From: Weiqi Gao Newsgroups: comp.os.msdos.djgpp,comp.lang.java.programmer Subject: Re: DJGPP and Sun's Java PC 1.0 Date: Sun, 26 Jul 1998 14:53:05 +0000 Organization: CRL Network Services Lines: 80 Message-ID: <35BB42D1.BDBAC2EA@a.crl.com> References: <35AAD744 DOT D8CCB97F AT a DOT crl DOT com> <35AE36ED DOT 4C308B52 AT geocities DOT com DOT NO DOT SPAM> NNTP-Posting-Host: a116001.stl1.as.crl.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit To: djgpp AT delorie DOT com DJ-Gateway: from newsgroup comp.os.msdos.djgpp Precedence: bulk Joshua Heyer wrote: > > Weiqi Gao wrote: > > > 3. I downloaded JavaPC on the recommendation of someone I know, who says > > it is "real nice". I'm just wondering if anyone from the DJGPP > > community has tried the Java PC, and what your experience is. I'll post > > my experience to this group if you are interested. > > Yea, I'm interested. What is JavaPC anyway? Java PC is a product that Sun sells for about $100. In concept, it's paralell to Windows 3.1 in that it is installed on top of DOS and turns your DOS PC into something different. Whereas Windows 3.1 turns your DOS PC into a Windows machine, Java PC turns your PC into a NC (Network Computer) that is configured to run only one Java application---the Javasoft Hot Java. The current version requires an Ethernet card and a TCP/IP network. NDIS, ODI, and packet driver interfaces are supported. Installation is simple, just like an old DOS game---everything is throw in to a directory and that directory is put into your PATH. Configuration is simple too. You have to option of either configuring your own TCP/IP parameters (IP, NET, MASK, GTWY, DNS---stand alone mode), or using bootp (true NC mode). Running is simple too. You boot to DOS (if you are on Windows 95, you have to go to DOS mode), load a network driver, and run the JAVAPC.EXE executable. JAVAPC.EXE would then load the JavaOS, which is bundled in with (and is the major portion of) the JavaPC software. The JavaOS take over almost completely. It throws you into a GUI mode just like Windows 3.1 did. You see a light blue screen with a starfield simulation running and (something like) a program manager group with a single application icon in the middle. At this moment, there are only three things that you can do: a single click on the icon starts the HotJava browser; press Ctrl+Alt+Del boots you back to DOS; and you can resize the little program group window around by dragging it. As soon as Hot Java is up and running, yo are in familiar territory. You can go to any http page on your network. JDK 1.1 + Swing is supported. Performance is comparable to HotJava running on Windows 95 on the same machine, maybe a little faster. Everything is still redrawn three times. I have thought about yanking out the Pentium 83 overdriver and the 32MB mamory from the box and put back the old 486 DX/33 and 8MB of RAM just to see how the thing behaves, but never got around of doing it. I HAD to play with the new KDE (the K Desktop Environment---VERY COOL) and Qt (non-free ;[ ) on the Linux box, sorry. JavaPC uses the familiar CWSDPMI.EXE as a DPMI server, and accesses the DOS network drivers and other services that way. The launcher is compiled with DJGPP 2.0 although the JavaOS may be not. Is it "real nice" as my friend claimed? Yes. Java PC is the fastest way to get a JDK 1.1 compliant web drowser up and running on a bare DOS PC. The whole thing can be done in less than five minutes (four floppies or one 4MB file)! (As opposed to 30 minutes for Windows 3.1 (six floppies + IE or NC, you get JDK 1.0.2), or 1-2 hrs for Windows 95, NT (90 floppies?/CD + IE or NC), or 2-4 hrs for Linux 2.0 (80 floppies? + NC) or ?hrs for OS/2 Warp 4). -- Weiqi Gao weiqigao AT a DOT crl DOT com P.S. People are deliberately quiet about the Java PC software. This review might be the only Java PC review you read on the Internet that tells you EXACTLY what Java PC is, and how it worked. P.P.S: Cross-posted to comp.lang.java.programmer to see if the real Java programmers care about this at all.