FBGFX makes larger exe's, has an ugly refresh rate.
The original tinyptc by gaffer also has problems.
There is a version of tinyptc available only on this forum called tinyptc_ext which adds functionality to tinyptc and fixes things such as the refresh rate and compatibility with mmx.
However don't expect an easy time if you are going to use tinyptc, as essentially all it allows you to do is to plot pixels and update a double buffered screen with a chunk of memory.
For those of us who like to code our own routines for drawing graphics, lines, circles, text etc though it is really really cool and although it's been said by Jim before, I'll echo him. It's the best library available for creating oldschool software rendered intros.
If you want an easier time, stick to fbgfx or sdl or something like that, there's nothing wrong with them. (apart from the file size and/or shit refresh)
A lot of people here (including me) use older versions of freebasic, you should be able to compile Hotshots example using -lang deprecated
hth