Subj : Re: REPOST: Re: 4BATFAQ Update
To   : Ray
From : Steve
Date : Tue Jan 29 2002 11:29 am

From: "E. S. (Steve) Fabian" <ESFabian@BellAtlantic.net>

Ray wrote:
>
> In a previous message, Outsider wrote:
>
> > ...Replace command.com with 4DOS and it is no longer MSDOS, but 4DOS.
>
> Not only that, nothing will bootup unless you specify in the CONFIG.SYS file
that
> the command interpretor is now called 4DOS.COM
>
> To complete the argument you made in your previous message, COMMAND.COM will
be
> automatically called/loaded (without the use of either a CONFIG.SYS or an
> AUTOEXEC.BAT file).
>

Just because MS hardcoded COMMAND.COM, the name of their command processor into 
the operating system as the DEFAULT command processor, it does not make it part 
of the OS. If I rename COMMAND.COM to some other name, it will still be a 
command processor, and if I point the environment variable COMPSEC to it, any 
program can invoke it. If you look at Microsoft's own book, "MS-DOS 
Programmer's Reference" (subtitled "The Official Technical Reference to 
MS-DOS"), its over 500 pages have just 3 references to COMMAND.COM. That should 
be conclusive proof that not even Microsoft considers COMMAND.COM to be PART OF 
MS-DOS. Would you consider DELTREE.EXE or SCANDISK.EXE as part of the MS-DOS 
_OPERATING SYSTEM_? For many MS-DOS releases before Win95 both were part of the 
software bundled with MS-DOS, but not essential to its functioning.

--
E. S. "Steve" Fabian               ESFabian@BellAtlantic.net
POB 1540, Cherry Hill, NJ 08034    Telephone: 856-354-1752
EMPIRE Consultants, Inc.           Director, Software Development
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