On 26 Dec 2003 at 12:53, howard schwartz wrote: >Call me a ludd-ite, but I still prefer dos to linux as a command based shell >for an OS. Unix of all kinds has a lot of extra stuff built in designed for >being multi-user, multi-taking, running on larger machines, and supporting >developers. Single users on PCs do not need this overhead, even if 20 gig >hard disks are now common place.
True, pretty much all flavors of UNIX were designed for more flexibility than most of the flavors of DOS. ( Though there are least a couple of multi-user DOS versions out there!) However, there really isn't that much overhead, if you strip down to the essential kernel, only the needed modules, and don't run unecessary services. Since I've mentioned it in another reply this evening, I'll briefly note that BasicLinux does a good job of this, and there are other distributions which do the same. A good starting point to look at distribution descriptions is: http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/Linux/distributions/ >With windows 9x, I could still install about all the features of dos >I needed, in a `box box', and such commands as `start' allow one to >run windows programs from the dos command line. Dos is more simple, >crases less, and is much easier to configure than the complex linux >versions (I believe). DOS tends to be simpler than Linux, yes, but often gives you fewer options, in my experience. And both are about as easy to configure... depending on the task to be done. >In this connection, I wonder how feasible it is to configure my shell >experience so I do most of my work in the dos box, using the lovely >small freeware programs I have come to apprechate, and only occasionally >pop up to windows for an internet gui program or two? In principle, I >would not need to use explorer, exe as the gui shell, since I only >need windows for a single program or two. > >Any thoughts, suggestions- or is dos in fact really DEAD dead in the >minds of survpc folks? Well, I suppose it might be possible to use Win95/98/ME this way, but you'd need a replacement for the GUI shell, and I'm not sure there is one that will do what you describe. On the other hand, you could set up a Win95/98/ME system so that the first application that it would automatically open would be a MS-DOS command prompt window, and make it full-screen, so that it would *look* like it was just DOS. So long as you didn't use any of the Windows key combinations which force a switch to the GUI (many of which can be turned off), you'd probably not see anything other than that DOS box, until it came time to shut down. Getting back to your last questions - DOS is not dead, in my mind, anyway. There is still hardware around that DOS will run on just fine, and for some tasks, DOS is all that's needed. In fact, I find myself still using DOS, both personally and professionally, on a regular (bi- weekly perhaps?) basis. Anthony Albert =========================================================== Anthony J. Albert [EMAIL PROTECTED] Systems and Software Support Specialist Postmaster Computer Services - University of Maine, Presque Isle "This is only temporary, unless it works." --- Red Green To unsubscribe from SURVPC send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with unsubscribe SURVPC in the body of the message. Also, trim this footer from any quoted replies. More info can be found at; http://www.softcon.com/archives/SURVPC.html
