Solve : Accessing a CD with an MS-DOS Computer, without Windows?

1.	Solve : Accessing a CD with an MS-DOS Computer, without Windows?
Answer» Is it possible to write and read text files on a CD on a computer that has MS-DOS 6.0 and WordPerfect, but not Windows? Background: I use WordPerfect 6.0 extensively in my small business. I'm very familiar w/WP60, including its flaws and quirks, having used it since 1990, and don't want to change. Windows, amazing as it is in general, just adds extra steps and is not needed w/WP60 (e.g., it's very easy to cancel a print JOB in WP60, but Windows requires you to go into Control Panel and do some things). In addition, I don't want my business data to be subject to malware, so my DOS-only computers are not connected to anything other than the power cord. Yes, this has happened - over a year ago, we were using a Win XP computer w/WP60, keying in invoices. This computer had been retired from Internet use several years EARLIER. After about a year of use w/WP60, it began crashing now and then. The crashes become too frequent to continue using it. Thinking WP60 files had become corrupted, I deleted all WP files and reloaded WP; more crashing. I copied the invoice files to another computer, that too became infected. To shorten the story, I eventually recovered my files from copious floppy backups onto a 3rd DOS-only computer. Other than sleep, I lost very little. Despite what the WP gurus say, I'm telling you WP files CAN BE INFECTED with malware - I later ran the Win XP scan, and found 2 malware programs. Thus, I would like to be able to save all my text files to a CD at once, rather than having to have a zillion floppies. Thank you in advance for any suggestions! TimAbsolutely. Refer to this tutorial: http://manmrk.net/tutorials/DOS/cdrom.htmAlso, the OP might like to know there are, evidently, many people still using MS-DOS 6.22 and they can boot it from a CD-ROM. If you have a legal set of the DOS 6.22 disks, it is OK to make a CD boot. You can learn more from a Microsoft web forum. https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windows/en-US/e4696428-6999-4946-81c1-ea934eb6fd41/dos-622?forum=itprovistamigration Quote Thanks for posting in Microsoft TechNet forums. Please check if the following REQUIREMENT is ready: 1. Download an MS-DOS 6.22 ISO you can download this from AllBootDisks website: http://www.allbootdisks.com/download/iso.html Please Note: Since the website is not hosted by Microsoft, the link may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this information. 2. We will need a program that can burn ISOs to CD/DVD drives, Check out Ultimate List Of Free CD/DVD Burning Programs Hope that is some help.The OakRom CD drivers for CDRom show the most success...in my experience.I think maybe the OP is asking about burning CDs in MS-DOS, which is not very easy... For a start the CD drive needs to be a burner, not a CD-ROM device. Secondly the software arrangements are not always simple. Quote from: little timmy on March 28, 2017, 10:29:55 AM Is it possible to write and read text files on a CD on a computer that has MS-DOS 6.0 [...] I would like to be able to save all my text files to a CD... Perhaps Timmy could clarify? An old guy was trying to use a computer. The message on the screen was "press any key to continue". Not finding a key labeled "ANY", he quit in disgust. I'm not quite that clueless, but I'm 72 and really have a lot to learn - I remember when a computer took up a whole room. I keyed in on a teletype - no video display. Made a mistake? Re-type the entire line. Even little items like "OP" (other person? operator? on the 3rd guess, dawn broke: original poster. Makes sense. The greatest thing about the Internet is you can look stuff up as you go. Many thanks to all who replied - I reviewed all the links which you supplied, which raised many more questions for me to try to answer on my own. From my standpoint, I see no quick and easy way to implement CD use. Poke around in autoexec.bat and config.sys files? I think I did that maybe 20 years ago - I wouldn't try it today on a computer that I want to keep using, but I will study the process and try to do it. Salmon asked if I want to access a CD from MS-DOS - I don't mind if I have to have another piece of software to do that; I just didn't want to run WordPerfect under Windows. Here again I'm confused - I recall someone telling me DOS 7 supported CD ROMs (somewhere here I have a computer w/7 installed, but the only version I own is 6.0, complete with MANUAL). I see that OldSoftware.com has both DOS 6.22 full sets and 6.22 'step up' discs for sale - all certified stuff. Prices seemed very reasonable; seems like it would be a good investment. Anyone have experience with this company? Final question: What, if any DOS versions support thumb drives? If I could save to a thumb drive, then I could upload to my Win 7 computer and burn a CD. Many thanks and kind regards, TimI don't think it was an infection... Only way that would occur on a PC not on the web is if someone loaded/used a floppy with an infection on it...highly unlikely. Quote from: little timmy on March 30, 2017, 09:58:10 AM Salmon asked if I want to access a CD from MS-DOS I asked if you wanted to *write* CDs under MS-DOS. Just reading them is pretty simple and easy to arrange. You talked in your original post about saving important files to CD. There is a well-known Panasonic USB driver for MS-DOS that may allow you to use a pen drive. Google for "Panasonic v2.06 ASPI Manager for USB mass storage" Salmon, thank you for your replies. Yes, I want to both write and read to CDs from a DOS-only (no Windows) computer. I have 2 locations, and when I leave one to go to the other, I've been taking the computer with me, because it has all my business records on it. It would be so much easier to just take a CD. It do have floppy backups, but it's cumbersome to upload these to another computer. I looked at the Panasonic driver for a thumb drive - the feasibility of this seems to be iffy, plus I don't want to download unauthorized/unpurchased software. I also considered an external hard drive, but I suppose that would require a driver also. Regarding Patio's suggestions about the infection on the Win XP computer: that computer had been connected to the web several years before it was used (unconnected) for billing. Obviously the malware executed when it was used for billing. I have run the Win XP built-in malware program; here is what it finds and removes: Trojan: DOS/Alureon.A.; however, the program says I need to run Standalone System Sweeper, which I downloaded to a Win 7 computer on CD, and uploaded it to the Win XP computer, but wasn't able to get it to execute. Regards, Tim Quote from: little timmy on April 06, 2017, 10:21:45 AM I looked at the Panasonic driver for a thumb drive - the feasibility of this seems to be iffy, plus I don't want to download unauthorized/unpurchased software. The Panasonic driver is free, and has been made available for download by Panasonic. If you think installing that would be iffy, getting a CD writer drive to work would be somewhere between very difficult and impossible. OK, Salmon, and many thanks. I will give the Panasonic driver my best shot. Regards, Tim

Answer»

Is it possible to write and read text files on a CD on a computer that has MS-DOS 6.0 and WordPerfect, but not Windows?

Background: I use WordPerfect 6.0 extensively in my small business. I'm very familiar w/WP60, including its flaws and quirks, having used it since 1990, and don't want to change. Windows, amazing as it is in general, just adds extra steps and is not needed w/WP60 (e.g., it's very easy to cancel a print JOB in WP60, but Windows requires you to go into Control Panel and do some things).
In addition, I don't want my business data to be subject to malware, so my DOS-only computers are not connected to anything other than the power cord. Yes, this has happened - over a year ago, we were using a Win XP computer w/WP60, keying in invoices. This computer had been retired from Internet use several years EARLIER.
After about a year of use w/WP60, it began crashing now and then. The crashes become too frequent to continue using it.
Thinking WP60 files had become corrupted, I deleted all WP files and reloaded WP; more crashing. I copied the invoice files to another computer, that too became infected. To shorten the story, I eventually recovered my files from copious floppy backups onto a 3rd DOS-only computer. Other than sleep, I lost very little. Despite what the WP gurus say, I'm telling you WP files CAN BE INFECTED with malware - I later ran the Win XP scan, and found 2 malware programs.

Thus, I would like to be able to save all my text files to a CD at once, rather than having to have a zillion floppies.

Thank you in advance for any suggestions!

TimAbsolutely. Refer to this tutorial: http://manmrk.net/tutorials/DOS/cdrom.htmAlso, the OP might like to know there are, evidently, many people still using MS-DOS 6.22 and they can boot it from a CD-ROM.
If you have a legal set of the DOS 6.22 disks, it is OK to make a CD boot. You can learn more from a Microsoft web forum.

https://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/windows/en-US/e4696428-6999-4946-81c1-ea934eb6fd41/dos-622?forum=itprovistamigration

Quote

Thanks for posting in Microsoft TechNet forums.

Please check if the following REQUIREMENT is ready:
1. Download an MS-DOS 6.22 ISO
you can download this from AllBootDisks website:
http://www.allbootdisks.com/download/iso.html
Please Note: Since the website is not hosted by Microsoft, the link may change without notice. Microsoft does not guarantee the accuracy of this information.
2. We will need a program that can burn ISOs to CD/DVD drives, Check out Ultimate List Of Free CD/DVD Burning Programs

Hope that is some help.The OakRom CD drivers for CDRom show the most success...in my experience.I think maybe the OP is asking about burning CDs in MS-DOS, which is not very easy... For a start the CD drive needs to be a burner, not a CD-ROM device. Secondly the software arrangements are not always simple.
Quote from: little timmy on March 28, 2017, 10:29:55 AM

Is it possible to write and read text files on a CD on a computer that has MS-DOS 6.0 [...] I would like to be able to save all my text files to a CD...

Perhaps Timmy could clarify?
An old guy was trying to use a computer. The message on the screen was "press any key to continue". Not finding a key labeled "ANY", he quit in disgust. I'm not quite that clueless, but I'm 72 and really have a lot to learn - I remember when a computer took up a whole room. I keyed in on a teletype - no video display. Made a mistake? Re-type the entire line.

Even little items like "OP" (other person? operator? on the 3rd guess, dawn broke: original poster. Makes sense. The greatest thing about the Internet is you can look stuff up as you go.

Many thanks to all who replied - I reviewed all the links which you supplied, which raised many more questions for me to try to answer on my own. From my standpoint, I see no quick and easy way to implement CD use. Poke around in autoexec.bat and config.sys files? I think I did that maybe 20 years ago - I wouldn't try it today on a computer that I want to keep using, but I will study the process and try to do it.

Salmon asked if I want to access a CD from MS-DOS - I don't mind if I have to have another piece of software to do that; I just didn't want to run WordPerfect under Windows.

Here again I'm confused - I recall someone telling me DOS 7 supported CD ROMs (somewhere here I have a computer w/7 installed, but the only version I own is 6.0, complete with MANUAL).

I see that OldSoftware.com has both DOS 6.22 full sets and 6.22 'step up' discs for sale - all certified stuff. Prices seemed very reasonable; seems like it would be a good investment. Anyone have experience with this company?

Final question: What, if any DOS versions support thumb drives? If I could save to a thumb drive, then I could upload to my Win 7 computer and burn a CD.

Many thanks and kind regards,
TimI don't think it was an infection...
Only way that would occur on a PC not on the web is if someone loaded/used a floppy with an infection on it...highly unlikely. Quote from: little timmy on March 30, 2017, 09:58:10 AM

Salmon asked if I want to access a CD from MS-DOS

I asked if you wanted to write CDs under MS-DOS. Just reading them is pretty simple and easy to arrange. You talked in your original post about saving important files to CD.

There is a well-known Panasonic USB driver for MS-DOS that may allow you to use a pen drive. Google for "Panasonic v2.06 ASPI Manager for USB mass storage"
Salmon, thank you for your replies. Yes, I want to both write and read to CDs from a DOS-only (no Windows) computer. I have 2 locations, and when I leave one to go to the other, I've been taking the computer with me, because it has all my business records on it. It would be so much easier to just take a CD. It do have floppy backups, but it's cumbersome to upload these to another computer.

I looked at the Panasonic driver for a thumb drive - the feasibility of this seems to be iffy, plus I don't want to download unauthorized/unpurchased software.

I also considered an external hard drive, but I suppose that would require a driver also.

Regarding Patio's suggestions about the infection on the Win XP computer: that computer had been connected to the web several years before it was used (unconnected) for billing. Obviously the malware executed when it was used for billing. I have run the Win XP built-in malware program; here is what it finds and removes: Trojan: DOS/Alureon.A.; however, the program says I need to run Standalone System Sweeper, which I downloaded to a Win 7 computer on CD, and uploaded it to the Win XP computer, but wasn't able to get it to execute.

Regards,

Tim

Quote from: little timmy on April 06, 2017, 10:21:45 AM

I looked at the Panasonic driver for a thumb drive - the feasibility of this seems to be iffy, plus I don't want to download unauthorized/unpurchased software.

The Panasonic driver is free, and has been made available for download by Panasonic. If you think installing that would be iffy, getting a CD writer drive to work would be somewhere between very difficult and impossible.
OK, Salmon, and many thanks. I will give the Panasonic driver my best shot.

Regards,
Tim

Solve : Accessing a CD with an MS-DOS Computer, without Windows?

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