64 bit Vista

[techidave]

A friend just recently got a new Dell computer running Vista 64 bit.  She is trying to install an older program but it will not let install it.  Says something about the cd is not compatible with the 64 bit cannot be installed.

I have been googling the problem but cannot find the right "keywords" to get the reponse I need.

Any thoughts?

[techidave]

 Maybe I finally found it after all.  Some will install and some wont.  If its 16 bit it won't install.  Not sure what this particular software is or how to tell what it is.

oh well.  If anyone has more info to add to, please do so.

[f0dder]

64bit Windows versions don't support 16bit programs - this includes all DOS stuff, as well as win3.x style 16bit windows programs. This was a natural thing to drop support for, considering x86-64 doesn't support running 16bit code, and Microsoft would then have needed a CPU emulator. And not a big issue, since most people won't have a need for running that old legacy code.

However, the funny part: for whatever moronic reason, some of the various installation programs chose to write their installer stubs as 16bit code, even for programs that are meant for 32bit systems. This is a pretty braindead thing, and unfortunately does affect some programs. I'm not sure if there's any official fixes, but fortunately I haven't needed to install old software in quite a while - the programs I might have had problems with generally don't need reinstalls, and have thus survived numerous windows reinstalls (copy c:\usr\prg to another partition, move back after reinstall).

[Stoic Joker]

Along the lines of what f0dder just said (I was thinking 16bit installer issue also) you can try doing a Rip-Over. Just install the prog on a (preferably clean) x86 machine, and then copy the program's install folder over to the x64 box.

If the main executable runs at all (e.g. doesn't throw a "eek I'm 16bit error") you should be able to piece the rest of it together. Some run just fine as is, and some require chasing down a .dll or two from system files to get it going. Any dlls that have to be tracked down should be copied to the programs install folder, not the windows system folders (keeps'em portable, and prevents conflicts with other apps).

Also it doesn't hurt to grab the program's main registry keys in case they contain something it needs to start.

[nite_monkey]

I know it is a crappy method, but you can do what I do and run a copy of xp 32 bit in a virtual machine. I'm running xp 64 bit, and almost nothing in the world like 64 bit, so I have to install what wont run in my virtual machine. (though if it is a game, you are pretty much SOL)

[Cloq]

I believe Microsoft allows anyone to download and use virtual PC 2007 for free (yes MS offers 32bit and 64bit versions).

Click to download MS Virtual PC 2007

You may want to do a quick read on MS Virutal PC 2007 and see if it meets your needs.

Wiki on MS Virtual PC 2007

[mwb1100]

Hmm, Microsoft was supposed to have the 64-bit OS's detect 16-bit installers and just emulate what they do (which is usually detect if you're running on a 16-bit Windows or not & launch the 16-bit or 32-bit installer as appropriate).  I guess they don't do a great job with that (it might actually be a pretty difficult job to cover all the variations).

Anyway, one thing you can possibly do is spelunk around the program's installation media and see if you can find a 32-bit installer.  As I mentioned, generally all the 16 bit component does is determine what's running and launch the 32-bit installer (assuming it detects something newer than Win95).