Classic Laptops

[FamicomFreak]

I am on the market now for a laptop with at least windows 3.11 or windows 95....to maybe run DOS games on it ? LOL well who knows since I don't have much knowledge of those laptops back then. Anyone know any models I should keep my eye on next time I visit the local Ebay store?

[JC]

I was under the impression that Vista could load and run older versions of Windows. I heard that somewhere.

[133MHz]

Vista == Shit

The japanese even produced Windows Vista Ultimate Toilet Paper   Source

[JC]

Vista == Shit

Oh you techies are all so picky. Us regular folk don't know the difference.

And those Japanese know how to turn a profit.

[133MHz]

Oh you techies are all so picky. Us regular folk don't know the difference.

Good point, but I see regular folks around me asking to remove Vista from their new laptops for speed & compatibility reasons. When even the average joe dislikes Vista, you know it sucks pretty hard .

Also, I wouldn't mind having a few rolls of that TP .

I was under the impression that Vista could load and run older versions of Windows. I heard that somewhere.

Also, maybe you're referring to Virtualization (running a virtual machine, a PC emulator inside your PC) using programs like VMWare or Microsoft Virtual PC, so you can emulate older Windows versions (even several of them at the same time).

Software like these run on nearly any Windows version, even Mac/Linux, so it's not limited to Vista. Some drawbacks are huge resource consumption (mainly RAM and HD space to hold another entire OS), and they're unsuitable for games (no 3D acceleration, and since you're under emulation you're going slower anyway). There's a specialized emulator for old DOS games called DOSBox (http://dosbox.sourceforge.net) which works wonders on XP/Linux systems, the best of its kind.

But FamicomFreak is going for the total classic PC Gaming experience, he's got a dedicated old machine for his DOS games, just like me .

[FamicomFreak]

YEAH WAAA! Anyways, Vista does suck I tried downgrading my friend's PC to XP but the sound drivers were only made for Vista. I was pissed because everything else worked perfectly! I myself have a Vista laptop....yeah.....that I'm planning on maximizing its RAM because Vista is so damn slow.... My DOS desktop is doing great! I was playing Jill of the Jungle the other day as well as Commander Keen IV such great classics and the music is just enchanting! I do have an XP desktop for my usual browsing and downloading and I do have DOSBOX on that machine. I don't use it anymore though...lol I'm thinking of investing in a windows 3.11 machine that has that big 5 something disk drive....so kewl! umm Vista sucks!

[UglyJoe]

Good point, but I see regular folks around me asking to remove Vista from their new laptops for speed & compatibility reasons. When even the average joe dislikes Vista, you know it sucks pretty hard .

The average joe still nags me about XP problems . 

I don't see why Vista is seen as this big awful OS by techies.  XP was a big awful OS when it came out too, but it became bearable as hardware advanced.

Honestly, I hear a lot more complaints about IE7 than I do about Vista.  If you were to turn off UAC and the Aero desktop (like I have), I doubt the average joe would realize it was Vista.  That is, until they open IE7 and realize it's not IE6 and then freak out because, "OMG it's different!"

Erm..sorry for the rant.

[manuel]

On topic, I wouldn't try to buy an old laptop, but maybe you could find installation discs of Win3.11 or Win95 and put that on a partition on a new lappie. Just a thought.

[FamicomFreak]

On topic, I wouldn't try to buy an old laptop, but maybe you could find installation discs of Win3.11 or Win95 and put that on a partition on a new lappie. Just a thought.

but I need old hardware for old games and applications!!! I think this is more of like emulators vs real consoles. Doesn't it feel so good when you play the real thing? Yeah it does believe me! I want the real deal!!! WAAAAAA!

[133MHz]

On topic, I wouldn't try to buy an old laptop, but maybe you could find installation discs of Win3.11 or Win95 and put that on a partition on a new lappie. Just a thought.

You won't find Win 3.11 or 95 drivers for a new laptop (or any new computer really). Also they have no legacy hardware (SoundBlaster compatible cards and such) so even with an old OS, your games wouldn't run as they're supposed to be.

[133MHz]

Also, if you get an old laptop, by today the battery is pretty much dead, and only has a life of One Half Of Ten Minutes™.
You can use it with the charger all the time, or you can open the battery casing (carefully), discard the worn out cells, and replace them with NiCd, NiMH, or Lithium batteries to bring new life to the laptop . I did this years ago with an old B&W PowerBook, I used an RC car battery and it went from 5 minutes to a full hour .

[manuel]

I forgot about drivers and stuff. That makes it very hard indeed.

[FamicomFreak]

Also, if you get an old laptop, by today the battery is pretty much dead, and only has a life of One Half Of Ten Minutes™.
You can use it with the charger all the time, or you can open the battery casing (carefully), discard the worn out cells, and replace them with NiCd, NiMH, or Lithium batteries to bring new life to the laptop . I did this years ago with an old B&W PowerBook, I used an RC car battery and it went from 5 minutes to a full hour .

ahhh that sounds like an awesome project to try out. I'll definitely try that if the battery is useless wkekekekekekek......oh yeah I bought the sound card you advice me to get! AWAAA!! I can't wait for it to arrive...good old stuff....