SH> When I applied a fixpack (12) to OS/2, the video drivers barfed and it
 SH> wouldn't boot. Since OS/2 is GUI based, I was screwed. 

Except that, of course, OS/2 *isn't* GUI based at all.  Workplace Shell's user 
interface is GUI based, but Workplace Shell is *not* OS/2.  It's an OS/2
application, just like any other.  It merely happens to be the OS/2
application that is first run on most machines.

It's quite easy to boot OS/2 to text-mode.  Just press ALT-F1 when the white
"ÛÛ OS/2" blob appears, and then choose the option to boot to a command line.

(That is one of OS/2's many advantages over Windows NT, in fact.  Windows NT
cannot be booted to text mode and then run Win32 programs, even "console mode" 
ones, because running Win32 programs requires starting the Win32 subsystem,
and starting the Win32 subsystem forces graphics mode.  OS/2 Warp can be
booted to text mode and still run ordinary OS/2 programs, since running
text-mode OS/2 programs does not require the graphics subsystem to be started. 
 Only running graphical OS/2 programs requires that.)

It's also easy to reset display driver problems as well.  On the same menu,
one has the option of resetting the display drivers to standard VGA.  If one
happens to misconfigure one's display drivers, say, or if (as in your case)
one applies a fixpack without resetting to VGA first, this allows one to start 
afresh from a clean configuration.  Or one can boot to the command line and
run the SETVGA command manually.

Read the _Troubleshooting_ on-line book in your "Troubleshooting" folder.  Go
to the _Solving Video Problems_ section under _Solving operating system
problems_, click on the link to _Resolving display problems_ and then click on 
the "System will not restart on a High Resolution Display" symptom.

 ¯ JdeBP ®

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