-=> Quoting John Augustine to Stephane Bessette <=-
 JA> I agree with you on that. If you are in the habit of opening more
 JA> that one Application at a time, Windows is the platform.
        Well, not automatically.  It really depends on what you
actually do, which software you use, and how stable they are under
that multitasking environment.  There is a multitasker that runs
under DOS (but can't remember the name), then there's the various
flavors of Windows (Windows 3.1, Win95, WinNT), and there's OS/2.
Also, it is not simply a habit for the fun of it:  there's a real
practical value to it.  Here's a concrete, although not realistic,
example.  You have your keyboard on a table/desk.  If you want to
read a book (API information, BIOS routine information, etc), you
have to remove the keyboard (and place it on the floor), and then
you can place the book on the table/desk.  Now that you've read
the information you required, you want to make a an outline of
how you're going to use it in your code.  So you have to remove
the book from the desk and place a sheet of paper on the desk.
When you're done, you remove the paper and put back the keyboard.
        This is how Dos feels to me, as compared to a multitasking
environment.  I know that most DOS programs allow you to 'Quit to
DOS', so you could start a new program there, but there are limitations
to that approach:  the second program has to be small, for instance.
Also, this makes it a bit clumsy to transfer information from one
application to another, or impossible from one file to another if the
editor does not let you load multiple files.
 JA> I program for Dos in Assembly using Masm Assembler.  I am not
 JA> familiar with Watcom or EMX.  What Language do you Progam in?
        Watcom is a C/C++ compiler.  It works under DOS, the various
flavors of Windows, and OS/2.  And you can also create applications
for all of these platforms.  This compiler is the most cost-effective
one I've ever come across, especially if you want to develop cross-
platform applications.  If you want to develop for only one platform,
then I might suggest you compare the tools offered in the various
packages, and see which are the most suitable.  For instance, Watcom's
support of OS/2 is not as great as it could be:  the toolkit included
is a bit old (v2.1 instead of v3.0).
        In conclusion, an OS (operating system) is a tool.  A tool
should help you in your work, not impede you.  You should feel
comfortable and secure.  DOS was fine for a while, when all I did
was play games and BBSing.  But when I started downloading lots of
files, I got tired of waiting 1-2 hours for the transfers to
complete before being able to do anything else.
        Then I got Windows 3.1.  This was a big improvement over
DOS;  now I could at least read/write a text file while a file
transfer was going on.  After I replaced the comm driver (with
cybercom), I no longer experienced as many errors during the
transfer.  There were also frequent crashes, but I believed that
to be normal since I was actually doing more than one thing at a
time.  Then I upgraded from 4 MB to 8 MB, in order to reduce the
frequency of the crashes, and hopefully improve the multitasking
capabilities of the OS.  It helped, a little.  But then I got into
a big mess with MS-Word v6.0 and MS-Excel v5.0, the last versions
before the Win95 ones came out (which essentially consists of a
revamped interface, with the underlying code very much identical, or
so I've read in magazines).  I was writing a thesis for my BSc
(Concordia University) and lost 4 days of work because the OS 
just didn't have the horse power I needed.
        And then I heard about OS/2 (don't remember how though).
Bought it, tried it, and something very strange happened.  My
computer now felt a lot more powerful.  I still had the same
hardware as when I was using Windows 3.1 (486-40 with 8 MB), but
nevertheless, it felt much more robust.  And the frequent crashes
stopped.
        What about Win95?  From what I've read on it and heard from
others, there's a lot of hype surrounding Win95.  MicroSoft said a
lot of things about it, and so did the press, but not all of it is
true, not does all of it live up to the expectations of the customers.
Nevertheless, it is a choice, but you have to make the decision, and
not simply have the decision thrust upon you (which is oftern the case
when you purchase a new computer system).  But Win97 is rumoured to be
released this summer, and is also said to be the equivalent of Win95 +
Plus Pack + Fix #1.  What a deal!
        And finally, there's WinNT.  Requires 32 MB to run (OS/2 and
Win95 want 8 MB, Windows 3.1 wants 4 MB).  Does not run most DOS and
Windows 3.1 software.  Runs some Win95 titles (but lack of multimedia
features?).  Anyways, WinNT is not ready yet for acceptance by the
general public, but MicroSoft nevertheless as stated that the general
public will go to WinNT:  Win95/Win97 is a stepping stone from Windows
3.1 to WinNT.
        In conclusion, find the OS or tool that is best suited to your
needs.  But make the decision, don't have it made by others.  Also,
make your decision based on facts, not on hype.
        Stephane [TEAM OS/2]
--- Blue Wave/OS2 v2.20
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