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Messages - Mentore

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16
Applications / Re: BrainStorm: Best Classic OS/2 Software
« on: November 03, 2025, 11:52:10 pm »
I've sent an email at support @ slickedit. Let's see how this goes.
Thanks for giving it a try.

XAct showed up on a different thread, I had sent an email to "Arnd Beissner".

Regards

Bad news:

Hi,

We don't still have the OS/2 source code. Too many transitions since then. Might have had it prior to 2023 when we still had our CVS repository (switched to git). We don't even have any OS/2 installers any more.

Sorry we can't help more


I switched the request asking for VSE latest OS/2 incarnation to be considered as open source. It seems they don't even have the installation package.

Mentore

17
Applications / Re: Lost / Missing Software for OS/2
« on: November 03, 2025, 11:45:43 pm »
I have the CD for Xact version 7.0 and the unlock code.  How do I archive the files from the CD?  P.S. the CD also contains the files for the Windoze version.

ME

If you're able to split the contents of the CD (OS/2 only) you can give it a shot at sending a ZIP package on the Internet Archive or other sources like that. I don't think Hobbes archive is a suitable solution, since we're still talking about a commmercial software with all that regards licensing and rights.

Mentore

18
Applications / Re: BrainStorm: Best Classic OS/2 Software
« on: November 03, 2025, 09:12:45 am »
Hello
...Who wants to put his name in a list?
Me also for sure.

I haven't tried to contact J. Clark Maurer in the past, so I have no idea what he will think.

Since this is a current product that is still marketed for Windows, my approach idea would be:
- Ask to open source Visual Slicked only for OS/2. It is an old and outdated version, so it will not affect his current business.
- Tell him that even if the OS/2 version is open source, he will keep all the copyright of the code open source at that moment. (as usual with open source software)
- The brand "Slick" will be completely removed from the OS/2 code version to don't reference the software and don't produce a confusion in the market. Only the copyright notice to the company will remain there.
- We will not market that SlickEdit for OS/2 got open sourced. We will recompile it with a different name... "WarpEdit".. "FinalEdit"... "CoolEdit"...

If he don't want to open source it. Ask him to get the OS/2 software released as "AS IS Freeware".

...sorry for dreaming ahead of time..

Regards

Hiya all,
I've sent an email at support @ slickedit. Let's see how this goes.

Mentore

19
Applications / Re: BrainStorm: Best Classic OS/2 Software
« on: October 21, 2025, 08:20:51 am »
Hi Neil
There is a nice article on Wikipedia about SlickEdit. Apparently it's author also wrote the E editor while at IBM. This is a good choice for at least some support for OS/2 users, because the author will know what OS/2 is.
That's a good tip:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SlickEdit


I'm having a look at the SlickEdit website... Guess I may try to send them an e-mail. I fear though that, without a good number of subscribers, a petition would be left without success. Who wants to put his name in a list?

I'll go first, of course 8)

Mentore

20
Applications / Re: BrainStorm: Best Classic OS/2 Software
« on: October 20, 2025, 08:16:24 am »
I would love for the Visual SlickEdit to be released. The OS/2 version is soooo old that honestly I can't imagine (even remotely) the possibility of such code base impacting any of their current commercial products.

YES.
Mentore

21
Applications / Re: BrainStorm: Best Classic OS/2 Software
« on: October 17, 2025, 08:26:54 am »
Hello

This is my typical brainstorm question where there is no right or wrong answers.

The question is: Which OS/2 software that is close source (Shareware, Freeware, Commercial, Abandonware, etc) do you think it is so good we should offer money to the author to open source it ?

Let's do not worry if it can be possible to open source it, or we have or not the money to offer something, just dream away on the brainstorm.

Regards

Interesting. My personal choices:

1 - NotaMusica 2.7 (beta release) - possibly the best music engraving software written for OS/2 PM. Pretty much intuitive once you grasp its working, uses EmTeX as rendering engine so you're pretty sure it just works GOOD. One might expect many things to be added to that, just like it happens on MuseScore.
On a side note, porting MuseScore 4 on OS/2 would be a blast.
2 - MAUL Publisher. DTP is something different from Word processing, even if current software is much more evolved than in the past, but still I'd choose a good DTP software instead of an office suite to write something bigger than an essay or a booklet.
3 - Some good CAD software - even the old PMDraw/2 EWS software would be good to have updated.
4 - CERES SoundStudio - it was a good beginning, it would need a lot of rewriting since it uses the IBM OpenClass library which is rather old and broken here and there, but with a lot of space to improve.
5 - MainActor - THE video editor for OS/2. Pretty useful when I used it, but limited to MMPM/2 architecture.

There's surely a lot more, but I think this would be a good stard.

22
General Discussion / Re: LEO mirror
« on: October 13, 2025, 08:49:12 am »
Old timers might remember that we had a couple of file sites, Hobbes and LEO (link everything online). At one point LEO had a hard drive crash and vanished along with all its content, which was mostly OS/2 related. Still find links to it here and there.
Anyways, found a mirror of it, https://ftpmirror.infania.net/sites/ftp.leo.org/ perhaps others should mirror it.

OMG, I almost forgot that one. Back then, sometimes it was even better than Hobbes - after that HD crash, Hobbes became the main reference repository.
It's good to know there's a mirror for it.
Mentore

23
Applications / Re: General Software Testing
« on: September 05, 2025, 08:55:44 am »
Thanks for the feedback.

I can not make PageTurner work. I have it on the LIBPATH and
SET GS_LIB=C:\PAGETURN
SET GS_FONTPATH=C:\PSFONTS

But it freeze on the information square screen and brokes the WPS. I will try on a different VM just in case.

Regards

Most probably this is a stupid question, but is it possible that a different Ghostscript installation is needed? ISTR in the past Ghostscript has changed a lot.

Mentore

24
Applications / Re: General Software Testing
« on: September 02, 2025, 07:58:02 am »
Hello

I wanted to see how to make this MIDI database to work:
- https://hobbesarchive.com/Home/Download?path=/Hobbes/pub/multimedia/music/midi/collect/mdb_data.zip

It says it works with MIDI DB, and I think it is this one:
- https://hobbesarchive.com/Home/Download?path=/Hobbes/pub/os2/apps/mmedia/sound/players/MIDI_DB_1-3.zip

Sadly I can not make it work. Even that I put PARADISE.SYS it keeps telling me it can not run. "(RC = 3) Can not start MIDI DB."

I don't know if I'm doing it right. Any comments welcome.

Regards

Pretty difficult to diagnose with so little documentation - I'm checking the package, it's from 1997 and there is something about palette managing, which makes me think this is something rather old.
As always, having the source code would be bliss. I don't think the problem is in the drivers, most probably you should check if the database is in the correct format or in the correct path.

Mentore

25
Programming / Re: GCC - updates
« on: August 13, 2025, 09:24:15 am »
Only tested to confirm it can build itself.... https://smedley.id.au/tmp/gcc-15.2.0-os2-20250810.zip

Hi Paul, smedley.id.au is not responding right now. Problems?

Mentore

26
Applications / Re: Calculator options.
« on: August 13, 2025, 09:23:22 am »
  With the HP15C emulator, you can use the num-pad for entering numbers and operators...
I understand that you need buttons if you have Touchscreen. In this case you input expression using buttons.
But if you don't have touchscreen then you don't need the buttons. you type the expression using keyboard as text string.
I have used PMDCalc Plus Version 0.9.9 over ten years, now Version 1.0.0.RC1.

IIRC I completed some SDL HP48 emulators - these use RPN for working, so maybe they're not for the average user. Can't really remember if I already sent them to Hobbes though - I'm in the final phase of changing from one house to another and it's a NIGHTMARE.
Hope I'll have something new in september (will have to renew my software subscripion).

Mentore

27
Programming / Re: Powerbasic for OS/2
« on: August 02, 2025, 12:37:44 pm »
It would be great if yours could get on there though, better provenance.

Now uploaded!
https://archive.org/details/watcom-vx-rexx-standard-2.1

Richard.

GREAT!!!

Mentore

28
Article Discussions / Re: Games with older SDL and FSLIB
« on: July 17, 2025, 07:45:14 am »
Here's the game installed to \usr\local. Still not sure how to install it so that it looks relatively for its data.
Edit: Removed zip

This is one of the biggest problems I encountered with installing unix ported programs. Either you install them in /usr/local or /usr/something, or they are configured to install in a modifiable PREFIX, otherwise you are on your own figuring out a way to install it in a generic path.
I seem to remember I found something interesting via the OS/2 toolkit, but can't remember right now - I'm in the middle of an INCREDIBLY TOUGH moving from a house to another, and I can't really describe how hard and taxing this is becoming day after day.
Hope I'll get back on working on ArcaOS translation and software development ASAP.

Mentore

29
Applications / Re: General Software Testing
« on: July 03, 2025, 08:01:18 am »
Hello

I found on some old online CD's "Champion for OS/2" which seems to be a Japanese IBM Works/Office alike software.
Seems to belong to IBM, MicroBurst and MetaSoft. Does anybody remembers if this was freeware or commercial?

Regards

Hi Martin, never heard about this software. Which is weird, since I got interested in Japanese years ago and sought for OS/2 based solutions but to no avail.
I would think about it as a commercial software, otherwise there would be some shareware copy on Hobbes or os2site.

Mentore

30
Games / Re: Strange but good fork of MAME for OS/2
« on: June 18, 2025, 08:26:06 am »
I tried eCS in past. I remembered that I tried fork of MAME with GUI. Owner of that program dedicated it to his deceased cat, I remembered that detail, and that notice appeared when you open that program or when you click on About button.
Do you know name of that fork, I would like to try it again to play some games.
Regards

Hello,
currently two major flavors of MAME run under ArcaOS - OS/2.
The first is the old MAME 0.37, including a PM GUI - which I find pretty elegant, by the way.
The second is the SDL MAME port from KO Myung-Hun, who is active on this forum. Latest version is on Hobbes Archive:
https://hobbesarchive.com/Home/Download?path=/Hobbes/pub/os2/apps/emulator/SDLMAME_0-170.zip

I can't seem to remember another MAME port, but your hint to a cat makes me think about InfinityCat - an OS/2 port of MUGEN. Since the original site is long gone, the only (?) way to download it is by going to Internet Archive:

https://web.archive.org/web/20111203125610/http://nekomimi.cafe.coocan.jp/dev/InfCat/download/InfCat20070121.zip

Mind you, this port is largely underdeveloped IIRC.

HTH,
Mentore

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