Help me, Windows 98SE not cooperating

[WhiskeySugar]

I am working at an internet cafe that is running a win2k pro machines, and win 98. The win98 machines give me veeeery poor client restrictions, and most clients change settings all the time. Can anyone give me some tips on how to make their lives abit miserable? Another problem is that we are using a network printer. When I try to setup the printer on the win98 machines, it does not give me the option to enter a TCP/IP port. It only displays LPT1 to LPT6,and the COM ports. How can I configure this printer on the win98 machines without having to use a shared printer on another win2k pro machine?
PS. The network is a LAN and we use a workgroup, not a domain and Login is local to each machine. Please help. Thanx

[nihil]

Hi,

WIN 98se is a "single workstation" domestic OS. It is obsolete. In its day NT4 was the commercial product.

I really do not think that there is much you can do. There may be commercial software that would help, but you really ought to do a "cost benefit analysis" on the alternatives between trying to shore up an unsupported OS and upgrading.

You can probably hide a lot of the options, but that will not stop anyone who knows what they are doing, and may not be good for business. If I am paying for a service I want it "my way" or I go elsewhere?


Cheers

[SDK]

Check this site. http://www.deepfreezeusa.com/

Nice little program!

[creative_32X_mx]

Upgrade the system runnin win98..
Unless have you tried file and print sharing?
Enable that, maybe it might help, not sure myself actually.

There's my two ideas, not to sure if there gonna be helpful
Anyhow cheers and hope that you sort this problem out...

[bpiedlow]

As far as the 'settings' go, I'd have to agree with SDK on this one. If you are not willing to upgrade to a more secure OS, you should get a 3rd party program to handle locking in the settings - and deepfreeze is one of the better ones I've seen.

As far as linking to a 'network' printer that is NOT shared off another system with Win98se - this is not easily accomplished and I'd again suggest getting a 3rd party app to help handle it. One that requires only a little bit of extra hardware (if not included internally on the printer) would be to use something like 'jetdirect'. This will let you create another port that is pointing to the IP address, the port will then show up in your list of LPTs and COMs.

Here's a site that lists most of the available JetDirect printing accesories:
http://www.pricegrabber.com/search_a...a1f9915c7c4770

RRP

[Nokia]

By the time you have bought a 3rd party app and installed/configured it it would have proberbly been easier to upgrade!!

[Tiger Shark]

The Win98 machines are probably running Win98 for a reason...... They can't run 2000/XP..... Ditch them, but cheap newer machines and write it off against the cost of the business....

[nihil]

TigerShark has raised an interesting alternative

If you have to run 98se, and you cannot run one of the more modern operating systems, why not go to NT 4.0? It is of the same era, and will actually run on kit that 98se will not (well effectively anyway...I have run 98se on a 386!), and NT4.0 works just fine on a PI/75.

NT4.0 is the version of NT before Win2k...........if you hunt around in the text files of 2k, you will find it described as "NT5.0"

My point is that you will get better potential security integration between NT4.0 and NT5.0 (aka Win2k), than any 9.x home system and a professional one?

Just a few additional thoughts (and a bit of lateral thinking, that I should have applied previously!)

Cheers

[Und3ertak3r]

I agree upgrade the OS..

For the technical exercice: and wasted time

There is software for InternetCafe's..
Also many "User Adjustments" can be disabled in the registry, as well as regedit etc..
but it is mucking around.. check the tutorials.. there was one on registry mods earlier this year.. also visit http://www.winguides.com/registry/ you may get some hints here..

cheers

[Tiger Shark]

Nihil: I'm not _just_ a pretty face you know.....

It's the best way to go..... Insecure machines with physical access is a disaster waiting to happen..... let's talk liability.......