Windows 98 or ME?

[xmaddness]

Windows ME?!? *shudders at the thought*

Well, alot of people have said that 98se it the way to go. I completely agree. The ME OS is basically a bloated 98 anyway. Some of the differences between 98 and ME are as follows:

• The Windows ME operating system has a new upgraded system protections (ya right)
• The M$ Sytem restore automatically updates and backs up the registry and other system files when the system is idle, about every 10 hours of up-time. This same feature also doesn't allow the user to delete critical system files. (okay, A program screwed up the registry with out me knowing about two days ago. Can i revert back to it? Nope, The OS has already re-backed itself up with the bad registry like 6 times by now. Good job M$.)
• System File protection: If you delete anything in the Programs Folder, Windows ME will make a compressed image of the deleted files, just in case you need them again. It will also prevent older programs from writing over newer .dll files. (not always a good thing, what happens if one was a non-standard .dll and is corrupt? BSOD!)
• Boot to DOS? Nope, don't think so. You can use a VDM (virtual dos machine), but its very limited. You also can't use any 16-bit device drivers for older games. The autoexec.bat and config.sys files are obsolete now and don't allow any drivers, TSR's or any other USEFUL things to be loaded.

Well, those are just a few of the changes with the ME Operating system. Some others are more help options and more description boxes.

As far as games are involved, I would suggest using 98se. Win2k and XP are also good to use, but as others have said, they won't allow older DOS games to play. The reason? Older DOS games were written to have sole use of all the hardware resources and wanted to control them directly. In the true 32-bit OS's like win2k, NT, and XP this is an absolute no no. This is one of the reasons they are som much more stable. They don't allow ANY program to access the hardware directly. Everything goes through the HAL (Hardware Abstraction Layer)

Well, I hope this helped clear up WHY ME blows.

xmaddness

[cheesegoduk]

Yeah I was a bit worried about microsoft stopping the updates because it is a usuful way of keeping windows up to date, I just had to update my windows 95 pc to windows 98, because they were no longer supporting it, Not sure thought if they will do it for windows 98,even if the time runs out. A recent servey by google says that about 50% of hits they get are from windows 98 users, with any luck things like this might persude microsoft to keep it going but knowing microsoft probally not

Also yeah that is probally the must annoying thing I have heard about windows ME, that it does'nt allow being reset into DOS mode, DOS mode saved this pc's life when it's hard disk went wrong once and we could'nt get into windows because a of a damage hard disk. We had to get a parallel cable(no joke!) and use a program to transfer over all our info to another pc that way then format this one and then send them back over. With Windows ME what if that happened again?

[emrys]

98 all the way get 2k if u can but 98 is way better than ME...me is one of the biggest shits ever

[captfb]

Go with Win 98SE not ME. But I have not heard any problems with 2000/XP and gaming. Also make sure you have copies of all the drivers prior to reimaging the machine. (NIC, modem, HD controller etc) You may even want to read up on Norton Ghost and copy an image to a hard-drive prior to reimaging. Hope this helps!

[Fakeboy]

If you are planning to run games, just stick with Windows 98. Windows 98 will be compatible with the newer games being released, and it is also compatible with the games released for 95. Shiznit, you can even get away with playing DOS games on 98. Just my opinion.... I use Windows XP on my Windows machine, but I really do suggest 98 on any system meant for gaming. It is also easier to find 9x drivers also....

[kewlphatdude]

win 98se or make a dual boot

[xmaddness]

Cheesegoduk, WinME does include a copy of the io.sys, msdos.sys, and command.com to boot into real-mode dos (boot dos before windows), but you have to make the boot disk yourself. Get a blank floopy disc and copy the entire contents of the \windows\command\EBD folder to the disk and then boot from that. This will get you to the DOS prompt in winME. But I still don't like the fact that they did away with booting to dos from the F8 Start menu.

Also having to connect thru parrallel has got to be the last option, heh.. For more on saving your computer from a crash check my tut here at AO. Win Emergency Boot Disks. Cheers

x

[vvirtho]

I don't have any experience with ME but from all I've read (including all replies to this topic) and my experience with 98se - I'd definitely stick with 98se. I have been spending quite a bit of time lately tweaking that OS. If you want to get the most out of 98, why not use the updated system files from ME? There is a complete list of tested files which can be replaced with the upgraded ones at: http://members.aol.com/axcel216/newtip.htm#HOME
NOTE: There is a warning that replacing the files will void your MS warranty (if you care!). The listing is under the tip entitled: "Killer Replacements: ME -> 98 SE". Axcel216 has all sorts of information to get 98 running at its peak, plus I've found various other sources for additional bug fixes, tips and tweaks. If I were you, I would base my decision on which OS the person who will be using it, would be more comfortable with. Thanks for listening.

[illv]

win98 has always been relyable for me.

illv//

[ahmedmamuda]

for me, I prefare XP and Windows 98se.
this should go better for ya games, great for gaming