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Autodesk Multimedia Forum · Hware/OpSys/video

OS/2 Rendering Times

7 messages in this thread

#135081From: Jeff FisherNov 11, 1994 12:10 AM

I'm in the middle of deciding about switching to OS/2, but I'm a little wary of the performance of many of my DOS based apps. Mainly, is there any increase (or decrease) in rendering speed using OS/2? I don't know if I should spend the time reinstalling everything to commit to a new operating system if I'm going to hate it later on. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

#136059From: James Coulter[Mindscape]Nov 14, 1994 11:40 PM

I don't have any scientific data, but some informal tests suggest that OS/2 renders at +- 2% the speed of a flat DOS machine. The (+) speed increase happens if you are low in RAM. The OS/2 pager is faster than the Phar Lap pager IF you are using OS/2s HPFS file system. The (-) speed decrease happes if you do have enough RAM and there is on swapping. OS/2 imposes a minimal "housekeeping" load to constantly check for interrupts from other apps or the keyboard. Note that OS/2 can be a real pain to install for the uninitiated. I would recommend you go to OS/2 only if you are looking for the added productivity of background rendering. Make backups! And reserve a whole day (or maybe two) to make the conversion from DOS. If you need more help, feel free to drop an e-mail my way or post here. I check forum messages about twice or thrice a week. BTW: Once you have it working you will love it!!

#136422From: SyndesisNov 16, 1994 10:25 AM

Does OS/2 Warp run all WinNT apps?

#136515From: James Coulter[Mindscape]Nov 16, 1994 4:17 PM

I have no idea. I doubt it can run anything coded for native WinNT. It can run most Windows apps, including those that use the Win32 DLL. What did you have in mind? — James — MAP —

#136553From: SyndesisNov 16, 1994 8:23 PM

I'm trying to understand where OS/2 and WinNT are incompatible. If OS/2 can handle Win32 but not anything WinNT, it might be fun to try, but I couldn't use it on a daily basis.

#136707From: Doug AzzaritoNov 17, 1994 1:05 PM

> I'm trying to understand where OS/2 and WinNT are incompatible. If > OS/2 can handle Win32 but not anything WinNT OS/2 Warp handles WIN32s programs. MS has WIN32s, WIN32c, WIN32, and possibly other "standards." I don't know which one(s) NT uses. That's why I just ignore the whole mess and write OS/2 PM applications. The same API set works on OS/2 2.x, OS/2 Warp and OS/2 for the PowerPC (with a quick re-compile). — Doug Azzarito

#137202From: James Coulter[Mindscape]Nov 21, 1994 12:07 AM

Thanks for the clarification, Doug! — James — MAP —