PowerBASIC for Linux

[John Spikowski]

While your waiting for an official version of PowerBASIC for Linux, DOSEMU/FreeDOS is a great way to run DOS programs under Linux. (CentOS/Red Hat) This is actually a better DOS environment then what Windows offers today. I just right clicked on the RPM, ran the Linux installer and bingo, I had DOS for Linux.

WHAT IS DOSEMU?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DOSEMU is a PC Emulator application that allows Linux to run a DOS
operating system in a virtual x86 machine. This allows you to run
many DOS applications. These are the capabilities of DOSEMU that are
worth noting:

• color text and full keyboard emulation (via hotkeys) even on a terminal
• built-in X Window System support (includes IBM character set font) including fullscreen X (via Ctrl-Alt-F)
• graphics capability at the console (for most compatible video cards) (requires suid-root or sudo)
• graphics emulation in X for many color modes (X-server may be in true color mode)
• DPMI support
• runs most 16-bit and 32-bit DPMI-compliant video games (including those based on DOS/4GW) at the Linux console and on X
• integrated (command line) instruction level debugger, various break points, single stepping etc.
• integrated EMS and XMS drivers
• integrated packet driver
• integrated mouse driver
• integrated joystick driver
• CDROM support
• ASPI driver support (CD writers, scanners, tapes etc.) (requires access rights to /dev/sgX)
• support for redirected drives (any Linux directory can be 'mounted' as DOS drive via the lredir command)
• can even directly boot from a Linux directory containing all DOS files
• sound support (including sound DMA and Midi)
• NetWare and other network connectivity via built-in IPX and pktdrvr support
• the dosemu-freedos binary package starts a DOS-"C:\>"-Drive 'out-of-the-box' in a normal user's $HOME directory and runs without any further configuration (no root rights needed)

http://www.dosemu.org/

Memory Type        Total       Used       Free
----------------  --------   --------   --------
Conventional          640K        10K       630K
Upper                 132K         9K       123K
Reserved              252K       252K         0K
Extended (XMS)      8,256K       164K     8,092K
----------------  --------   --------   --------
Total memory        9,280K       435K     8,845K

Total under 1 MB      772K        19K       753K

Total Expanded (EMS)                2,048K (2,097,152 bytes)
Free Expanded (EMS)                 2,048K (2,097,152 bytes)

Largest executable program size       630K (644,720 bytes)
Largest free upper memory block       121K (123,632 bytes)
FreeDOS is resident in the high memory area.

PowerBASIC - First Basic (compiler - shareware)



PowerBASIC - DOS 3.5 (compiler - demo version)



John

[John Spikowski]

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[John Spikowski]

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[Vincent van der Leun]

Is there mouse support for PowerBASIC FirstBasic in the IDE? The mouse works great with QBasic.

What is the major difference between FirstBasic and PBDOS 3.5 ?


John

Hi,

I am a user of the registered FirstBASIC compiler. Its IDE doesn't offer mouse support, so it's not Linux' fault you don't see a mouse cursor

Best regards,
Vincent

[John Spikowski]

GTK usage from DOS

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[Fred Harris]

Motif vs. GTK+

John,

What do you think of Motif/Lesstif?

Fred

[John Spikowski]

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[John Spikowski]

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[John Spikowski]

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[John Spikowski]

VBDOS Link Error

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[John Spikowski]

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[Marco Pontello]

I remember that the QBX IDE and also the simple DOS EDIT editor used to stress the CPU a lot when they apparently were "just idle waiting for a key press"; this become evident using DESQview to multitask, for example.

I remember a PC with an overclocked CPU that worked for some minutes doing other things, but locked in few seconds just after starting EDIT.

Bye!

[Michael Mattias]

I remember that the QBX IDE and also the simple DOS EDIT editor used to stress the CPU a lot when they apparently were "just idle waiting for a key press";

That should not come as a total surprise. After all, those programs were written for the MS-DOS O/S, where there is no such thing as multitasking... so sitting in a tight loop waiting for a keypress is a perfectly reasonable technique, because there are no other 'users' of the CPU to disrupt.

[Fred Harris]

Vbdos

The old Visual Basic for DOS is actually pretty cool for it's time.

I've an old copy of that too that I never hardly used. I thought it was pretty cool too! Different times I thought I'd put some time into learning it but just never got to it. From the little I did play with it it seemed memory was really, really tight. I got the impression that if one wanted to write a major app with it one would soon be abandoning a lot of the GUI part and just programming in straight QB45/PDS 7.1 style code. That's neat you got that working under Linux John!

[John Spikowski]

That should not come as a total surprise. After all, those programs were written for the MS-DOS O/S, where there is no such thing as multitasking... so sitting in a tight loop waiting for a keypress is a perfectly reasonable technique, because there are no other 'users' of the CPU to disrupt.

I'm glad PowerBASIC didn't follow that theory and is kind to other processes, even back when DOS ruled.

Thanks Bob for the foresight.


John

[John Spikowski]

Feedback:

I compiled the "Towers of Hanoi" and ran it under DOSEMU/FreeDOS on Linux and can verify that PowerBASIC doesn't have the same issues as QB (4.5/7.1/VBDOS) does with hogging the CPU.

• IDE usage - no CPU usage
• Sitting at a INPUT - no CPU usage
• Program execution (13 disk - 8191 moves - < sec.) small blip of less then 20%

It would seem that PowerBASIC for DOS makes a usable tool for Linux.

Has anyone else tried it yet?

John

[John Spikowski]

Here is a Windows screen copy of a PuTTY SSH connection to my Linux box running PowerBASIC for DOS. (DOSEMU - terminal mode)







The mouse and ALT and function keys work as if I was running local.

[John Spikowski]

Unless someone has a question, this will be my last post to this thread. I'm very happy with the way DOSEMU and PowerBASIC for DOS runs on Linux.

Based on the lack of responses to this thread, it seems that I'm the only one with any interest in this.

If nothing else, I hope it was entertaining.


John

[Fred Harris]

Screenshots

Your screenshots are really neat John, and also the fact that the new forum software here at PowerBASIC supports them. To make them in the Ubuntu Linux I use is really easy and I know how to do it, but I'm clueless how one would generate *.png image files under Windows? How would one do that? Need special software I guess?

Based on the lack of responses to this thread, it seems that I'm the only one with any interest in this.

No, I've appreciated it John. Linux is kind of a late career hobby for me. I've been with Microsoft technologies so long, I eventually became curious about the 'other side', so to speak. I'd eventually like to write Linux versions of some of my forestry related applications/utilities. Its not a high priority item with me, just something to do when I'm in the mood and have time.

[John Spikowski]

Your screenshots are really neat John, and also the fact that the new forum software here at PowerBASIC supports them. To make them in the Ubuntu Linux I use is really easy and I know how to do it, but I'm clueless how one would generate *.png image files under Windows? How would one do that? Need special software I guess?

I use SnagIt 8 for screen captures and adding quick effects. I use Photoshop CS2 for all my web and panorama work.

Thanks for your comments.

John