Sometimes old games do not run on modern computers, so they need to be launched via dos box emulator, we will give a small instruction.
DOSBox: how to use?
To run the game using DOSBox for Windows 7, 8, 10 or XP:
- Download free DOSBox for your operating system on the official website;
- Install DOSbox. A shortcut will appear on the desktop;
- Download the game if you haven't already;
- Unpack the downloaded archive, you will get a lot of files. Important: games under DOS are launched with *.bat, *.exe, or *.com files, in each game differently, start in turn, I advise you to start with a file in the name of which the name of the game is present, for example doom.exe;
- Go to the folder with the game and drag the game launch file directly to the DOSBox shortcut on the desktop Windows desktop. As shown in the picture.
All!!! The game starts and runs without problems.
If suddenly the game does not start: check the setup.exe or install.com files - in DOS games, the sound was configured manually, at that time the sound cards were not compatible, you need to run one of these files, select sound card, for example " sound blaster", and save the settings.
List of DOSBox system buttons:
ALT-ENTER - Switch dosbox to full screen
CTRL-F1 - Remap buttons
CTRL-F5 - Take a screenshot
CTRL-F6 - Start/stop sound recording to wave file
CTRL-ALT-F5 - Start / Stop creating a video from the screen (video capture and recording to avi)
CTRL-F9 - Close DosBox
CTRL-F10 - Capture/Release Mouse
CTRL-F11 - Slow down game speed
CTRL-F12 - Increase game speed
Pressing ALT-F12 (Remove speed limit (turbo button)) accelerates the game to the limit. Acceleration goes while the combination is pressed. It can be very useful for scrolling cutscenes, speeding up waiting, even if the game does not provide for this. Unfortunately the combination is not very stable. The most common symptom with such acceleration is the disappearance of sound in the future.
This answer contains information about different techniques operating system options Windows 7, both by means of the OS itself, and with the help of various secondary programs.
Restoring the Traditional Start Menu in Windows 7
Return the traditional launch menu, the return function to which in Windows 7 absent, it is possible with the help of a free program CSMenu. This utility makes an alternative "Start" button, returning to it the traditional style, perfectly recognizable by the interface Windows 2000. After installation (administrator rights are required), the program leaves two icons on the desktop. By running one, the user starts scanning programs located in start menu. After indexing, this icon can be deleted, and then, in order for the configurations to take effect, log out of the profile and log in again. After logging in, you need to move the second icon to the taskbar - it will serve as a specific "Start" button, made in the traditional style. With all this, the real button does not go anywhere, it remains in place. Download CSMenu there is an opportunity from the forum about Windows 7 www.windows7forums.com. There you can also watch a video on how to install the program.
Internet search through the start menu
AT Windows 7 it became possible to find on the Internet through the Start menu, but by default this function is disabled. To enable search on the Internet through the Start menu, you need to do the following:
Enable DreamScene in Windows 7
dream scene is one of the functions in Windows Vista Ultimate, which allowed you to set a video as your desktop wallpaper. But this feature has been removed from Windows 7 and it was replaced by the function Desktop Slideshow— function of automatic change of background pictures of a desktop. Possibility to enable dream scene still exists. In order to launch dream scene in Windows 7, you need to make the following function:
It is worth implying that dream scene not officially supported in Windows 7, because its options are not in the applet Personalization(Personalization) and on the configuration page Desktop background(Desktop background sketch). Despite this, all functions dream scene, including play(Reproduce), Pause(Stop) and audio are supported.
Restoring the Quick Launch Panel
AT Windows 7 Quick Launch has been replaced by a new feature supported by the taskbar - pinning applications to the taskbar. In order to pin an application to the taskbar, just press the right mouse button on the application window in the taskbar and select the "Pin this program to the taskbar" item.
To restore the quick start panel (Quick Launch) you need to make an additional toolbar and point to the folder Quick Launch: to do this, right-click on the taskbar and select the "Panels" item in the context menu and then "Create toolbar ...". In the dialog box that opens, point to the following folder: C:Users\AppDataRoamingMicrosoftInternet ExplorerQuick Launch. (In that case the folder AppData is not visible in the dialog box, you need to open the control panel, select the "Appearance and personalization" item, select the "Show hidden files and folders" item in it and select the "show hidden files, folders and drives" option in it) After which the toolbar Quick Launch will be added to the taskbar. For its traditional display, it is possible to right-click on the panel and uncheck the text display characteristics Show Text and headlines show title. The convenience of the traditional quick launch panel is that the user will have access to the icons of applications that place their shortcuts in this panel.
Panel change Windows tasks 7 per XP/Vista style
One of the most obvious configurations in Windows 7 is a brand new taskbar, in which icons are shown instead of buttons, and all application windows are connected together under one button. The first thing to do in order to return to the older style of the taskbar is to right-click on any free place on it and select the line from the menu that appears Properties(characteristics). More on the tab Taskbar(taskbar) opposite the label of the taskbar buttons Taskbar buttons you need to select the option Never combine(never merge once), which will set the taskbar to display a separate button for each individual window. It is also possible to select the option Combine when taskbar is full(Merge once when the taskbar is full) which will merge windows together when the taskbar is full. After performing these actions (and naturally implementing them), the buttons will be displayed with text labels ... which, however, will be made in the style Windows 7. To fix this, you still need to go to the characteristics of the taskbar and set the item for using small icons Use small icons. The taskbar with all this will become a little narrower and will be very similar to the panel Vista. The only remaining inconsistency will be the "pinned" icons, which will still be on the taskbar. But it is possible to remove them by clicking on each of them with the right mouse button and selecting the item Unpin this program from taskbar(unpin this program from the taskbar). And after that the taskbar will look and work almost like a panel WindowsXP/Vista.
Changing the LOGON UI Welcome Screen in Windows 7
Windows 7 has a new welcome screen LOGONUI. The welcome screen, it's just possible to change it using the free program Tweaks Logon Changer. With its help, the welcome screen has the ability to change to any other picture or return the original welcome page. In that case, the image size is more than 256Kb, then Tweaks Logo Changer will offer to make a copy of it and automatically compress it to a suitable size.
It is also possible to change the welcome screen using the system itself, in the absence of using additional programs. How to do this is thoroughly described in this article.
How to enable/run Windows XP Mode in Windows 7
XPmode(mode WindowsXP) is an addition that, in conjunction with VirtualPC allows you to ensure full comparability of old applications with Windows 7. XP Mode is a virtual machine with a pre-installed system Windows XP; it starts from under the very Windows 7 and offers to create a launch of old applications that are not compatible with Windows 7, just in the environment Windows XP, due to which complete comparability is achieved.
It is important to note that the function Windows XP Mode irrevocably asks for hardware support for virtualization, in addition, the company's specialists Microsoft It is advised to use a computer equipped with at least 2 GB of RAM. That the "iron" of the computer satisfies the right requirements, you can make sure by downloading and running the utilities posted on the microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc page.
The finished "super button" with the proud title "turn on Windows XP Mode" No. Development is external to itself Windows 7, with all this, only professional editions are supported - Professional, Enterprise and Ultimate. To install XP Mode to a computer running Windows 7, you need to download the latest version from the special Microsoft website Virtual PC(file Windows 6.1-KB958559-x86 ~4.9 Mb) and the finished image Windows XP(file VirtualWindowsXP.msi~445 MB), which already has the necessary services and drivers installed. For those who wish to make their own virtual image, the website contains update versions for Vista/XP, the installation of which in the virtual OS adds that support for the mode Windows XP mode. After downloading both files, you need to install them - at first Virtual PC for Windows 7, later the image itself.
In the "Start" menu in the "Programs" there is a section Windows Virtual PC, and in it is actually an item Virtual Windows XP. At the first start, the image changes in a very elementary way - only the password of the future user is requested. In the start menu, in the same section Windows Virtual PC there is a section Virtual Windows XP Application with links to virtual applications. It is possible to run as a virtual machine with Windows XP, and individual programs installed inside virtual environment. With all this, the system provides completely transparent work with such applications and does not impose any multifunctional restrictions on them. From running inside Windows XP programs have the ability to work with files of the parent system, interact with USB and other devices connected to the computer, copy data via the clipboard, send them to print, etc.
Additional to the site:
How to enable/run Windows XP Mode in Windows 7?
This answer contains information regarding the various methods of the Windows 7 operating system option, both by means of the OS itself and with the help of various secondary programs. Restoring the Traditional Start Menu in Windows 7 It is possible to return the traditional start menu, which does not have a return function in Windows 7, using the free CSMenu program. This utility makes an alternative "Start" button,...
Many of us find it difficult to give up familiar programs and even just the features of the operating system on which we have worked for several years. New system it does not look like the old one, and not all software runs even in compatibility mode. Especially for such conformists, they came up with Microsoft XP mode, which can be launched using virtual machine.
Step 1: Check your Windows 7 version
XP Mode for Windows 7Microsoft offers a free Windows XP mode for Windows 7 Professional, Ultimate, and Enterprise editions. While working in it, you can continue to use previous versions apps that no longer work in Windows 7.
First, check which version of Windows 7 you have. To do this, press the key combination + [Pause] or right-click on the "Computer" tab of the main menu and select "Properties".
If you have Home Basic or Home Premium installed, you will have to work a little.
Step 2: Download files for XP mode
To get started, you will need the Windows Virtual PC program to set up the virtual machine.
Then boot up the actual XP mode. If you are running Windows 7 64-bit, you will need to download XP-mode from the appropriate download source from Microsoft.
The output will have two downloads available: WindowsXPMode_en-en.exe is full version Windows XP including media player and media center. The second file is WindowsXPMode_N_en-en.exe, in which Windows Media Center is missing.
Step 3Install and Configure XP Mode
Install "Windows Virtual PC" first, it will show as "Update for Windows (KB958559)". After reboot windows application Virtual PC will be available for work and you can set up virtual systems.
Then install Windows XP mode and run it. Complete the appropriate steps following the installation wizard prompts. After that you can use virtual windows xp. To do this, open Windows mode XP" in the start menu.
XP mode in "home" versions of Windows 7
If you do not have one of the above Windows options 7, you can still install XP-mode. The main condition will be the presence of a legal installation CD or downloaded Windows XP ISO file.
Open Windows Virtual PC from the start menu and click "Create virtual computer» at the top of the menu bar. Then follow the installation wizard instructions.
Once you've set up the virtual machine, insert the Windows XP CD into the drive and launch Virtual PC by double-clicking the "XP Mode.vmcx" file.
The virtual machine should now start installing Windows XP, which you will need to follow step by step. 512 MB of memory should be enough for Windows XP.
Installing Integration Components
The installed integration components improve the interaction between the virtual machine and the physical computer, as well as between both operating systems. The integration components also display programs that you install on a virtual machine on a physical operating system in the Start menu.
Create a user with the same username and password as on your "real" system.
If you are not integrated into the XP version, install SP3 using the Center windows updates.
Then in Windows Virtual PC select "Tools" and install the Integration Components.
Subsequently, Windows should automatically install update KB961742.
Restart Windows Virtual PC, click "Tools" and "Activate Integration Features".
If you don't like Windows Virtual Machine, try the free VMware Workstation Player or another virtual machine.
Photo: pxhere.com, manufacturing companies
Many of us remember the good old games we played at dawn computer technology, and which we often think of today.
Technologies are growing and developing, the graphics are becoming more realistic, and the gameplay is getting more and more "fancy", but sometimes you want to play something old and painfully familiar, from those times when the gaming industry has not yet got on the conveyor belt and has not begun to churn out dozens of games and hundreds of thousands. When each toy was an event, and each had its own "zest". Many of these games have become true masterpieces, the popularity of which cannot be reached by modern projects, even sometimes very, very good ones, soundly and of high quality.
And it doesn't matter what caused it - either ordinary nostalgia, or you yourself are still quite young and just want to try what your parents "cut" into during their computer youth. Or maybe you are a fan of some game series, for example, a space simulator x3, and were surprised to find that the universe " X", it turns out, did not begin with the advent of the very first X, and much earlier - with the appearance of the legendary ELITE, which was born back in the 80s of the last century and since then has undergone several dozen reincarnations in various sequels and clones for a variety of operating systems, and a relatively new x3 only continues the tradition of gaming legend. There are quite a few such series in the world of games - this is SETTLERS, and C&C with his first red alert"oh, and a series about Combat Robots, famous Civilization Sid Meier, and the legendary DOOM, which is almost the progenitor of all modern shooters. A real fan will definitely decide to go all the way, starting with the very first, still DOS game, that's why he is a fan.
However, it does not matter what was the initial impetus, but you got it, downloaded it from the Internet (fortunately, there are enough such resources now) or brought an old toy on a disk, anticipating a pleasant evening. And this is where the disappointments begin. The game either does not want to install at all, or it installs, but does not start or does not work correctly, or it works so fast that it is not possible to somehow curb this process. The process of incomplete compatibility of old programs with Windows XP and Vista appears before us "in all its glory". But you should not despair - all these problems have long been solved by other users, and we can only talk about the methods for solving them, and you should carefully read and try.
So let's start by dividing the old games conditionally into two categories: games for the DOS platform and slightly more modern ones for the Windows 95/98 platform. The first type, games for DOS, were created for a completely different type of operating system, so they will flatly refuse to run under Windows XP and, even more so, under Windows Vista. However, there is also a way out.
Running Legacy DOS Games on Windows XP and Windows Vista
Among the abundance desired functions and a whole bunch of useless features of modern operating systems, the function we need to run DOS applications in Windows XP and Windows Vista is completely missing. But here third-party developers come to the rescue, who have created many DOS emulators specifically for this purpose - programs that imitate the functions of the DOS operating system and allow you to run old DOS applications in modern OSes. One of the most popular and widespread emulators has become DOSbox(dosbox.sourceforge.net). The program is quite simple and does not require much effort to master, but here the main problem for beginners may be the lack of skills in working in DOS and ignorance of its text interface. Especially for such users, several graphical shells have been developed that offer convenient intuitive control. One of these shells DOG We invite you to take advantage.
Download as the emulator itself DOSbox, and a graphical shell to it -DOG- you can from our website. Download links are at the bottom of the article in the attached files.
After downloading both programs, install Dosbox first (the installation is standard and does not contain any difficulties). Then we run the DOG shell installer, during installation we specify the path to our DOSbox emulator to the installer program. That's it, now we can easily run old DOS games in Windows XP and Windows Vista using an emulator equipped with a convenient graphical interface.
Copy the desired game to HDD and start the emulator. We find the control panel and the button in it Profiles -> New Profile. Click, enter the name of the game in the field profile name. Next click Select after the EXE file name. We press OK and start the game double click mice on it.
Sometimes, thanks to the fans, old, beloved DOS games are experiencing a "second birth". Try searching the Internet for a "ported" version of an old game, perhaps someone has already made a version for Windows XP or Windows Vista.
Running old Windows 95/98 games on Windows XP and Windows Vista
With games created for the slightly newer Windows 95/98 operating systems, things are a little easier. Developers from Microsoft have provided for this purpose special utility - Compatibility Mode, and if the old toy completely refuses to run under Windows Xp or Vista, you should enable this mode. For this purpose, we find the executable file of the game and go to its properties (right-click on the file with the option Properties). Go to tab Compatibility. The rest is in the field Run the program in compatibility mode for... check the box next to the desired operating system (Windows 95 or another, depending on which operating system the game was developed for). It remains only to press Apply, close the properties window, and you can run the toy and enjoy!
A small digression. Sometimes the developers of older games create special patches so that their programs can run on newer operating systems. So, for example, the creators of the game S.T.A.L.K.E.R, which was originally born under Windows XP and did not want to function normally in Windows Vista, did so. After the release of the patch, all problems were resolved. If you managed to find a similar patch for your toy, install the game first, then the patch and play. If the developers have tried, you will be able to enjoy the process.
Decreased speed in older games
Another problem for old games on new computers can be too high speed. gameplay, because the power of modern computer hardware is several times higher than that for which the old games were designed. You will understand what we mean as soon as you experience it yourself. If the game is running too fast, as if in a fast-forward mode, you will have to forcibly reduce the power of your computer using special applications. One of the most popular programs for these purposes is CPU Killer, forcibly reducing the frequency of the processor. You can also download it from our website (see links to attached files at the bottom of the article).
A small guide to working with CPUKiller
Download CPU Killer and install it. Installation is simple and no different from other programs, just follow the wizard, install and run.
Novice users are not recommended to change the program settings, just go straight to using it. In the working window of CPUKiller, you will see a graph of the processor and a scale with a slider just below. In order to reduce the frequency, you need to move the slider to the desired percentage and press start. The processor frequency will be forced down immediately. Minimize the CPUKiller window and play. To turn off just press Stop.
The program can be used without any fear, turned on or off at any convenient time and for any period.
We hope that you will no longer have problems running old games under Windows XP or Windows Vista, and you will have a great time enjoying rare toys!
Description of how to install and run the full version Windows XP from under Windows Vista or Windows 7 using the program Oracle Virtual Box. In this case, Windows XP is installed in a virtual machine and runs as a standalone application on Windows Vista, Windows 7, or any other operating system, including various Linux distributions. In this way, compatibility problems of various programs and drivers with Windows Vista, Windows 7, or other operating systems can be resolved.
A small introduction
Probably, many of you, my dear readers, have already managed to install and try Windows Vista and Windows 7. It seems that the systems are good for everyone, but some programs and old games do not run in the new operating system, and drivers for some devices do not work. What to do in this case? Refuse the charms new version Windows?
In fact, there are several ways to solve this problem. The most obvious is to install Windows XP as a second system with the ability to choose which one to include at boot. This method is described in this article:. But here comes the inconvenience. For the sake of some kind of program, you need to restart the laptop, turn on Windows XP, work with the program, restart the laptop and turn on Windows 7, for example. Inconvenient, right? But what if your favorite USB modem only works fine in Windows XP? Reboot the system and turn on Windows XP in order to surf the Internet?
Fortunately, there is a solution. Windows XP can be installed on a virtual machine and run from under any operating system as a separate program. It works according to this principle Microsoft Windows 7 XP Mode. It's a good technology, but for it to work, virtualization support is required on the laptop, and it only works in Windows 7 Professional, Windows 7 Ultimate and Windows 7 Enterprise. And what to do if Windows laptop Vista worth it?
And this is where a great program comes in. virtual box from Sun. It is completely free, allows you to create virtual machines on a laptop, on which you can install many operating systems. The advantage of this utility compared to Microsoft Windows 7 XP Mode is support 3D graphics for virtual machines, it does not need hardware virtualization, as well as the fact that it can be run on any Windows versions, Linux, etc.. The downside is that it is formally needed licensed Windows XP, although given our realities... :)
This article will walk you through the process of installing Windows XP in a virtual machine. The whole process can be broken down into the following steps:
If you have any problems or questions about working with virtual virtual machine Box, then you should ask for help in this forum thread:.
1. Create a virtual machine
First of all, you need to install the utility virtual box( / ). During installation, it is important to note the following options:
System devices will also be installed. The corresponding installation requests must be allowed.
When the installation is completed, run the utility and click on the button Create:
Should run:
Let's move on to the next window. Because the virtual hard drive we do not have, then we need to create a new one:
Select the type of virtual hard disk. I recommend :
That's all. The virtual machine has been created. Now you can move on to setting it up.
2. Setting up the virtual machine
Before setting up, prepare the Windows XP disc or iso image with it, and then select the created virtual machine in the VirtualBox window and click on the button Properties:
Let's start with the tab Main. Optionally, you can arrange the menu of the virtual machine on top. So more convenient:
Go to tab System:
Here you can change the volume random access memory that is allocated to the virtual machine, change the boot order virtual devices, enable or disable the IO-APIC option (required if you plan to use multiple processor cores for a virtual machine), and enable or disable EFI (required for some operating systems, such as MacOS). Go to tab CPU:
Here you can specify how many processor cores the virtual machine can use, as well as enable or disable PAE / NX (some operating systems support PAE. This mode allows a 32-bit virtual system to use up to 64 GB of RAM). Go to tab Acceleration:
On this tab, you can enable or disable hardware virtualization. If you are going to install a 64-bit operating system, then you need to enable it, and you also need virtualization support from the laptop. If your laptop does not support this feature, then it does not matter. To run 32-bit operating systems on a virtual machine hardware virtualization is not needed.
VirtualBox supports 2D and 3D acceleration (OpenGL / DirectX8 / DirectX9). It should be included. Go to tab Net:
When installing VirtualBox, another network card appeared in the system, which is virtually connected to network map our virtual machine. Setting up a virtual network adapter as shown in the picture above and go to the tab USB:
At the beginning of the article, it was said that using virtualization, you can get around the problem of incompatible drivers for USB devices with new operating systems. So here virtual box allows you to redirect so that any USB device that connects to your computer or laptop is connected not to the main operating system, but to the system that is running in the virtual machine. Then, on Windows XP, drivers are installed on a new virtual machine USB device and it works perfectly Windows control xp. The main system is the device will not see. Since there are a lot of USB devices in the system, so that when the virtual machine is turned on, all of them are not disconnected from the main one and are not connected to the virtual one, a system of filters was invented. The filters specify which USB devices should be disconnected from the main operating system and connected to Windows XP virtual when it is turned on.
To add a new filter, click on the plus icon and select the required USB device from the list. After that it appears in the list. Let's go to the tab:
Since there is no sense from Windows XP on a virtual machine without the ability to work with files on the main one, you need to organize general access to certain folders on the hard drive. To do this, click on the plus icon and select the folder on the hard drive of your computer or laptop that will run Windows XP on the virtual machine:
Enter its name and click OK. Here she is on the list:
Now there is still the last very small touch. You need to somehow install Windows XP :) Go to the tab carriers:
We have two options: install Windows XP from an .iso image or from regular disk. In the first case, click on the icon with an arrow and click on the button Add:
Specify where the image with Windows XP is located and add it to the list:
We click on the image with Windows XP and click on the button Choose.
If you just have a disk with Windows XP, then put it in the drive and select your drive from the list:
Clicking OK. Now you can proceed with the installation Windows XP.
3. Installing and configuring Windows
Should run normal installation Windows XP:
I will not describe it in detail. The installation is described in detail in this material:. Drivers are not needed in this case. Everything you need is already included in Windows XP.
After installation, we will get a working Windows XP in a virtual machine. Now you need to install Guest OS add-ons. To do this, select the appropriate menu item Devices:
Important note: since the keyboard and mouse in a laptop or computer are often the same, the main operating system and the operating system that is running in the virtual machine are forced to share it somehow. For this, a capture mechanism is used. In other words, if a virtual machine is in the foreground, then everything that is entered from the keyboard will be addressed to it. You can also switch manually. For this, the default is right ctrl. When the virtual machine is working with the keyboard and mouse, the green arrow is lit in the lower right corner of the window with the virtual machine.
The installation of guest additions should begin:
Possible questions: if the installation has not started for you, then manually add the image VBoxGuestAdditions.iso in the VirtualBox folder virtual drive as it was done when installing Windows XP, and then run the disk in a virtual machine.
Put a check next to Direct3D Support:
During installation, you will see several warnings like this:
Click Continue anyway. After installation, it is advisable to restart the virtual machine:
To maximize the virtual machine window, in the menu Car select item:
Now the frame has been removed and it has become much more convenient to work:
Now it remains to deal with shared folders. AT Windows XP launch command line:
We connect the previously created shared folder as network drive. To do this, enter the command net use x:\\vboxsvr\Documents(Documents here is the name of the shared folder):
AT my computer disk appeared x:\, which we just connected:
The content of this drive matches the content of the shared folder we created earlier.
That's all.
If you have any questions about working with the VirtualBox utility, then we state them in this forum topic:. All questions that are related to the installation of Windows XP, please state in this forum thread:
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