Managing Windows ME & XP, each in a separate partition

I have always assumed that
1) one cannot open an application installed under one Operating System
from the other. Violating this rule can mess up the OS.
2) however data files can be accessed from either Operating System
Are these assumptions true?

The question now I have is: How is the RAM managed? Is it completely
cleared when each OS is closed and is the whole of it available to the
other OS when that is opened? Or is part of the RAM used as an
overhead for inter-OS accesses of data, for example?
If I access a graphics file stored in the ME partition from an
application on the XP partition, is the RAM messed up?

P. Jayant

Each OS manages Ram and Virtual Memory. Yes, Ram is completely cleared
and is not an issue. I
have XP Pro, WinMe and Mandrake10 Linux on the same hard drive. Linux
uses a swap partition for
virtual memory.
"jayant" <pjayant@vsnl.com> wrote in message
news:438eb939.0406290050.4e159353@posting.google.c om...

> I have always assumed that
> 1) one cannot open an application installed under one Operating System
> from the other. Violating this rule can mess up the OS.
> 2) however data files can be accessed from either Operating System
> Are these assumptions true?
>
> The question now I have is: How is the RAM managed? Is it completely
> cleared when each OS is closed and is the whole of it available to the
> other OS when that is opened? Or is part of the RAM used as an
> overhead for inter-OS accesses of data, for example?
> If I access a graphics file stored in the ME partition from an
> application on the XP partition, is the RAM messed up?
>
> P. Jayant

But could you enlighten me if the two assumptions I have been making
are true or false? Thanks for your comment.

P. Jayant

"Rich Barry" <rbarry@NOTsocal.rr.com> wrote in message news:<#48voGgXEHA.952@TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl>...

> Each OS manages Ram and Virtual Memory. Yes, Ram is completely cleared
> and is not an issue. I
> have XP Pro, WinMe and Mandrake10 Linux on the same hard drive. Linux
> uses a swap partition for
> virtual memory.
> "jayant" <pjayant@vsnl.com> wrote in message
> news:438eb939.0406290050.4e159353@posting.google.c om...

But could you enlighten me if the two assumptions I have been making
are true or false? Thanks for your comment.

P. Jayant

"Rich Barry" <rbarry@NOTsocal.rr.com> wrote in message news:<#48voGgXEHA.952@TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl>...

> Each OS manages Ram and Virtual Memory. Yes, Ram is completely cleared
> and is not an issue. I
> have XP Pro, WinMe and Mandrake10 Linux on the same hard drive. Linux
> uses a swap partition for
> virtual memory.
> "jayant" <pjayant@vsnl.com> wrote in message
> news:438eb939.0406290050.4e159353@posting.google.c om...

Greetings --

1) You're correct, but for the wrong reason. No harm is likely to
come to either OS, but the attempt simply won't work. The
applications that you've installed under WinMe, for example, generally
will not run from WinXP because there are no relevant registry entries
or any of the necessary system files installed to the WinXP side.
Similarly, apps installed on under WinXP will not run from WinMe, for
the same reasons. The only exceptions would be any small,
self-contained executables that need no registry entries or access to
any system files, such as *dlls.

2) You're correct, _if_ the data is stored on a partition which has
been formatted in a file system compatible with both operating
systems. As WinMe cannot read WinXP's far superior NTFS file system,
any data you want to share between the two operating systems will have
to be kept on a less fault-tolerant and totally unsecurable FAT32
partition.

The RAM and other computer resources will be controlled by
whatever OS is active at the time, and there will be no influence from
the dormant OS. Naturally, as you reboot (Shutdown & Restart) the
computer to switch operating systems, anything in RAM is cleared as
part of the normal shutdown sequence.

Bruce Chambers
--
Help us help you:
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You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. - RAH


"jayant" <pjayant@vsnl.com> wrote in message
news:438eb939.0406290050.4e159353@posting.google.c om...

> I have always assumed that
> 1) one cannot open an application installed under one Operating

System

> from the other. Violating this rule can mess up the OS.
> 2) however data files can be accessed from either Operating System
> Are these assumptions true?
>
> The question now I have is: How is the RAM managed? Is it completely
> cleared when each OS is closed and is the whole of it available to

the

> other OS when that is opened? Or is part of the RAM used as an
> overhead for inter-OS accesses of data, for example?
> If I access a graphics file stored in the ME partition from an
> application on the XP partition, is the RAM messed up?
>
> P. Jayant