrics.com
UUCP: uunet!metrics.com!tomh
BITNET: tomh@ metrics.com
CompuServe: >INTERNET: to...@metrics.com
Mail: Tom Haapanen
Software Metrics Inc.
22 King St. S., suite 303
Waterloo, Ont.
N2J 1N8, Canada
The Word for Windows to Windows Help conversion utility, Dr. Help, used
for creating and maintaining this document, was created by Roger Hadgraft,
senior lecturer in Civil Engineering at Monash University, Clayton,
Victoria, Australia. It can be used for converting most Word files into
WinHelp files. Roger may be contacted as:
Internet: roger.h...@eng.monash.edu.au
UUCP: uunet!eng.monash.edu.au!roger.hadgraft
CompuServe: >INTERNET: roger.h...@eng.monash.edu.au
I would also like to express my gratitude to the countless people who have
contributed information to the Windows FAQs, through Usenet news, email and
personal conversations. You know who you are: I'm grateful for your help,
as this FAQ would not be what it is without your help.
Latest versions of this FAQ are available by anonymous ftp on
ftp.metrics.com (198.133.164.1) in the directory ~/faq.
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
2. MICROSOFT WINDOWS
=====================
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.1. Windows 1.0
=================
Microsoft first began development of the Interface Manager (subsequently
renamed Microsoft Windows) in September 1981. Although the first
prototypes used Multiplan and Word-like menus at the bottom of the screen,
the interface was changed in 1982 to use pull-down menus and dialogs, as
used on the Xerox Star.
Microsoft finally announced Windows in November 1983, with pressure from
just-released VisiOn and impending TopView. This was after the release of
the Apple Lisa (but prior to the Macintosh), and before Digital Research
announced GEM, another competing graphical environment. Windows promised
an easy-to-use graphical interface, device-independent graphics and
multitasking support. The development was delayed several times, however,
and the first version hit the store shelves (after 55 programmer-years of
development!) in November 1985. The selection of applications was sparse,
however, and Windows sales were modest,
The following were the major features of Windows 1.0:
* Graphical user interface with drop-down menus, tiled windows and mouse
support
* Device-independent screen and printer graphics
* Co-operative multitasking of Windows applications
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.2. Windows 2.0
=================
Windows 2.0, introduced in the fall of 1987, provided significant
useability improvements to Windows. With the addition of icons and
overlapping windows, Windows became a viable environment for development of
major applications (such as Excel, Word for Windows, Corel Draw!, Ami, Page
Maker and Micrografx Designer), and the sales were spurred by the runtime
("Single Application Environment") versions supplied by the independent
software vendors. When Windows/386 (see next section) was released,
Microsoft renamed Windows to Windows/286 for consistency.
The following are the major changes from earlier versions of Windows:
* Overlapping windows
* PIF files for DOS applications
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.3. Windows/386
=================
In late 1987 Microsoft released Windows/386. While it was functionally
equivalent to its sibling, Windows/286, in running Windows applications, it
provided the capability to run multiple DOS applications simultaneously in
the extended memory.
The following are the major changes from earlier versions of Windows:
* Multiple DOS virtual machines with pre-emptive multitasking
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.4. Windows 3.0
=================
Microsoft Windows 3.0, released in May, 1990, was a complete overhaul of
the Windows environment. With the capability to address memory beyond 640K
and a much more powerful user interface, independent software vendors
started developing Windows applications with vigor. The powerful new
applications helped Microsoft sell more than 10 million copies of Windows,
making it the best-selling graphical user interface in the history of
computing.
The following are the major changes from earlier versions of Windows:
* Standard (286) mode, with large memory support
* 386 Enhanced mode, with large memory and multiple pre-emptive DOS session
support
* No runtime versions available
* Program Manager and File Manager added
* Network support
* Support for more than 16 colors
* API support for combo boxes, hierarchical menus and private .ini files
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.5. Windows 3.1
=================
Microsoft Windows 3.1, released in April, 1992 provides significant
improvements to Windows 3.0. In its first two months on the market, it
sold over 3 million copies, including upgrades from Windows 3.0. It is
currently continuing to sell at a rate of over 1 million copies per month.
The following are the major changes from Windows 3.0:
* No Real (8086) mode support
* TrueType scalable font support
* Multimedia capability
* Object Linking and Embedding (OLE)
* Application reboot capability
* "Mouse Trails" for easier mouse use with LCD display devices
* Better inter-application protection and better error diagnostics
* API multimedia and networking support
* Source-level API compatability with Windows NT
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.6. Windows 3.11
==================
Windows 3.11, available now, adds no new features but corrects some
existing, mostly network-related problems. It is replacing Windows 3.1 at
the retail and OEM levels, and the upgrade is available free from
ftp.microsoft.com.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.7. Windows for Workgroups 3.1
================================
The Windows for Workgroups package, released in November, 1992, is the
first integrated Windows and networking package offered by Microsoft. It
provides peer-to-peer file and printer sharing capabilities (on a level
comparable to LANtastic or Netware Lite) highly integrated into the Windows
environment. The simple-to-use-and-install networking allows the user to
specify which files on the user's machine should be made accessible to
others. The files can then be accessed from other machines running either
Windows or DOS.
Windows for Workgroups also includes two additional applications: Microsoft
Mail, a network mail package, and Schedule+, a workgroup scheduler.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.8. Windows for Workgroups 3.11
=================================
Windows for Workgroups 3.11, available now, adds 32-bit file access, fax
capabilites and higher performance to Windows for Workgroups 3.1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.9. Windows NT 3.1
====================
Microsoft Windows NT is Microsoft's platform of choice for high-end
systems. It is intended for use in network servers, workstations and
software development machines; it will not replace Windows for DOS. While
Windows NT's user interface is very similar to that of Windows 3.1, it is
based on an entirely new operating system kernel.
The following are the major changes from Windows 3.1:
* Based on a new microkernel design
* Portable architecture for Intel x86/Pentium, MIPS R4000/R4400 and DEC
Alpha processors. Support for PowerPC and SPARC architectures is under
development.
* 32-bit addressing for access to up to 4 GB of memory
* Fully protected applications with virtualized hardware access
* Installable APIs for Win32, Win16, MS-DOS, POSIX and OS/2
* Installable file systems, including FAT, HPFS and NTFS
* Built-in networking (LAN Manager and TCP/IP) with remote procedure calls
(RPCs)
* Symmetric multiprocessor support
* Security designed in from start, to be initially C2 certified, with a B-
level kernel design
* API support for asynchronous message queues, advanced interprocess
communication, registration databases, Bezier curves and graphics
transformations.
The following is the minimum platform for use with the client edition of
Windows NT:
* 33 MHz 386 processor
* 12 MB memory
* 100 MB hard disk
* VGA graphics
The Advanced Server Edition requires 16 MB of memory.
Win32 in itself is not a version of Windows, but the name of application
programming interface for Windows NT and "Chicago".
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.10. Win32s for Windows 3.1
=============================
Win32s is a set of libraries for Windows 3.1, which enable users to run
most Windows NT 32-bit applications on Windows 3.1, without the extensive
hardware requirements of Windows NT. The Win32s interface has effectively
replaced the older Windows-32 programming interface used by 32-bit Windows
applications such as previous versions of Mathematica.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.11. Windows 4.0 ("Chicago" and Win32c)
=========================================
This unannounced product is rumored to be released in late 1994. It will
be a 32-bit system providing full pre-emptive multitasking, advanced
filesystems, threading, networking and more. It will include MS-DOS 7.0,
but will take over from DOS completely after starting. It will not include
Windows NT's security, multiprocessor support, server capabilities or
multiple API modules. It will include a completely revised user interface,
along the lines of "Cairo", but not taken as far as that product.
See the section entitled Chicago Q&A for more information about Chicago.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.12. Windows NT 3.5 ("Daytona")
=================================
"Daytona" is Microsoft's codename for an upcoming release of Windows NT,
which will provide OLE 2.0, improved performance and reduced memory
requirements. Availability is expected in mid-1994
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.13. Windows NT 4.0 ("Cairo")
===============================
"Cairo" is Microsoft's project for object-oriented Windows, and a successor
to the "Daytona" release of Windows NT. Firm details are not available,
but most rumors place expected availability sometime in 1995. Developers
are encouraged to work with OLE 2.0 in order to start moving in the correct
direction towards future "Cairo" compatability.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.14. Windows for Pen Computing 3.1
====================================
Microsoft developed Windows for Pen Computing for use on pen-based systems.
In most aspects, it is basically equivalent to Windows 3.1 with extensions
for pen support. These extensions include the use of a pen as a pointing
device as well as handwriting recognition and conversion. Pen Windows
first shipped in April, 1992.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.15. Multimedia Windows
=========================
The term Multimedia Windows describes a package with Windows 3.0 and the
Multimedia Extensions. These extensions are included in Windows 3.1, and
thus Multimedia Windows is no longer sold as a separate product.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.16. Modular Windows
======================
Modular Windows is the operating system for Tandy Corp.'s Video Information
System (VIS) multimedia player. It is essentially similar to Windows'
core, but without any desktop accessories, TrueType fonts or a number of
other features.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.17. Win-OS/2
===============
Win-OS/2 is the Windows component of IBM's OS/2 2.0. It is based partially
on Windows 3.0 and partially on 3.1. While it runs a majority of the
commercial Windows applications, it is not covered by this document.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.18. Chicago Q&A
==================
The following questions and answers are from a document distributed by
Microsoft in December, 1993.
Microsoft is continually enhancing its Windows operating system product
line to deliver easy to use yet powerful products that exploit the latest
advances in microcomputer hardware technology. There is a great deal of
interest in and speculation about the "Chicago" project, the technology
development effort which will deliver the next major release of Windows for
the mainstream desktop and portable PC. The purpose of this document is to
answer the most common questions that customers have voiced about Chicago.
...........................................................................
2.18.1. What is Chicago?
--------------------------
What is Chicago and how does it compare to the Microsoft* Windows* 3.1,
Windows* for Workgroups and Windows NT* operating systems?
Microsoft has a family of operating system products designed to fully
utilize the range of PC hardware available in the market today, while
providing a consistent user interface for end users and a programming
environment for developers. Windows 3.x and Windows for Workgroups 3.x on
MS-DOS* are designed for mainstream portable and desktop PC platforms.
Windows NT is designed for the high-end business and technical workstation
platforms and Windows NT Advanced Server is designed as a server platform.
Chicago is the code name for a development project that will produce the
successor to Windows 3.x and Windows for Workgroups 3.x. The Chicago
project encompasses a variety of important new technologies that will make
personal computers running Windows easy to use, and that will provide a
more powerful multitasking system and a great platform for communications.
Decisions about how those technologies will be packaged will be made later
in the development cycle and will be based on customer and business needs.
...........................................................................
2.18.2. What is Cairo?
------------------------
What is Cairo? How does Chicago compare to Cairo?
Cairo is the code name for a development project that will produce the
successor to Windows NT. Chicago and Cairo will produce complementary
products that will continue to provide a consistent user interface and
programming environment across the entire range of PC hardware platforms.
...........................................................................
2.18.3. Why does Microsoft have multiple Windows products?
------------------------------------------------------------
Why does Microsoft have multiple Windows operating system products?
Wouldn't it be simpler to just have one product? Does that mean ISVs have
to decide between different operating system products when writing
applications?
There are two distinct design points for operating systems platforms. One
is centered on the mainstream system, and the other is centered on the
high-end system. It is not possible to have one operating system
implementation that fully exploits the broad range of hardware available
today. At the low end (currently represented by products such as the HP
Omnibook and entry-level desktop machines), the primary design goal is to
keep the operating system small and fast and to keep usage of machine
resources to a minimum. At the high end (for example, a dual-processor
technical workstation), the product would need to fully support
multiprocessing and advanced 3-D graphics as well as be capable of running
technical applications that use maximum machine and system resources.
Over time, low-end machines will become more powerful, and over time, some
of today's high-end features will migrate to the low end. In addition,
some technical innovations will appear on the mainstream Windows system
first, largely because of the timing of product releases, and because some
features are focused on end users and ease of use. The Win32 API assures
developers that, whichever system they target today, their applications
will be able to run in the future as the platform evolves.
Thus, while Chicago and Cairo may leapfrog one another with some features,
depending on release cycles -- e.g., Chicago will sport the next major
advance in the user interface, with Cairo inheriting it in its release a
few months later -- the general principle over time is that the high-end
product will be a superset of the functionality offered in the mainstream
product. Any deviations from this principle are temporary, due to
variations in the product release schedules. For ISVs and for development
purposes, however, Microsoft has just one Windows platform, defined by the
Windows-based 32-bit API, Win32. By following a few simple guidelines,
ISVs can write a single application (executable) that runs on the Windows
operating system product family. If they wish, ISVs can target specific
operating system products because the functionality they provide is
important to their particular application, but that is not a requirement.
This situation is very much like the Intel microprocessor product line. At
any point in time, the Intel product line offers multiple products
targeted toward different PC products, ranging from the 80386SL for low-
end portable products to the Pentium microprocessor for high-end
workstations and application servers. What defines those products is the
Intel instruction set, which enables applications to run on all Intel
chips, even though the underlying implementation at the transistor level
may be very different across the Intel product line. There are also some
instructions offered on the Pentium chip that are not on the 80386SL, but
ISVs would have to go out of their way to make their products run on only
Pentium. And over time, Pentium will become more mainstream, just as the
80486 has become the mainstream microprocessor today, and technologies
developed at the low end, such as System Management Mode, will be
implemented on the high end as well.
...........................................................................
2.18.4. When will Chicago and Cairo ship?
-------------------------------------------
When will Chicago ship? When will Cairo ship?
Chicago is scheduled to ship in the second half of 1994. Cairo is
scheduled to be released in the first half of 1995.
...........................................................................
2.18.5. What is Daytona?
--------------------------
What is Daytona? When will it ship?
Daytona is an interim release of Windows NT that is scheduled to ship this
spring.
...........................................................................
2.18.6. How will Chicago make the projected ship date?
--------------------------------------------------------
Major new releases of operating system products have in the past been
significantly delayed. How will you make your projected shipment date for
Chicago?
Chicago will be released when customers tell us it is ready. The way to
make shipment dates is to hit your intermediate milestones. To date,
Chicago has been making its milestones with the release of the first
Preliminary Developer's Kit (PDK) in August and the second PDK in
December. Feedback from beta releases beginning in March will tell us more
precisely when in the second half of 1994 Chicago will ship.
...........................................................................
2.18.7. What if Chicago ships before Cairo?
---------------------------------------------
If Chicago ships before Cairo, how will users of Windows NT obtain the new
functionality in Chicago?
Any new functionality offered in Chicago will be made available to
customers of Windows NT through the release of the Cairo product.
...........................................................................
2.18.8. What are Chicago's key benefits?
------------------------------------------
What are the key benefits and features of Chicago? What features will
Chicago not have?
For customers, Chicago will present a major step forward in functionality
on mainstream desktop platforms by providing a system that is easy to use,
offers responsive multitasking performance, and provides a great platform
for communications. Ease of use will be delivered through the Plug and
Play architecture and an improved, intuitive user interface. Chicago will
be a complete, integrated protect-mode operating system that does not
require or use a separate version of MS- DOS, implements the Win32* API,
and provides pre-emptive multitasking and multiple threads of execution
for 32-bit applications. The communications capabilities of Windows will
be enhanced with integrated, high-performance networking, built-in
messaging, and features such as Remote Network Access and File
Synchronization designed for mobile and remote computer users. Chicago
will also be a hassle-free upgrade for the current installed base of
Windows-based users. Chicago will be compatible with most current
applications and drivers for MS-DOS and Windows, and will provide an easy
transition to the new user interface features. The applications
performance of Chicago will meet or exceed the performance of Windows 3.1
on 80386 systems with 4MB of RAM running the same applications. For
systems with more memory, performance will be significantly improved over
Windows 3.1. The setup program will enable customers to uninstall
Chicago, assuring customers a way to remove it if they are in any way
unhappy with it, and will provide tools for system administrators to
customize the configuration of Chicago. Chicago will not be processor
independent, nor will it support symmetric multiprocessing systems,
provide C2-level security, or provide full Unicode support. These features
cannot be delivered on the mainstream platform in the near future while
still meeting the performance and resource targets necessary to create a
compelling upgrade for the huge installed base of users of the Windows
operating system. If these features are important to a customer, Windows
NT is the product to deploy.
...........................................................................
2.18.9. What different Chicago packages will be available?
------------------------------------------------------------
What different packages will you have for Chicago?
Decisions about packaging the different technologies being developed as
part of the Chicago project will be made later in the development cycle
and will be based on customer and business needs. One option is to
provide a base Chicago package with some add-on packages that deliver
functionality required by specific market segments. This is much like the
situation today in which the user of Windows 3.1 can upgrade to Windows for
Workgroups by acquiring the add-on package that adds the 32-bit file system
and 32-bit networking enhancements to Windows.
...........................................................................
2.18.10. What will Chicago be called?
---------------------------------------
Since the term Chicago is a code name, what will you call the product(s)
that you will eventually release?
Decisions about names will be made after we decide on a packaging plan.
...........................................................................
2.18.11. What will happen to MS-DOS?
--------------------------------------
What will happen to the MS-DOS product line?
Microsoft will continue to enhance MS-DOS as long as customers require it.
Future versions will be derived from the protected-mode technology
developed in the Chicago project. Current MS-DOS-based applications and
drivers will continue to be compatible with new versions of MS-DOS.
...........................................................................
2.18.12. How will Chicago perform on 4 MB?
--------------------------------------------
Your performance goals on 4MB platforms sound very ambitious, considering
all the functionality you're adding to Chicago. How will you achieve
those goals?
Chicago will implement new working set management technologies that will
optimize the use of memory on low-configuration systems. The networking,
disk and paging caches will be fully integrated. Protect-mode device
drivers will be dynamically loadable, to ensure that only the drivers that
are immediately needed are consuming memory. More components of the base
operating system will be pageable. Great attention will be paid to
effective page tuning, including hand-tuning source code.
...........................................................................
2.18.13. Will Chicago run current applications?
-------------------------------------------------
Will Chicago run my current Windows-based applications? How about MS-
DOS-based applications?
Chicago will run most of the current applications for Windows and MS-DOS,
as well as new applications written to the Win32 API. Some classes of
applications will need to be revised to be compatible with Chicago, such
as shell-replacement utilities and file-management utilities. Chicago's
new shell provides a complete set of services that is tightly integrated
with the operating system components. Shell programs will need to do more
than simply replace components such as Program Manager or File Manager.
And file-management utility vendors will want to revise their applications
to take advantage of the Long File Name feature that Chicago offers.
Microsoft is working closely with shell-replacement and file- utility
END--cut here--cut here
--
[ /tom haapanen -- to...@metrics.com -- software metrics inc -- waterloo, ont ]
[ "what a giftless bastard!" -- tchaikovsky on brahms, 1886 ]