PCjs Machines
Shares rank 14 of 20 emulators by recommenders
People recommend it for running classic DOS and Windows software in a browser window. The most common caveat is sound cutting out.
People recommend it for running classic DOS and Windows software in a browser window. The most common caveat is sound cutting out.
6 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 5
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 83%
Recommended in 2 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 5 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 5 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 2 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Runs old PC software in a browser
“I just built a demo of a tiny 16 bit windows GUI applet, using emulated VB in Win 3.1 in a browser”
Comment from 22 Jul 2026 in “PCjs Machines” “inside an entire emulated machine in Javascript in a browser window”
Comment from 21 Jul 2026 in “PCjs Machines” “wow, even debug.com/exe works.”
Comment from 21 Jul 2026 in “PCjs Machines”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Sound cuts out
“The sound was cutting out though.”
Comment from 21 Jul 2026 in “PCjs Machines”
Other emulators people recommend
The four most recommended other emulators, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
See all 20 emulators, rankedWhat people said
6 of the 7 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“I just built a demo of a tiny 16 bit windows GUI applet, using emulated VB in Win 3.1 in a browser”
“I did not find any volume knob in time for Dune II to finish booting”
“inside an entire emulated machine in Javascript in a browser window”
“The sound was cutting out though.”
“wow, even debug.com/exe works.”
“I cannot wait to sit my kids down in front of full-screen Oregon Trail and King's Quest experiences.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.