Users of earlier versions of OS/2 or of Microsoft Windows may not feel entirely at home when they first start the system. The graphical user interface (GUI) they are familiar with has been replaced by an object-oriented user interface (OOUI) which, while providing a clear, logical layout is very different. In general, if a user thinks about objects rather than programs, he will find it much easier to learn to use the WPS interface to its full extent.
One of the big differences is that previously a user could start a new application, browse through the menus and scan the possible choices. This way it was fast and fairly easy to grasp the various functions of a program. With the Workplace Shell, however, many functions are not program-specific functions any more but general capabilities of almost all objects. It also means that certain functions are not needed any more in menus; they just exist as OS/2 functions. For example, the choice of a color or a font does not need to be in the menus of each program, the System Setup folder provide all the choices the user needs.
If a user prefers the style of OS/2 Version 1.3 he can customize the system through the use of the .RC files that come with the installation diskettes. The procedure is fairly simple and can be done after the completion of a normal installation:
MAKEINI OS2.INI OS2_13.RC
If you want to change back just follow the same procedure but make the OS2.INI modification with the command:
MAKEINI OS2.INI OS2_20.RC
You should note, however, that the MAKEINI command generates a new OS2.INI file from the resource files which were shipped with the system. This means that the OS2.INI file is restored to the same state as when OS/2 V2.0 was first installed and any customization performed by the user, either to the Workplace Shell or the PM 1.3 shell, will be lost.