README.TXT: General Notes About Applications

• Microsoft Windows with Multimedia Extensions version 1.0

SUMMARY

The following information is contained in the Windows with Multimedia Extensions version 1.0 README.TXT file. The Setup program copies this file to the Windows with Multimedia Extensions directory.

This information does not apply to later versions of Windows.

GENERAL NOTES ABOUT APPLICATIONS

This section includes important information about other problems you might encounter running applications with Windows 3.0.

Running Non-Windows Applications

If you have problems with your display when you try to run two non-Windows applications and Windows in 386 enhanced mode, add the following line to the [386Enh] section of your SYSTEM.INI file:

   local=EGA$

Increasing Your Display's Update Speed

If a non-windows application running in 386 enhanced mode Windows seems to be updating the display very slowly, try creating or modifying the application's program information file (PIF).

Check the application's PIF file to make sure none of the Monitor Ports check boxes are selected in the Advanced Settings dialog box. On some displays, canceling the Monitor Ports options might mean that you cannot switch back to the application after switching away. In this case, you must exit the first application before starting another.

See "Monitor Ports," in the HyperGuide PIF Editor Advanced Options for more information about this setting. The PIF Editor is part of the Accessories Group in HyperGuide.

Running Windows 2.x and Windows 3.0

  *  If you have both versions of Windows on your hard disk,
     make sure that the directory containing Windows 3.0 is
     included in the PATH command in your AUTOEXEC.BAT, not the
     directory for Windows 2.x.

  *  Because Windows searches the current directory before it
     searches other directories in the PATH command, when you
     want to run an application, print, install a printer, or
     install any other drivers in Windows 3.0, make sure the
     Windows 2.x directory is not the current directory.

  *  If you want to run Windows versions 2.x and 3.0 on the same
     computer at different times, make sure that your CONFIG.SYS
     file includes the Windows 3.0 HIMEM.SYS driver.

  *  If you use SMARTDrive or RAMDrive with Windows/386 2.x,
     make sure the drivers are 2.x drivers. The Windows 3.0
     drivers for SMARTDrive and RAMDrive will not work with
     Windows/386 2.x.

Omit the APPEND, JOIN, and SUBST MS-DOS Utilities

The MS-DOS utilities APPEND, JOIN, and SUBST can cause problems when you are running Windows 3.0. If you included APPEND, JOIN, or SUBST in your AUTOEXEC.BAT file, remove them and refrain from running them within Windows.

Running Batch Files and Embedded Macros

If you want to run a batch file with a Windows application that uses embedded macro language, do so from a PIF. If you will be running it with Windows in 386 enhanced mode, make sure that the Background check box in the batch file's PIF is not selected. That way the batch file will run exclusively, causing the Windows application to pause until processing is complete. To learn about creating PIFs, see the HyperGuide section entitled "Creating PIFs for Batch Files," in the PIF Editor procedures. The PIF Editor is part of the Accessories Group in HyperGuide.

Using SHARE.EXE with Windows

To prevent two applications from modifying the same file, run the MS-DOS utility, SHARE.EXE, before you start Windows. It will not work correctly if you run it from within Windows. See your MS-DOS documentation for details about what SHARE.EXE does and how to install it.

Preventing Stack Overflow

Stacks are temporary data structures that MS-DOS and applications use for processing hardware events. If you receive the Internal Stack Overflow message when you are running Windows in 386 enhanced mode, you need to change your stacks= setting.

  *  If your system uses MS-DOS 3.2, include the following line
     in your CONFIG.SYS file:

       stacks=9,192

  *  If your system uses MS-DOS 3.3 or above, include the
     following line in your CONFIG.SYS file:

       stacks=0,0

Selecting a Port for a Serial Mouse

Do not try to run your serial mouse from a COM3 or COM4 port. Windows supports serial mice on COM1 and COM2 only.

Running Windows from the OS/2 version 1.2 DOS Compatibility Box

  *  Do not allow Windows Setup to make changes to your
     AUTOEXEC.BAT file or CONFIG.SYS file. Make the appropriate
     changes yourself.

  *  To print, you must set the printer driver port to one with
     an .OS2 extension as follows:

     If your printer is physically connected to LPT1 or to LPT2,
     when you configure your printer, make sure you set the
     printer-driver port to LPT1.OS2 or LPT2.OS2.

     If the printer is physically connected to LPT3 or LPT4, you
     must create a line for LPT3.OS2 or LPT4.OS2 in the [ports]
     section of your WIN.INI file and then set the printer
     driver to the appropriate .OS2 port when you configure it.

     For more information about WIN.INI settings, see the
     on-line document called WININI.TXT.

Running Applications that Require Expanded Memory

If you have an 80386 system and use applications that require expanded memory, you can use EMM386.SYS, the expanded memory emulator that comes with Windows 3.0.

Setting the D= Switch for EMM386

If you install EMM386, before you can start Windows in 386 enhanced mode, you must include the following setting on your EMM386 command line:

   d=48

Running SMARTDrive with Disk Manager, SpeedStor or Vfeature Deluxe

SMARTDrive will not run if your hard disk was partitioned using one of the following utilities:

  *  Disk Manager (Ontrack Computer Systems)
  *  SpeedStor (Storage Dimensions)
  *  Vfeature Deluxe (Golden Bow Systems)

  Incompatible disk partition detected.