Magic DOSBox For Android (Productivity)
I Just Turned My Tablet Into A 1980's Word Processor
Since getting my
Bluetooth keyboard, I've been looking for various ways of using it.
Since this typist is into retro-computing, it only made since that the
DOSBox emulator would eventually find it's way onto my Amazon Fire
Tablet.
First, what is DOSBox? It's a very popular emulator that people use to run old DOS programs. Most of the emphasis is based around games, but it can run productivity software as well, which is essential from my point of view currently. DOSBox emulates a IBM Compatible PC from the 80's to mid 90's that can run DOS programs. The emulator has support for various video modes, like CGA, Enhanced CGA (IBMPCjr/Tandy 1000), EGA, VGA, and SVGA. Various audio adapters are supported as well, most notably the Creative Labs SoundBlaster audio card. As mentioned earlier, DOSBox is geared towards running old DOS games that people still have nostalgia for, like Doom and Doom 2 - Hell on Earth, among others.
Because DOSBox is a open-source program, which means that the source code for the application is publicly available for modification, their are several different versions, or forks, of the program. This also means that the emulator has been ported to various devices, from computers running Windows, Linux/Ubuntu, or Mac OS; to smartphones like the iPhone (jail-broken) and Android devices. For Android on the Amazon Fire Tablet, I will be running Magic DOSBox. It was highly recommended on the Google Play Store, and after using it, I can understand why. It's highly configurable and their are various options as well to configure individual applications if need be. One can even create shortcuts on the Android home screen to launch the program directly for convenience. Also, Magic DOSBox had no issues using my Bluetooth keyboard either, which is a huge plus in that I don't have to use the touchscreen keyboard. My screen can be completely devoted to the application itself, and nothing more. MagicDOS isn't free, and the developers charge around $4 for the software. However, for how good their Android port is, it's well worth the cost. I can imagine that the developers devoted a lot of time on this project. Also, one has to remember that the PC's that Magic DOSBox emulates would have cost around $1,000-$3,500 at introduction. A couple of dollars wouldn't be a sacrificed on the wallet compared to those financial sacrifices that one made in order to acquire one of these computers back in the 1980's-1990's.
This bloke has experimented with DOSBox for Android before. However, I found DOSBox practically unusable for touchscreen input. For example, to type commands onto DOS, one has to bring up the touchscreen keyboard. This keyboard takes up the vast majority of the screen, making the emulator even more awkward to use. The keyboard is mostly transparent, so one can see that text that's being entered on the DOS Prompt. However, their is still a lot of screen obstruction, and their is going to be a lot of typing. DOS is, by nature, geared towards keyboard interaction. Also, the performance on my earlier Android devices left a lot to be desired.
For a touchscreen device, the amount of typing required would amount to a living hell if resorting to a touchscreen. Touchscreen inputting is fine when one is typing in quick text messages for short sentences. However, typing anything longer than 2 sentences is a nightmare. However, I'm currently typing this document on Microsoft Word Version 5.5 for MS-DOS. So far, I've spent about 10 minutes on this document. If I was using the onscreen keyboard, the same document up to this point would have taken about 20-30 minutes.
DOSBox for Android without a Bluetooth keyboard is virtually worthless. However, with a Bluetooth keyboard, DOSBox is transformed into one of the most awesome pieces of software that one can run on a Android tablet. That is assuming if one knows how to work within that environment though. Most millennials who've only known touchscreens for used computers with Windows XP, 7, or 10 would be at a complete loss. One would know how to configure a game to use a specific video mode or use a particular soundcard, which in most cases, would probably be the Creative Labs SoundBlaster audio adapter. Folders are referred to as directories, hence the DOS command "dir". They don't know how lucky they are! This article is for those that have a deep love for awesome old software that can be launched from the DOS prompt!
This is a labor of love. The labor of love required to set up that word-processor using the specific video mode, and configuring the DOSBox setup to accommodate that software. The necessity is for a word-processor that is small and lightweight, but yet very functional in a modern environment. This retro-computing enthusiast found that worthy application for Android. Microsoft Word 5.5 for DOS works very well. If George R.R. Martin wrote Game of Thrones on a KayPro Microcomputer with WordStar 4 running on CP/M, then their is no reason why I can't type my blog articles out on MS Word for DOS! As mentioned earlier, one has the know-how of working within DOS of course. The fact is that DOS isn't one of the easiest environments to work with. Especially if your working if very old software. I've actually configured my particular VM on my desktop computer, and then copied all the contents to my tablet, which was then configured through the emulator. Their was a lot of fine-tuning involved. I disabled the frame-skip, and brought the performance of the machine to that of a high-end XT-Class machine from the tale end of the 1980's.
Performance is more than acceptable. The irony is that most people install DOSBox to play their oldskool games,and I installed it so I can I quickly type my articles out that will be posted onto my blog later. However, I will be playing a lot of games. One will become the following: a NASCAR racer, WW2 fighter pilot, astronaut, Chairman of the Soviet Union, and a space marine killing Martian demons that were unleashed by UAC. That is what part two of the article will be about.
Of all of the oldskool word-processors at the time, why did I choose MS Word 5.5 for DOS and not WordPerfect. First, one would need to print out a "cheat sheet" of WordPerfect commands in order to use the software . Word 5.5 is simple enough to use if you know what your doing. Their is mouse support as well, which is used through the touchscreen. The Word 5.5 file format can be opened with some modern word-processor today without conversion, like the AbleWord application for Windows 7.Also, Word 5.5 supported the Rich Text Format file as well. A file format that can still be opened by the vast majority of modern word-processors today. Since my DOSBox folder is easily accessible to Android, I could just save my document, fire up GMail, and then attach my files and email to myself. I can then download the email attachment from my PC, and copy-and-paste the contents of the Word document into the blog editor.
I know that I could have typed this document into the blog editor itself. However, the South Texas heat is very punishing towards cable modems, and as such, network failure is very common in the more extreme parts of the day. If one can save time and stress by typing these articles in full on a tablet first, and then uploading them later, then the vast majority of the work is already done.
DOSBox is mostly associated with games. However, one can find a valid, productive use for this software as well. Not only that , after finishing a document, one can take a break by playing that space marine casting out those space demons with a shotgun on that Martian colony. I hoped you had as much fun reading this article as I had typing it.
First, what is DOSBox? It's a very popular emulator that people use to run old DOS programs. Most of the emphasis is based around games, but it can run productivity software as well, which is essential from my point of view currently. DOSBox emulates a IBM Compatible PC from the 80's to mid 90's that can run DOS programs. The emulator has support for various video modes, like CGA, Enhanced CGA (IBMPCjr/Tandy 1000), EGA, VGA, and SVGA. Various audio adapters are supported as well, most notably the Creative Labs SoundBlaster audio card. As mentioned earlier, DOSBox is geared towards running old DOS games that people still have nostalgia for, like Doom and Doom 2 - Hell on Earth, among others.
Because DOSBox is a open-source program, which means that the source code for the application is publicly available for modification, their are several different versions, or forks, of the program. This also means that the emulator has been ported to various devices, from computers running Windows, Linux/Ubuntu, or Mac OS; to smartphones like the iPhone (jail-broken) and Android devices. For Android on the Amazon Fire Tablet, I will be running Magic DOSBox. It was highly recommended on the Google Play Store, and after using it, I can understand why. It's highly configurable and their are various options as well to configure individual applications if need be. One can even create shortcuts on the Android home screen to launch the program directly for convenience. Also, Magic DOSBox had no issues using my Bluetooth keyboard either, which is a huge plus in that I don't have to use the touchscreen keyboard. My screen can be completely devoted to the application itself, and nothing more. MagicDOS isn't free, and the developers charge around $4 for the software. However, for how good their Android port is, it's well worth the cost. I can imagine that the developers devoted a lot of time on this project. Also, one has to remember that the PC's that Magic DOSBox emulates would have cost around $1,000-$3,500 at introduction. A couple of dollars wouldn't be a sacrificed on the wallet compared to those financial sacrifices that one made in order to acquire one of these computers back in the 1980's-1990's.
This bloke has experimented with DOSBox for Android before. However, I found DOSBox practically unusable for touchscreen input. For example, to type commands onto DOS, one has to bring up the touchscreen keyboard. This keyboard takes up the vast majority of the screen, making the emulator even more awkward to use. The keyboard is mostly transparent, so one can see that text that's being entered on the DOS Prompt. However, their is still a lot of screen obstruction, and their is going to be a lot of typing. DOS is, by nature, geared towards keyboard interaction. Also, the performance on my earlier Android devices left a lot to be desired.
For a touchscreen device, the amount of typing required would amount to a living hell if resorting to a touchscreen. Touchscreen inputting is fine when one is typing in quick text messages for short sentences. However, typing anything longer than 2 sentences is a nightmare. However, I'm currently typing this document on Microsoft Word Version 5.5 for MS-DOS. So far, I've spent about 10 minutes on this document. If I was using the onscreen keyboard, the same document up to this point would have taken about 20-30 minutes.
DOSBox for Android without a Bluetooth keyboard is virtually worthless. However, with a Bluetooth keyboard, DOSBox is transformed into one of the most awesome pieces of software that one can run on a Android tablet. That is assuming if one knows how to work within that environment though. Most millennials who've only known touchscreens for used computers with Windows XP, 7, or 10 would be at a complete loss. One would know how to configure a game to use a specific video mode or use a particular soundcard, which in most cases, would probably be the Creative Labs SoundBlaster audio adapter. Folders are referred to as directories, hence the DOS command "dir". They don't know how lucky they are! This article is for those that have a deep love for awesome old software that can be launched from the DOS prompt!
This is a labor of love. The labor of love required to set up that word-processor using the specific video mode, and configuring the DOSBox setup to accommodate that software. The necessity is for a word-processor that is small and lightweight, but yet very functional in a modern environment. This retro-computing enthusiast found that worthy application for Android. Microsoft Word 5.5 for DOS works very well. If George R.R. Martin wrote Game of Thrones on a KayPro Microcomputer with WordStar 4 running on CP/M, then their is no reason why I can't type my blog articles out on MS Word for DOS! As mentioned earlier, one has the know-how of working within DOS of course. The fact is that DOS isn't one of the easiest environments to work with. Especially if your working if very old software. I've actually configured my particular VM on my desktop computer, and then copied all the contents to my tablet, which was then configured through the emulator. Their was a lot of fine-tuning involved. I disabled the frame-skip, and brought the performance of the machine to that of a high-end XT-Class machine from the tale end of the 1980's.
Performance is more than acceptable. The irony is that most people install DOSBox to play their oldskool games,and I installed it so I can I quickly type my articles out that will be posted onto my blog later. However, I will be playing a lot of games. One will become the following: a NASCAR racer, WW2 fighter pilot, astronaut, Chairman of the Soviet Union, and a space marine killing Martian demons that were unleashed by UAC. That is what part two of the article will be about.
Of all of the oldskool word-processors at the time, why did I choose MS Word 5.5 for DOS and not WordPerfect. First, one would need to print out a "cheat sheet" of WordPerfect commands in order to use the software . Word 5.5 is simple enough to use if you know what your doing. Their is mouse support as well, which is used through the touchscreen. The Word 5.5 file format can be opened with some modern word-processor today without conversion, like the AbleWord application for Windows 7.Also, Word 5.5 supported the Rich Text Format file as well. A file format that can still be opened by the vast majority of modern word-processors today. Since my DOSBox folder is easily accessible to Android, I could just save my document, fire up GMail, and then attach my files and email to myself. I can then download the email attachment from my PC, and copy-and-paste the contents of the Word document into the blog editor.
I know that I could have typed this document into the blog editor itself. However, the South Texas heat is very punishing towards cable modems, and as such, network failure is very common in the more extreme parts of the day. If one can save time and stress by typing these articles in full on a tablet first, and then uploading them later, then the vast majority of the work is already done.
DOSBox is mostly associated with games. However, one can find a valid, productive use for this software as well. Not only that , after finishing a document, one can take a break by playing that space marine casting out those space demons with a shotgun on that Martian colony. I hoped you had as much fun reading this article as I had typing it.
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