Comment by JdeBP

1 year ago

There is no EDIT.EXE. If you have an EDIT.EXE you probably need to check for malware. (-:

It was EDIT.COM, and in the days of long ago that was just a way of invoking QBASIC with the /EDIT command-line option. At which point the project becomes one of porting an old MS-DOS full programming IDE to 64-bit Windows, just for its text editor part.

Also, much of MS-DOS was written in 16-bit 8086 assembly language; so porting MS-DOS programs is not a mere matter of compiling a high level language with a compiler that targets the new platform and processor architecture and tweaking whatever breaks.

Sure about that? So in 32bit Windows where we still have EDIT, do we also have QBASIC?

  • Yes. In those days of long ago, I saw the .COM extension with my own eyes and ran QBASIC /EDIT directly just for kicks.

    Once upon a time, this knowledge was one of those non-secret secrets that made it onto the letters pages of the computer magazines and into every "MS-DOS secrets" book out there. (-:

    And yes, Windows NT 4 had the MS-DOS QBASIC.

    • On well, now I have to roll out a 32bit Win7 vm to confirm this :)

  • Who knows?

    Can't imagine anyone here using 32bit Windows and limiting themselves to 4GB of RAM.

    Are there even any cheap laptops sold with that little nowadays?