DOS ain't dead

* IVTUTIL is a util for processing/converting Interrupt Vector Table files *
(note: it has an undocumented "feature" to allow interrupt vector patching)

=============================================================================
Examples of the intended "end users" for IVTUTIL
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
+ People curious to learn how PC's look prior to loading an operating system
+ System programmers working on projects to port OS's to embedded PC hardware
+ System programmers involved with writing or supporting PC operating systems
+ System programmers working on custom BIOS patches for legacy computers
+ Helping to resolve DOS/OS issues where interrupts are not being restored
etc
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi all,

I would like to announce the release of IVTUTIL v1.01 which I am releasing as public domain with the TP7 source code. It was a holiday project a while ago which I wrote without my normal libraries as I wanted it to be open source.

It has a homepage here (which will be updated shortly):
http://www.wimborne.org/richard/projects/ivtutil/

and the program can be obtained from here:
http://www.wimborne.org/richard/downloads/ivtutil.zip

IVTUTIL has been helpful to me in more ways than I originally expected from the simple act of checking if a program has not restored interrupts; to more complex activities such as porting Linux 8086 to unusual hardware. Indeed I have found IVTUTIL to be a particularly good aid for various OS development work. I hope that others will find it a useful utility in a similar ways.

I'll be honest and say I am not happy with it as it stands (e.g. the .REG / .IVT export code headers aren't to my liking, the source makes me cringe etc). However I am too much of a perfectionist and if I continue to hang back to get it right... it will never be released thus I'm releasing it publicly now.

One last thing the IVTUTIL documentation states that I know of only 3 different bootdisks for saving the initial interrupt vector table. I now know of 4 such disks but I forgot to update the documentation from 3 to 4 !


Regards Richard
http://www.wimborne.org/richard/

I spotted a January post on comp.lang.asm.x86 in passing regarding the IVTUTIL download link being broken - it was earlier on this year but is working again:

> http://www.wimborne.org/richard/projects/ivtutil/
> http://www.wimborne.org/richard/downloads/ivtutil.zip

I am happy for IVTUTIL to mirrored elsewhere. Particularly as I have been very busy with life away from software (sadly) but hope to get to things fairly soon.

> I am happy for IVTUTIL to mirrored elsewhere. Particularly as I have been
> very busy with life away from software (sadly) but hope to get to things
> fairly soon.

Done, though I'm not sure where to put it, so hope this will do in a pinch:

http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/micro/pc-stuff/freedos/files/util/system/