tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post230286715235598574..comments2023-09-20T07:28:27.572-05:00Comments on Linux in Exile: When backwards compatibility bites youJim Hallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11598443864678006773noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-91611418625154237572010-02-14T23:13:46.188-06:002010-02-14T23:13:46.188-06:00You should be immune to this if you're using 6...You should be immune to this if you're using 64-bit Windows. The x86-64 architechture doesn't support VM86 in 64-bit mode. So, there's a limit on backwards compatibility, although it's one forced by AMD rather than chosen by Microsoft.Williamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02052684196866992031noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-69900186320701976032010-02-09T11:52:11.876-06:002010-02-09T11:52:11.876-06:00Evaned, I think I have a blog post in mind that is...Evaned, I think I have a blog post in mind that is along these lines, but I'll need to grab some screenshots before I post. Look for something later this week. Thanks for the idea.JHhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05264061238864151815noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-65368624561023020292010-02-08T23:23:02.490-06:002010-02-08T23:23:02.490-06:00IMO, MS's commitment to backwards compatibilit...IMO, MS's commitment to backwards compatibility (historically; as badp said, they have broken it more recently) is the the greatest single reason for Windows's success, greatest single asset Windows has, and single greatest Achilles Heel that Windows has.<br /><br />(And I think you could do a lot better to argue that last point than that random bug in NTVDM; the security model, the system complexity, even stuff like the drive letters and overall file system structure. (Windows 7 still uses drive letters. Why? Because that's what Gary Kildall decided when he wrote CP/M in 1974.))Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-78459555129981397542010-02-08T16:28:16.351-06:002010-02-08T16:28:16.351-06:00I take it you haven't taken the time yet to di...I take it you haven't taken the time yet to dive into the fifty-odd pages of the first bonus chapter of Raymond Chen's book, "The Old New Thing", horror stories from the Microsoft compatibility tabs in the Windows 95 days.<br /><br />http://ptgmedia.pearsoncmg.com/images/9780321440303/samplechapter/Chen_bonus_ch01.pdf<br /><br />Backwards compatibility used to be and still is (to a lesser extent?) a very big deal at Microsoft... things are changing now, however (UAC, Vista's new driver model, opt-in-backwards-compatible IE8...).badphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06415924422221905555noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5650649138973583402.post-52342717556756691242010-02-08T13:36:55.213-06:002010-02-08T13:36:55.213-06:00This is in the NTVDM, which is the Windows NT Virt...This is in the NTVDM, which is the Windows NT Virtual Dos Machine. So this is really old. If you're going to run a Dos application these days, you're better off installing Virtualbox and booting FreeDos.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com