Wunderbar98

Hi ZortMcGort11, you're a Windows 9x trooper. K-Melon is very nice, lean and functional. Thanks for the Netscape News link, already had CNN lite bookmarked. Gmail is accessible in DOS via Links browser and in Windows 98 with K-Meleon v1.5.4, didn't even need to change user agent string. My Gmail is still set up to be HTML only, not the JavaScript version. You may need a JavaScript capable browser to access and change your Gmail settings. Not sure if they still allow reverting back to HTML, maybe my account is grandfathered. Just used K-Meleon to send a sample JPG attachment, no problem. I have a very old Yahoo account too, last used it was set up to be basic, not sure HTML only though.

Thank-you for figuring things out Deomsh and for sharing the findings. You've put a lot of effort into testing and have my vote as resident Windows 9x driver expert. For me personally this is too involved and i will just continue to use Links in DOS. The information will undoubtedly help others streamline NDIS driver setup for Windows use. Thanks again.

Hi ZortMcGort11. Try to browse everyday with Windows 98, mostly news and forums, no JavaScript. Alternate between RetroZilla, K-Meleon and Links, all support TLS v1.2 and work without kernel extensions.

Hi Sergiaws. To the best of my knowledge RetroZilla has no built-in players although helper applications can be configured via Edit dropdown -> Preferences -> Navigator -> Helper Applications. Then just use your favourite software to handle specific file types. Personally just download what i want then manually utilize the files. Not sure if Jake Gross' site has any useful stuff for you. https://msfn.org/board/topic/177106-running-vanilla-windows-98-in-2020/page/31/?tab=comments#comment-1186422

Thanks Deomsh for searching the entire internet :) Unfortunately also can't get this system's NDIS driver to run Links from the Windows environment. The NDIS driver is tested to run well in real mode DOS so it's known to work. Confirmed custom WATTCP.CFG entries via IPCONFIG.EXE. Even trialed adding all relevant commands to boot %PATH% (Links, NDIS, CWSDPMI). The first post was updated to clarify using an NDIS driver to run Links from a Windows environment with a pointer to Deomsh's configuration post and this discussion. Edit: The firewall isn't even queried with a connection attempt, doesn't work with firewall disabled either. The system's regular ethernet driver still works though, can an adapter use two drivers at once in the same boot (NDIS, Windows driver)?

Thank-you for the information Deomsh. The first post was updated with a link to your configuration notes for running Links in a Windows environment. Similar to the 'Running vanilla Windows 98...' thread regarding Arachne, couldn't get my packet driver working in Windows regardless of configuration. With Links tried my packet driver with the -w switch, tried the packet driver plus WINPKT.COM, tried WATTCP.CFG with both DHCP and static IP, nothing worked. No assistance requested, happy running in DOS environment, just for others YMMV.

Thanks for the information loblo, now understand why no visible difference. For others like me who avoided the font rabbit hole for 20 years, Windows 98 already has built-in font smoothing. Outlined in the link, 'Windows 9x, Windows 2000 and Windows XP - Font smoothing can be activated via the 'Effects' tab on the 'Display Properties' control panel'. Windows 95 users can download and try font smoothing from the link if they wish. For me font appearance is good enough for this more than 20 year old OS. http://web.archive.org/web/20051222193857/http://www.microsoft.com/typography/grayscal/smoother.aspx The Font Properties Extension ignorantly installed here provides all this too-detail-oriented-for-me font information when right-clicking and selecting properties on an installed font in C:\WINDOWS\FONTS. http://web.archive.org/web/20060306101444/http://www.microsoft.com/typography/PropertiesExtensionFAQ.mspx For anyone who wants to dig further, typography FAQ from Microsoft during the era of Windows 98 support. http://web.archive.org/web/20060207192850/http://www.microsoft.com/typography/TrueTypeFAQ.mspx Of course MDGx provides lots of information and downloads too. http://www.mdgx.com/add.htm#FOS

Thank-you for the information @Deomsh and @jaclaz. This should help anyone wanting to use a packet driver for DOS applications within Windows. It's amazing how much software there is out there. Personal preference is to boot DOS for DOS browsers and use RetroZilla and K-Meleon in Windows. Having said that lots of time was spent attempting to get the packet driver running in Windows without success. Different WINPKT.COM files were trialed, downloaded from multiple sources including the @jaclaz link and Winsock. This ethernet adapter's packet driver even comes with a Windows switch (-w) 'to let the packet drivers run under Windows'. Also trialed the adapter's NDIS driver. Unfortunately nothing worked and i've given up. Probably rebooted more than two dozen times and tried every imaginable boot scenario, using config files and manually loading before Windows starts. It appears it should be as easy as something like below, oh well. I'm aware different WINPKT.COM releases have different configuration options, nothing worked. Interestingly, both mTCP's PKTTOOL.EXE and Arachne were able to detect a loaded packet driver in the Windows environment though no network connection could be established. Probably just something i'm doing wrong, no further assistance requested, need to let it go and move on. LNE100TX.COM 0x60 WINPKT.COM 0x60 WIN Thank-you for the information and screenshots @Bracamonte, this may help others looking for solutions. Using another local system as a gateway was brought up here before, glad it's working for you. My understanding is the web pages are actually usable/clickable, not just rendered images, cool. Running through a low consumptive device like a Raspberry Pi is pretty efficient. Your method provides insight into how good Windows 98 could still be if development wasn't dropped. Personal preferences only: enjoy the challenges of limited native Windows 98 browsing, do not want to run two systems concurrently just to browse, do not use Chrome/Chromium, prefer multiboot for newer browsers. Recently discovered using a CONFIG.SYS [MENU] for different boot environments has a limit of nine entries. In reality not much of a limitation as there are many ways to load the desired environment, usually custom after boot *.BAT files for applications with special needs. Stumbled on an informative tutorial titled 'Understanding the Boot Process for MS-DOS and Windows 9x'. The link below is Chapter 9, the entire chapter collection is enlightening. Good comparisons between different Windows releases, including DOS, Windows 3.1 up to the NTs. https://sourcedaddy.com/aplus/understanding-boot-process-ms-dos-and-windows-9x.html Quick reviewed the Windows 9x Members Project threads on this forum. Forty seven pages, although many topics are just help requests. Interesting to go through the history. Lots of energy was spent over the years including a flurry of activity after official support ended in 2006. Funny how something important at the time doesn't matter much a few years later. Also interesting that most of the die hards have moved on, happens with all forums anyway. Installed Microsoft OpenType Font Properties Extension (ttfext.exe, 478 KB). Not much of a graphics guy so can't comment if it made a big difference. http://erpman1.tripod.com/w9xmeupd.html Had a new to me hard drive issue this week. Most of my equipment is ~20 years old but the new stuff is probably worse thanks to planned obsolescence. It appears the drive's MBR got wiped or corrupt, not bootable. Used a GNU/Linux live-CD to fix things. Personal fan of Plop Boot Manager, Parted Magic and GParted. In addition to the MBR issue an entire partition disappeared. Was going to discard the drive as it failed SMART years ago but decided to salvage. Was able to reclaim the dead space with a new partition, restore data from backup and re-install Grub2 to the drive's MBR. No critical data was lost, fun experience and the system's running like new again. This was actually easier to fix than getting a packet driver working in Windows :)

Thank-you for the feedback Deomsh. Well maybe my packet speed is okay then, DOS Links performance is acceptable. There are too many variables for proper comparison. If systems here get 750 KB/Sec and you're getting 7 MB/Sec, that's about 10x faster. So if my packet driver moves 60 KB/Sec and your NDIS 180 KB/Sec, then my packet driver performance seems reasonable. Quick search did not reveal much tweaking for DOS packet driver and networking performance.

This is what worked for the NDIS trial here. A new NDIS directory was created, C:\DOS\NDIS. The ethernet adapter's NDIS DOS driver was copied to C:\DOS\NDIS, in this case LNE100.DOS. The FreeDOS wiki ftp[dot]microsoft[dot]com links no longer work so MS Network Client was downloaded from below (msnc3.0.rar, 1123 KB, no JavaScript needed). The download contains DSK3-1.EXE and DSK3-2.EXE. http://www.kompx.com/en/network-setup-in-dos-microsoft-network-client.htm 7-Zip was used in Windows to extract 'DSK3-1.EXE'. The NETBIND.COM file was copied to C:\DOS\NDIS. A COMMAND.COM prompt was opened in the extracted DSK3-1 directory. The 'PROTMAN.DO_' and 'PROTMAN.EX_' files were expanded with below command to get PROTMAN.DOS and PROTMAN.EXE, also copied into C:\DOS\NDIS. Note if the system already has PROTMAN.DOS and PROTMAN.EXE files in C:\WINDOWS, then those could be used instead, either way worked here despite the files having different byte counts/versions. expand -r protman.do_ expand -r protman.ex_ DIS_PKT.DOS was downloaded and extracted from the FreeDOS wiki link (dis_pkt9.zip, 32 KB, no JavaScript needed), then also copied to C:\DOS\NDIS. Note the file from this download is named DIS_PKT9.DOS, not simply DIS_PKT.DOS, so DIS_PKT9.DOS was used in the configuration below. http://wiki.freedos.org/wiki/index.php/Networking_FreeDOS_-_NDIS_driver_installation#The_converter_.2F_shim The C:\WINDOWS\PROTOCOL.INI file was recyled and copied in to C:\DOS\NDIS, then modified as below. Important configuration note, the '/I' switch in the CONFIG.SYS file for PROTMAN.DOS refers to the location of the PROTOCOL.INI file to be utilized. Use just one entry in CONFIG.SYS, the two examples below just indicate the different pathways that could easily be used on this system. Use one or the other or customize as desired, see CONFIG.SYS summary below. DEVICE=C:\DOS\NDIS\PROTMAN.DOS /I:C:\DOS\NDIS DEVICE=C:\DOS\NDIS\PROTMAN.DOS /I:C:\WINDOWS A C:\CONFIG.SYS menu entry was created for loading NDIS containing the following. The NDIS DOS driver used for this particular Linksys network adapter is named LNE100.DOS. DEVICE=C:\DOS\NDIS\PROTMAN.DOS /I:C:\DOS\NDIS DEVICE=C:\DOS\NDIS\LNE100.DOS DEVICE=C:\DOS\NDIS\DIS_PKT9.DOS Only one AUTOEXEC.BAT entry was required, no PATH entry needed. C:\DOS\NDIS\NETBIND.COM The C:\DOS\NDIS\PROTOCOL.INI file used, note some entries were pre-existing from C:\WINDOWS\PROTOCOL.INI file. [protman$] DriverName=protman$ [data] version=v4.10.2222 netcards= [LNE100] DriverName=LNE100$ [PKTDRV] DriverName=PKTDRV$ IntVec=0x60 ChainVec=0x65 BINDINGS=LNE100 Running with the NDIS driver, LINKS.BAT no longer needs the DOS packet driver entry, this worked fine with the NDIS driver. @ECHO OFF CLS C:\DOS\CWSDPMI\CWSDPMI.EXE LH C:\DOS\LINKS\LINKS221.EXE -MODE 1024x768x16M32 https://lite.duckduckgo.com/lite Edit: Several changes regarding PROTMAN.DOS and PROTOCOL.INI setup.

Hi b0070. Thanks for sharing your builds. Please share cooler pictures and information, much appreciated. Not sure exactly what games and software you plan to run, if i was to build another dedicated Windows 98 system, a Pentium I or Pentium II would be great for older DOS games. Even with my current 800 MHz system, slowdown utilities are sometimes needed, think they would play better with more native for the era hardware.

Hi Deomsh. Took some trials, finally got NDIS driver working in DOS with existing ethernet adapater. Will play around for a bit, figure out minimum common denominators, test speed and post notes. You are much more advanced regarding drivers and such, had to re-read your post several times and try different things. Nice to know that an NDIS driver can be used for ethernet adapters lacking a working packet driver, thanks again. Edit: Speed tests done using the 100MB download link. Just let the download run for 1 minute, completed couple trials each driver. Results in DOS poor but works with Links. DOS packet driver, Links: 64-67 KB/sec DOS NDIS driver, Links: 58-77 KB/sec Windows 98, RetroZilla, Speed Guide TCP Optimizer: 666 KB/sec The 666 KB/sec is close to what i get with same hardware in GNU/Linux, usually ~750 KB/sec.

Hi Deomsh, very cool you posted with Arachne! Interesting you can run it within Windows. It's a fun browser, unfortunate no forks appear to provide modern TLS support, yet anyway. Tried both Arachne v1.97 and Ray Andrews' release, okay but did not notice major differences. Hope to test Fred Macall's DosLynx v0.43b browser. Reportedly last updated in 2012 with some HTTPS support. Maybe long in the tooth now, don't know how many HTTPS sites will load. http://www.macall.net/#doslynx Fred appears to have worked in DOS a long time, even DOS cracks for YouTube (2019) and Dailymotion (2013). No recent updates so they probably don't work at the moment. http://www.macall.net/#ytcrack http://www.macall.net/#dmcrack Current DOS development appears slow and sporadic. Better Software is still releasing stuff and a link to their 'DOS ain't dead' forum. http://www.bttr-software.de/ http://www.bttr-software.de/forum/board.php Recently watched a good video on mTCP, using it's FTP server to set up home networking between a DOS system and another local system running FileZilla, pretty cool. http://www.brutman.com/mTCP/ Interestingly, Windows has a small (44 KB) built-in FTP client, C:\WINDOWS\FTP.EXE. Can run in Windows via a COMMAND.COM window, outputs an 'ftp>' prompt. Run '?' or 'HELP' for usage. To connect to an FTP server enter 'open server_name' and 'disconnect' when finished. Works with password protected too. Familiar commands like 'CD' and 'DIR' are used to navigate. Longs lists with 'DIR' are a problem, in COMMAND.COM setting Properties -> Screen tab -> Initial Size to 50 lines helps a bit. Trying to quick-hit the Pause key for long lists never worked well for me, maybe there's a secret? Globbing is supported by default so 'DIR *name_snippet*' filters output. Use 'PWD' (print working directory) if you get lost. The FTP commands are Unix like. Case sensitive is required and 'CD ..' requires the space. Wrap the file or directory name in double quotes if it contains spaces. Unfortunately DOSKEY doesn't help with auto-complete of remote file names. Too bad FTP is disappearing, such a useful and efficient way to move files and share software. It takes some searching to find current FTP sites, most addresses linked in web pages are now defunct. The browser search engines below help find files. Fun to spelunk. https://www.mmnt.ru/int/ http://ftplike.club/ Since using Windows 98 and DOS regularly feel more POWER USER. Sharing stuff others may find useful or learned and forgot, some may have been mentioned before. Windows - Start -> Shutdown -> Hold Shift, select Restart to reboot Windows only, not hardware - Windows Explorer hold Shift then delete file(s) to bypass Recycle Bin - Windows-F keys for Windows Find GUI - Windows Find is the best ever used here, efficient, fast, options, updates in real-time! - Ctrl-Alt-Delete, End Task on Explorer may help if taskbar or system gets glitchy, restarts itself - Windows Explorer navigation with Tab, Enter, Backspace, Up/Down arrows - Windows Explorer F2 to rename highlighted file - Windows Explorer F5 to refresh directory - Pressing F5 in Notepad pastes a datestamp - Convenient is 'sysedit' (System Configuration Editor) COMMAND.COM - Enter 'START .' opens Windows Explorer to the working directory - Likewise 'START ..' opens Windows Explorer to parent directory DOS - After DOS session enter 'WIN' to boot Windows directly - Ctrl-c or Ctrl-Break to exit hung command or program - Pipe long output with MORE for screen breaks (eg. DIR | MORE) - Use MORE as a quick document reader (eg. MORE AUTOEXEC.BAT) - As spaces are ignored, easy to punch long commands (eg. DIR/W/ON|MORE) - Run 'SCANDISK' from DOS, personal preference over Windows run - The 'MEM' command and options are your friend, those precious 640 KB - Use 'FC' to quickly check text and config file differences - Find helps search text documents for strings, example 'FIND /I "DOS" AUTOEXEC.BAT' - Use 'edit', it's a great editor and easier than using 'find' - When in doubt use 'command_name /?' for usage help - Use 'SCANREG' to take good care of the registry, including: --> SCANREG /FIX --> SCANREG /OPT --> SCANREG /BACKUP /COMMENT="MyRegBackupName" DOSKEY - Ensure DOSKEY.COM is in C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\ or get from Windows CD - Add 'DOSKEY \INSERT' to AUTOEXEC.BAT - Use DOSKEY (up-arrow previous command, tab autocomplete) - Press F7 for numbered command history - Press F9 to load previous command number - Enter DOSKEY /HISTORY for simple history list - Create command macros, examples, then just enter 'TEMP' or 'D': --> DOSKEY TEMP=cd C:\WINDOWS\TEMP --> DOSKEY D=dir/w/on/p - Review defined macros with DOSKEY /MACROS - Use DOSKEY -V to review settings Can't remember DOSKEY only or DOS, did not want to reboot to test: - Use Escape key to quick clear an errant entry - Home and End keys warp to start/end of long command, Ctrl-A too Unfortunately Windows 98's DOSKEY.COM does not support permanent macros, such as the newer 'DOSKEY.EXE /MACROFILE=abc.txt' option. If anyone knows please tell.

Hi Deomsh. This ethernet driver package also includes an NDIS driver for DOS, will check it out eventually. Wonder if it will improve data throughput. The first post 'LINKS.BAT' section was edited to reflect 16M32 for colour, worked fine here too. In the 'Miscellaneous' section mouse scrolling was modified. On this system holding down either right-click or center-click works for controlled scrolling. In addition, Setup dropdown -> Video options -> select 'Overwrite screen instead of scrolling it' fixes laggy scrolling. The Links online manual URL, a default browser bookmark, was added to the 'Overview' section, although not all applies to running in DOS.

Hi siria, thank-you for your feedback. The forum title was expanded. To me 'Links' is almost synonymous with the web browser, the project is over 20 years old and is available in most major OS'. A screenshot was added to the first post although there's not much to see, it stays out of the way. For some reason this Wikipedia screenshot and the developers shots don't show the auto-hide menubar, not missing much. DOS diehards might disagree, everything after DOS was a downgrade :) Thank-you for the guide Deomsh, information and a link was added to the first post. No wonder i got tripped up, fairly complicated but you've broken down the steps nicely. During my failed attempt, MSClient was installed, just seemed overkill. Your notes help clarify, will trial next time an adapter without a working packet driver gets installed. Additional information was added to the 'LINKS.BAT' section of the first post for setting up text mode instead of graphics. Note, graphic mode can still be run with images disabled, believe they can be toggled with Shift-8 (asterisk) during runtime. Checked, on same hardware RetroZilla takes ~20 seconds and K-Meleon ~16 seconds for first launch after boot settles, to empty pages.

Yes please, thank-you for offering Deomsh. Didn't want to ask yet hoped you would volunteer. It will surely help out others, including myself, who get stuck. Yup these speeds are amazing, will probably use Links for breaktime news and forums, so convenient and efficient. Links does not appear to keep cookies or long term cache, shutdown and it's clean. Logged in to HTML Gmail, seems to work too. Breaking down 8 seconds from DOS menu to homepage, just a bit over one second for each of the following, it takes longer just to open RetroZilla. 1 Basic DOS boot 2 Load mouse driver 3 Initiate CWSDPMI 4 Establish DHCP 5 Open Links 6 Load homepage

Thank-you for testing Deomsh. The need for an NDIS-2 driver and shim tripped me up and i couldn't figure it out. Just wanted to add for others, keeping C:\WINDOWS\W32DHCP.TMP in place appears to improve Links launch time further. Adding LINKS.BAT to AUTOEXEC.BAT this old 800 MHz system goes from DOS boot menu to a TLS v1.2 graphic browser homepage in 8 seconds!

The first post was edited. For those running with DHCP, probably most of us, a new 'Quicker DHCP Launch' section was added. This allows Links to bypass the 'Configuring through BOOTP' delay on browser startup. The LINKS.BAT example was simplified as it is not necessary to change to C:\DOS\LINKS to launch the browser. I initially thought temporary files were kept there but it does not appear to be the case. Note on this system running with DHCP, a C:\WINDOWS\TEMP\W32DHCP.TMP file gets created containing detailed DHCP connection information. Users sensitive to having this information on their system in plain text should delete this file after the browser session. Yes the browser logs into this HTTPS forum from DOS, just don't try to edit long posts :)

== Links Web Browser for DOS with TLS 1.2 Community Edition == = Overview = Links for DOS is one of two known web browsers compiled for DOS with TLS v1.2 support [1]. It was tested to run well in vanilla Windows 98, using it's DOS v7.10. Below is a compilation of the most relevant information needed to download, install and run the browser. To keep the thread clean, please avoid posting information unrelated to Links for DOS. Project homepage. http://links.twibright.com/ Changelog. http://links.twibright.com/download/ChangeLog Online manual, not all applies to running in DOS. http://links.twibright.com/user_en.html = Screenshot = https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/91/Webbrowser_Links.jpg = Prerequisites = - Working DOS system - Basic DOS knowledge - Functional DOS network [2] - Software downloads below = Download = Download cwsdpmi.exe (21 KB) [3], cwsparam.exe (13 KB) [3] and links-2.25.exe (7.0 MB). http://links.twibright.com/download/binaries/dos/ Optional DOS mouse driver, test system uses CuteMouse with a traditional PS/2 wired mouse, direct download link below (ctm20a4.zip, 61 KB). https://sourceforge.net/projects/cutemouse/files/latest/download = Setup = Extract downloads as applicable. This example creates a C:\DOS directory with additional subdirectories for all relevant software, modify as desired. Create and place 'cwsdpmi.exe' and 'cwsparam.exe' in C:\DOS\CWSDPMI. Rename 'links-2.25.exe' to DOS-friendly 'LINKS225.EXE' and place it in C:\DOS\LINKS. From the CuteMouse download, only 'CTMOUSE.EXE' is needed, copy it to C:\DOS. = Configure DOS Environment = Running Links for DOS with mouse support, the test system requires minimal AUTOEXEC.BAT entries and no CONFIG.SYS entries. DOSKEY is optional in AUTOEXEC.BAT, useful for making DOS navigation easier, unrelated to the browser. Note Windows 98's default CONFIG.SYS file contains entries for HIMEM.SYS and EMM386.EXE. It is IMPORTANT that these be commented out (REM = REMARK), as outlined below. As Links uses CWSDPMI, loading HIMEM.SYS and EMM386.EXE concurrently was found to negatively affect browser performance. C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT file: @ECHO OFF C:\DOS\CTMOUSE.EXE /R2 DOSKEY /INSERT C:\CONFIG.SYS file: REM DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS REM DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE RAM = LINKS.BAT = Create a C:\LINKS.BAT file to load the DOS packet driver and launch Links for DOS. Modify the DOS packet driver entry based on the system utilized. Note Links for DOS needs to be run from a true DOS environment. Do not launch it from Windows or drop to DOS from a Windows session. Instead reboot system into DOS before launching browser. To run Links in text instead of graphic mode remove the '-MODE 1024x768x16M32' snippet, resolution appears to just utilize native DOS rows/columns. C:\LINKS.BAT file: @ECHO OFF CLS C:\DOS\LNE100\LNE100TX.COM 0x60 C:\DOS\CWSDPMI\CWSDPMI.EXE LH C:\DOS\LINKS\LINKS225.EXE -MODE 1024x768x16M32 https://lite.duckduckgo.com/lite = First Run = Boot to DOS and run C:\LINKS.BAT to launch Links. Based on the configuration above it should load the DuckDuckGo-Lite search engine. Press Escape key or click on the upper screen for the Links menu. Review options and keyboard shortcuts. No special configuration is necessary. Deciding whether to view images is likely the biggest performance factor (View dropdown -> Html options -> Display Images). = Quicker DHCP Launch = If the first browser launch resulted in a 'Configuring through BOOTP' delay and then connected via DHCP anyway, create a configuration file named WATTCP.CFG in C:\DOS\LINKS containing the line below [4]. my_ip=dhcp = Confirm TLS v1.2 Support = Load the link below to confirm TLS v1.2 support. https://www.ssllabs.com/ssltest/viewMyClient.html = Miscellaneous = Although the notes above configure Links to run in DOS, it can also reportedly be set up to run in a Windows environment using the ethernet adapter's NDIS driver [5]. Although there is no scroll mouse, hold either right or center-click and drag up/down for controlled scrolling. If scrolling is laggy, try changing Setup dropdown -> Video options -> select 'Overwrite screen instead of scrolling it'. Once familiar with the keyboard shortcuts, Links works almost more efficiently without mouse support, modify configuration as desired. A useful feature is File -> OS Shell, which temporarily drops out of Links to work in DOS, type 'exit' at the DOS prompt to resume the Links session. END [1] See also Lynx Web Browser Community Edition for DOS with TLS 1.2. https://msfn.org/board/topic/182400-lynx-web-browser-community-edition-for-dos-with-tls-12 [2] Review this DOS Networking guide if the system does not yet have a working DOS packet driver. Note mTCP is not required to run Links for DOS as it handles connectivity internally. https://msfn.org/board/topic/177106-running-vanilla-windows-98-in-2020/page/32/?tab=comments#comment-1187090 For network adapters that do not have a working packet driver, review forum member @Deomsh's NDIS 2 driver guide below. https://msfn.org/board/topic/181853-links-web-browser-for-dos-with-tls-12-community-edition/?tab=comments#comment-1187234 [3] Alternatively, download the same 'r7 binary distribution' (csdpmi7b-1.zip, 70 KB) of CWSDPMI (Charles W. Sandmann's DOS Protected Mode Interface) from below if documentation is desired. http://sandmann.dotster.com/cwsdpmi/ [4] More WATTCP configuration information. http://wiki.freedos.org/wiki/index.php/Networking_FreeDOS_-_WATTCP [5] To configure Links to run in a Windows environment using the ethernet adapter's NDIS driver see @Deomsh's configuration notes and the discussion that follows. https://msfn.org/board/topic/181853-links-web-browser-community-edition-for-dos-with-tls-12/page/2/?tab=comments#comment-1187615

= Custom DOS and Windows Boot Menu = As DOS applications have different hardware and memory requirements, this system's evolving AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS files have become elaborate. Below is a boot menu example for the types of applications used on this system. There are endless configuration possibilities. In addition, custom application *.BAT launch files are also useful. The beauty of DOS is a quick Ctrl-Alt-Delete and in a few seconds working in a different DOS environment. The beauty of Windows 9x is that the user can so easily switch between DOS and Windows. Current C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT. @ECHO OFF REM DEVICEHIGH with CONFIG.SYS, LOADHIGH with AUTOEXEC.BAT commands GOTO %CONFIG% :DOS0 GOTO QUIT :DOS1 DOSKEY /INSERT C:\DOS\CTMOUSE.EXE /R2 GOTO QUIT :DOS2 LH DOSKEY /INSERT GOTO QUIT :DOS3 LH C:\DOS\CTMOUSE.EXE /R2 LH DOSKEY /INSERT GOTO QUIT :DOS4 SET CTSYN=C:\DOS\LIVEDOS LH C:\DOS\LIVEDOS\SBEINIT.COM LH C:\DOS\CTMOUSE.EXE /R2 LH DOSKEY /INSERT GOTO QUIT :DOS5 SET CTSYN=C:\DOS\LIVEDOS LH C:\DOS\LIVEDOS\SBEINIT.COM LH C:\WINDOWS\COMMAND\MSCDEX.EXE /D:OPTICAL /M:10 LH C:\DOS\CTMOUSE.EXE /R2 LH DOSKEY /INSERT GOTO QUIT :WIN LH DOSKEY /INSERT WIN GOTO QUIT :SAFE WIN /d:m GOTO QUIT :LINUX C:\PUPPY\GRUB.EXE --config-file=(hd0,0)/puppy/menu.lst GOTO QUIT :QUIT Current C:\CONFIG.SYS. REM DEVICEHIGH with CONFIG.SYS, LOADHIGH with AUTOEXEC.BAT commands REM Default CONFIG.SYS was just HIMEM.SYS and EMM386 lines [MENU] MENUITEM=DOS0,MS-DOS MENUITEM=DOS1,MS-DOS DOSKEY MOUSE MENUITEM=DOS2,MS-DOS HIMEM EMM386 DOSKEY MENUITEM=DOS3,MS-DOS HIMEM EMM386 DOSKEY MOUSE MENUITEM=DOS4,MS-DOS HIMEM EMM386 DOSKEY MOUSE SOUND MENUITEM=DOS5,MS-DOS HIMEM EMM386 DOSKEY MOUSE SOUND CD-ROM MENUITEM=WIN,WINDOWS 98 (DEFAULT) MENUITEM=SAFE,WINDOWS 98 (SAFE MODE) MENUITEM=LINUX,PUPPY LINUX MENUDEFAULT=WIN,3 [DOS0] [DOS1] [DOS2] DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS DOS=HIGH,UMB DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE RAM FILES=40 BUFFERS=40 STACKS=9,128 [DOS3] INCLUDE=DOS2 [DOS4] INCLUDE=DOS2 [DOS5] INCLUDE=DOS2 DEVICEHIGH=C:\DOS\VIDECDD.SYS /D:OPTICAL [WIN] INCLUDE=DOS2 [SAFE] [LINUX]

== DOS Networking == = Overview = DOS TCP/IP Networking with Packet Drivers - Why on Earth would anybody want to do that? http://www.brutman.com/Dos_Networking/ The link above is a good overview from the same author who coded mTCP, the TCP/IP suite used below. This is a quick start guide for configuring network hardware for DOS. This includes setting up a DOS packet driver for a wired ethernet adapater, initializing and confirming the driver, configuring and initiating a TCP/IP stack and using test tools to confirm a working network environment. The test system runs vanilla Windows 98 with it's DOS v7.10 on year 2000 era hardware. Note most packet drivers work and many DOS networking applications already incorporate the necessary networking code. In many cases using networked software like a DOS web browser is as simple as loading the packet driver and running the application. The guide below, however, is useful for learning, testing the packet driver and troubleshooting networking issues. Windows 9x makes it easy to switch between Windows and DOS, use whichever methods and tools are preferred for the downloads and configuration. = Prerequisite = - Working DOS system - Basic DOS knowledge - Software downloads below = Downloads = Packet driver Download the ethernet adapter's DOS packet driver. To confirm the ethernet adapater make and model physically check the hardware. Alternatively in Windows 9x check Control Panel -> System -> Device Manager tab -> Network Adapaters or in a COMMAND.COM window run 'ipconfig /all'. Several websites host packet drivers and some vendors still make them available. If possible seek the vendor first. mTCP Download mTCP (GPL v3 license), a set of TCP/IP applications for DOS. The primarily download is 'mTCP_2020-03-07.zip' (615 KB). The 141 page 'mTCP_2020-03-07.pdf' is optional, few projects are this well documented. http://www.brutman.com/mTCP/ = Preparation = Review packet driver documentation to see how to initialize the driver. Note the MAC address of the ethernet adapater. There should be a sticker or imprint on the actual ethernet adapter, 12 alphanumeric characters beginning with 00 (zero zero). Alternatively, if the ethernet adapter is already working in Windows 9x, run 'ipconfig /all' from a COMMAND.COM window and note the Physical Address (MAC address). IPCONFIG /ALL Organize the driver and mTCP files. This example uses the following directory structure, modify as desired. To avoid a cluttered C:\ root directory, create a C:\DOS directory with a subdirectory for the packet driver (eg. C:\DOS\LNE100, test system uses Linksys ethernet) and for mTCP (eg. C:\DOS\MTCP). Copy the the packet driver into the packet driver directory. Extract the mTCP files into the mTCP directory. = Configure = The following AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS entries were used during testing, though most entries are not required. Note the default Windows 98 CONFIG.SYS file already contains the HIMEM.SYS and EMM386.EXE entries. The only relevant AUTOEXEC.BAT entry is if DOSKEY is desired for easier navigation: @ECHO OFF LH DOSKEY /INSERT The relevant CONFIG.SYS entries processed on the test system: DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS DOS=HIGH,UMB DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\EMM386.EXE FILES=40 BUFFERS=40 STACKS=9,128 = DOS Boot = Boot into pure DOS, do not simply drop to DOS from Windows. As the packet driver may not initialize properly with a warm re-boot from Windows to DOS, during initial testing a full Windows poweroff is recommended. Then boot into DOS (select DOS from boot menu or use F8 key for boot options). = Initialize Packet Driver = In DOS initiate the packet driver, example below. Usually just the software interrupt needs to be entered although sometimes other command switches are needed. The '0x60' entry is common. It may be standalone, as exampled below, or require a more elaborate argument, such as 'your_packet_driver /I=0x60'. If unsure review packet driver documentation. LH C:\DOS\LNE100\LNE100TX.COM 0x60 Verbose output should be printed to screen. Confirm that the MAC address from the output matches the ethernet adapter's actual MAC address. This confirms a loaded packet driver, not a working packet driver. To test the packet driver either run a DOS networked application or continue below. = Confirm Working Packet Driver = Still in DOS navigate to the mTCP directory and use PKTTOOL.EXE to confirm mTCP can find the network adapater. Command output should confirm the same MAC address of the network adapater. CD C:\DOS\MTCP PKTTOOL.EXE SCAN Create a TCP configuration file. There is a 'sample.cfg' file in the mTCP samples subdirectory, although for most use cases is unnecessarily complicated. Most systems should only require the software interrupt of the packet driver. In this test system a C:\DOS\MTCP\TCP.CFG file was created with a one line entry. PACKETINT 0x60 Set the configuration file for DHCP.EXE using the SET command below. No confirmation output will be received, just run the 'SET' command again afterward, without argument, to confirm success. SET MTCPCFG=C:\DOS\MTCP\TCP.CFG SET Run DHCP.EXE to send a DHCP request. If successful ouput should indicate 'Offer received, acknowledged' and 'Good news everyone!'. The settings written to the TCP.CFG file will be displayed, including IPADDR, NETMASK, GATEWAY and NAMESERVER entries. DHCP.EXE -RETRIES 3 -TIMEOUT 15 Run PING.EXE to confirm a working packet driver and network connection. PING.EXE google.com = Notes = Many internet applications for DOS, such as Arachne and Links web browsers, already contain built-in networking capability. If this type of software is utilized, then only the packet driver needs to be loaded upon boot and mTCP may no longer be needed. Create custom DOS batch files for software utilized to load the packet driver and start up the desired application. Below is an example for Arachne web browser, named C:\ARACHNE.BAT, not to be confused with the browser's ARACHNE.BAT file in the C:\DOS\ARACHNE directory. Place your custom ARACHNE.BAT file in C:\ (root directory) so it's easy to access after booting DOS. @ECHO OFF LH C:\DOS\LNE100\LNE100TX.COM 0x60 CD C:\DOS\ARACHNE ARACHNE.BAT

Hi Deomsh, no problem, it's been fun learning. A guide will be posted shortly for anyone who wants to test their DOS packet driver and learn how to manually configure basic TCP/IP. Should work on wired ethernet systems running DHCP, only tested on one system. A Links for DOS thread will also be started as a member project. Hopefully experienced DOS users can help get better caching and performance. Web browsing in DOS has always been clunky to me, asking a lot for a basic OS. Amazing it works as well as it does.

Excitedly using new DOS packet driver with Links v2.21, binary ported to DOS with OpenSSL v1.0.2u (Dec 2019). This provides TLS v1.2 support in DOS! Thus far connected to all sites tested. Although DOS geeks will have no problem setting it up a how-to may eventually be posted as a quick member project. Note 'cwsdpmi.exe' is already provided in the link below and a DOS mouse driver is preferred. It can be configured to run in text or graphic mode. Personal LINKS.BAT uses 'LINKS221.EXE -MODE 1024x768x256 https://www.google.com'. http://links.twibright.com/download/binaries/dos/ To my knowledge there are now three web browsers that provide TLS v1.2 support for vanilla Windows 98 SE: RetroZilla v2.2, K-Meleon v1.5.4 and Links for DOS v2.21. Tested out Arachne v1.95 (GPL v2 license) again, formally known as Arachne WWW browser for DOS, now labelled historic. Based on the link Arachne Labs no longer develops the browser. This is the second time i've played with Arachne and my reaction is similar. It is apparent a lot of time and effort was put into development. It offers some neat features, decent built-in help for configuration and performance. It is, however, glitchy and does not appear to connect to HTTPS sites. So for now it is truly historic, mostly just for playing and learning. http://www.arachne.cz/ Will eventually try the forks below and report only if there are significant improvements or changes. The build from glennmcc[dot]org is Arachne v1.97, the second link yet another fork from Ray Andrews. http://www.glennmcc.org/ http://www.glennmcc.org/rayandrews/ Since DOS' conventional memory is precious lots has been tweaked and developed over the years, including memory extenders. From olddos.exe, memmaker was already phased out by Microsoft before Windows 95 and it doesn't run in Windows 98's DOS v7, supposedly a quick and easy way to free DOS memory. There is another DOS memory manager often mentioned, Quarterdeck Expanded Memory Manager (QEMM). I have no experience with this but from the Wikipedia page it appears there would be little gained over using HIMEM.SYS and EMM386.EXE from Windows 98's DOS v7. Many 'heavier' DOS applications already utilize their own methods. For example, many old DOS games already use DOS/4G and the Links browser mentioned above is compiled with CWSDPMI support. Still wish i was around earlier to experience all this DOS goodness firsthand, would have a much better understanding. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QEMM#DOS_equivalents Back in Windows 98 tried out MemMAX (freeware, Windows 98 - 2000). Pretty much what i remember from similar software years ago. Unless i'm missing something, RAM is meant to be used not cleared. Waste time and CPU cycles clearing RAM then left with a sluggish computer upon relaunch of previously cached applications. Claimed to be useful for hardcore gaming before game launch. IMHO better to simply ensure the system is set up to boot and run lean, properly configured, with minimal background applications and services.

Thank-you for your feedback Gansangriff, will ask Momma if there's a long lost brother. Agree, old systems are resource friendly, tons of software and knowing the system inside/out is very rewarding. It's amazing how many CPU cycles modern systems waste just to boot, manage some files, browse the web and edit a document. Even in GNU/Linux every major 'upgrade' comes with more bloat, new learning curve, asking why something unnecessary changed, getting used to a new LibreOffice release, etc. Congratulations on your 'new' printer :) Recently switched out a 3Com 3C905-TX ethernet adapter, worked good in Windows 98 just not the packet driver. This was extremely frustrating. Didn't want to admit the packet driver was faulty until too much time was wasted configuring DOS, troubleshooting TCP/IP stack, changing router settings, etc. So just like mentioned elsewhere, make sure the ethernet card has a good working packet driver, otherwise just wasting time. I would recommend the card for Windows 98, just not DOS networking, which most don't bother with anyway. There is apparently shim and packet converter software but upon questioning why i was reading obscure DOS networking documentation from the 1990s in the middle of the night, it was time to switch out the adapter. Since sticky-notes aren't really sticky, when organizing stored hardware place the note on the back of the card and gently poke the solder points through the paper, the note will not slip off. The 'new' adapater is a Linksys LNE100TX(v5) Fast Ethernet Adapter (2000 era). So far this adapter is very good, recommended for Windows 98 and DOS. Found an awesome driver download at www[dot]userdrivers[dot]com, from DOS packet driver right up to Windows 2000 and XP. The site is new to me, allows driver downloads without registration, jumping through hoops, no JavaScript needed to download, very nice. For anyone with multi-boot Debian-based GNU/Linux running 'udev', switching wired ethernet adapters is simple provided it's kernel supported. Just change out the hardware and boot. If the adapter isn't functional or recognized, backup /etc/udev/rules.d/70-persistent, comment out all entries and reboot, ta-dah.

Hi xpclient. Since nobody answered, i'm no expert, in Windows 98 SE defrag automatically moves data to the front of the drive, where i believe data access is fastest, leaving freespace at the end (pretty much). Opening 'defrag' GUI, the only options are 'Rearrange program files so my programs start faster', 'Check the drive for errors' and 'use these options everytime'. Disk Defragmenter from Windows ME is a drop in replacement in Windows 98 SE, much faster performance, maybe someone else will know if it also works in Windows 95. VoptXP v7.22 is sometimes used here too, briefly discussed in the 'Running vanilla Windows 98..' thread. It seems very good, supports Windows 95 (with SP1) through to Windows 2000 (SP2) and Windows XP (SP1).