Working With DOS Working With Windows 2000
Working With Windows 9x  

 

 

                                       

 

                                                                       

             

                                                       DOS :

                       

· DOS (Disk Operating System) was developed by IBM and Microsoft and was the first operating system used by IBM microcomputers.

· For years, DOS remained the unchallenged standard for operating systems used by IBM PCs and IBM-compatible machines.

· Most seasoned microcomputer users are comfortable and familiar with DOS.

· DOS uses a command-driven interface, where you are required to key in command lines to tell the operating system to perform operations.
1. DOS 4. Using DOS Commands
2. Advantages And Disadvantages Of DOS 5. The DOS Boot Record
3. Loading And Launching Software In DOS 6. Topic Summary

 

 

 

                                        Filenames Under DOS:

· Under DOS, a file’s name has two parts. The first part, called the filename, contains up to eight characters. The second part, called the file extension, contains up to three characters.

· When you write the file extension in DOS commands, you separate the extension from the filename with a period. Acceptable file extensions for program files are .com, .bat, and .exe. For example, the WordPerfect program file is named WP.exe. Its filename is WP and its file extension is .exe.

· With the introduction of Windows 95, long filenames traditionally used only by the Macintosh operating system became available to IBM-compatible PCs. Under Windows 95 and later Windows generations, filenames can be as long as 255 characters and may contain spaces.

· You must be careful when using long filenames with Windows 9x because Windows 9x still contains a portion of DOS, which can only understand an 8-character filename, 3 character extension format. When the DOS part of the system is operating, it will truncate long filenames and assign new 8-character ones.

       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                        Using DOS Commands:

                        DOS commands are divided into two groups:

· Internal DOS commands :are part of the COMMAND.COM program and don’t require COMMAND.COM to find and load another program file.

· External DOS commands: are stored as separate program files in the DOS directory. COMMAND.COM must search for and load these program files before the command can be executed.
 

For more information about DOS commands, type HELP followed by the command name at a DOS prompt, or type the command name followed by /? (slash and a question mark).