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Long shot, Anyone have and old windows 98 computer running DesignCad for Doss

garyphansen

Titanium
Joined
Feb 9, 2004
Location
Traverse City, MI
Anyone with an old windows 98 computer running DesignCad for Dos that they would like to sell? I have three windows 98 computers but when I install my copy of DesignCad on them the screen display is messed up. I think it was a feature they put in the software to make sure that people paid for it. I actually bought two copies but can only find one now. Anyway, I have thousands of drawings I would like to be able to easily access. Gary P. Hansen
 
Gary, I do/did, but might have put on a clean install of Linux/ CAD

The book of DesignCad install disketts should be around... somewhere, But Three kids have gone through that room and that desk. I'll have a look... tomorrow ;-) (don't get your hopes up....)
 
Anyone with an old windows 98 computer running DesignCad for Dos that they would like to sell? I have three windows 98 computers but when I install my copy of DesignCad on them the screen display is messed up. I think it was a feature they put in the software to make sure that people paid for it. I actually bought two copies but can only find one now. Anyway, I have thousands of drawings I would like to be able to easily access. Gary P. Hansen
Gary

EDIT: scratch that you need the designcad disk sorry
check the video display and make sure it's set to the correct resolution:scratchchin:



how computer savy are you? do you know how install a virtual drive, or have the neighborhood geek do it for you.
use a copy of VMware Player or Microsoft Virtual drive, both are free, you can install dos or windows 98 on that drive
do you have a windows 98 or XP disk?
should be able to do this even on a windows 7 or 10
 
I don't think there is a problem with the video display. I think the problem is a security feature to prevent someone who didn't pay for the software from using the program. I think the company "unlocked" it when it was registered the program but that is not possible any more. That is why I looking to buy a computer that has it installed and running for a back up. I have one that it is working on but it is about 20 years old and could die at any time.
 
If you Ghost the drive ( ie copy it ) and install a new drive on a similar computer if i recall you should be good.
The one proviso is it must have the same components as the old one, needs the drivers etc.
Not sure of your software lock it may be locked to a low level feature so see you how you go.

It has been several years since i worked on windows and copied HDDs.
 
I don't think there is a problem with the video display. I think the problem is a security feature to prevent someone who didn't pay for the software from using the program. I think the company "unlocked" it when it was registered the program but that is not possible any more. That is why I looking to buy a computer that has it installed and running for a back up. I have one that it is working on but it is about 20 years old and could die at any time.
Gary
That makes sense if you can't find an other computer this is an other option, you can hire a tech to do this.
are you good at mirroring hard drives?, I would do that to save an entire back of a drive would old software and files.
then you could install it on an other hard drive on an other computer. or the virtual drive like I explained in my first post.
mirror drive can be saved as a file, or you can mirror an other drive.
it's been a while since I did it but it's like riding a bike.
There are different softwares and different method.
The easiest is ghost (Symantec ) spelling agg, it was great for those old computers
does the old computer have an old Floppy disk drive? creating a Floppy Ghost boot up disk.
then boot up on A drive(floppy)
have the two drives connected to the mother board mirror want to the other, or mirror an Image to a CD or DVD drive
 
Still have some W98 install packs sitting around, but nothing with your desired software on it.

Also have an alleged IDE disk drive copier (hardware thing, no actual PC involved). Was from a corporate setup environment. Bought it to try to 'save' a QuickBooks setup, but found some easier ways to do the limited accounting I needed...
 
Have you tried running it with DosBox in a recent version of Windows, if it's the Dos version? A quick net search brings up versions that skip verification, although I'm not going to link them, I may take a look at getting one working with DosBox. DOSBox, an x86 emulator with DOS

DesignCAD is still going, does it not have backwards compatability?
 
Also have an alleged IDE disk drive copier (hardware thing, no actual PC involved).
I copied a couple IDE drives with an external IDE/USB drive enclosure and Acronis TrueImage. These were old DOS 3.X systems for an ancient CMM and a marking machine that had no install discs. The oldest IDE drives were funky to get connected to but a W98 vintage drive should be no problem. I'm no software whiz and I made it work.
 
Question from the un-informed....

Why try to get a windows 98 computer, when the program is to run in DOS ?

I thought DOS was pre-windows ?
 
The Dos version of DesignCad will not run with any windows version newer than Windows 98. Newer versions of DesignCad can call up old Dos versions drawings but there are sometimes problems with lettering fonts. I am still hoping that someone out there has an old computer that is running DesignCad for dos that they want to sell because they have no use for it.
 
Question from the un-informed....

Why try to get a windows 98 computer, when the program is to run in DOS ?

I thought DOS was pre-windows ?
Windows 95/8/ME is mostly just DOS with a pretty face; back in 1995 you'd run DOS programs in Windows to get multi-tasking but nowadays, yeah, for a dedicated program, I'd run it in straight DOS on a dedicated box. Some of the memory extenders that were used at the end of DOS life don't play well in Windows (PharLap for one.)

btw, the DOS in OS/2 worked better than the DOS in Windows 95, so if op wanted to play in multi-tasking, then OS/2 Warp would be a good choice. Blue spine :)

DR-DOS / Novell DOS worked better than MS-DOS, too ..... Mickey is sort of the Harbor Freight of software.
 
Confused,
2D or 3.
The new 50 dollar version of turbostuff will not read your files?
For sure I'm not on the right page or in sync.
Many reasons to want to be win 95/98 and where a dos box or virtual fails in this world. To get performance needed you made shortcuts when writing the code.
Bob
 
Look for early Pentium 3.

Somewhere in that area memory started changing.

We have old DOS controller under Quarterdeck that is memory specific and pention 3 seems to be where it goes South.

Yard and estate sales maybe.

All of the e-waste push has dried up most of the old stuff.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk
 
The Dos version of DesignCad will not run with any windows version newer than Windows 98. Newer versions of DesignCad can call up old Dos versions drawings but there are sometimes problems with lettering fonts. I am still hoping that someone out there has an old computer that is running DesignCad for dos that they want to sell because they have no use for it.
I have a bunch old dos programs runs on my XP box, no issues Autocad 95 on it to LOL
 
Windows 95/8/ME is mostly just DOS with a pretty face; back in 1995 you'd run DOS programs in Windows to get multi-tasking but nowadays, yeah, for a dedicated program, I'd run it in straight DOS on a dedicated box. Some of the memory extenders that were used at the end of DOS life don't play well in Windows (PharLap for one.)

btw, the DOS in OS/2 worked better than the DOS in Windows 95, so if op wanted to play in multi-tasking, then OS/2 Warp would be a good choice. Blue spine :)

DR-DOS / Novell DOS worked better than MS-DOS, too ..... Mickey is sort of the Harbor Freight of software.
We had a Novel server run 20 Years LOL never blew up
 
Gary
That makes sense if you can't find an other computer this is an other option, you can hire a tech to do this.
are you good at mirroring hard drives?, I would do that to save an entire back of a drive would old software and files.
then you could install it on an other hard drive on an other computer. or the virtual drive like I explained in my first post.
mirror drive can be saved as a file, or you can mirror an other drive.
it's been a while since I did it but it's like riding a bike.
There are different softwares and different method.
The easiest is ghost (Symantec ) spelling agg, it was great for those old computers
does the old computer have an old Floppy disk drive? creating a Floppy Ghost boot up disk.
then boot up on A drive(floppy)
have the two drives connected to the mother board mirror want to the other, or mirror an Image to a CD or DVD drive

This will be a back up for ever, hard drive blows no problem, computer blows no problem, that's why virtual drives are great
 








 
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