ID Number: Q40620
2.03 2.10 3.00
WINDOWS
Summary:
Windows 286 supports DDE (dynamic data exchange) for DOS (non-Windows)
applications; however, Windows/386 and Windows versions 3.x real and
enhanced modes do not include this type of functionality. Currently,
there are no plans to add this type of functionality to a future
release of Windows.
The following methods describe several different ways for a DOS
(non-Windows) application to communicate with a Windows/386
application:
1. The Clipboard. DOS applications can read from or write to the
Clipboard. The methods for doing this are documented in the Windows
SDK (Software Development Kit). Microsoft Word incorporates this
capability. This would be the method of choice in most instances.
2. A shared file. This is not an extremely fast method, although the
programmer could use a file on a RAM disk or rely on SMARTDRV to
reduce actual file accesses. Remember to call SHARE.EXE from DOS
before starting Windows/386 to ensure that file sharing works
properly.
3. DOS TSR (terminate-and-stay-resident) program. Another method that
can be used is to start a DOS TSR program with a buffer at a fixed
location that can be read/written to by different applications. For
this method to work, the memory region used must be below the load
point of Windows/386, otherwise the different virtual machines will
have their own private copies of the address space.
4. Bridge/386. There is a program called Bridge/386 that is sold by
Softbridge Microsystems in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that provides
this type of functionality. There is a good description of this
program in the September 1988 issue of the "Microsoft Systems
Journal."