QuickBasic Cafe Forum

I think it'd be cool to have an OS that you made on a partition that you could boot into. I already have a FAT32 partition, but I don't get how you make the file run when you try to load the OS. Do you just name the program you want to run autoexec.bat? And, when you did END, would it reboot the computer (or shut it down), or stare blankly at my face? Thanks for your help.

Not to shoot you down, Brent, but a full-fledged OS can't be made in Qbasic. For that you need a lower-level language like C. But, what you could make would be a GUI, a graphical user interface for DOS, but it could not include multitasking. You could make a windows explorer - like interface if you wanted to. Having an Autoexec.bat assumes your OS would be DOS, and so, like any other DOS program written in basic, when it ends, you would be returned to the DOS prompt, not quite staring blankly, but not reseting/shutting down either.

so, it'd be better to make a DOS partition and just open the file in DOS. could i make a dos boot disk and copy those files to the partition, and then copy my files to that partition?

hmm, well, heres the thing, only ONE partition can be the master partition, the one that the computer check to boot from. You could make your program run in your current partition by putting it in ur autoexec file. Then, when you were done, you could simply shut off your computer or exit and the autoexec would continue to load into your usual OS

1. i have a bootloader
2. how do i modify autoexec.bat?

you can use any text editor, preferably a simple ascii one, like notepad.exe or dos Edit.com, or even Qbasic!

or you can right-click it and press edit. sorry i didnt figure that one out. but when i searched for autoexec, i had like 4. which one!!!

Autoexec.BAT , the rest are probably backups, like a .BAK or a .OLD or something. Or, if in different directories, the one in the Root is the one that is used

i got 5 results. three of them were 0 kb. one was a backup. the other said this:
--------
@ECHO Off
PROMPT $P$G

REM -------------------------------------------------------
REM -- DO NOT EDIT THIS FILE! IF YOU WISH TO ADD NETWORK --
REM -- OR CD-ROM DRIVERS, CUSTOM KEYBOARDS, ETC., PLEASE --
REM -- EDIT AUTOEXE2.BAT INSTEAD.                        --
REM -------------------------------------------------------

IF EXIST AUTOEXE2.BAT CALL AUTOEXE2.BAT

ECHO.
ECHO   Please Insert PartitionMagic Disk 2
ECHO.
ECHO.
ECHO   *** Press Any Key to Continue ***
ECHO.
PAUSE >NUL

ECHO  PartitionMagic 8.0
ECHO  Copyright 1994-2002, PowerQuest Corporation
ECHO  All rights reserved.
ECHO.
ECHO  Loading.  Please wait...
ECHO.

PQMAGIC
--------
And I don't see that when I turn on my computer. Boo hoo!

that is wierd, what OS are you running? If its > win 98 you dont need an autoexec.bat file, though you can add one. That Partition magic one is for a bootable disk used to partition your Harddrive

windows xp home. weird, huh?  :o

If you want to see if the autoexec is in fact being called,
remove or place REM in front of @echo off

then insert the line
PAUSE
after every non comment.

It should then display the command before executing it
and after then print "Press any key to continue"
(that is what pause does)

You may have to do it in autoexec2.bat also to see it
run.

Or, it may do it by using F8 to go to the startup menu,
and choosing step through the commands.
(though I've never actually done that that i recall)

The F8 needs to be pressed when it say
Starting Windows XP
(may be just a 1 second "window of opportunity" there.)

the @echo off stops lines from being displayed before executing
whereas
echo blah blah blah "echos" what comes after it.
the prompt $p$g is what the dos prompt will look like
$p is the working directory of the default drive
i.e. the folder that dos prompt in in
$g is the character >

http://www.Novix.tk
Shameless plug.


You could actually make your own OS in QB, you would just have to write your own interrupt handler too, to work instead of DOS. Lot's of work.

wow that's weird. is it some kind of os?

It darn well can include multitasking. Who ever gave you the idea it can't. If you say. (Well not simeltaniously) neither does wndows. It gives each app processer time and switches to the next application. That is what my GSHELL GUI is going to do. It already works cause I tested it.