I recently acquired a Datavue Spark from my computer engineering teacher to work on and I've got it up and running but it won't load anything but DOS. The HIMEM.SYS file is missing and I don't know where to get one for this computer since I can't seem to find anything at all about it. I also have an AUTOEXEC.BAT error in that it tells me that IPXADDTR.BAT is missing, yet when I did a search for that program on google, there were no results. Whenever I try to load a program, I get either an Incorrect DOS Version error or a Divide Overflow error. Does anybody have a working bootdisk for the Datavue Spark with DOS 2.11 (or any later version) that has these missing files? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks in advance!

HIMEM.SYS is useless on anything less than a 286 - I don't believe there even was such a thing in DOS2xx

I'm unfamiliar with that make, but if those are the specs, you have an 8 bit XT or PC class machine with the standard amount of conventional memory - - there's likely no need to restrict yourself to early DOS versions, XTs can run 622 (for instance)

"it won't load anything but DOS"

I'm not sure what your expectations are, but most DOS applications require a higher version, usually 3.2 or later

'Incorrect DOS Version' comes up whenever you attempt to run a DOS executable from a version other than the one you've booted from (kind of self explanatory) - - the workaround for that would be 'Setver' but again, DOS2xx may predate that program

At least it uses 3½" diskettes (but only the 720K capacity) - if there is no hard drive, as per the link, then everything must be launched from floppies

Linkage

I'm also a little bit puzzled how you are able to use 3½" diskettes with DOS2xx, as those were not supported until DOS3.2 or so - - no matter I suppose, just another reason to use a less antiquated release

I'm not one of those who think Bill Gates is the devil. I simply suspect that if Microsoft ever met up with the devil, it wouldn't need an interpreter.

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IPXADDTR.BAT I believe is in relation to Novel Netware, and therefore Booting from a MS-DOS6.22 floppy seems to be the solution as mentioned above.

It is possible to format floppies to 720K under Windows 9x/ME and I believe NT4/W2K.

Sure - - whatever that batch file being called (IPXRTR maybe) it's hardly essential, and need not be invoked

In order to create a 720K disk using a standard floppy drive & 1.44 diskette, it may be necessary to cover the open perforation opposite to the write-protect slider

format a: /F:720

I'm not one of those who think Bill Gates is the devil. I simply suspect that if Microsoft ever met up with the devil, it wouldn't need an interpreter.

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Ok thanks for all your help. I already have the floppies formatted to 720k so thats no problem. The one problem I did have was when I tried to use a diffeent version of DOS (I used 3.3), DOS wouldn't even load, again giving me an incorrect DOS version error. I'll try 6.22 though. Thanks again!

Ok now I have a different problem. I reformatted the floppy (it actually wasn't formatted to 720k as I thought) and now nothing will load. I tried DOS 5.0, as 6.22 won't fit on a 720k disk and that didnt work. It told me that the Boot Process Failed and to check the bootdisk. I deleted everything on it and started back with DOS 2.1 using the exact same files as before and now I get the same Boot Process Failure error. I did notice however that before I formatted the disk, there was still 22k being used, even though nothing was on it. Could this have been a vital hidden or Windows protected file? If anybody has any ideas as to how to fix this, I'd appreciate the help.

I'm guessing this is your first foray into DOS?

"6.22 won't fit on a 720k"

All that's really required for a minimal M$-DOS boot disk are 3 files: IO.SYS, MSDOS.SYS & COMMAND.COM - - I have 360K boot floppies for 622, so 720K is positively roomy by comparison. You can add whatever external files to the diskette that will fit, and if you have a 2nd FDD (as indicated) you can use it as well

If you're still getting the 'incorrect DOS version' message, then you somehow have a disk with mixed version files - - I'm not sure how you've done that, there's certainly no reason to

"Windows protected file"?? Windows is not involved

"Boot Process Failure" - - that seems an odd message for DOS

How are you creating these bootdisks?

I'm not one of those who think Bill Gates is the devil. I simply suspect that if Microsoft ever met up with the devil, it wouldn't need an interpreter.

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http://home.att.net/~gobruen/progs/...

http://www.computerhope.com/boot.htm

http://www.computerhope.com/syshlp.htm

http://www.ahuka.com/dos/index.html

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/75131

Food for thought

As well, you might try this DOS3.21 720K image from the Powerload Page

If you're still stuck, I might be able to cobble together an image for you - - wouldn't hurt to scan your diskettes for errors either, maybe with Scandisk or NDD - defective disks can cause all sorts of difficulty

I'm not one of those who think Bill Gates is the devil. I simply suspect that if Microsoft ever met up with the devil, it wouldn't need an interpreter.

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The Datavue was one of the first truly portable (laptop size) pc's, but the battery was huge.

I remember it being announced in the mid eighties. An hdd was announced at the time but was not available when ordered. Thus one ended up with a floppy version only. To the best of my knowlege the hdd never became available. Am not sure if it was supplied with one or two 3.5" 720kb Floppies.

This was back in the days of steam computing, thus most applications (eg Supercalc) were available as floppy only versions.

As I type this, am looking at an original 3.5" 720k (DD) Datavue delivery disk MS dos 2.11 version 1.20 and Datavue Diagnostics version 2.1.

You could probably upgrade to Dos V3.x. Versions 4 and 5 were not that good and 6 although the best, maybe possibly too large for the Datavue.

The Datavue floppy disk must be 720k.

Try using the SYS command to create a boot disk. Am not sure which versions this command works with. This writes 2 (as the Datavue)or 3 hidden files plus COMMAND.COM

Bear in mind that if a HD floppies 'other'
square hole is not blanked, (with black tape), a later pc thinks it is HD rather than DD.

Good Luck - Keep us posted.

Thankyou MN for condensing the previous 8 postings into one POST!

Hi Mike,

Not much wrong with DOS 5 ; plenty wrong with DOS 4.

=====================================
If at first you don't succeed, you're about average.

M2

Yes Santa - But kindly note, I have first hand experience of the pc concerned *PLUS* the original delivery disc which includes Sales Displays.

To be more precise, I should have written:-

'This was back in the days of steam computing, when most applications (eg Supercalc) were available as floppy only versions if required.'

Question for Mr Destructo - as a matter of interest wher are you based? I am in Hammersmith, West London.

Regards - Mike.

I have actually used DOS before but that was way back when we had a DOS computer and I was about three years old so I don't really remember much about it. Currently I'm about an hour out of Wilmington, North Carolina, but I live near Raliegh. It's in the US.

I am creating the boot disks from a .VFD image and extracting it with WinImage. I should probably pull out my old 386 when I get home and make one myself. I believe it has DOS 6.0. As for the Boot Process Error, that is an error generated by the computer itself, not DOS. When the computer boots, it comes up to a screen that displays settings for the computer that you can go in and change which is as follows:

DO NOT RESERVE 16K FOR SCREEN SAVES
SKIP ROM/RAM CHECK AT POWER ON
NO EXTERNAL VIDEO CIRCUIT ATTACHED
USE LCD DISPLAY AT POWER ON
INTERNAL VRAM IS [B8000-BFFFF] COLOR
USE NORMAL VIDEO [DARK ON LIGHT] AT POWER ON
LCD BACKLIGHT AT POWER ON
DRIVE B:=INTERNAL 3.5" AT POWER ON
USE A 9.54MHZ CPU CLOCK
CO-PROCESSOR NOT INSTALLED
2 FLOPPY DISK DRIVES ATTACHED

After it does all of this, it loads to another screen that says,

*** THE SYSTEM IS INITIALIZING ***
SYSTEM RAM SIZE IS 640K

After that is when it fails. It then loads to a screen that says:

THE BOOT OPERATION FAILED --- CHECK THE DISK

Ok so I guess it was Boot Operation Failure, not Boot Process Failure. Sorry for the confusion.

As for my Incorrect DOS Version errors, I have tried the following versions:

DOS 2.11
DOS 3.3
DOS 5.0
DOS 6.0
DOS 2.11 with DOS 6.0 HIMEM.SYS file

Anyway, thanks for all of you help. I will have to try some of your other ideas when I get back home because I don't have enough time right now. I'll keep you posted!

As pointless posts go, Mike sets new standards every day (reference: a day late and a dollar short)

Hammersmith? I would've thought you resided in The Shire, setting up wood burning, computerized milking machines for the rest of the hobbits and related forest creatures

Incorrect DOS Version

I don't know how else to explain it - - you're booting up in one version of DOS, and attempting to run programs from another

Stop doing that, mm'kay?

"DOS 2.11 with DOS 6.0 HIMEM.SYS file"

Why (why, why, why!) are you trying to use HIMEM.SYS? AS MENTIONED, there is nothing for it to do on an old '88 processor, and you only have 640K regardless

So, no.... your DOS 'experience' from age 3 hardly seems worth the effort of mentioning - - you appear to be thrashing around with little or no comprehension, and really don't appear to be paying attention both to what's being explained here, and what's happening with your machine

We can only offer advice, but it works much better if you are attentive

Your boot disks aren't booting - - they're probably bad, so take some time and check them out with a disk utility such as Scandisk. You could also try them out on another machine - if they work there, then the FDD on your Datavue could be defective.
You are using the "A:" drive I hope

"that is an error generated by the computer itself, not DOS."

What's your point? The system looks for a boot device - - since it fails to find one, it tells you

I'm not one of those who think Bill Gates is the devil. I simply suspect that if Microsoft ever met up with the devil, it wouldn't need an interpreter.

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Thankyou JBoy at least someone agrees with me about MN and useless posting followed by one from M2Go.

Hammersmith is in a Posh part of London UK, so obviously either a Council Flat (sorry Social Housing) Tenant or very rich.

Yes after 13 posts it appears a hardware problem and not an O/S problem, so it may be time to dismantle the Datavue Spark to check that internal connections are good!

Yes before everyone has a go at me, I do care about **-DOS, but not interested in Hardware and NT postings in this forum.

Midnight in the UK so off to land of NOD!!!

Ok, maybe I haven't been clear about some things. Let's sum up exactly what happened:

Initially I started out with a DOS 2.11 bootdisk and it worked, but the computer told me that it was missing the HIMEM.SYS file, that is why I used it. After I put that on, it stopped working, so I got rid of it. It worked again, but still gave me HIMEM.SYS errors. So I tried the other versions of DOS and got Incorrect DOS Version errors. After this occured, I tried DOS 2.11, but it failed. Then I took it apart and everything looked fine. Now I'm going to see if I can get it to work again.

There is no HIMEM in DOS prior to 5.

There is no high mem on an 8088.

You need ONE viable boot disk with ONE version of DOS.

=====================================
If at first you don't succeed, you're about average.

M2

JBoy has already covered the no himem and using one version................