Best way to run DOS programs (specifically WordPerfect) in Windows 7

The forum system suggested that as this related thread (Is there a way to make a DOS program work on Windows 7?) is 286 days old, that I should start anew.

I have a friend who, like so many, has recently upgraded from Windows XP to Windows 7.

She has a preference for WordPerfect 6.1, which is a DOS program and therefore will not run on 64bit Windows 7.

I believe there are three options:

1) A specially modified version of DOSBox
(see WPDOS - WPDOS for 64-bit Windows: the DOSBox-Based WP-64 Method)

2) Install 'XP mode' (a full XP SP3)
running within 'Windows Virtual PC'.

3) Install VirtualBox with an XP guest.
(I do have a spare new copy of XP)

Option 1) is most likely the smallest and possibly the most efficient in terms of system resource usage. And it allows for startup by dragging a file onto the desktop shortcut.

Option 2) has the downside of running a full copy of XP which will become increasingly vulnerable,
and is a lot of bloat for one application.

Option 3), like Option 2), is a lot of system for one small program.

Option 2) (via Windows updates) and Option 3) (assuming VB on Windows offers updates like it does on GNU/Linux) will receive semi-automatic updates to the virtualization system. Option 1) will require manual updates, but is arguably less vulnerable as it only runs DOS software.

I'm leaning towards Option 1).

And this comment also suggests Option 1) is 'best':

On the other hand, some oddness does occur when you run old software on new systems (like things running VERY fast, so dosbox is considered to be a better way to run dos era applications on modern systems - even good old games uses it for their commercial releases.

(https://superuser.com/questions/2701...-on-new-laptop)

Option 2) might seem the next best until you read this from Microsoft:

...to keep your Windows 7 PC secure after April 8, 2014, we recommend that you only use Windows XP Mode if your PC is disconnected from the Internet.

I don't know if turning off networking within XP will be enough to keep it secure.

Also, is 'XP mode' so tightly integrated with W7 that a successful breach in XP will expose W7?

First off, let's say the obvious, options 2 and 3 are exactly the same, as they both run XP on a virtual machine, while the differences are just on how those are setup or if it came prebuillt.

Speaking of DOS programs, the absolutely best way to run it is DosBox, as it has been specifically designed to run those programs in an stable environment, emulating as closely as possible the real DOS thing. Problem with XP and more important in Win7 are that those were actively trying to dump DOS support and many such programs no longer work or have problems.

DosBox also provides the advantage of reading/writing to the real filesystem on the host (though mounted drives) so you can point Wordperfect to save files and those will end up in a real directory instead of a drive image.

Many thanks for the replies.

@andrew129260
Regarding turning off networking, I didn't make myself clear. What I meant was, if I turn off networking within XP, but I'm still connected to the internet in Windows7 (the host), is XP fully isolated or is there a way in via W7?
I'm not so much concerned about damage to XP, but what if an attack on XP via W7 can then be used to compromise W7. I'm thinking back to the bad old days when, if something like Word crashed, it took the whole OS down.

@A Guy
Some handy gotcha pointers in that link. Thank you.

@Alejandro85
Yes, I've been leaning towards DosBox. Although a bit put off by the long install full of pitfalls (WPDOS - WPDOS for 64-bit Windows: the DOSBox-Based WP-64 Method). Think I might try XP mode first, as it's relatively straight forward, and go for DOSBox, or vDOS (see below) if XP mode doesn't work.

Since posting and reading replies I've discovered vDOS:
vDos: a new system for running WPDOS under Windows
I plan to experiment, but I'd be grateful for any thoughts...
My concern here is that, unlike the DOSBox install which is done file-by-file into non-system 'user' folders, vDOS involves a .exe installer. So I don't know where the files are going or if the usual Windows uninstaller will work if things go wrong.

The install program of Edward Mendelson for the WPDos – vDos combination lets you choose where to install. Essentially it’s the same “file-by-file into non-system 'user' folders “ copy w/o Windows dependencies. No uninstall, you can simply delete the folder where it was installed.
Your friend will be in for a pleasant surprise the first time using it.
At vDos | Free Business & Enterprise software downloads at SourceForge.net you’ll find two screenshots of vDos running WPDos, mind they are not that crisp due to the JPEG compression.