OS/2 Warp 4 Under VMware Workstation 5.5.3

I tested VMware installing the OS/2 Warp 4.0 as a guest Operating System.

I created a new virtual machine and selected "Other OS".Then I had to prepare the booting Floppy Disk, because the OS/2 Installation CDROM is not bootable but in the cd there is a directory called

\diskimgs\os2\35\

So first I booted from a DOS 6.22 Floppy disk with an atapi cdrom driver in the config.sys... Do you remember those old times??

I had to do that because under a DOSEMU or Windows XP I got some errors. Maybe because it was trying to access using the BIOS Interruptions.

After booting from floppy execute :

C:\DISKIMGS\LOADDSKF C:\DISKIMGS\35\disk0.dsk A:

Label it "INSTALLATION"

(notice that in my case the cd-rom drive letter is C: because DOS cannot recognice any partition on my hard disk)

C:\DISKIMGS\LOADDSKF C:\DISKIMGS\35\disk1_cd.dsk A:

Label it "Disk 1"

C:\DISKIMGS\LOADDSKF C:\DISKIMGS\35\disk2.dsk A:

Label it "Disk 2"

After that I booted and started the new virtual machine with the Installation floppy disk and the cd inserted in the cd-rom.

After a while inserted disk 1 and 2 and made a partition and formated the virtual hard disk.

Then reboot again and the installation started.

After a long time the installation appears to be hung in this screen :

So I decided to change the following value in the file "Other.vmx"

guestOS = "other"

for

guestOS = "os2experimental"

I restarted the VM and after a long time the installation finished.Then I restarted again and the OS/2 Warp was ready to use.

The only problem I found is the perfomance in my compaq presario 1500 (Pentium IV 2.4ghz) the OS runs so slooowwwly.

But I got some fun seeing the presentation manager and the OS/2 style again.

OStalgie

Trying to test the Vmware Workstation I started searching my Operating Systems CDs.
I found a lot of diskettes and cds that brought memories of and old era :

My first Linux Distribution came with the magazine "Solo Programadores" from February 1995, it was Slackware Linux 2.1.0.(Linux kernel 1.1.59).

My first Infomagic Linux Developer's resource from April 1996. A 6 cd set that came with the Red Hat 3.0.3 "picasso" (ELF Release) Slackware 3.0 (kernel 1.2.20) and Debian 0.93R6 (kernel 1.2.13).

Here is a picture




And my OS/2 Operating Systems 2.1 (from mid 1993) and 3.0 Warp (late 1994).




Now I'm testing some of these old systems under VMWare. I'm trying to make the OS/2 run under VMWare. I know that the OS/2 is not supported by VMWare as the VMWare site says : "given our present strategic directions and commitments, that we can support OS/2 as a guest operating system."
http://www.vmware.com/support/reference/common/guest_os2_exp.html

Anyway I will give it a shot.
I'm feeling nOStalgie for these old Operating Systems!.

Making your own Flying Saucer

Tired of traffic?
Tired of Mass Transportation System?
Still watching the sky waiting for a Flying Saucer Bus??

(Image fom the movie
RECUERDOS DEL FUTURO Y REGRESO A LAS ESTRELLAS.erich.von.daniken.spanish-muy buena.avi )

The wait is over!!!
The solution is here to stay!!!
Thanks to the reverse engineering of Bob Lazar!

Now you can build your own flying saucer!!!
Don't be afraid an use the next sketchs made by Bob.

(images from the movie
UFO - Scientist Bob Lazar on Area 51 & Antigravity Research (1991).mpg )


Bye!!! I just Finished!!!

Delayed Write Nightmare SOLVED!!!

I have been having problems using and external Hard Disk (Seagate ST316002 - IDE - 7200 RPM ) and a carrying case 3.5" (Noganet USB 2.0 External Case) under Windows XP. Sometimes I got the error message "Delayed Write Failed" and many files are trimmed to zero bytes (M$ Magic).
At last I discovered the problem and the solution (just changed a 1 for a 0).
The problem was the value of the LargeSystemCache registry key. One of the video drivers I tested modified the value and I didn't notice that change until now.

The Registry Key is :

\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management


Now the disk is working fine under Windows.

I forgot to say that according to Micro$oft the problem was :
•You are using a 40-wire connector cable to connect the UDMA drive to the controller instead of the required 80-wire, 40-pin cable.
• Your BIOS settings are configured to force faster UDMA modes.

As you can see here :http://support.microsoft.com/kb/330174/en-us

Testing Meade AutoStar #497

Last weekend I finally used the AutoStar 497 Computer Control System from meade.



http://www.meade.com/catalog/autostar/497_autostar.html

I connected the controller to my telescope a Meade DS-114mm (4.5" reflecting telescope) with dual motor control system.
The First Time I connected the Autostar I had to set it up :
Language
Date
Time
Daylight Saving (yes/no)
Telescope Site - Buenos Aires Argentina
Telescope Model : DS-114
Then I selected the Easy Align procedure. So I had to set the telescope in "home" position, tube level at 0 degress and pointed north (I used a compass) and pushed "Enter".
After that the Autostar selected the brightest start, Sirius and moved automatically, it stopped moving and I had to correct the positioning using the key numbers to select the speed and the arrows to move the tube, after a few movements I centered Sirius and pressed "Enter". Then the autostar started moving to Canopus. Like Sirius I had to correct the positioning with a few movements. After that the telescope was aligned in less than 5 minutes.
I selected the "Guided Tour" -> "Tonight's Best" and then the telescope started moving to Saturn. The planet was well centered but I couldn't see it in the eyepiece, I could see it in the viewfinder. So I pressed Enter for two seconds and then corrected the alignement using the arrows keys and pressed Enter again. Then the planet was perfectly centered. And thanks to the auto tracking feature I didn't need to care about keeping the planet centered. The autostar did the job for me. I waited more than 5 minutes and the planet was still correctly centered. Then I selected to watch the Moon. And this time it was automatically centered by Autostar. After enyoing the view with different eyepieces the clouds covered the sky. So I had to abandon skywatching.
The next day during the sunlight I trained the Motors using the "Setup->Train Drive" option using a distant land object. And at night the Alignment was perfect, the only issue I had was that this time the Autostar selected other less bright stars and some of them I didn't know exactly where they were. For example Spika, Regulus, Bellatrix, so I had to press the down button sometimes until a star familiar to me was selected. In another session I decided to use the Two -Star align method, in this option I was able to choose the stars.
The autostar is an excellent accessory for the telescope it has a huge database more than 30000 objects. Including planets, messier object, nebulaes, meteors, satellites. The alignment procedure is easy and the auto tracking feature is awesome.

Solaris DVDs Finally Arrived

Yes! After two months of waiting the Solaris 10 DVDs arrived!
They came in a DVD box that containd three DVDs one for Intel, one for Sparc and one of development tools.
I installed Solaris using the downloaded cd images from Sun ftp because I didn't expect the Solaris DVDs to arrive soon as they are free and lots of people are ordering them.

If you want to order your Free Solaris Kit just follow this link :
http://www2.sun.de/dc/forms/reg_us_2211_391.jsp

Recently Sun added a new distribution "Solaris Express, Developer Edition". So you have to choose between :
(The following is an extract from Sun Microsystems page) :
Option 1: Sun Developer Tools and the Solaris 10 Operating System: The most advanced OS on the planet - available for no charge. With industry-leading stability, security,and scalability combined with over 600 new features, such as DTrace, you can trust your most important application deployments to Solaris 10. Includes Sun Studio and NetBeans software.

Option 2: Solaris Express, Developer Edition for x86 systems: Provides a modern desktop environment for Solaris, Java, and Web 2.0 application development. With its simplified installation experience coupled with additional support for common laptops and desktops, developers can more easily create and deploy applications for Solaris 10. Includes Sun Studio and NetBeans software.

A few days ago I played a little with Solaris trying to make any of my USB peripherals work. I used the commands :
rmformat
prtconf
But I couldn't make Solaris recognize any of my USB peripherals (DVD, Hard Disk, Pen Drive, Camera, Printer).
I tried mounting a cd in the laptop internal cd-rom using the mount command, but after a while I discovered that the volfs service was running, so I don't need to manually mount the drive.
Just use the "eject" command line then insert a CD and close the bay.