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Thread: DOS laptop

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    Default DOS laptop

    Hi guys, I'm new here and fidn this site quite fun to read.

    I have recently setup an IBM notebook 9547 to play my DOS games on. But I have an issue. When it boots up and when I play games it only uses a small square in the center of the screen!

    I have everything else working, the ESS sound, mouse point, etc etc. I just cant seem to get the screen to get filled completly out! Now is this because I need a SVGA driver? or something to that effect?

    thanks guys! its driving me batty! hah.

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    This may get moved to the Computer section, but...

    ...as far as I know some of those laptops, like the IBM 760EL, have a native resolution - 800x600 I think? Anything lower than that and it shows black borders around the edge of the screen, giving you the effect you're seeing. I'm not sure how to change it, but I would check the BIOS settings first. It's a setting called "screen stretch" or "stretch mode" or something, at least on similar laptops I've used with earlier LCDs. If you have a manual you may be able to get more info - or go to lenovo.com you should be able to download it.
    Last edited by phreakindee; 01-31-2010 at 10:18 PM.
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    I have an early IBM Thinkpad 380ED, and what you should do first is check Lenovo's website for the Configuration Utility that came with your computer (Lenovo has an extensive archive of old IBM computer drivers). There's an option to turn on stretching ("hvexp") and also an option to enable switching between the two settings by pressing Fn+F8 ("f8"). Make sure that, at the very least, "hvexp" is turned on, but I'd recommend both. If you've never used the Configuration Utility before, or just never played around it with at all, I'd also recommend familiarizing yourself with every option, as it can really help you get the most out of using your laptop under DOS. Obviously, if you're using Windows, then you would just change the display settings through there.

    Also, I'm not sure if this information would apply in your case, but that's how it's setup through the Thinkpad laptop. YMMV.

    EDIT: Is the 9547 the same thing as the Thinkpad 765L? In that case, all this should apply to you, as the Thinkpad Configuration Utility was pretty much used universally by all IBM laptops.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Gapporin View Post
    Obviously, if you're using Windows, then you would just change the display settings through there.
    I'm not so sure about that, I have a Win 95 laptop and it only displays 800X600 properly. I can set it to 640X480 but I get a black border around the screen, or if I go higher the display is way bigger than the screen and you can scroll around it.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Gameguy View Post
    I'm not so sure about that, I have a Win 95 laptop and it only displays 800X600 properly. I can set it to 640X480 but I get a black border around the screen, or if I go higher the display is way bigger than the screen and you can scroll around it.
    Are you using the official display driver from the manufacturer, or just the one included with the standard Windows 95 installation?
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jorpho View Post
    Are you using the official display driver from the manufacturer, or just the one included with the standard Windows 95 installation?
    I got it used around 10 years ago from a computer store that dealt with used equipment, I have no idea how it was set up. It did have Webshots screensaver installed so it wasn't left at factory specifications. Just whenever I used older DOS programs like Duke Nukem 3D the screen was smaller and had a black border around it, and when I changed the resolution through Win 95 it just did the same thing(right click the desktop, go to properties, etc). I wasn't really bothered by it too much so I didn't really try too hard to fix it, I assumed it was because of the LCD display. I would have to get it out and check which driver it's using, I honestly haven't used the computer in years but I used to use it all the time.

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    The laptop would need to support stretching the screen in the bios to make a difference in DOS games. Have a look in there.

    Otherwise you can play around with the mode command a bit at the command prompt but that won't help in a game.

    VGA/Monitor out won't have the problem the internal LCD does. They didn't scale that well back in the day.
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    Thanks guys! I'll go take a look! I thought I would have to find a config utility. I put the drive in the unit so it was blank. I thought maybe they stored the bios on a partition back then. heh. This will help out alot! I'm excited hah god of thunder on the full screen! YAY

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    Quote Originally Posted by UnholyJuggernaut View Post
    I thought maybe they stored the bios on a partition back then.
    Some of them did - and it was a very silly thing to do. I think that was a Toshiba phenomenon.
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