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#DOSBox

Kinsie
@Kinsie
Kinsie
@Kinsie
Kinsie
@Kinsie

Moving my old VM stuff from Virtualbox to VMWare, and running into some technical issues with disk images, disk drive lettering etc. Which is understandable, it's a weird shift.

What I wasn't expecting was for one of my old games to get so weirdly personal about it.

Kinsie
@Kinsie

the people demand more funny error messages

To answer the question of why I'm moving from the sweet embrace of, uh, Oracle's Virtualbox to the increasingly-fucked (to the extent of my having to Google a download link since the official one 404ed) VMware (since at least two actual humans elsewhere asked):

Virtualbox arbitrarily developed a bug where any attempt to click on/in the VM would instead cause my cursor to teleport to the top left corner of my monitor instead. Googling solutions gave me several threads dating back at least ten years where the only solution given was "reinstall windows idfk".

And before you ask, I'm far too stupid to setup 86box or PCem or whatever the new hotness is. My recent tact is cannibalizing someone else's known-working Win98-in-DOSbox-X install for entirely-legitimate per-game configurations that probably take up far too much disk space but kinda-sorta work well enough.

KewlioMZX
@KewlioMZX

I decided I was going to be stubborn and see if I can get Moraff's World running in ATI mode, to see whether there was a distinct advantage in doing so.

Steps I took:

  • Booting DOSBox-X in ATI Mach32 mode: Nope, hangs. But it mentions something about HDILOAD before it does.
  • Find a driver pack for the Mach32 and install and run HDILOAD, then run MW: Doesn't hang anymore, but neither does it start up.
  • Try the bundled HDI mode tester that came with HDILOAD: Nope, doesn't detect the card.
  • Remember that there's a way to load VBIOS into DOSBox: Found a VBIOS file, but the command doesn't work. Apparently, it's purely for debugging purposes and not enabled in releases.
  • Notice that the VBIOS was from the 86box ROMs pack: hmm
  • Spend like two hours installing 86box, its ROMs, its VM manager, then configuring a machine until it boots, try to install FreeDOS from CD, that crashes, install FreeDOS from floppy images instead, create floppy images for the drivers, install the drivers, set up HDILOAD, create a floppy image for MW, copy it onto the VHD, then run MW and select the ATI mode: .......well, it loads and plays, but uh...I wouldn't call this playable unless you have foreknowledge of exactly how to play.

At best, the graphics (that I do see) do look a little smoother overall, but what I was hoping for is that maybe, in ATI mode, it would do offscreen drawing/buffering so that it wouldn't need to refresh the entire screen and redraw everything every time I move. Sadly, this doesn't seem to be the case. I feel like it does draw faster than in Tseng ET-4000 mode, but it still draws directly to video memory.

Maybe there is something specific about my setup that's causing the image to be shifted down like this, but if there is and if it can be fixed, I have no idea where to even start. 86box is a full computer emulator, not just a DOS emulator, so it might come down to tweaking hardware settings or flipping a BIOS setting or something until it works, and then I don't really gain all that much performance over what I get from running it in DOSBox in ET4000 mode. Oh well, an interesting experiment nonetheless.

jetsetruri
@jetsetruri

Megapost: Last versions of software for older operating systems

Mirror: Neocities

Last update: 2024-08-20

Below you'll find lists, repositories, guides, and my own list below.

Lists

Software repositories

MS-DOS and Windows 9x

Unix

Commodore

Guides, Tips, Discussions, and Misc.

The World Wide Web

Windows 9x

Windows 2000/XP

Unix-like operating systems

Ruri's list of software

Commodore 64

Development

SoftwareDescription
cc64Small-C compiler
DurexForthForth interpreter
sviccVi clone
Turbo Macro ProProgramming in 6502 assembly

Operating systems

SoftwareDescription
GEOSMacintosh-inspired operating system
Lunix NGUnix-like operating system

IBM PC (MS-DOS / DOSBOX)

Development

SoftwareMinimum CPUDescription
Borland Turbo Assembler?16-bit assembler
Borland Turbo C++16-bit (8088)C and C++ compiler
Borland Turbo Pascal16-bit (8088)Pascal compiler
DJGPP32-bit (i386)Port of GCC and GNU utilities to MS-DOS
FreeBASIC 1.10.132-bit (i486)Latest at the time of writing, a QBasic-compatible BASIC compiler
MegaZeux 2.7016-bit (8088?)Game creation system originally developed for MS-DOS. Couldn't get it running on an emulated 8088 though
MegaZeux 2.9332-bit (i386)Latest at the time of writing. Pretty slow on an emulated i386DX/33, may work best on a i486/33 or higher
QuickBASIC16-bit (8088)GW-BASIC-inspired compiler/interpreter

Other software

SoftwareMinimum CPUDescription
Minix 2.0.216-bit (8088)Tiny Unix-like operating system
SuperMemo 616-bit (8088)Spaced repetition with flashcards, like Anki
Vim 7.116-bit (8088)Vi clone
Vim 7.332-bit (i386)Vi clone
xvi16-bit (8088)Vi clone

Windows 3.1x

SoftwareDescription
Calmira RebornWindows 9x-style shell for Windows 3.1
SuperMemo 7Spaced repetition with flashcards

Windows 95

SoftwareDescription
Blitz3DLatest at the time of writing. Classic engine for 2D and 3D game development. Also known as Blitz BASIC
MetapadDrop-in replacement and improvement over Notepad
SuperMemo 9Spaced repetition with flashcards

Windows 2000

SoftwareVersionDescription
Blender???3D modeling
Calibre0.6.16 (note)E-book manager and reader
Everything1.4.1.1024 (latest)File and full-text search
GIMP2.6.7Image editor
LibreOffice5.4.7.2Office suite
Notepad++v6.6.9Powerful text editor
SuperMemo12 (2004)Spaced repetition with flashcards
Vim7.4UNIX text editor
VLC1.1.11Media player
Wikidpad2.2 (latest)Personal wiki

Windows XP

*Tested on Omoikane, a 2004 laptop without SSE2 running a vanilla copy of Windows XP Professional SP3 VL.

Development

Since TIC-80 doesn't run on SSE2-less Windows XP, I wanted to find the next best thing. Some of these were found thanks to TheOuterLinux's list of software.

SoftwareVersionNote
batari Basicv1.7Latest at the time of writing. BASIC-like compiler for developing Atari 2600 games. Haven't followed its install script, but it seems to run
Blitz3Dv1.110Latest at the time of writing. Classic engine for 2D and 3D game development. Also known as Blitz BASIC
cc65LatestLatest at the time of writing (August 12th, 2024). cc65 is an assembler and C compiler for 6502-based systems such as the C64 and NES
FreeBASIC1.10.1Latest at the time of writing. Modern QuickBASIC-compatible compiler
GameMaker8.1A program I used as a kid. Mostly for 2D indie game development, but has some support for 3D
GBDK2.95-3Assembler and C compiler for the Game Boy. Succeeded by GBDK-2020 which may or may not work for you (my prototypes were compiled into blank ROMs)
LÖVE (Love2D)Varies; get it from GitHubThere are several versions available depending on your hardware requirements. 0.8.0 if you lack SSE2, 0.9.2 if you lack OpenGL 2.1+, and 0.10.2 for the latest version on Windows XP
Python2.7.9 or 3.4.4The last supported version is 3.4.10, but there isn't an official binary release (you can get an unofficial one here). Some have compiled later versions, like Python 3.6 (see here)
QB64v1.5Similar to FreeBASIC, a modern QuickBASIC-compatible compiler
Raylibv5.0Latest at the time of writing. Not tested. Requires a C compiler. Has support for compiling games with OpenGL 1.1
SDL1.2 or 2.xNot tested. Requires a C compiler. A more advanced option that I decided to add here for good measure
Tiny C Compiler (TCC)0.9.27Latest at the time of writing. Tiny, lightweight C compiler by Fabrice Bellard

Emulators

SoftwareVersionSystemNote
DOSBOX0.74-3IBM PC (DOS)Latest at the time of writing. A very popular MS-DOS emulator
ePSXev1.9.25Sony PlayStation (PSX)Had to get Pete's Windows plugins, transfer them to the plugin directory, and select "Pete's D3D Driver". Runs great at fullscreen 640x480 but slows down when action gets heavy (mostly tested w/ fighting games). I heard v2.0.2-1 is the last version that starts on Windows XP, but v1.9.25 is the highest I can go without crashing at launch
Gambatter571Game BoyHaven't tested it yet with a game, but it boots up just fine
NO$GBAv3.05Game Boy Advance (GBA) / Nintendo DS (NDS)Latest at the time of writing. Full speed on Animal Crossing: Wild World (the only game I tested out)
NO$PSXv2.2Sony PlayStation (PSX)Latest at the time of writing. Works out of the box without BIOS. Has great debugging tools. Most games use frameskipping. More demanding games like Tekken 3 and Dead or Alive run below full speed.
Project641.6.1Nintendo 64 (N64)Either 1.6 or 1.6.1. I haven't tested it in a while, but games ran good, albeit with major graphical glitches at times (e.g. Banjo-Tooie)
Snes9x1.53Super Nintendo / Super Famicom (SNES)1.51 is the latest to run without tweaks, but I could run as far as 1.53 after ignoring the error at startup and using DirectDraw over Direct3D. Intensive games like Star Fox EX run fine, though. If your hardware isn't good enough for Snes9x, I recommend ZSNES instead (then again, you probably shouldn't be running Windows XP)
StellaTBA (6.0.2?)Atari 26006.0.2 is too high for me to run. I'll explore this later
uxn322.2uxn/VarvaraLatest at the time of writing. An emulator for Hundred Rabbits' fantasy computer
VICE2.4 or 3.2Commodore 64 (C64)3.2 is the highest I can run, but 2.4 has better performance. Both appear to use frameskipping when using x64sc, but turning off the CRT filter helped (more so for 2.4, to the point of stuttering way less on the Wonderland XIV demo)
VirtuaNES0.97Nintendo Entertainment System / Famicom (NES)Latest at the time of writing
Visual Boy Advance1.7.2Game Boy (GBC) / Game Boy Advance (GBA)Works fine. Couldn't find a newer alternative (Latest version of VBA-M refuses to boot). May explore further
XEBRA22/11/06Sony PlayStation (PSX)Latest at the time of writing. Works without BIOS, but fails to reach full speed on my laptop due to its accuracy. May be good for developing homebrew
ZSNES1.51Super Nintendo / Super Famicom (SNES)Latest at the time of writing. Not tested as I prefer Snes9x

Other software

SoftwareVersionDescriptionNote
3D Custom Girl XP4.1Character creation, posing, animationFound it as a low-end alternative to Virt-A-Mate, for all of you dirty degenerates out there
Anki2.0.52-alternateSpaced repetition with flashcardsMy software of choice for learning and retaining new information
BleachBit2.2System cleanerNot tested
Blender2.58 (non-SSE2) or 2.76b (SSE2)3D modelingI had to run Blender 2.58 with the -software argument
Calibre1.48.0E-book manager and readerNot tested
Everything1.4.1.1024File and full-text searchLatest at the time of writing this post
FBReader0.12.10E-book readerNot tested (I prefer SumatraPDF)
GIMP2.8.22Image editor
Krita2.8.1.1PaintingNot tested. May require SSE2
LibreOffice5.4.7.2Office suite
MikuMikuDance
Mumble1.2.3VoIP client1.3.4 may be the last that runs on Windows XP, but on my laptop I can boot up to 1.2.19 (which crashes), and 1.2.3 is the last to run flawlessly
Notepad++v7.9.2Powerful text editorCrashed on my laptop with an access violation error. May require SSE2
SumatraPDF3.1.2PDF readerCan read .pdf and .epub files
Vim9.0UNIX text editor
VLC3.0.20Media playerThere's a claim that 3.0.21 doesn't run on Windows XP, which mirrors my own experience
Wikidpad2.2Personal wikiLatest at the time of writing. Basically an old-school Obsidian, though I like Zim more
Wings 3D1.5.43D modelingCould go up to 2.0, but it starts to have minor graphical issues on my setup, and 2.0.5 refused to start. Haven't tested 2.0.1 through 2.0.4
Zim0.60Personal wikiSimilar to Wikidpad

Slackware 13.37

Wrote this down mostly for my personal use. As tested with the same laptop, Slackware is a good distribution for an air-gapped/offline computer, and 13.37 is the last version with GPU acceleration for S3 Savage drivers. It feels more long-in-the-tooth than Windows XP when it comes to certain software.

Some trial and error led to me being able to compile certain projects from source with Slackware 13.37's old GCC (GCC 4.5.2), or install packages from newer versions of Slackware. This is to keep track of those.

SoftwareVersionNotes
Anki2.0.33
Python 33.5.1
Vim9.1.0679 (latest)
VimWiki705ad1e (latest)

If you can't download a piece of software, like CCS64, put its direct link URL in the Wayback Machine and Bob's your uncle.

Also, if you're interested in this for portability, I highly advise checking out Hundred Rabbits' uxn project, with emulators and resources available on GitHub.