is there a way to change the ip address for a network adapter on a win 9x computer without restarting like it is done in win 2k or XP?

not used older OS for a few years but as recall its either winipconfig or winipcfg in the RUN box..hope this helps ya

Run...

IPCONFIG /release_all
then change your IP, and then run...
IPCONFIG /renew_all

or run...

WINIPCFG /release_all
then change your IP, and then run...
WINIPCFG /renew_all

HTH

You can also just run WINIPCFG and click the buttons "Release All" and "Renew All".

Input the new network configuration, press No when asked to reboot. Go to Control Panel and disable your network adapter. Enable it back.