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Home , Windows NT

Douglas A. Hamilton

WINDOWS NT

Take the Leap .Into Windows NT

NCE YOU GET your NT's custom installation-is fairly simple. The program displays the default choices hands on the new for disk partition, directories and devices, but you can make different selections sim­ 0Windows NT - ply by typing them in. ROM, your first inclination How does your system operate? If you currently have DOS on your sys­ might be to drag your feet. tem, the NT installation will give you a dual-boot system. This means that when Installing the first general you power up, you'll get to choose whether you want to run your previous release of a brand-new op­ or NT. If you don't make a selection, the installation times out and loads the default, which is initially set as erating system can present NT. You don't have to worry about NT messing up your CONFIG.SYS, AUTOEX­ problems, to put it mildly. But if you just take the leap, EC.BAT or .INI files: NT uses its own ­ sions of these files, which it maintains in you'll find that the installation goes smoothly. The CD its own directory. If you're installing NT on top of Win­ does away with the drudgery of endless diskette swap­ dows, the program will suggest that you merge NT into the same directory struc­ ping, and the interface is easy to work with. And if you ture as Windows 3.x. In addition to the SYSTEM subdirectory for your 3.x files, follow these tips on installing and customizing NT, you'll get a second subdirectory, SYS­ TEM32, for NT. The installation will auto­ you'll be off to a running start. I've installed both the matically migrate your 3.x Program Man­ ager groups, so when you boot up NT old October beta version and the new March beta; the you'll see familiar Windows. Installing the March beta over the Oc­ latter still has some problems. These should be cleared tober one might leave you with a mix of old and new files. If this problem isn't up in the general release, but just in case they're not, I fixed in the shipped version, here's the so­ lution: Delete the entire existing WINNT offer you some work-arounds. directory tree before you install the new one. Or if you can't do that (for example, First you'll need to decide which installation option if you have a ruse machine and booting up DOS to do the deletion isn't an op­ to choose. NT's default, the express installation, does a tion), install NT into a new directory, then delete the old directory later. pretty good job of deciding where to install things, what You might run into some compatibili­ ty problems if you want to boot back and devices you have and so on. And even the "hard" way- forth between OS/2 and NT. If this hap-

W INDows M AGAZINE •AUGUST 1993 207 Douglas A. Hamilton

pens, you should follow these steps: the machine and corrupt the . holds NT itself, for example), you'll be 1. Use the OS/2 FDlSK program to re­ Under HPFS, CHKDSK might typically asked if you'd like that drive scheduled for move the Boot Manager partition entirely, run for several minutes; NTFS makes re­ conversion the time you boot up. leaving it just as free space. pairs in seconds. Despite the benefits, you Depending on other choices you've 2. Assign as : the partition on which won't want to choose NTFS for any parti­ made, you may get the option during in­ you want to install NT's loader. (Remem­ tion that you also want to access from stallation of scanning your system for ex­ ber that NT doesn't have to go on the DOS or Windows, because DOS doesn't isting DOS or Windows applications and same partition as its loader.) recognize NTFS. · installing them into NT's Program Manag­ 3. After you install NT, from the If you do want to reformat your disk er. You'll be able to restrict the search to OS/2 installation disks, press the Esc key for NTFS, you can choose either to discard just those directories that you choose and the first opportunity and rerun OS/2 everything on the partition or to save all to accept or reject any particular applica­ to reinstall OS/2 Boot Manager. the data; most likely you'll want to save tion NT finds. This is a nice feature, but it your data. You don't have to decide once is not lOOo/o reliable in the March beta. Fun with reformatting and for all when you do the installation During the installation, you'll get a whether you'd like to use NTFS. You can Giving NT an identity chance to request that your disk be refor­ add it later by using the program; After you've completed the initial in­ matted for NTFS, the new NT file system. simply type CONVERT/? at the NT com­ stallation, you'll need to set up user ac­ NTFS is similar to the OS/2 HPFS (High­ mand line for instructions. For example, counts and customize NT to suit your Performance File System) in that it offers to convert your D: drive you'd type: preferences. If you're switching over from higher performance, freedom from the CONVERT D: /FS:NTFS Win 3.x, and other fragmentation problems of a FAT file sys­ The convert program needs to lock the groups look just the same. But there are tem and support for long . But drive for its exclusive. use during therefor­ important new features: NTFS is designed to be much easier to re­ matting. If that's not possible (because • The notion of logging in. By log­ pair than HPFS if you lose power or crash you've asked to convert the drive that ging in as Administrator NT (or into any account that's a member of the Adminis­ trators group), you can set up accounts for different users and give each one just the access he or she needs. In Program Manag­ er, open the Administrative Tools group 1200-DPt_OUTPUT and start up User Manager. Pull down the User submenu to create new users or high­ p~ light an existing user's name and press En­ ter to change the user's properties. from an HP®4! • Bigger, better Control Panel. The Date/Time applet lets you specify your time zone and whether or not you ow you can are on daylight saving time. The Printers N own them applet makes better use of NT's full print­ both for one low spooling services. The new System applet price. When you lets you set up your environment vari­ combine the new ables and, through the Virtual Memory LaserJet 4 with option, create several swap files on differ­ LaserMaster's ent drives if a given drive is short on Botll (or just $2295! WinJet 1200 upgrade, you get space. Finally, using the Tasking option, you can decide how to prioritize fore­ Laser)et®4 + Win)ef" 1200 = camera-ready copy plus a host of other ground versus background activities. • 1200-dpi, Camera-Ready Output. Once you get NT going, you'll find that • PostScripf:Language Compatibility. amazing features. • The Fastest Windows'" Printing. the on-line is pretty good throughout • 50 TrueTypeN Fonts. Call for the par­ the whole system. So you'll still have a • No More Font Downloading. ticipating dealer hand to hold after you take the leap. • • Revolutionary Host-Based Design. nearest you. 800-365-4646 Douglas Hamilton is president ofHamilton (dept.49K) Laboratories (Wayland, Mass.) and author ofthe Hamilton . Reach Douglas on 10 1993 l aserMaster Corporation. laserM aster, the LM logo, and WinJet are trademarks of LaserMaster. All other products are trademarks of their respective holders. Prices available in the U.S. only and subject to change. For European information, call (31) 2503 22000 or (31 ).2503 31240. WIX as hamilton or care ofEditor at the address on 16.

208 WINDOWS M AGAZINE 0 A UGUST 1993