Q21831: Compatibility of Compiled BASIC with Microsoft Windows
Article: Q21831
Product(s): See article
Version(s): 1.00 1.01 1.02 2.00 2.01 3.00 4.00 4.00b 4.50
Operating System(s): MS-DOS
Keyword(s): ENDUSER | B_BasicCom | mspl13_basic
Last Modified: 21-SEP-1990
This article discusses compatibility between Microsoft Windows and the
following BASIC products and their compiled programs: QuickBASIC for
the IBM PC, Microsoft BASIC Compiler versions 6.00 and 6.00b for
MS-DOS, and Microsoft BASIC Professional Development System (PDS)
versions 7.00 and 7.10 for MS-DOS and MS OS/2.
Windows 3.00 Compatibility
--------------------------
If you use Microsoft Windows version 3.00 with the special 386
enhanced mode, you can run a BASIC program in a text window, which you
could not do in earlier versions of Windows. In 386 enhanced mode,
BASIC programs can run as background processes in the text window. In
earlier Windows releases, you could only run BASIC programs as
full-screen processes. However, in both Windows 3.00 and in earlier
versions, you cannot run the QB.EXE or QBX.EXE editor in a window; you
must instead run QB.EXE or QBX.EXE as a full-screen process.
In Windows 3.00 standard mode (WIN /r) and real mode (WIN /s), you can
run a compiled program, QB.EXE, or QBX.EXE only as full-screen
processes, which means that they won't run in the background. You
cannot press the Windows key combinations CTRL+ESC or ALT+ESC to get
out of the full-screen BASIC program. Furthermore, other Windows
processes will be stopped while you run the full-screen process. You
must terminate the BASIC program to return to Windows.
Windows 1.x, 2.x Compatibility
------------------------------
Compiled BASIC programs, QB.EXE, and QBX.EXE run only as "bad
applications" in Microsoft Windows versions 1.x and 2.x. "Bad
applications" require you to create a PIF (Program Information File)
using the Windows PIFEDIT.EXE program. When you make a PIF for QB.EXE,
QBX.EXE, or BASIC compiled programs, you need to specify that the
program directly modifies the screen, the keyboard, COM1, COM2, and
memory. QuickBASIC version 4.00, 4.00b, and 4.50 programs have been
successfully tested under Microsoft Windows 1.x and 2.x.
The QB.PIF or QBX.PIF file provided on the QuickBASIC 4.00, 4.00b, and
4.50, BASIC compiler 6.00 and 6.00b, or BASIC PDS 7.00 and 7.10
release disks can be studied in PIFEDIT.EXE as a guideline for making
your own PIF files for your compiled .EXE programs.
Neither QuickBASIC version 3.00 and its earlier versions nor Microsoft
BASIC Compiler 5.36 or earlier versions have been tested under
Microsoft Windows. Therefore, they may or may not run successfully as
bad applications.
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