New versions of Windows don’t fully support classic DOS games and other old applications — this is where DOSBox comes in. It provides a full DOS environment that runs ancient DOS apps on modern operating systems.
We’ve written about using the D-Fend Reloaded front-end for DOSBox in the past, but what if you just want to use DOSBox itself? We’ll show you to how to mount directories, use DOSBox’s internal commands, execute programs and use DOSBox’s keyboard shortcuts like a pro.
This guide will use the 0.74 Mac OSX version which is available for download. The 0.74 release is compiled as a Universal Binary, and will run on PowerPC and Intel based Macs. To install DOSBox, first expand the.ZIP file and copy the contents into a folder like DOSBox. Move this folder into your Applications folder.
Getting Started
DOSBox is available as a free download from the DOSBox website. It’s not just for Windows — installers are available for Mac OS X, Linux and other UNIX-like systems. If you’re using Ubuntu, you’ll find DOSBox available in the Ubuntu Software Center.
You’ll also need the game or application you want to run. If you have an old floppy disk, it’s time to pull it out. If the game was available as shareware, you’re in luck — you should be able to find it online. Most DOS games are fully compatible, but DOSBox’s homepage hosts a compatibility list so you can check your favorite game’s compatibility.
Mounting Directories
Once it’s installed, you can fire DOSBox up from your desktop or Start menu. You’ll get two windows — a status window and the main DOSBox window. You can ignore the status window.
(As readers have noted, you can also run a program by dragging and dropping its EXE file onto DOSBox’s application icon, so feel free to give that a try.)
Before you run a game, you’ll have to mount its directory. DOSBox’s environment is separate from your computer’s file system. In other words, the C: drive in DOSBox is completely separate from the C: drive on your computer.
Here’s an example mount command:
mount c c:games
This command mounts the C:Games directory on your computer as the C: drive in DOSBox. Replace c:games with the location of the games directory on your computer.
Add the -t cdrom switch if you’re mounting a CD-ROM. For example, the following command takes the CD-ROM drive at D: on your computer and mounts it as the C: drive in DOSBox:
mount c D: -t cdrom
Navigating Around and Running Applications
Once you’ve got your game files mounted, you can type C: and press Enter to switch to DOSBox’s C: drive.
Use the dir command to list the contents of the current directory and the cd command, followed by the name of a directory, to change to a directory. Use the cd . command to go up a directory.
Type the name of an EXE file in the current folder to execute that program. You may have to run an install program before playing your game or running your application.
If you do, install the game like you would on a normal DOS system.
Once it’s installed, you can navigate to the game’s EXE file and run it by typing its name.
At this point, you’re ready to play. You’ll have to repeat the mount process each time you restart DOSBox, although you’ll only have to install and configure the game once.
Keyboard Shortcuts
DOSBox has a variety of keyboard shortcuts. Here are the most essential ones:
Alt-Enter switches between full-screen and windowed modes.
If a game runs too fast, you can slow it down by pressing Ctrl-F11. Likewise, you can speed up slow games by pressing Ctrl-F12. DOSBox’s emulated CPU speed, displayed in its title bar, will change each time you press these keys.
Type the intro special command to see a full list of DOSBox’s shortcut keys.
DOSBox can also run DOS programs that aren’t games — including the Windows 3.1 operating system itself — but games are its main use case. The DOS programs people used to rely on have been replaced, but classic games can never be replaced.
READ NEXT
Install Windows 3.1 in DOSBox to run old 16-bit Windows games on 64-bit versions of Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and anywhere else DOSBox runs. This is particularly useful as only 32-bit versions of Windows can run those 16-bit applications.
Dosbox For Windows Xp
Windows 3.1 was actually just an application that ran on DOS, and DOSBox is an emulator designed to run DOS and DOS applications. Windows 3.1 in DOSBox is an ideal combination for running old Windows 3.1-era applications.
Asus f1a55-m lx3 audio driver free. The onboard 8-channel HD audio (High Definition Audio, previously codenamed Azalia) CODEC enables high-quality 192KHz/24-bit audio output and jack-detect feature that automatically detects and identifies what types of peripherals are plugged into the audio I/O jacks and notifies users of inappropriate connection, which means there will be no. Products certified by the Federal Communications Commission and Industry Canada will be distributed in the United States and Canada. Please visit the ASUS USA and ASUS Canada websites for information about locally available products. All specifications are subject to change without notice. ASUS F1A55-M LX3 drivers will help to eliminate failures and correct errors in your device's operation. Download ASUS F1A55-M LX3 drivers for different OS Windows versions (32 and 64 bit). After you have downloaded the archive with ASUS F1A55-M LX3 driver, unpack the file in any folder and run it.
Install Windows 3.1
RELATED:How to Make Old Programs Work on Windows 10
First, you’ll need to create a folder on your computer. This folder will contain the contents of the “C:” drive you’ll provide to DOSBox. Don’t use your actual C: drive on Windows for this. Make a folder like “C:dos”, for example.
Create a folder inside the “C:dos” folder — for example, “C:dosINSTALL” — and copy all the files from your Windows 3.1 floppy disks to that folder. Windows 3.1 is still under Microsoft copyright, and can’t legally be downloaded from the web, although many websites do offer it for download and Microsoft no longer offers it for sale.
You can use Windows 3.1 or Windows for Workgroups 3.11 — whichever you have available.
Next, install and launch DOSBox. At the DOS prompt, type the following command and press Enter to mount the folder you created as your C: drive in DOSBox:
mount c c:dos
(If you named the folder somewhere else or placed it at another location, type that location instead of c:dos.)
Switch to the C: drive by typing the following two characters and pressing Enter:
c:
Next, enter the folder containing your Windows 3.1 installation files:
cd install
(If you named the folder something else, type that instead of install.)
Finally, launch the Windows 3.1 setup wizard:
setup.exe
Go through the Windows 3.1 setup wizard to install Windows 3.1 in DOSBox. When it’s done, close the DOS system by clicking “Reboot” in the wizard.
When you restart DOSBox, you can launch Windows 3.1 by running the following commands in order:
mount c c:dos
c:
cd windows
Install Video Drivers
RELATED:PCs Before Windows: What Using MS-DOS Was Actually Like
DOSBox supports standard VGA graphics. However, it also supports some other types of graphics. By default, it’s set up to emulate S3 Graphics. For best graphics support, you’ll want to install the S3 graphics drivers and configure Windows 3.1 to use a higher resolution and more colors.
You can download the S3 video driver from the Classic Games website. Unzip the .zip file to a folder inside your DOSBox C: drive folder. For example, it would make sense to put these files in the “C:doss3” folder.
In Windows 3.1, double-click the Main program folder and double-click the “Windows Setup” icon. Click the “Options” menu in the Windows Setup window and select “Change System Settings.”
Click the “Display” box, scroll down to the bottom, and select “Other display (Requires disk from OEM).”
Type the path to the S3 drivers. For example, if you unzipped them to the C:doss3 folder, you’d type “C:S3” here.
Choose your preferred resolution and colors. We recommend choosing 800×600 with 256 colors. This is the highest resolution and number of colors many games will support.
Click OK several times. Windows will install the drivers and you’ll be prompted to restart it. After you do, you’ll see your new graphical settings in effect.
If Windows won’t work properly after you select a display mode, run the following command after using the “cd windows” command to enter the Windows directory:
setup.exe
You’ll then be able to select a different video mode.
Install Sound Drivers
There’s one more driver issue to take care of. Windows 3.1 doesn’t include sound drivers that will work completely with the SoundBlaster sound hardware DOSBox is emulating. You’ll want to install those, too.
As with the S3 video driver, you can download the Sound Blaster 16 Creative Audio Driver from the Classic Games website. Unzip the downloaded archive into a folder like c:dossb
Exit Windows 3.1 by clicking “File” and selecting “Exit Windows” if it’s open in DOSBox. Run the following commands to launch the Sound Blaster 16 driver installer, assuming you unzipped the folder to c:dossb
cd c:sb
install.exe
Press Enter to install the drivers, select Full Installation, and press Enter again. By default, you’ll see the line: “Microsoft Windows 3.1 path : None”.
Select “Microsoft Windows 3.1 path” with the arrow keys and press Enter.
Enter the default path, which is C:WINDOWS, and press Enter. Press Enter again to continue.
On the next screen, select the “Interrupt setting: 5” value and press Enter. It’s set to 5 by default, but DOSBox’s default is 7.
Select “7” for the Interrupt Setting and press Enter. You can then press Enter to continue. Allow the installation process to finish and “reboot” your DOS system by closing DOSBox and reopening it.
Launch Windows 3.1 again and you’ll have full sound support, including support for MIDI audio. You should hear a sound as soon as you launch Windows 3.1 again.
Install and Run Games and Other Applications
To actually use an application, download it (or copy it from old disks) and place it in a folder inside your c:dos folder. For example, you might want to place it in c:dosgamename.
You can then create a shortcut to the game’s .exe file by clicking File > New and browsing to its .exe file. Double-click that shortcut to launch the game.
The game should just work, launching within the DOSBox window as if it were running on Windows 3.1 — after all, it is.
How To Install Windows 2000 In Virtual Box
You don’t have to go through this entire setup process again in the future, either. Just take that c:dos folder — or whatever else you named it — and back it up. Move it to another computer and you can use it after installing DOSBox. Because we haven’t configured DOSBox at all and have just used its default settings, you won’t even have to tweak your DOSBox settings before it will work.
READ NEXT
Comments are closed.
|
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |