From: Gautier DOT DeMontmollin AT maths DOT unine DOT ch (Gautier)
Newsgroups: comp.archives.msdos.d,comp.os.msdos.4dos,comp.os.msdos.djgpp,comp.os.msdos.mail-news,comp.os.msdos.misc
Subject: Re: DoubleSpace problem, OpenDOS
Message-ID: <1997Mar18.162018.5793@news>
Date: 18 Mar 97 16:20:18 MET
References: <01bc2d3c$e5989100$d8cbae83 AT thermopane DOT studs DOT sci DOT kun DOT nl> <5gab43$ic AT bertrand DOT ccs DOT carleton DOT ca>
Reply-To: Gautier DOT deMontmollin AT Maths DOT UniNe DOT CH
Distribution: inet
Organization: University of Neuchatel, Switzerland
Lines: 74
To: djgpp AT delorie DOT com
DJ-Gateway: from newsgroup comp.os.msdos.djgpp

gfrajkor AT rideau DOT carleton DOT ca (George Frajkor) writes:
>      Stacker 4 is much better than DoubleSpace, but I would not say
> that earlier versions of stacker have any advantage over DS.  What's

Possible... An explanation can come if you open the file
DBLSPACE.BIN in a word processor and count the word 'STAC' in it...  

But there are 9 compression levels in stacker 3.12 and 1 in DS (AFAIK);
and the 6.22 version (DriveSpace) is less efficient - one says -
because of a trial losed by M$ against Stac.

> the problem with having to install DS from Dos 6.2??  My understanding
> is that it is automatically present in that program.

Not automaticaly activated - this was not yet the 'virus' period of M$.

>      Unless OpenDOS 7.01 differs significantly from Novell Dos 7, from
> which OpenDOS is derived, the version of Stacker built into it is 3,

3.12

(...)
>     Not that Stacker 3 is bad, mind you.  Just that 4 gives more
> compression and operates faster and has fewer problems.
Mmmh...
> 
> 
>    Now some questions and a hint:
> 
>    I posted questions to several groups asking for a workaround to the
> insoluable loop problem that Stacker 4 has with lost clusters,
> probably because of an alligator Microsoft built into MSdos 6.22
> deliberately to screw up Stac.  
> 
>    The problem arises when Stacker's CHECK program discovers some lost
> clusters and tells you it cannot repair them.  It tells you to use
> CHKDSK, the usual DOS program.  CHKDSK tells you that you have to use
> SCANDISK, which is allegedly better, more reliable, etc..  SCANDISK
> tells you it cannot repair the problems while Stacker is running and
> that you should use the utility that came with Stacker, namely, CHECK.
> Bingo. Full circle with no repairs and no hope of ever making them.

But CHKDSK/F works, even if there is a message recommending SCANDISK !
(at least in M$-DOS 6.22)

>      By trial and error, and remembering my old Novell DOS 7
> experience, I managed to work around this.   The CHKDSK program in ND7
> is different from CHKDSK in MessyDos.  It is even physically much
> larger (about four times as big).  So I dug out my old ND7 disks,
> dumped CHKDSK from MSDOS and copied in CHKDSK from ND7.  It worked
> fine.  It  is obvious that Novell had no interest in breaking Stacker
> whereas Microsoft did.  One more reason I will try my best never to
> use Microsoft products.  

Your computer will thank you.

>      
>     I presume that OpenDOS uses much the same CHKDSK as ND7, so this
> workaround may be of some use to others.  
>        
>   I would appreciate hearing from anyone who has worked with OPenDOS
> and can compare it with ND7 (which some say was a downgrade from DR
> Dos 6).  

Compared to M$-DOS:
- the tools (FC,DISKCOPY,...) and their explanation are more professional
- there is a setup program
- the piping works correctly with batch files
- the multitasking mode is nice but the DMPI with it hangs with
  DJGPP or GNAT compiled programs  (i.e. these compilers, Quake, ...)
  so I disable it.

G.