Windows 1.0: running programs and fixing common problems

See how programs ran in Windows 1.0 and fix the problems people most often meet when running it in an emulator. Windows 1.0 should already be installed; if not, start with how Windows 1.0 was installed.

How programs work in Windows 1.0

The first thing you see is the MS-DOS Executive, a list of files and folders. Opening a program's .exe file in it starts the program in a window. Windows 1.0 does not let windows overlap, so each program tiles beside the others. A minimized program shrinks to an icon on a row along the bottom of the screen.

Bundled programs included Calculator, Notepad, Write, Paint, Terminal, Clock, Cardfile and the game Reversi, plus a Clipboard, a Print Spooler and a Control Panel for settings. Windows 1.0 runs programs written for it. Ordinary MS-DOS programs had only limited support.

Start a program

1. In the MS-DOS Executive, find the folder that holds the program, such as the Windows folder.
2. Open the program's .exe file. The program appears in its own tiled window.
3. Use menus the old way: hold the mouse button down on the menu name while you move to a choice, then release.

Try these fixes in order

Fix 1: The mouse does not respond

In DOSBox-X you normally have to click the window to let the emulator capture the mouse.

1. Click once inside the emulator window. The pointer should now move inside Windows.
2. If it still does not move, check that Setup was told you use a Microsoft Mouse (Bus/Serial). The retail version 1.04 has no PS/2 mouse support, so a PS/2 choice will not work there.
3. Do not expect the scroll wheel to work. Windows 1.0 does not support it, and DOSBox-X sends cursor up and down keys instead.

Fix 2: The screen is wrong or has the wrong colors

Windows 1.0 has its own display drivers, chosen in Setup. There are no drivers for modern graphics.

1. For the retail version, make sure Setup used EGA (more than 64K) with Enhanced Color Display.
2. The IBM edition of 1.04 can use VGA through the IBM Personal System/2 Model 50, 60, 80 choice. The retail 1.04 cannot.
3. Paint in this version is monochrome only, so missing colors there are normal.

Fix 3: It runs slowly or runs out of memory

1. Close programs you are not using. Reviewers in the 1980s found Windows 1.0 slow with several programs open.
2. Remember that Windows 1.0x uses only 640 KB of base memory. Expanded and extended memory are not used.

If it still does not work

Check that your copy and your DOS version match: version 1.01 needs MS-DOS 2.0 to 3.10, while later versions accept up to 3.20, and the DOSBox-X guide says the DOS version must be lower than 4.0. If you want overlapping windows, look at the next release in Windows 2.x: running programs and fixing common problems.

Frequently asked questions