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Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98?

Cross-posted to 3 groups.

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Ross Ridge wrote:
 
> Since MS-DOS acts as as device driver of last resort for the VMM,
> you could also argue that Windows 95 is running on top of MS-DOS.

Isin't it more accurate to say that Windows 9x is simply accessing
hardware via a 16-bit driver running in the DOS VMM that IT (windows)
controls?

And is this only for situations where there is no 32-bit driver
installed?

Perhaps in the early days of Win-9x there were many systems that were
upgraded and perhaps some new off-the-shelf systems that had to rely on
pre-existing 16-bit DOS or win-3.0 drivers, but a year or two later (and
persisting until about 2005 or 2006) I'd venture a guess and say that
there simply wasn't any hardware in use on the typical win-98 machine
that didn't have 32-bit drivers.

So for any win-98 system that *doesn't* have 16-bit device drivers, you
can't really say that windows is running "on top of" DOS now can you?

I guess my main point is that if you order various components
horizontally such that there is a "top" component or top layer, you are
implying that the layer underneath is a foundation for or is in control
of the layer above it, and this lower layer must know that the higher
layer exists.  That clearly is not the case for the relationship between
DOS and Win-9x.

Wouldn't you agree that what we have here is a case where DOS runs "on
top of" Windows 9x - and not the other way around?  And even then - only
when it's called for?

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Thread

What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? DOS Guy <DOS@Guy.com> - 2011-10-16 18:27 -0400
  Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? Trifle Menot <triflemenot@beewyz.com> - 2011-10-16 23:38 +0000
  Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? "Rod Pemberton" <do_not_have@noavailemail.cmm> - 2011-10-17 05:16 -0400
    Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? "Klaus Meinhard" <K_Meinhard@gmx.de> - 2011-10-17 16:47 +0200
      Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? tomdzip <tomdzip@hotmail.com> - 2011-10-17 09:02 -0700
        Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? "Klaus Meinhard" <K_Meinhard@gmx.de> - 2011-10-18 08:42 +0200
      Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? "Rod Pemberton" <do_not_have@noavailemail.cmm> - 2011-10-17 13:34 -0400
        Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? DOS Guy <DOS@Guy.com> - 2011-10-17 16:43 -0400
          Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? Ross Ridge <rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca> - 2011-10-17 18:34 -0400
            Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? DOS Guy <DOS@Guy.com> - 2011-10-17 19:29 -0400
              Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? Ross Ridge <rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca> - 2011-10-17 20:36 -0400
                Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? DOS Guy <DOS@Guy.com> - 2011-10-17 21:36 -0400
                Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? Ross Ridge <rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca> - 2011-10-18 09:46 -0400
          Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? "Rod Pemberton" <do_not_have@noavailemail.cmm> - 2011-10-18 10:51 -0400
            Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? Ross Ridge <rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca> - 2011-10-18 13:49 -0400
  Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? Ross Ridge <rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca> - 2011-10-17 12:46 -0400
    Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? DOS Guy <DOS@Guy.com> - 2011-10-17 19:46 -0400
      Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? Trifle Menot <triflemenot@beewyz.com> - 2011-10-18 00:14 +0000
      Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? Ross Ridge <rridge@csclub.uwaterloo.ca> - 2011-10-17 20:56 -0400
      Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? "Klaus Meinhard" <K_Meinhard@gmx.de> - 2011-10-18 08:53 +0200
        Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? DOS Guy <DOS@Guy.com> - 2011-10-18 09:12 -0400
          Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? Jim Leonard <mobygamer@gmail.com> - 2011-10-18 07:03 -0700
          Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? "Klaus Meinhard" <K_Meinhard@gmx.de> - 2011-10-19 10:07 +0200
        Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? "Ant" <not@home.today> - 2011-10-19 01:26 +0100
          Re: What role does "DOS" play in Windows 95/98? "Klaus Meinhard" <K_Meinhard@gmx.de> - 2011-10-19 09:19 +0200

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