«

[win98]

OK thats too bad. My old dos ghames pc blew up since the power pack blew.

[The Fifth Horseman]

I would buy it BUT put win98.

I disagree. I've got a DOS/98 desktop machine of similar specs, and when it runs 98 it has all the speed of an iceberg.
Win95 OSR2 / 2.5 & DOS 6.22 combo is the best one for this kind of hardware.

[win98]

To make win 98 fly you need 128mb ram to make Windows ME fly you need 128MB (Funny Isn't it) To make windows95 osr 2.5 fly you only need 32mb but for the best use 64mb ram.To make windows xp or 2000 fly you need atleast 512mb ram (Somthing I do not have). To make dos fly you can use about 16mb-24mb ram (Well with windows for workgroups you do)

[Grinder]

Ok, there's another thing now. I want to install 95b on it to transfer files via LAN/ USB-Stick. But how do I install DOS so that I can start 95 from the prompt anytime I like? Is that at all possible, or would I need a dual-boot-program-thingy? If so, where would I get it and how would I install it?

[win98]

Isn't there a way to install dos 6.22 first then install win95 then mdoify the boot up to run dos 6.22 automatcilly by editing the startup to load the startup menu and automatticlly run dos 6.22 in zero seconds or somthing like that.

[The Fifth Horseman]

Without dual hard drives (my favored method, simple and idiot-proof), you will indeed have to use a bootloader.

[Grinder]

Dual HDs might be possible, since I'm tending to a Desktop now. As I said in some other thread, I want to use the free VGA-port of my TFT for the DOS pc. I tested it with my fathers laptop, and it worked just fine.
And how would I do the thing with dual HDs?
I figure you'd install win on the one HD, switch it to be the second HD, and then install DOS, but how do I do all that?

[The Fifth Horseman]

There are several different ways to do it with dual HDD's.

First, using a HDD rack.
You'll need a free 5,25" bay to install it, and the racks come in various shapes - look for ones with a key lock in particular, since it prevents accidentally taking out the drive when the computer is working (doing that might cause damage to the computer and almost certainly would bork up the drive itself). The racks cost $8 to $15 apiece.
When you have another rack installed in your modern machine (they are also compatible with 5,25" USB drive enclosures - I am using such a combo myself), you can do away with using CD-R or RW's to transfer data to the DOS machine, since you can copy the files directly on your HDD.
Note that the racks must be from the same manufacturer, so they are interchangeable. Racks from different manufacturers won't be compatibile with each other.

Using one rack:
Primary Master (in the rack) - first OS. Set in BIOS to Autodetect.
Primary Slave (fixed) - second OS.
When the Master drive is installed, the computer will boot the OS installed there. If it is not present, the OS from the second drive will boot.

Plain and simple. What this method lacks, however, is that that the fixed OS (on the Pri Slave drive) will not be able to access the data from the first HDD.

Using two HDD racks:
You'll need a Midi size case for this purpose, since you'll need a minimum of 3x 5,25" drive bays - two for the racks and one for your CD drive.
Install one rack on the Pri IDE and the other on Sec IDE. Set the jumpers on both disks to Master and install them in the racks.

With this method, you can swap the HDDs with each other and thus have access to both HDDs no matter which system you are using.

Second, through BIOS.
Primary Master HDD - install with Windows
Primary Slave HDD - install with DOS.
Through BIOS, you can disable the Pri Master HDD, making the system boot from Pri Slave HDD.

This is pretty much a variation on the basics of the first rack solution. The cons are nearly the same, except here you cannot tranport the data using the HDD rack.
I am using this config in my DOS build, though, and it works well enough.

Third, through jumper-switch.
Yeah, you might be asking "WTF is that". The idea is very simple and bases on using a two-circuit two-track switch from your local electronics store, attached to two 2-pin lengths of a female pin connector and enabling you to switch the drive priority at any time (of course except when the computer is running!).
Tried that myself. Fancy, gives you access to data from both drives at the same time, but unfortunately has a major technical issue.
With the switch placed inside: you'll have to remove the case every time you wanyt to swit or don't put it on at all.
With the switch placed outside: the risk of an accidental switch during operation is too great.

Finally, some later BIOSes offer ability to boot from different drives then the primary master. That is an ideal situation, since it permits you to access both drives the whole time and requires none of the additional means needed by the other methods. The only problem would be finding a motherboard with such a BIOS.

PS. Using laptop HDD's with adapter to normal IDE with Molex power supply connector would be a good alternative to the standard drives - laptop drives are smaller, lighter, consume less power, aren't as noisy as their normal-size cousins and on top of that they are (supposedly) less prone to malfunctions.

You need any more info (like silencing the drives etc), just ask.

[win98]

That is good on my dos games pc it had one hdd that was loud as hell. If it still did work I would ask for help but as you know it is busted.

[Grinder]

I think I'm going to take this discussion into the other thread. I started about three threads or something like that and they all ended up the same way.