MS-dos mode

[Kyle]

With XP is there a way to restart your computer to the ms
dos prompt "not a command prompt window". Shutting
windows down completely. Like you could with windows 98?

 

[Crusty \(-: Old B@stard :-\)]

No!

--
Regards:

Richard Urban

aka Crusty (-: Old B@stard

 

[Miss Perspicacia Tick]

With XP is there a way to restart your computer to the ms
dos prompt "not a command prompt window". Shutting
windows down completely. Like you could with windows 98?

*SIGH* Hasn't this been done to death?! No there isn't. XP isn't 98 - XP is
NT v5. There is no DOS in NT and never has been. Why do you need 'pure'
DOS, anyway?!

 

[t.cruise]

Also: If your hard drive is formatted NTFS, DOS cannot read NTFS. So, even if you boot
with a DOS boot floppy, if your hard drive is formatted NTFS, you won't be able to access
anything on it.

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi Kyle,

As there is no underlying layer of DOS, the answer would be no.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Associate Expert - WindowsXP Expert Zone

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org

 

[Kyle]

-----Original Message-----
98?

*SIGH* Hasn't this been done to death?! No there isn't. XP isn't 98 - XP is
NT v5. There is no DOS in NT and never has been. Why do you need 'pure'
DOS, anyway?!



.
okay Miss burn-out smarty pants how do I reformat my

hard drive with XP?

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Greetings --

Not to put too fine a point on it, you can't.

There is no way to reboot a WinXP PC into Real Mode DOS unless
you've set up a dual-boot system. The WinNT family of 32-bit
graphical operating systems, of which WinXP is the latest generation,
has never used, included, or "ridden upon" MS-DOS. The closest they
have is the Command Prompt window.

WinXP, like its predecessors WinNT & Win2K, is a pure 32-bit GUI
OS, and does not include or "ride upon" any version of DOS, as did
Win3.x & Win9x/Me. WinXP does include a command-line emulator for
those times when GUI applets are unnecessary/redundant, but it cannot
be started in "DOS mode."


Bruce Chambers
--
Help us help you:



You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. - RAH

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Greetings --

After you've backed up any data you wish to preserve, simply boot
from the WinXP installation CD. You'll be offered the opportunity to
delete, create, and format partitions as part of the installation
process. (You may need to re-arrange the order of boot devices in the
PC's BIOS to boot from the CD.)

HOW TO Install Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;316941

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html

http://www.webtree.ca/windowsxp/clean_install.htm


Bruce Chambers
--
Help us help you:



You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. - RAH

 

[Miss Perspicacia Tick]

The same way as you would have done with 98 - boot from the CD (suggest you
RTFM for your system or motherboard if you don't know how to do that).

 

[Kyle]

-----Original Message-----
Also: If your hard drive is formatted NTFS, DOS cannot

read NTFS. So, even if you boot

with a DOS boot floppy, if your hard drive is formatted

NTFS, you won't be able to access

anything on it.
--

T.C.
t__cruise@[NoSpam]hotmail.com
Remove [NoSpam] to reply

98?

*SIGH* Hasn't this been done to death?! No there isn't. XP isn't 98 - XP is
NT v5. There is no DOS in NT and never has been. Why do you need 'pure'
DOS, anyway?!

---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.712 / Virus Database: 468 - Release Date: 6/27/2004


.
So how do I reformat and get rid of XP?

 

[Kyle]

-----Original Message-----


The same way as you would have done with 98 - boot from the CD (suggest you
RTFM for your system or motherboard if you don't know how to do that).

Thats not how I would do it with 98. There is a much
easier way but since you are the computer guru I know you
knew that. I don't care for XP and would like to go back
to 98 since it is more user friendly and I feel it can do
all XP can do and more.

 

[Kyle]

-----Original Message-----
Greetings --

Not to put too fine a point on it, you can't.

There is no way to reboot a WinXP PC into Real Mode DOS unless
you've set up a dual-boot system. The WinNT family of 32-bit
graphical operating systems, of which WinXP is the latest generation,
has never used, included, or "ridden upon" MS-DOS. The closest they
have is the Command Prompt window.

WinXP, like its predecessors WinNT & Win2K, is a pure 32-bit GUI
OS, and does not include or "ride upon" any version of DOS, as did
Win3.x & Win9x/Me. WinXP does include a command-line emulator for
those times when GUI applets are unnecessary/redundant, but it cannot
be started in "DOS mode."


Bruce Chambers
--
Help us help you:



You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. - RAH


98?


.Thanks Bruce I did not know that XP was an NT based

system. I just wanted to get rid of it. I'm not that
familiar with NT, and can't hack up Xp like I can 98.

 

[NobodyMan]

Thats not how I would do it with 98. There is a much
easier way but since you are the computer guru I know you
knew that. I don't care for XP and would like to go back
to 98 since it is more user friendly and I feel it can do
all XP can do and more.

"...it can do all XP can do and more."

I remember when I drank my first beer too.

I haven't laughed this hard all day. Kyle, thanks for the comedy
relief.

 

[Mike Kolitz]

Not to sound stuck up or anything, but I would personally recommend that you
give up on Windows 98, not Windows XP. I can understand that Windows 98 is
a familiar environment for you, and that it's nice to run an environment
where you absolutely know what you're doing, but I would really suggest that
you take the time to learn NT/XP.

There will never be another DOS/9x based Windows Operating System -
everything from this point on will be based on the NT-kernel, so by not
learning XP, you're just delaying the inevitable, IMO.

I will admit, NT-based OSes are quite a change from 9x, since the guts are
totally different, but it's worth it. It may not seem like it on the
surface, but you can do *so* much more with an NT-based kernel... though it
really does depend on what you use your computer for. If all you're doing
is surfing the web and reading e-mail, it really doesn't matter what OS
you're running.

Still, the future is with the NT kernel, and Windows XP is *by far* the
easiest NT-based OS to learn. If you do decide to continue with XP, don't
feel bad asking questions. There are a large number of us here who would be
happy to help you however we can.

Just one man's opinion, but I thought I'd share.

Whatever you decide, good luck.

 

[Michael Stevens]

Thats not how I would do it with 98. There is a much
easier way but since you are the computer guru I know you
knew that. I don't care for XP and would like to go back
to 98 since it is more user friendly and I feel it can do
all XP can do and more.

If you must.

Click on or copy and paste the link below into your web browser address box.
Remove XP and install 98/Me
http://michaelstevenstech.com/xpfaq.html#how5
--

Michael Stevens MS-MVP XP
(e-mail address removed)
http://michaelstevenstech.com
For a better newsgroup experience. Setup a newsreader.
http://michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm

 

[DILIP]

Whilst going back to Windows 98, remember that any new programs or hardware
might simply be incompatible with it. Windows XP has come a long way since
2001 and is, by far, the easier to use of the two. You'll be shooting
yourself in the foot if you go and install 98 after paying $$$ for XP. Give
it some time, run thro' the menus and you'll see that you can make
everything look like 98 if you so please. Running 98 on the new breed of
hardware devices, multi-threaded CPUs, GDDR3 graphics cards et al, would be
a thoroughly useless waste of money - It sickens me to even think of it.

 

[John Doue]

Not to sound stuck up or anything, but I would personally recommend that you
give up on Windows 98, not Windows XP. I can understand that Windows 98 is
a familiar environment for you, and that it's nice to run an environment
where you absolutely know what you're doing, but I would really suggest that
you take the time to learn NT/XP.

There will never be another DOS/9x based Windows Operating System -
everything from this point on will be based on the NT-kernel, so by not
learning XP, you're just delaying the inevitable, IMO.

I will admit, NT-based OSes are quite a change from 9x, since the guts are
totally different, but it's worth it. It may not seem like it on the
surface, but you can do *so* much more with an NT-based kernel... though it
really does depend on what you use your computer for. If all you're doing
is surfing the web and reading e-mail, it really doesn't matter what OS
you're running.

Still, the future is with the NT kernel, and Windows XP is *by far* the
easiest NT-based OS to learn. If you do decide to continue with XP, don't
feel bad asking questions. There are a large number of us here who would be
happy to help you however we can.

Just one man's opinion, but I thought I'd share.

Whatever you decide, good luck.

I totally concur with Mike who presented a very reasonable and sound
point. I would like to add that in this case, you can have your cake and
eat it: just use the dual-boot ability or a program like System
Commander to run both 98 and XP on your system. This will allow you to
familiarize yourself gradually with XP. You may not come to like it but
you will get used to it. It is unfortunate that users not be offered any
other realistic choice of OSes than XP and ... XP (Linux being what it
is today, only experts can benefit from it) but this is the way it is
.... And do not forget that if your machine is recent, trying to install
98 will very likely lead you to driver problems, manufacturers seldom
bothering writing drivers for OSes other than the ones most popular at
the time their machines are sold.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Greetings --

Ah! If you'd mentioned your ultimate goal initially, someone
could have offered more pertinent advice initially.

The normal way to "uninstall" _any_ operating system is to format
the hard drive and install a new OS of your choice.

However, if you performed an upgrade from Win98/Me, elected to
backup the old system files, and didn't convert the partition to NTFS,
then all you need do is boot into Safe Mode and Start > Control Panel

Add/Remove Programs. All of these conditions _must_ be met for the

uninstall option to be available.

Otherwise:

How to Manually Remove Win XP and Restore Win9x
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q314052


Bruce Chambers
--
Help us help you:



You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. - RAH

 

[Miss Perspicacia Tick]

Whilst going back to Windows 98, remember that any new programs or
hardware might simply be incompatible with it. Windows XP has come a
long way since 2001 and is, by far, the easier to use of the two.
You'll be shooting yourself in the foot if you go and install 98
after paying $$$ for XP. Give it some time, run thro' the menus and
you'll see that you can make everything look like 98 if you so
please. Running 98 on the new breed of hardware devices,
multi-threaded CPUs, GDDR3 graphics cards et al, would be a
thoroughly useless waste of money - It sickens me to even think of
it.

Let him try it - he can whine in the 98 groups then how none of his hardware
works and how he can't find drivers!

 

[Alex Nichol]

With XP is there a way to restart your computer to the ms
dos prompt "not a command prompt window". Shutting
windows down completely. Like you could with windows 98?

There is no DOS around XP to shutdown to - unlike 98 that used a basic
DOS initial boot from which to go on and load windows. You have to boot
a separate DOS system,. eg a Win98 startup floppy. Note that this will
be unable to 'see' an NTFS partition. A compromise is to reboot, with
F8 at power on, to take
Safe Mode - Command Prompt
which is the cmd.exe command interpreter of XP run in a basic XP as the
shell