64bit Question

[Kenneth Brody]

On 9/6/2011 8:01 PM, Fairlight wrote:
> On Tue, Sep 06, 2011 at 05:23:46PM -0400, Richard Kreiss may or may not have
> proven themselves an utter git by pronouncing:
>>
>> This is the error message when I try to run ls.com - old program similar to
>> dir but lists files with the same extension in the same color.
>>
>> These .com programs were freeware utilities from one of the pc magazines.
>>
>> W:\Downloads>ls
>> This version of W:\Downloads\LS.COM is not compatible with the version of
>> Windows
>> you're running. Check your computer's system information to see whether you
>> need
>> a x86 (32-bit) or x64 (64-bit) version of the program, and then contact the
>> software publisher.
>
> That error message is 99.9% likely coming from the binary itself, not from
> Windows.  Look at how it phrases things, and consider that the OS would
> know exactly which version was needed.

Well, it's part of the 0.1%.

Please tell me how a 16-bit MS-DOS binary from 1983 would know to include 
such a message, and how every 16-bit MS-DOS program would use the identical 
message.

According to Process Explorer, the dialog box that pops up is displayed by 
explorer.exe if you double-click the program's icon, or cmd.exe if you type 
it at a command prompt.

-- 
Kenneth Brody