Are You Ready for WARP 4 ? (A Software Review) by Clark Anderson Name of Product: OS/2 Warp 4.0 Maker: International Business Machines Corporation Product Type: PC Operating System Intended User: Mission Critical Business Systems and also personal users List Price: $220, $135 (upgrade), $56 (employees and retirees) Includes: Runs DOS, Windows 3.x (Win32s 1.25a) and Java applications, Web Browser (IBM WebExplorer, Download Netscape Navigator at no charge), Network Ready, Supports OpenDoc, OpenGL and TrueType fonts, Voice Navigation/Dictation, True multitasking, Lotus Notes Mail client/server messaging, OS/2 Crash Protection (keeps wayward programs from affecting your other programs and data). BonusPak includes: HyperACCESS Lite, FaxWorks, IBM Works (Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Charting, Database, Report Writer, Personal Information Manager), CompuServe Information Manager, Remote Support, AskPSP, Network Print Utilities, Video IN. The games that are included are Mahjongg Solitaire,Klondike Solitaire and Chess Requires: General: 1.44MB 3.5” diskette drive “A”, OS/2 compatible CD-ROM Drive, 640 x 480 resolution video with 256 colors recommended (SVGA mode), IBM compatible mouse, 100-300MB free Hard Disk space across user selectable partitions. Internet Access: 14.4Kb modem. Multimedia and Speech: Supported Soundcard. Minimum: 486/33 with 12-16 MB RAM. Speech Navigation: Pentium/75 with 4MB additional RAM, Noise-canceling microphone and adapter. Speech Navigation/Dictation: Pentium/100 with 8-12MB additional RAM, Noise-canceling microphone and adapter. RATING: ****(4) out of *****(5) The only reason I even think of NT is the lack of full win32 support. Test System: Gateway 2000 486DX/33V, 36MB RAM, 1.44MB 3.5” diskette drive “A”, Sony IDE-2xCDROM, SVGA 1024x768/256 video, Microsoft Serial Mouse, 1.2MB HD, 14.4Kb USR Sportster modem, LinkSys Ether16 network interface card Installation: The installation was fairly easy and smooth, BUT; a word of caution. BEFORE you install, be sure that your TCPIP directory branches directly from the root directory. I had created it in some other directory when I installed an earlier version of OS/2 and I had difficulties installing my LAN. The solution is described below. Customer Support: 800 phone number for Installation support only. The July 1997 PC Magazine rates OS/2 Warp 4 Technical Support via the World Wide Web and Built-In help function as “Significantly better than average”. OS/2 Users Group the meets monthly at DTC. Their web site is http://www.privatei.com/os2user. Pros of OS/2 Warp 4: OS/2s HPFS (High Performance File System) makes efficient use of my 848MB hard drive partition. In the background OS/2 performs maintenance to keep it defragmented. IT DOES NOT CRASH. I do not remember ever having any trouble running any Windows 3.x applications except Microsoft Visual C++ v1.0. I have set up a LAN with my wife’s 486/66 running Microsoft Windows for Work Groups 3.11. We can freely share Data, Applications and Printers. Cons of OS/2 Warp 4: OS/2 does not support Win32 which includes many Win95 applications beyond Win32s 1.25a such as Microsoft Visual Basic v5, Visual C++ v5 and Access v8(97) and probably all of Microsoft Office 97. Summary & Conclusion: My main interest in upgrading to OS/2 Warp 4 was to be able to network our PCs together and share resources. This I have achieved. There are many programs available that are designed to take advantage of OS/2, but I use standard Windows applications like my wife’s favorite, Solitaire Antics, that resides on her machine. OS/2s Klondike Solitaire permits cheating and the Mahjongg Solitaire is interesting with its variations. The applications that I use most are HyperACCESS, for logging in to my ISP and checking my EMail,.Lotus 123 v2.01, for my financial records, MS Word 6.0, for correspondence, MS Excel 5.0, MS Access 2.0, Reunion, for Genealogy, 3D Home Architect. MS Word has worked very well with FaxWorks for FAXing letters and resumes and the new Warp 4 HP driver makes my DeskJet 540 print envelopes as intended. Warp 4’s toolbar is a lot like the MS Office toolbar and Win95’s toolbar. I have not done much customizing. Dragging an icon to it creates a push-button for activating that application. Dragging a folder to the toolbar, creates a drawer. This is pretty easy. Like most systems, now days, there is plenty of on-line help. This is a good idea, since most manuals are quarter inch thick booklets now days. I have seen demonstrations of Warp 4’s Speech Navigation/Dictation. It does work. As I mentioned above it needs a noise-canceling microphone and reasonable quiet. Speech Navigation is easier to get going because it is a smaller vocabulary. The system learns to understand the user’s voice. Its interpretation is displayed on the screen for confirmation or correction. The Speech Dictation takes more training to expand its vocabulary. This is a complex technology that has come a long way and still has a way to go. I have seen ads for IBM selling this application “VoiceType Simply Speaking for Win95 ($50) and WinNT ($85) with specialty vocabulary options ($360-$546). I have had several years experience with IBM’s WebExplorer, and it works fine. My daughter encouraged me to “get modern” and download Netscape Navigator. It seems to work OK, except there have been a few times when I tried to use the Bookmarks that I migrated from WebExplorer that I got an error #3175. I have noticed this most when I try to display my “Hit Counter Web Page”. My “get-around” is to keep a text file with important sites and cut and paste from there. If I want to brows my “Hit Counter Web Page” I use WebExplorer. Also included is a JAVA Development Kit. I have not had much time to work with it yet. I did view each of the sample JAVA Applets. the easiest way to do this is to open \Programs\Java for OS/2\Samples for Sun's Java Programming Environment\URLs for Samples and drag each Icon to \Programs\Java for OS/2\Java Applet Viewer from URL. I am somewhat reluctant to admit that I still have not come up with any ideas for what JAVA can do for me. There is a spreadsheet Applet and there are some charting Applets that might be of some use. Solution: OS/2 Warp 4 PEER-SERVICES (FILE/PRINTER SHARING) with WFWG 3.11 (addendum) With a lot of help I have been successful in getting our LAN working. We are able to run each other's applications quite well. 1)------------------------- I renamed an old ...\tcpip\... directory to ...\tcpipo\ and copied all files that I know I needed to the \tcpip\... new directory tree branching directly from the root directory. I made the changes needed to make programs work(BBS- Dialup, HALITE, InternetDialer, WebExplorer, Netscape) [I WISH I HAD DONE THIS BEFORE WARP 4!] 2)------------------------- I down loaded and installed the JDK update (JAVA Development Kit 1.02) This fixed a few things: a) Network Messaging session was formatted and functioning with no messages shown. b) Sendmail process starts and "runs" then will quit cleanly on shutdown. 3)------------------------- I reran [cd-rom]:\ibminst\npinst.exe I chose the [Advanced] option then I selected [x] File and Print and [x] tcp/ip On the File & Print Sharing Services form: Installation drive: D Workstation Name: CLARK Workstation Description: 486DX-33V Domain Name: WORKGROUP [x] Install LAN Server Admin. [x] Inst. Sharing [x] Delete User ID Database (NET.ACC) IMPORTANT ! ------------------------------------- On the network adapter for file and printer sharing form: [x] 0 Linksys Ether-16 Ethernet Adapter (this refers to my specific Network Interface Card) This form is the only place you can “refresh” your password. I wish the password was not required. userID= xxxx password= xxxx verify password= xxxx ------------------------------------- tcp/ip address= 192.168.2.1 subnet mask= 255.255.255.240 router= hostname= clark tcp/ip domain name= workgroup (This matches the default in “Windows for Workgroups”) name server= ------------------------------------- Linksys Ether-16 Ethernet Adapter 0 IBM OS/2 NETBIOS 0 IBM TCP/IP -------------------- AFTER ENTERING THIS INFO I EXECUTED THE INSTALL 4)--------------------- After running this Install, I restored my \tcipi\bin\slipup.cmd, so my Dialing to the Internet will work. 5)--------------------- My "Window List includes: [Desktop - Icon View], [WarpCenter], [Network Messaging - Network Messaging].and [Sendmail.exe]. Connections/Network/Network Services/Shared Resources and Network Connections will let me logon: ___________________________________________________ LAN Logon Note: The password will not display. Verification: Local User ID xxxx (as entered in install above) Password xxxx (as entered in install above) [ OK ] ___________________________________________________ The Logon was successful. The "Shared Resources and Network Connections - Properties" folder opened. I used this to adjust the Connections, Shares and Permissions. We are able to run each other's applications quite well.