Re: Xy4 - OS options

["John K. Mackenzie " jkm3@xxxxxxxx]

I have an original XyWrite user manual if anyone is interested. Second
edition, 1986. No charge except shipping.

John Mackenzie
212-737-8910
-----Original Message-----
From: Raphael
Sent: Monday, June 06, 2011 11:16 AM
To: xywrite@xxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: Xy4 - OS options


The more I use Linux the more I enjoy it. The learning curve was only
real downside, but now that that's over, the payoff is knowing you're
using the tools of artificial intelligence -- tools that unite a
hobbyist's zeal with an engineer's rigor -- in the most sensible way
devised, and robustly, and economically, and safely. If my hard drive
goes south, I'll be back up and running in an hour.

As far as full-screen XyWrite goes

1) there were three or four key assignments that I've had to rework, and
it was a bit of work finding a font I really like. (I never used
Ultravision and I suspect it doesn't work under dosemu.)

2) So far I haven't devised a way to switch straight to a task from
within full-screen XyWrite -- I have to switch to windowed Xy to get to
the desktop, and then switch to the application. Then again, I am most
comfortable in what my dear wife calls my "black box of bitterness."

3) For the two or three applications I use that demand Windows, I open a
Virtual Box and boot XP.

-Rafe T.


On 05/30/2011 09:16 AM, Paul Lagasse wrote:
Linux w/ Dosemu is another viable option. There are some minor issues,
though these can be fixed with a variety of tweaks. Printing works (using
POSTGHST.PRN), both to the printer and a PDF file (in combo with cups-pdf)
and you can access the OS clipboard. OS commands can be run from the
command line, and fullscreen is possible as well (though I don't use it).
I've managed to create script that in most instances launches Xy4 and
calls the selected file.
You can run Xy4 on both Linux 32 and 64, though on the setups I've tested
there is an Xy4/Dosemu performance hit on 64 -- however, I don't think
this performance hit would be noticeable for most users (it's most
extremely and painfully present when I'm running an Xy4 program that makes
more than 100 CVA operations on some 80 MB in 170 files, but I also have a
script that now does the same thing faster).

Paul Lagasse

On 05/29/2011 05:58 PM, Lisa Kleinholz wrote:


------------------------------------------------------------------------
*From:* Carl Distefano **

What people like us really need, I think, is a DOS-in-the-Cloud that
would enable us to run XyWrite and other antiquated software from
any machine with an Internet connection.
That would be my dream come true. I am happy that I bought a netbook with
XP just before it was discontinued. It's my ace in the hole, although
DOSBox on a Mac has worked very well for me.