The following section details changes that can affect programs originally
written with ACUCOBOL-85
Version 2.4.
Support for 16-bit MS-DOS compilers and runtimes has been eliminated. Support
remains for 32-bit (Extended) DOS systems and for 32-bit and 16-bit Windows systems. This change does not
affect the formal capabilities of ACUCOBOL-GT, but it does have some practical
consequences.
Primary among these is that ACUCOBOL-GT no longer supports the dynamic loading and linking of assembly language routines. Version 2.4 runtimes (and earlier) for 16-bit MS-DOS provided support for calling assembly language routines directly with the CALL verb. In ACUCOBOL-GT Version 3.1 and later, if you want to use an assembly language routine you must link it directly into the ACUCOBOL-GT runtime in the same way that C routines are included (see Appendix C).
Users who require 16-bit DOS support should use Version 2.4.