🚀 go-pugleaf

In <NPvTrATGBh107h@Garg.Campbell.CA.US> revc@Garg.Campbell.CA.US (Bob Van Cleef) writes:
>While scanning through newsgroups, Helldiver hangs windows! It appears
>to take exclusive use of the system during the scan, causing the BBS
>to die. This obviously is not acceptable.

Definitely not.  Welcome to co-operative multi-tasking. :-(  It's not
hanging - merely slow.  Speed-ups will be in the next version, and I'll
try to solve the main problem as well which is that Helldiver currently
isn't yielding the CPU to other tasks during scans.

>Suggestion:
>   Helldiver drop to a lessor priority when scanning. It should not
>take exclusive use of the system.

Windows doesn't know anything about priorities.  The best that can be
done is to yield the CPU periodically and hope it gives other processes
a chance.  I'm quite surprised that the BBS locked up.  Usually DOS apps
still chug along to some degree in the background.  The clock and other
windows apps freezing I can understand because they are waiting for
Helldiver to give the CPU back.

>Note: 
>   I used DIR in a MS-DOS window to get the statistics on the
>newsgroup. It also took awhile to scan. However, during that time the BBS
>was still active and operational.

DOS sessions multi-task in a different way that doesn't require the CPU
to be yielded, so Windows automatically pre-empts DIR to do other things.
It can't pre-empt Windows apps however.  This is fixed in Windows NT
apparently (and in OS/2 of course), but for now it is a fact of life. :-(

Never fear, something shall be done.

Cheers,

Rhys.

-- 
Rhys Weatherley, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.   G'day!!
e-mail: rhys@meteor.brisnet.org.au (normal) or rhys@cs.uq.oz.au (long msgs)