Posted by: Anonymous Coward
on September 02, 2004 05:36 AM
To claim that Windows 95 was based on DOS, or wasn't a 32-bit OS, is specious. If you read Schulman's 'Unauthorized Windows 95' you'll find that although Windows 95 booted from a real-mode DOS, during the boot process virtually all DOS and BIOS functions became mapped by 32-bit Windows VXDs (virtual device drivers). There was no 16-bit DOS there any more once Windows 95 was finished loading; all the OS code was 32-bit. The only DOS functions still mapped to real-mode code were some of the non-file-related Int21 calls, and most of that was a single function to set 'PSPs' (process descriptor caretaking stuff).
Windows for Workgroups started the process of moving all DOS and BIOS calls to 32-bit Windows VXDs; Windows 95 finished it. That GDI was still 16-bit was irrelevant (indeed, OS/2 2.0 Presentation Manager was 16-bit code as well, yet people still call OS/2 2.0 a 32-bit OS).
Learn about Linux
Download Linux
Get Linux help
Re:Windows 95 32bit
Posted by: Anonymous Coward on September 02, 2004 05:36 AMWindows for Workgroups started the process of moving all DOS and BIOS calls to 32-bit Windows VXDs; Windows 95 finished it. That GDI was still 16-bit was irrelevant (indeed, OS/2 2.0 Presentation Manager was 16-bit code as well, yet people still call OS/2 2.0 a 32-bit OS).
#