Windowed DOS application screen not clearing/refreshing

[paul]

Thanks in advance for any assistance offered.

I have a client with a DOS application which is running on a Windows XP
SP 2 machine (in either full screen or windowed mode) which is having
the following issue:

Upon launch, the screen does it's initial 'draw' or display and works
fine. However, any subsequent menu/draw/display does not clear the
prior, as is the desired and previous behaviour. It worked fine on
Windows 2000 Pro machines (and still does on the Windows 2000 Pro
machine in the office), but does not on any Windows XP machine, nor the
Windows 2000 Server machine. The program resides on the server, and so
is being run across the network. This occurs on all the machines in
the office save the one Windows 2000 Pro.

So, here begins the fixes I've attempted so as to prevent duplicate
suggestions:

1. Tried it from another Windows XP machine. -No luck, same result.
2. Tried it from a window instead of full-screen. -No luck, same
result.
3. Tried it from a command line launch instead of a shortcut. -No
luck, same result.
4. Tried creating a batch file that switches the screen mode using mode
con lines=25 in full screen, first to fix the half-screen in DOS
emulation issue, but also hoping it may fix. -No luck, same result.
5. Tried Control-Alt-R to manually refresh the screen. -No luck, same
result.
6. Tried other DOS applications from the same machine (also run off
the network). -These work without issue.
7. Tried compatibility mode (using a locally created batch file to
call the network program). -No luck, same result.
8. Attempted comparing config.sys and autoexec.bat settings from the
functioning Windows 2000 Pro machine and duplicating them on a
non-functioning one. -No luck, same result.
9. Attempted adding file and buffer parameters to config.sys. -No
luck, same result.
10. Attempted disabling advanced text services. -No luck, same
result.

So, I'm a bit at my wits end and my client is unable to do work without
this application (I know, unsupported DOS apps aren't the greatest way
to sustain a viable business) so I'll appreciate anything possible in
the way of a fix.

 

[Rob van Albada]

Try to run this application under Windows Vista, which seems to be
more DOS-friendly than XP.

Gool luck,
kind regards,

Rob van Albada, Amsterdam.

 

[paul]

As Vista is not commercially available until January of next year, I
appreciate your advice, but fail to see how it helps me resolve the
issue at hand.

Thanks for trying though!

 

[Rob van Albada]

I am not trying to solve your probably unsolvable problem with XP.
Many DOS applications simply will not run under an XP Command Prompt.
Hopeless, really. The Command Prompt emulates DOS to a certain extent
only. It IS not DOS. None of my extended DOS32 applications will run.
But some of them DO run under a Vista bèta.
The best advice I can give [your client] is:
Find someone who allows you to test your program on his Vista (bèta)
machine.
If it runs without problems, either get hold of a Vista bèta yourself
or wait until January when it will be released officially.
Or, find a cheap secondhand computer with good old Windows-98. (My
solution for the time being.)


Kind regards,

Rob.