WinDOwS Tricks - Part 23

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• 12-31-03 Win9x/ME Registry ©Trick in REGISTRY.TXT, part of W95-11D.EXE:

DELUXE CD PLAYER

Courtesy of Steven.

"I figured out how to install DeLuxe CD player from the Plus! 98 CD-ROM on any Windows 95/98/ME system.
Requirements:

1. You MUST have a copy of Microsoft Plus! for Windows 98 Setup CD-ROM!
2. If using Windows 95/OSR1/OSR2, FIRST you MUST install HTML Help Update v1.33 [696 KB, English, free], in order to be able to use HTML Help (.CHM) files!
3. Download this REG file found at threeTIX [right-click to save!], to enable automatic CD + song title retrieval.
   More info @ threeTIX.
4. Make sure your MS Plus! 98 Setup CD is already in your CD/DVD drive.

Then type these commands from any DOS prompt (assuming D is your CD/DVD drive letter, change if necessary) to extract all necessary files to a new (empty) folder I called C:\DELUXECD (example, change if you like) and hit Enter after each line:

MD C:\DELUXECD
C:
CD\DELUXECD
EXTRACT.EXE D:\PLUS98\PLUS98.CAB DELUXECD.EXE
EXTRACT.EXE D:\PLUS98\PLUS98.CAB DELUXCD.CHM
EXTRACT.EXE D:\PLUS98\PLUS98.CAB DELUXCD.HLP
EXTRACT.EXE D:\PLUS98\PLUS98.CAB CDNET.DLL
EXTRACT.EXE D:\PLUS98\PLUS98.CAB CDOPT.DLL
EXTRACT.EXE D:\PLUS98\PLUS98.CAB CDPLAY.DLL
REGSVR32.EXE /S C:\DELUXECD\CDNET.DLL
REGSVR32.EXE /S C:\DELUXECD\CDOPT.DLL
REGSVR32.EXE /S C:\DELUXECD\CDPLAY.DLL

Close the DOS box when done.
For internet CD + song title retrieval you just have to (double-)click the REG file above, because unfortunately the original CD + song title retrieval web sites included with Plus! 98 do NOT work anymore. :-(
DeLuxe CD should run properly from now on.
Of course you can create a DOS style batch (.BAT) file to include ALL lines above, and add another line for running the REG file (example):

REGEDIT.EXE /S C:\DELUXECD\deluxe-providers.reg

to fully automate this entire procedure."

DeLuxe CD Player installer for Windows 95/98/ME [325 KB].

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• 12-31-03 Win9x/NT4/2000/ME/XP/2003 AOL ©Trick in AOLTIPS.TXT, part of W95-11D.EXE:

DISABLE TURBO WEB

Courtesy of Aint.

"This works with all AOL 3/4/5/6/7/8/9 32-bit client releases.
I have watched AOL's method of opening many a different port number, and using ports other than the common HTTP 80 port. In my case it was:

205.188.146.146 port 11523

First make sure to close AOL completely.
To force AOL to act more like a normal browser (and fix problems getting web pages): fire up Regedit and go to:

• for currently logged on user:
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\America Online\AOL\CurrentVersion
  and:
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\America Online\America Online\CurrentVersion

• or for all users on the same computer:
  HKEY_USERS\.Default\Software\America Online\AOL\CurrentVersion
  and:
  HKEY_USERS\.Default\Software\America Online\America Online\CurrentVersion

Under all Registry subkeys above (in the right hand pane) look for the "WWWUseTurboWeb" DWORD [REG_DWORD] Values (no quotes, case insensitive). (Double-)click on each and change their Decimal value from 1 (default) to 0.
Close the Registry Editor when done.
From now on AOL will act more like a standard browser and uses port 80 (HTTP) to open web pages. This cured AOL's inability to surf the net, and seems to load web sites a bit faster.
You can check this: open a DOS box → type:

netstat -a 2 netstat.log

and hit Enter.
This will create a netstat .log file in your main Windows folder [if using Win95/98/ME] or in your %windir%\SYSTEM32 folder [if using WinNT4/2000/XP/2003], which will update every 2 seconds.
Press Ctrl + C simultaneously to stop logging. You can change 2 to 5 or 10 etc...
I also noted that NOT all WWWUseTurboWeb entries have the same value, so you may want to make them all either 0 or 1 and see what works better for you."

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• 1-7-03 Win98 ©Trick in TIPS98.TXT, part of W95-11D.EXE:

3D PINBALL

1. Courtesy of Chris.
   "Windows 98, 98 SE(U) and MS Plus! for Windows 98 do NOT include the Space Cadet 3D Pinball game, which is bundled with MS Plus! for Windows 95, Windows 2000, ME and XP.
   However, if you don't have Windows 2000, ME or XP, but still have MS Plus! for Windows 95 Setup CD, and want to install 3D Pinball on your Windows 98/98 SE(U) system after installing MS Plus! for Windows 98, the Windows 98/98 SE(U) Setup CD includes the necessary INF file that does the trick.
   Pre-requisites:
   • Windows 98 or 98 SE(U) installed.
   • MS Plus! for Windows 98 installed.
   • MS Plus! for Windows 95 CD.
   • Windows 98 or 98 SE(U) Setup CD.
   Here's how to do it:
   1. Copy the Pinball.inf file from your Windows 98/98 SE(U) Setup CD located in the \Tools\Mtsutils subfolder somewhere on your hard disk.
   2. Right-click the copied Pinball.inf file, select Properties, uncheck the Read-only attribute and click OK.
   3. Open the copied Pinball.inf file in Notepad (or your favorite text editor) and note the following line:
      layoutfile=d:\pluslayt.inf
      If your CD drive isn't D or if installing from floppy, change the drive letter as needed, then save and exit.
   4. Insert the Plus! for 95 Setup CD. Close any dialogs that Autorun pops up.
   5. Right-click your modified Pinball.inf file and select Install.
      If you get a request to insert the MS Plus! Setup CD or floppy, just click OK, navigate to the location of your Plus! for 95 Setup CD, and finally click OK one last time.
   Now sit back and watch the files being copied. :-)
   When all is done, you'll have a new entry in Start Menu → Accessories → Games called "Space Cadet Table" and a new uninstall entry in Control Panel → Add/Remove Programs called 3D Pinball from Plus! for Windows 95."

2. If you own a Windows ME (Full, Upgrade, Step-Up, OEM or MSDN) Setup CD-ROM perform these steps:
   1. First make sure your WinME CD is already in your CD/DVD drive.
   2. Run these commands from any DOS prompt (assuming D is your CD/DVD drive letter, change if necessary) to extract all necessary 3D Pinball files to a new (empty) folder I called C:\MSPINBAL (example, change if you like):
      MD C:\MSPINBAL
      C:
      CD\MSPINBAL
      EXTRACT.EXE D:\WIN9X\WIN_9.CAB FONT.DAT
      EXTRACT.EXE D:\WIN9X\WIN_9.CAB PINBALL.*
      EXTRACT.EXE D:\WIN9X\WIN_9.CAB SHARED.CHM
      EXTRACT.EXE D:\WIN9X\WIN_9.CAB TABLE.BMP
      EXTRACT.EXE D:\WIN9X\WIN_17.CAB PINBALL.EXE
      EXTRACT.EXE D:\WIN9X\WIN_18.CAB PINBALL.HLP
      EXTRACT.EXE D:\WIN9X\WIN_18.CAB WAVEMIX.INF
      EXTRACT.EXE D:\WIN9X\WIN_19.CAB PINBALL*.*
      EXTRACT.EXE D:\WIN9X\WIN_21.CAB SOUND*.WAV
      C:\MSPINBAL should now contain a total of 71 files.
      
   3. Optional: move PINBALL.CHM, SHARED.CHM, PINBALL.CNT + PINBALL.HLP to your %windir%\HELP folder (%windir% is usually C:\WINDOWS) by running these commands from any DOS prompt:
      MOVE.EXE/Y C:\MSPINBAL\PINBALL.CNT %windir%\HELP
      MOVE.EXE/Y C:\MSPINBAL\PINBALL.CHM %windir%\HELP
      MOVE.EXE/Y C:\MSPINBAL\SHARED.CHM %windir%\HELP
      MOVE.EXE/Y C:\MSPINBAL\PINBALL.HLP %windir%\HELP
      HINT: Create a DOS style batch file to include all lines above and then run it to achieve all these tasks in 1 swift move. :)
   4. Create a new shortcut: right-click on an empty (raised) Taskbar spot → select Properties → click the Start Menu Programs tab → click the Add button → type C:\MSPINBAL\PINBALL.EXE → click Next → highlight your %windir%\Start Menu\Programs\Accessories\Games folder (example) → click Next → name it "Space Cadet 3D Pinball" (no quotes) → click the Finish button.
   5. (Double-)click on the new shortcut to play the game.
   6. Enjoy. ;)

3. If you don't have the MS Plus! 95/98 or Windows ME Setup CDs, just download MS Pinball [1.3 MB, compatible with all Windows 32-bit OSes], and then run the executable to install the game.

FYI:

• Resolve "No Music" bug in Windows ME version of 3D Pinball.
• Install 3D Pinball from MS Plus! for Windows 95 Setup CD in Windows 98.
• Install 3D Pinball from MS Plus! for Windows 95 Setup CD in Windows 98.

Space Cadet 3D Pinball game cheats:

• 3D Pinball Cheat Codes.
• Space Cadet Pinball Cheats.
• 3D Pinball: Space Cadet Cheat Codes.
• 3D Pinball: Space Cadet Cheats & Tips.

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• 10-16-02 Win9x/NT4/2000/ME/XP/2003/IE Registry ©Trick in REGISTRY.TXT, part of W95-11D.EXE:

SHOW FULL URL

This fix applies to all Microsoft Internet Explorer (MS IE) 4.0x/5.xx/6.xx and newer 32-bit releases for Windows 95/98/NT4/2000/ME/XP/2003.
After you first install MS IE on your computer, you will notice that by default, when you move your mouse pointer over an internet link (a.k.a. URL = Uniform Resource Locator) on most web pages [unless the webmaster disabled this feature on purpose :(], only the web page name is displayed in the status bar at the bottom of your IE window (example using my home page):

"Shortcut to home.php"

instead of showing the *full* ftp directory/file or web page location (URL):

"https://www.mdgx.com/home.php"

But there are 2 methods you can use to FIX this MS annoyance:

1. The easy way [;)]: with MS IE open: click View (IE 4.0x users) or Tools (IE 5.xx/6.xx users) from the top menu → select Internet Options... → Advanced tab → scroll down to "Show friendly URLs" → uncheck the box → click Apply/OK or hit Enter.
   To revert back to Microsoft's default repeat steps above, but this time check the "Show friendly URLs" box.

2. The hard way [:)]: click the Start menu → select the Run... box → type regedit (case insensitive) → click OK or press Enter → go to (if you are the only user = affects ALL users on your computer!):
   HKEY_USERS\.Default\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer
   and to:
   HKEY_USERS\.Default\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main
   or to (if more than one user):
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer
   and to:
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main
   and (double-)click on each "Show_FullURL" Registry Value, found as:
   • DWORD [REG_DWORD] = under the "Internet Explorer" Registry subkeys above. Type 0 in the Decimal Value Data box.
   • String [REG_SZ] = under the "Main" Registry subkeys above. Type no in the Value Data box.
   Then click OK or hit Enter for all Values to save the new settings.
   To revert back to Microsoft's default, repeat steps above, but this time type 1 [DWORD] or yes [String], respectively.
   Close the Registry Editor when done.

NOTE: In certain cases you may need to do this all over again, e.g. after installing a new MS IE version/upgrade. :(

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• 8-29-02 Win9x/ME Registry ©Trick in REGISTRY.TXT, part of W95-11D.EXE:

OPTIMAL VIDEO REFRESH RATE

Sent courtesy of enZley, and works with all Windows 95/98/ME releases.

"If you want your video adapter to pump out its optimal refresh rate, there is an easier way than using Powerstrip or other annoying software tools that cost money and/or take up precious RAM.
I tested this ONLY with Windows 98 [build 4.10.1998], so try it at your own risk if you have other versions.
Open Regedit and go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\Class\Display\0000\DEFAULT

The key 0000 could be a different # (e.g. 0001, 0002 etc), depending on how many video cards you have installed on your computer. (Double-)click the "RefreshRate" String value and change the Value Data to 80 or a higher #.
If it is not present create it: in the right-hand pane → right-click on an empty spot → select New → String Value → name it RefreshRate → click OK → right-click on it → select Modify → change Value Data to 80 or higher #.
When you change the Value Data for the String value you MUST restart Windows in order for it to take effect.
IMPORTANT: If after restarting your computer the screen is weird looking, you have set the refresh rate too high. In this case reboot again by pressing Ctrl + Alt + Delete twice. Now hit F8 untill you get the boot menu. Select the Safe Mode option. Once in Windows, restart Regedit and go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\Class\Display\0000\DEFAULT

and modify the String value "RefreshRate" so that its Value Data is lower than the one you originally entered. You may have to mess around with different numbers until you get the optimal refresh rate, but it beats using expensive or memory hungry 3rd party utilities."

ADD-ON: To adjust your Desktop refresh rate to automatic, (double-)click on "RefreshRate" and change its numerical value to read -1.
Restart Windows when done to apply the new setting.
Any other number corresponds to the actual vertical refresh rate frequency in Hz (Hertz), and MUST be supported by BOTH your video controller AND your monitor, otherwise you may DAMAGE one or the other!
Also if you have installed more that one video driver over time (by swapping video cards or by upgrading to a newer driver version), you may have more than one subkey under the Display key above, like: 0001, 0002 etc. But keep in mind that ONLY the most recent of these keys is "active", probably the one bearing the highest 000n number.

FYI: See also "WIN.INI DIRECTX + VIDEO SETTINGS", also in MYTIPS95.TXT (part of W95-11D.EXE), for more details.

UPDATE: "Under this Registry key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\Class\Display\0000\MODES

which can be 0001, 0002 etc..., depending on the Registry key your video adapter is installed under, you'll see a bunch of subkeys: 8, 16, 32 etc... for different display settings, and each has subkeys for different resolutions: 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768, 1280x1024 etc... Under any of these subkeys you can set the DEFAULT refresh rate for that specific resolution, which will also appear on the Display Properties list for further tweaking.
The "ModeRefreshRateList" String Value can include all (and more) of these numeric values: 60, 70, 72, 75, 85, 100, 120, 140, 144, 150, 170, 200, 240, but they MUST be ALL supported by YOUR particular monitor!
New refresh rates will appear and can be selected at will from: Desktop → Properties → Settings → Advanced → Adapter → Refresh Rate list, ONLY IF you have added specific resolutions under the Registry subkeys above!
My monitor is capable of 1280x1024, but I couldn't access that resolution until I set the "ModeRefreshRateList" and "RefreshRate" @ 60 in the Registry, so now I'm able to use this setting. :)"
[Thank you Tweb!]

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• 7-2-02 Win9x/NT4/2000/ME/XP/2003 ©Trick in TIPS95.TXT, part of W95-11D.EXE:

THE PLUS! PACKS

This is a succinct chronological listing of all current Microsoft Plus! add-on packages, meant to enhance your MS Windows 32-bit OS experience, and provide entertainment for your entire family. In other words... "Let the children play", as Carlos Santana so eloquently put it on his 1977 "Festival" latin rock album. ;)
Note that most Plus! Packs are designed specifically for particular Windows OS editions. Keep reading to learn all the "gory" details:

1. 1995: First goes the Plus! Pack for Windows 95/95a OSR1/95B OSR 2.0-2.1/95C OSR 2.5 (used to sell for 30-40 bucks at your local computer store), released the very day Windows 95 retail was officially "unleashed" (August 15 1995).
   Among other "goodies" Plus! 95 comes with a new version of Scan Disk, Drive Space 3 FAT16 disk compression, Desktop Themes Manager and the famous Task Scheduler, called back then System Agent.
   System Agent should have been implemented into Win95, like many other basic system utilities that are still missing from the OS, like an anti-virus scanning/protection tool. :(
   And you'll also get all those fancy "screen entertainment" extras: high color desktop wallpapers, 256 colors icons for your shortcuts, a bunch of fun(k)y screen savers, a great variety of sound files, animated mouse cursors and the classic Space Cadet 3D Pinball game (also bundled with Windows ME, 2000 and XP).
   MS Plus! 95 Pack is included on the Windows 95B/95C OSR 2.x Setup CD part # 0796 000-45236 US and part # 1297 X03-56265 US, according to MSKB OSR2 FAQ.
   See "3D PINBALL", also in TIPS98.TXT [part of W95-11D.EXE].
   More info.
   Even more info.
   See "INSTALL MS PLUS! 95 OVER MS IE 3/4/5", also in REGISTRY.TXT [part of W95-11D.EXE].
   MS Plus! 95 Themes Fix:
   Get THEMES.EXE Fix [84 KB].
   MSKB: Plus! 95 Support Center.
   Get Plus! 95.

2. 1996: And if one Plus! Pack wouldn't be enough, check out MS Plus! for Kids for Windows 95/98/ME (retails for ~ $20), with some cool programs suitable for "kids" of all ages: Play It!, Talk It!, Paint It!, Picture Picker, and last but not least, the [kinda buggy :(] Security Enhancements designed to deter prying eyes away from your Windows computer, appreciated nonetheless by concerned parents.
   More info.

3. 1998: The tradition continues... same day the retail version of Windows 98 crowded the stores (June 25 1998), MS added another one to the list: Plus! Pack for Windows 98/98 SP1/98 SE(U)/ME, worth in Microsoft's eyes exactly 40 George Washington 1 dollar bills. :(
   Following the same principle, Plus! 98 includes a respectable list of multimedia + entertainment software: Deluxe CD Player with customizable database, the famous 3rd party [eye candy :)] Organic Art Plus 3D Screen Savers (Special Edition) licensed to Microsoft by Computer Artworks, more Desktop themes chock full with high resolution wallpapers, icons, sounds + cursors, and of course... games [gotta relax somehow :)]: Spider Solitaire (also included with Windows ME, 2000 and XP), SegaSoft Marbles (Special Edition) and Microsoft Golf (Lite Edition), not to forget the Picture It! image manager, and the useful CyberMedia File Cleaner (Special Edition) troubleshooting tool.
   MSKB: Plus! 98 Review.
   MS Plus! 98 ZIP Folder Fix:
   Get ZIPFLDR.DLL Fix [268 KB, English].

4. 1999: Oh no, more games! :-) The Plus! Game Pack: Cards & Puzzles for Windows 95/98/NT4/2000/ME/XP/2003 was "shoved out" the (Redmond, Washington, USA) Microsoft doors, just in time for the release of Windows Millennium Edition (ME). This "entertainment" package will set you back 20 green beans.
   Includes [a bunch of family style Windows games, what else? :)]:
   • 12 classic Bicycle Card games: Hearts ("fancier" than MS Hearts bundled with Windows 98, 2000, ME and XP), Spades, Cribbage, Pinochle, Crazy 8s, Oh Hell!, Go Fish, Old Maid, Euchre, Gin Rummy, Schafkopf [can you say that 10 times fast? :)] and Skat;
   • 10 Puzzle games: Fringer, Finty Flush, Mixed Genetics, Charmer, Rat Poker, Color Collision, Jewel Chase, Lineup, Spring Weekend + Muddled Casino;
   • And finally... a trial version of Pandora's Box puzzle game (with 8 puzzles), designed by Tetris creator Alexey Pajitnov.
     You can purchase Pandora's Box Full Game Of The Year Edition with 400 puzzles from Amazon.com.
   Get Pandora's Box Demo [15.5 MB, English].
   Pandora's Box Intel Pentium III/IV CPUs DirectDraw Fix:
   Get Pandora's Box Fix [984 KB, English + French].

5. 2001: Hear... hear... (e)XP(erience) is here! [What a suggestive name for an OS release! :)] Not to make an exception to the rule, Microsoft issued the Plus! Pack XP for Windows XP/2003 the same day both retail builds (Final, Gold, RTM) of Windows XP Professional + Home Edition hit the store shelves (September 25 2001).
   Gotta shell out 20-40 smackaroos if you gotta have it. :(
   And the (similar) list goes on: Windows Media Player (WMP) add-ons for digital media enthusiasts: 3D Visualizations, Skins, Voice Command, MP3 Converter, CD Label Maker, Speaker Enhancement + Personal DJ, a few new 3D games: Hyperbowl, Russian Square, Labyrinth, oh... and the "must have" desktop themes [3D enhanced this time :)]: Aquarium, Space, Nature + Da Vinci, plus the "jaw-dropping" DirectX 3D "photo realistic" screen savers: the famous 3rd party Serene Aquarium (special edition) licensed to Microsoft by SereneScreen, Space, My Pictures, Nature, Da Vinci, Robot Circus, Sand Pendulum + Mercury Pool.
   More info.
   Get all current MS Plus! XP Updates + Patches from "FREE Windows NT4/2000/XP/2003/Vista/2008/7/8/8.1/2012 (NTx) Extras".
   How to Install Plus! XP on Windows 2003 Server.
   Buy it from Amazon.com.

6. 2003: After the release of Windows XP Media Center Edition (MCE) during Q3 2001, Microsoft decided to allow all Windows XP users benefit from some of the "media enhancements" bundled with XP MCE, and posted on January 8 2003 the web based (39 MB, USA users only, $20) and CD-ROM ($20) versions of Plus! Pack Digital Media Edition (DME) v1.0 for Windows XP/XP MCE/2003.
   List of features: Photo Story, Party Mode, Dancer, Analog Recorder, Audio Converter, CD Label Maker, Alarm Clock, Sleep Timer, Sync & Go for Pocket PC + 50 Effects and Transitions for Movie Maker 2.
   Microsoft released October 6 2003 Plus! DME v1.1 for Windows XP SP1/XP SP2/XP MCE/2003 (web based edition, 43 MB, USA users only, $20) which adds Photo Story 2 with Video CD Burning, more Dancer modules and more Movie Maker 2 effects.
   Same as Windows XP and 2003, Plus! DME requires product activation (WPA) after installation. :(
   More info.
   Even more info.
   Even more info.
   WARNING: The Register!
   Buy it from Amazon.com.

7. 2004: No new Microsoft toys for you to "play" with this year [:-(], but now (October 19 2004) you can get both Plus! Pack XP [see paragraph 5 above] AND Plus! Pack DME [see paragraph 6 above] combined as the new "super-duper" Plus! SuperPack for Windows XP SP1/XP SP2/XP MCE/2003 for "only" 30 mulah from Microsoft, or 25 if shopping @ Amazon.com [all orders > $25 include free shipping!].
   If you already own either one of these packages, you can get the SuperPack for the discount price of ~ $20 after sending the mandatory $10 mail-in rebate.
   Same as its predecessors, Plus! SuperPack requires product activation (WPA) after installation. :(

8. And today you want to go to... oh no, please... don't "start me up"! :-)
   Have fun "kids"!

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• 6-5-02 Win9x/ME/DOS7/DOS8 Original Memory ©Trick in MEMORY.TXT, part of W95-11D.EXE:

WINDOWS DOS BOX TIPS

All these tips aim to MAXimize the performance and reliability of DOS based programs/games started from a Windows DOS box. This allows compatible native DOS applications to execute from within the Windows protected mode GUI environment in a confined (isolated) DOS box/session/window, by emulating a DOS Virtual Machine (VM).
But keep in mind that unfortunately not all software originally written for real DOS mode can run this way. :( Some require strict conventional, upper, extended and/or expanded memory specs, and/or exclusive access to hardware resources, like full screen VGA/SVGA/XVGA resolution, real time audio/sound/music FM/wavetable/MIDI etc. Such programs/games need native/real/true/pure MS-DOS mode, and eventually large amounts of usable RAM to run properly: see all other topics in MEMORY.TXT [part of W95-11D.EXE] to learn how to customize your system for providing MAXimum free memory in native MS-DOS.
It is also important to realize that certain older (EGA or even VGA, but probably not some SVGA) DOS based apps/games may run OK from a Windows DOS session, but usually slower than from native MS-DOS mode. :(
To avoid DOS box errors/lockups, sometimes the only way is to disable certain program/game features, like: enhanced audio stereo/effects, SVGA/VESA video modes (i.e. revert to 640x480 or even lower screen resolutions if available) etc. You decide if the tradeoffs are worth giving up native MS-DOS mode.

CAUTION:
Windows 95/98/ME OSes support a maximum of 64 DOS boxes/sessions/windows open at the same time!

FYI:
• DOSBox CPU, Video, Sound + Network DOS emulator allows to install + play old DOS games on Windows PCs (free GPL).
• ScummVM scripting/re-encoding tool + hardware emulator allows playing old DOS games from within all Windows 32-bit + 64-bit OSes (free GPL).
• See "95/98/ME SETUP + MEMORY MANAGERS", also in MYTIPS95.TXT (part of W95-11D.EXE).
• See "PLAY DOS GAMES WITH SOUND BLASTER LIVE!", also in MYTIPS95.TXT (part of W95-11D.EXE).
• Some of these DOS Tools might help [free(ware)].
• MS-DOS Mode Configuration Wizard Customization Tool (DOSWZCFG.EXE) for Windows 9x/ME, part of Microsoft Kernel Toys for Windows 95/OSR1/OSR2 [57 KB, free, unsupported], configures OS boot files: AUTOEXEC.BAT, CONFIG.SYS + MSDOS.SYS.

But let's see what you CAN do to speed up your DOS programs running from DOS boxes and make sure they perform as error-free as possible: [good luck! :)]

• Turn on "Full-screen": right-click on your MS-DOS PIF shortcut → Properties → Screen tab → check the box.
  Most (S)VGA programs/games NEED full screen to execute properly.
  You can also press Alt-Enter simultaneously to toggle between a window and full screen (temporary fix), or create a custom PIF (MS-DOS Program Information File) shortcut for your particular program/game (permanent fix) that needs to run full screen.
  See "2 DOS OR NOT 2 DOS", also in MYTIPS95.TXT [part of W95-11D.EXE], for details.

• Turn on "Close on exit": right-click on your MS-DOS PIF shortcut → Properties → Program tab → check the box to return to the Windows GUI automatically upon exiting the DOS session.
  This setting is enabled by default ONLY in Windows ME PIF shortcuts!

• Turn off "Warn if still active": right-click on your MS-DOS PIF shortcut → Properties → Misc tab → uncheck the box to get rid of that annoying nagging dialog window.

• Turn off "Fast ROM emulation": right-click on your MS-DOS PIF shortcut → Properties → Screen tab → uncheck the box.
  This is necessary for (especially older, without hardware VESA support) video controllers that do NOT emulate their VESA/VBE BIOS video modes properly into Windows 32-bit protected mode drivers (VXDs).
  If you own such a "crippled" video card, make sure to load a dedicated VESA/VBE 2.0/3.0 driver/TSR (eventually from AUTOEXEC.BAT) PRIOR to starting Windows GUI.
  Most manufacturers/vendors of old VGA cards provide compliant VESA/VBE drivers bundled with the hardware, also available for download (usually free of charge) at their web/ftp sites.
  See "SPEED-UP + BENCHMARK TOOLS" for examples of VESA/VBE drivers + tweaking tools.

• Turn off "Dynamic memory allocation": right-click on your MS-DOS PIF shortcut → Properties → Screen tab → uncheck the box.
  Do this if you experience frequent display jitter, sound crackles and/or excesive hard disk thrashing with your DOS programs/games.
  When enabled, this allows Windows to update in-game video display as needed, by assigning system memory dynamically to the respective program, which may cause poor performance.

• Turn up "Idle sensitivity" to maximum: right-click on your MS-DOS PIF shortcut → Properties → Misc tab → Idle sensitivity → drag slider to High (right end).
  Do this if your DOS apps/games seem to slow down your Windows machine.
  This decreases CPU cycles, memory resources and screen refresh frequency in DOS programs that poll (check) the keyboard/mouse ports for signals (key presses/clicks) too often.
  In case your DOS apps/games seem to pause periodically turn down Idle Sensitivity to minimum → drag slider to Low (left end).

• Turn on "Prevent MS-DOS-based programs from detecting Windows" [use with CAUTION!]: right-click on your MS-DOS PIF shortcut → Properties → Program tab → Advanced button → check the box.
  This may be necessary to "fool" certain "stubborn" programs/games that refuse to run from within Windows (like Spectrum HoloByte STNG: A Final Unity) into "thinking" they are running from real MS-DOS mode. ;-)

• Assign a fixed amount for each type of RAM to the PIF shortcuts, according to your particular application's vendor guidelines: right-click on your MS-DOS PIF shortcut → Properties → Memory tab → here are 4 different kinds of memory: "Conventional memory", "Expanded (EMS) memory", "Extended (XMS) memory" and "MS-DOS protected-mode (DPMI) memory" → scroll to the desired "Total" value (NOT "Auto"!) for each of them → click OK or hit Enter.
  Turn on "Protected" mode: right-click on your MS-DOS PIF shortcut → Properties → Memory tab → look under "Conventional memory" → check the box.
  Certain DPMI games may crash Windows if this setting is NOT enabled!
  ALL Windows "Total" defaults are set to "Auto", which may attract annoying hard disk swapping and/or program/game slowdown/stutter.
  It is recommended to enable ONLY the required memory type(s) and disable ALL other(s) to achieve MAXimum performance.
  Games known to need specific amounts of RAM for optimal operation:
  • 3D Realms Duke Nukem 3D:
    • EMS = None.
    • XMS = 8192 KB (8 MB).
    • DPMI = 8192 KB (8 MB).
  • Activision MechWarrior 2:
    • EMS = None.
    • XMS = 8192 KB (8 MB).
  • Bullfrog Magic Carpet + Magic Carpet II:
    • EMS = None.
    • XMS = 16384 KB (16 MB).
    • DPMI = 16384 KB (16 MB).
  • id Doom + Doom II:
    • EMS = None.
    • XMS = None.
    • DPMI = 4096 KB (4 MB).
  • id Quake:
    • EMS = None.
    • XMS = None.
    • DPMI = 8192 KB (8 MB).
  • Interplay Descent + Descent II:
    • EMS = None.
    • XMS = None.
    • DPMI = 4096 KB (4 MB).
  • Access Links 386:
    • DPMI = 4096 KB (4 MB).
  • Lucas Arts X-Wing + TIE Fighter:
    • EMS = 4096 KB (4 MB).
    • XMS = None.
  • Lucas Arts Rebel Assault + Rebel Assault II:
    • EMS = None.
    • XMS = 8192 KB (8 MB).
    • DPMI = 8192 KB (8 MB).
  • Microprose Civilization:
    • EMS = 4096 KB (4 MB).
    • XMS = None.
  • Trilobyte The 11th Hour:
    • EMS = None.
    • XMS = 16384 KB (16 MB).
    • DPMI = 16384 KB (16 MB).
  • Trilobyte The 7th Guest:
    • EMS = None.
    • XMS = 4096 KB (4 MB).

• Install/turn on your sound card DOS (i.e. Sound Blaster FM) emulation mode (if any) in Windows 9x/ME, if your DOS programs/games require audio.
  See "PLAY DOS GAMES WITH SOUND BLASTER LIVE!", also in MYTIPS95.TXT [part of W95-11D.EXE], for details.

• Bypass automatic hardware detection for programs/games having problems executing from within Win9x/ME, by specifying manually your particular video/audio/joystick/etc properties in the game Setup. Such apps are NOT compatible with the way Windows Virtual Memory Manager (VMM) implements I/O virtualization.
  Interplay Descent is known to have trouble detecting sound cards in a DOS box.

• Disable/remove unneeded DOS/Windows network drivers (i.e. Netware Client), especially if NOT connected to a network, to avoid game stutter and/or lockups in DOS boxes.
  DPMI (DOS Protected Mode Interface) games using a DOS extender (CWSDPMI.EXE, DOS32A.EXE or DOS4GW.EXE) are known to be affected: id Doom + Doom II, Irrational Games System Shock, 3D Realms Duke Nukem 3D, Eidos Tomb Raider, Lucas Arts Rebel Assault + Rebel Assault II.
  DOS extenders (DPMI hosts).

• DOS software that require Virtual Control Program Interface (VCPI) services MUST be run ONLY from native MS-DOS mode with an expanded memory manager (like MS EMM386.EXE loaded from CONFIG.SYS), because VCPI relies on the EMM386.EXE EMS/XMS sharing scheme, even if expanded (EMS) memory is turned off by the EMM386.EXE "NOEMS" switch.
  Unfortunately Windows 95/98/ME do NOT supply VCPI support for DOS apps!
  Origin Strike Commander needs VCPI (implicitly native MS-DOS mode) to start.
  In such cases it is necessary to turn on "Single DOS mode" in your MS-DOS PIF shortcut.
  See "EXIT TO DOS", also in TIPS95.TXT [part of W95-11D.EXE], for details.
  Note that Microsoft REMOVED this feature from Windows ME!
  See "MS-DOS PROMPT", also in MYTIPS95.TXT [part of W95-11D.EXE], for details.

• If your DOS programs/games need EMS (Expanded Memory Specifications) enabled in a DOS box, make sure you do NOT load MS EMM386.EXE or ANY other 3rd party enhanced memory manager, like McAfee (Helix) NetRoom RM386, Symantec (Quarterdeck) QEMM386, Lineo (Caldera) DR-DOS EMM386, IBM (Qualitas) 386MAX, Uwe Sieber UMBPCI, etc from your CONFIG.SYS.
  You also need to remove or disable [remark with a semicolon (;) in front] ALL these lines (if any) under the [386enh] section of your SYSTEM.INI, found in %windir% (usually C:\WINDOWS) by opening it in Notepad/SysEdit (example):
  [386enh]
  EMMExclude=B800-D3FF,F000-FFFF,A000-AFFF
  EMMSize=0
  NoEMMDriver=on
  MUST keep the EMMExclude= line (but make sure it does NOT exclude the ENTIRE UMA) because your video controller probably requires to use its own properietary area(s) for proper operation. Example: the EMMExclude= line above is OK. Then add this (similar) line (example):
  EMMInclude=B000-B7FF,D400-EFFF
  Available upper memory areas (UMAs) are displayed by running MSD [MicroSoft Diagnostics tool = see MSD9X.TXT (part of W95-11D.EXE) for details] ONLY from native MS-DOS: press M at main screen and scroll down to see black color coded contiguous UMAs between addresses B000 - B7FF and D400 - EFFF (hex). These are just examples, they may be different on your computer. Then add them on the EMMInclude= line separated by commas (if more than 1).
  Let Windows 9x/ME provide its own EMS management in DOS sessions: make sure it is enabled: right-click on your MS-DOS PIF shortcut → Properties → Memory tab → "Expanded (EMS) memory" area should be Enabled.
  See "BASIC *ESSENTIAL* MEMORY TIPS" in MEMORY.TXT [part of W95-11D.EXE] for a list of DOS software that needs EMS to operate.

FYI: See "95/98/ME SETUP + MEMORY MANAGERS", also in MYTIPS95.TXT [part of W95-11D.EXE], for more info.

A MUST for ALL Windows ME users running DOS based programs + games:
Microsoft REMOVED COMPLETELY the access to native/real/true/pure MS-DOS mode from Windows Millennium Edition (ME), a.k.a. MS-DOS 8.00. :(
But you CAN get it back by applying the Unofficial DOS Patch, which modifies COMMAND.COM + IO.SYS (from C:\Windows\Command\EBD) + REGENV32.EXE (from C:\Windows\System) to allow Windows ME to boot to native MS-DOS and use DOS mode startup files (AUTOEXEC.BAT + CONFIG.SYS), Windows 95/98 style, to be able to use your (old) MS-DOS based apps/games that do NOT work from within a Windows DOS session/box, and tweak your CUSTOM AUTOEXEC.BAT + CONFIG.SYS files to free MAXimum conventional DOS memory. :)

More info.

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• 6-12-96 Win3.1x/9x/NT/2000/ME/XP/2003 ©Trick in TIPS95.TXT, part of W95-11D.EXE, and in MYTIPS31.TXT, part of W31-11D.ZIP:

NOTEPAD DATE/TIME STAMP

Many thanks Groetz for your cool tips.

1. "Pressing F5 in Notepad inserts the current date and time stamp at the location of the cursor.

2. If typing .LOG as the first line in a Notepad document, the current date/time stamp is added automatically every time upon reopening that file.
   These tips work with all Windows 9x/NT/2000/ME/XP/2003 (32-bit) and Windows/WfWG 3.1x (16-bit) versions of NOTEPAD.EXE (located in %windir% = main Windows directory/folder).

3. When you highlight a Desktop icon or a file/item in Windows Explorer, hold SHIFT and press F10 (same as right-clicking the mouse) to get the Open With... menu."

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• 9-11-95 Win3.1x/9x/ME ©Trick in TIPS95.TXT, part of W95-11D.EXE:

PC SPEAKER

To install a PC Speaker driver on your Windows 95/98/ME system in case you don't have a sound card installed, follow these steps:

1. Get Microsoft PC Speaker driver [21 KB, free].
2. (Double-)click on SPEAK.EXE to extract its files.
3. Open Control Panel.
4. (Double-)click "Add New Hardware".
5. Don't let Windows search for new hardware.
6. Select "Sound, Video, Game Controllers".
7. Select "Have Disk".
8. Browse to the drive/partition + directory/folder where SPEAKER.DRV resides.
9. Click Install.

That's it. Your "mute" PC is now brought to "life".

To customize your PC Speaker settings:

1. Open Control Panel.
2. (Double-)click "Multimedia" (Win95/OSR2/98) or "Sound and Video" (WinME).
3. Select the "Advanced" tab.
4. (Double-)click "PC Speaker" from the "Audio devices" list. Tweak away. :)

PC Speaker driver works with all Windows 3.1x/9x/ME releases.

FYI:
• MSKB: How to Install and Use PC Speaker Driver.
• MSKB: SYSTEM.INI Entries made by PC Speaker.
• Windows/WfWG 3.1x users: see "SPEAKER CHALLENGE" in MYTIPS31.TXT [part of W31-11D.ZIP].

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©1996-2023 MDGx (a.k.a. AXCEL216): Everything here is FREEware. Always free of ad(vertisment)s, cookies, tracking, malware + spyware. I have created [August 1996], maintain and update these web pages entirely by hand using Programmer's File Editor [replaced Notepad]. I do not promote, speak in the behalf of, advertise or work for any computing, technology, news or internet profit business. All ©copyrights and ®registered ™trademarks retain owners' property.