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RetroTech Chris Profile picture
@RetroTechChris
Feb 15 • 7 tweets • 5 min read • Read on X
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Recall that new Win3.1 video driver that we looked at recently? It just keeps getting better and better. I reported an issue with network sharing and "green lines" on startup a few weeks ago, and it is now fixed! I decided to build the driver from source, let's talk about it! 🧵
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The process to build the driver is nicely documented! I downloaded the Win16 DDK and placed it at C:\DDK31 in a DOS6.22/Win3.1 VM. I also installed Microsoft Visual C++ 1.52c, and grabbed a copy of EXE2BIN from FreeDOS. Image
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From there, in DOS, I edited the C:\MSVC\BIN\MSVCVARS.BAT file as directed and ran it. Okay, we are ready to build! Image
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First, I built the VBESVGA.DRV file. It's a matter of navigating to the VBESVGA directory (that you place within the DDK directory structure) & running "make". One step failed, I just ran it by hand & it succeeded (not shown). Once built, I copied the driver to C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM Image
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From there, we build the 386 Enhanced Driver. You navigate to the VDDVBE directory that you place in the DDK, and run "nmake". When done, just copy the driver to C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM. Image
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At this point, I just launched Windows since I had already configured this new driver before. But if you haven't, the steps to do such are pretty straight forward, you just need to edit C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM.INI accordingly. Image
And that's it! I love seeing the progress on this driver. If you haven't seen it yet, you can find it at . I presume new file versions will be posted soon that contain this fix, I was just impatient 😂. Thanks for following along.

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More from @RetroTechChris

RetroTech Chris Profile picture
Aug 4
Okay, let's get some software installed on this "new" 486DX/50 PC of mine. As per usual, nothing was flawless here, so let's go over what went well and where I hit some snags! Time for a 🧵 Image
To get the installers on the box, I decided to use MS LAN Manager and the network. I made a special LAN Manager boot disk with drivers for the Intel EtherExpress 16TP that you see in the bottom of the last picture here. Image
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I've been very curious about how this machine would stack up, so I copied over SpeedSys to benchmark the system. And as we can see, it fell right in line with where it should be! Image
Read 12 tweets
RetroTech Chris Profile picture
Aug 3
My friend Bill gave me a bunch of case lock keys! Back in the days of the AT standard for cases, keylocks were pretty common on PC clones, and IBM systems as well. Let's see how many locks we can open today. Time for a silly 🧵 Image
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First, the Gateway 2000 you saw in the intro post. First key I tried worked 😂 Image
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Next, let's look at the PS/2 Model 30 286. Not today, not happening, this uses a "more regular looking" key. Image
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Read 9 tweets
RetroTech Chris Profile picture
Aug 3
I already have too many PCs, but I had to have this cute little guy... and there is also a good nostalgic reason for having it! This 386 (now 486) PC needed a lot of work to get it running, let's talk about it in a 🧵 here! Image
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First, in case you missed it, here's the nostalgic reason. Kehtron is a part of my childhood. And this PC was available locally. The weather was also PERFECT yesterday for making an hour drive to get it and rocking out to some 80s tunes on the way 😂 Image
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Okay, first order of business, I put this on the table and it was rocking back and forth. I soon discovered why! I didn't have a matching foot so I used a little bit of Goof Off to remove the adhesive. And PSA, like with most chemicals, always work in a ventilated area. Image
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Read 19 tweets
RetroTech Chris Profile picture
Jul 28
In my haste yesterday, there are TWO THINGS that I forgot to do and post about for this "eMachines" system. One is more important than the other! Let's talk about it in a brief 🧵 here! Image
First of all, before we get too far, recall that this isn't actually an eMachines. The original motherboard failed, and a Pentium III Biostar motherboard was put in to replace it, in what I am calling a "reverse sleeper"
So, what did I forget? Well, the first thing was to showcase the Wake on LAN capability! I installed a 3Com network card with Wake on LAN support. If we know the Ethernet MAC address and have a program to send a "magic packet", and the BIOS settings are right, we can use it! Image
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Read 6 tweets
RetroTech Chris Profile picture
Jul 28
I recently picked up this "eMachines" from my friend Bill to bring to the next local meetup and plop on the "free" table. I thought I'd spruce it up a little bit in the meantime, since, well, I enjoy doing just that 😂. Let's talk about it in a 🧵 here! Image
So, first and foremost, this isn't actually an eMachines. The original mobo died and it was replaced with a Biostar M6TWL and a Pentium III 600 MHz CPU. Does that makes this thing a "reverse sleeper"? 🤣 Image
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Given this, we have a little bit of work to do. First, unrelated, but the CMOS battery is dead. Also, there is a SATA Western Digital 120GB HDD installed, but that won't work without some sort of adapter, since the motherboard only supports IDE. Image
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Read 17 tweets
RetroTech Chris Profile picture
Jul 27
I recently received this Dell Inspiron 700m from my friend Bill. Originally a Windows XP system. I thought "maybe I could make this a mean DOS/Windows For Workgroups 3.11 system." Let's give it a shot in a 🧵 here, I bet we can get pretty close! Image
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First thing I did was to look in the BIOS. This system is a Pentium M 2.0 GHz with 512MB of memory. The optical is a CD-RW/DVD. Okay, this should be more than adequate for what we want to do here 😂. Oh... and look, we can boot from a USB floppy drive! Okay, let's do that. Image
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First thing I thought I would do is to boot DOS 6.22. And... look at that, I even had the right drivers set up to detect the optical drive. Win! Image
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Read 20 tweets

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