Hi everyone! I'm new here!

what is this forum all about? i was looking my favourite Operating system Microsoft Windows 98 on Wikipedia and i was directed here from there from one of hte few links listed.

alot of people literally disregard Win98 as obselete, but i take that as an insult, as i am very much still in love with windows 98, even though i dont have the greatest experience with it like you lot, but i know it is one of the best OS's there was, just like IE6 was never changed for many years.

i have been reading about the OS, and i know apprantly it cant take alot of the newer stuff that is in the market today.

but before i go into that, what am i to expect in this forum? and through all these threads, yes i know it may seem silly to be asking this, but i really love the Os and thus after seeing this site, i thought i could gain some knowlege here.

also! i am literally building a computer with top specs, and i was hoping to use Microsoft windows 98(SE) on it, as i know i can probably gain even more potential with it than with a computer from a year ago.

i would really appreciate it if anyone can help me here, and to know alot more htan wat i already know of the operating system that i and all of us dearly beloved.

thanks, and will look forward form hearing you lot.

Please do not post the same topic in multiple forums. Other topic has been trashed.

The easy way? All roads these days are mostly covered for you by using -

http://www.msfn.org/board/Auto_Patcher_Win...ish_t80800.html

A new version is being released shortly so don't go downloading that big thing yet. It should be up quite shortly. Don't sit and wait, but from reading the thread it looks like it's coming soon.

But, other nice things are the Tihiy Revolution Pack, the Kernel Update Project, and smaller specific collections by Maximus-Decim.

But, the Unofficial Auto-Patcher for Windows 98SE is kind of an all in one with the oldest to most recent patches, which also avoids installing out of date useless patches which have been replaced by newer unofficial ones that actually do what they're supposed to. Use instead of Windows Update when starting fresh or even on an old installation that you want to make sure has all the best patches installed. It won't reinstall stuff you already have. Quite nice.

Besides that, you can ask for help, search for things that have been covered already, etc.

Welcome aboard!

What's that supposed to mean? If you didn't know, IE6 wasn't updated for many years not because of how great it was, but because M$ had as good as achieved a monopoly on the web browser share.

ohh right. cool.

well may i ask, is this Auto-Patcher like a or 'the' replacement of the ordinary Windows Update? or will i need to still use Windows Update and then install the Auto Patcher?

more or less, can i give me a brief summary of what it is exactly? thanks.

and if intrested, my computer specs are going to be:

Intel Core 2 duo E6600
Asus P5B Deluxe /WIFI (gives a good idea wat to expect)
2GB DDR2 RAM Crucial Ballistix
500GB Seagate SATA Hard Drive
2 DVD -/+ R Drives (one of them HD-Burn)
(the obvious) Floppy disk drive
7600 GT (or hopefully a 8800 GTS) graphic card

hope that helps.

i will come back with more

ohmss006 :

Re-read Eck's post above, since I whole-heartedly agree with his recommendations. Start with the AutoPatch thread (no, you do not need to use Windows Update; read thread and you will see why). Then (based upon your shiny new computer specs - WOOHOO!) go from there to other threads as Eck suggests. You have the potential need for additional advice and specific drivers not included in AutoPatch. You will get pointers to the correct threads from there.

I also recommend that future postings related to your requirements/questions be done in the associated threads instead of here. You will get faster and more specific responses. Therefore, no need for subsequent responses/comments in this thread.
Peace!

Agreed.

well thank you very much sir, my computer is nearly and i do plan to install Windows 98SE. instead of a copied disc to be given, i will refuse to do so and buy an original from eBay.

and once installing, may i ask, will i be able to gain the stability without having any problems with very new devices as XP would wen installing all these things?

because according to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_98#Disadvantages

companies who make new devices and hardware wont work properly or just wont work at all on the operating system. from this site, will i be able to overcome that may i ask?

I commend your intention to go for Win98SE and it well supported by 'unofficial' updates on this forum.

But you should undestand that there is no such thing as a perfect operating system! There are bad or careless - and sometimes deliberate bad - writes because programmers are only human.

Good luck!

ohh i am very aware of that sir, i know fo a fact that when i mention XP, i never intended it as a perfect operating system, infact, since its release, i have been hating it for a long time, only till wen SP2 came out, i was starting to get the hand of it.

my heart will always be with windows 98 (very similar and the better version of Win 95 hehehehe), and the Second Edition won my vote with someone's and Wiki's information.

but as i said, will i be able to do thnigs on Win98SE as i would with XP when taking all info (updates and patches) from this site?

and thanks again!

Not just yet but Xeno86 is working on it here
and hopefully Win98SE will eventuallybe able to do anything you thrown at it

really?

wow, man thats just love right there!

but for and at the moment, from what i said and wat u quoted on me, can it be done then?

as in (sorry for that confusing reply), at lest some of the things that 98 can do like XP can?

That depends on exactly what you are looking for really from XP in 98.

Driver support: Starting to lack as more newer hardware without usable driver supports is released. However, there are more and more unofficial drivers being released to avoid such an issue. I see you are using a 7800 Nvidia, perhaps you might wish to try the unofficial or the slightly more recent nvidia drivers in one of two threads in this forum.

Features: Can do (almost everything) winxp and do and sometimes more depending on your needs/wants. It may not be as new but it still has full DOS-Support which is especially useful if you still like to play older games and even more useful if you play them online at places like KALI.

Some programs will not work (yet) on 98 if they are writen for XP but as stated previously, Xeno's KernelEX is starting to solve that issue with MANY programs. The very first incarnation of it allowed win98 to fluently load some 2k/xp only games such as doom3 and quake 4 to work without editing the main game file itself.

If you want to get it to as close to XP as possible in appearance , perhaps TIhiy's revolutions pack would whet your whistle. ot only makes it olook and feel like XP but version 7 even gives it more of a VISTA feel as well.

Furthermore, using the 98->ME service pack installed some of the better / more stable millenium files into 98 to add features from ME into 98 without losing stability.


I hope that helped give the info you needed. If I'd missed out on something just ask.

Final notes: However, I would do some research on your current hardware and get any hardware drivers you might need first before going the plunge. Additionally, seeing as you are using a cure-duo, you will only end up using one of the two cores due to 98 not having support for multiple cores as of this time.

Yes, drivers for motherboards is a vital consideration. Read, read, read around here and you'll find some threads with specific motherboards that 98 can handle and those that don't. Make sure you can get your chipset drivers from your manufacturer that specifically support Windows 98SE. And since you're building yourself make sure you buy stuff like videocards, soundcards, Ethernet, etc that have 98SE drivers available. In nearly all of these cases that 98SE install cd will not provide you with acceptable performance with the old, old, old drivers it included. This was true even about 1999! That kind of thing you need to get from the manufacturers of your chosen hardware.

Then, as far as 98SE itself, that's the kind of thing you can find projects with updates for here, including that Unofficial Auto-Patcher for Windows 98SE thread, the 98SE2ME thread (only helps if you have a Windows Me cd), and the 98MP10 thread.

Then of course you should get software for your needs that is 98SE compatible.

sorry for the late reply, i take your reply itself into great consideration.

by the way, it is a 7600 Gt i am using, not the 7800 GT. honest mistake, i know.

as u have mentioned that it can do almost everything as XP does, will it though run at a more effiencent speed than XP? or in a buggy, slower way perhaps?

and yes, knowing i am on Dual Core, i was hoping we can find a way to make Microsoft Windows 98(SE) reconise the 2 cores, which to my opinion, be HEAVEN to all of us! who else agrees to that may i ask?

also, dont forget, i have a 500GB SATA Hard Drive, i have been told that the OS will not work on it.

and lastly, i have heard there is a way to overcome the large RAM size, but even doing use, will u be actually using hte full power of the 2GB of RAM? or will u be just like emulating 512MB on 2GB of RAM instead?

anyone at all?

sorry for this ongoing reply, and i do apologize for my previous reply as it did not refer to Eck's post here as i was typing my own at the same time whereas he got his in beofe mine.

anyone?

Generally it will run faster, because it's less demanding of your system.

I don't. Dual cores are overrated. They're another component of the plan to keep up the perpetual upgrade cycle. Single-core CPUs are fast enough for most people already. It's like they're trying to push a Ferrari to everyone when a regular car is just fine.

In any case, it is not possible to make Windows 98 recognise the two cores, unless someone can modify the kernel and who knows what other components necessary.

SATA hard drives are a problem most of the time, as Windows 98 doesn't have drivers for it. However, if your BIOS has an option to provide IDE compatibility, you may be able to use it anyway, just not with the advantages of SATA.

Windows 98 will not be able to read/write past 137 GB until you install the fix developed by LLXX. Note that this is a drive limit, not a partition limit. Partitioning your drive into five 100 GB partitions (is that even possible?) will not fix it.

That depends on if your BIOS supports that much. There have been many reports of people using more than 512 MB RAM, and for some it works, others have to apply a work-around for part of the RAM.

Just to mention that I've never been able to use more than 1 gb of RAM on my system even using all kind of tricks to limit the size that Win98 can recognize.
So really, as BenoitRen said, it really depends of your config. Try and see.

As for your graphic card, try Zak's drivers or 82.69 drivers avaible here.

PS: if you're afraid of losing functionnalities over XP, just make a dual-boot with both systems. That's what I do (XP for latest programs that needs it/98 for everyday use). You'll see how fast win9x really is.

well, if u look at my upcoming system specs, im sure u will have a good idea on how it will run, thus me wanting to know about it.



how can u possibly think that Dual-Core processors are overrated? they are another component that is there to help and upgrading using it is just optional. when it comes to running Adobe Premiere Pro 2 or 3DS Max on an operating system, then i do think i would like 2 cores thank you very much, and running that on Windows 98 (with less demand on the operating system), yes that would be heaven.

and i think i should start a new thread on this site to see if anyone would be interested in wanting to modify the kernal for it to reconise the 2 cores, donations will be handy as well. what do u think?

SATA hard drives are a problem most of the time, as Windows 98 doesn't have drivers for it. However, if your BIOS has an option to provide IDE compatibility, you may be able to use it anyway, just not with the advantages of SATA.



well, i only plan to partition hte whole drive as one whole, no other partition whatsoever. if i want so, then i will get another hard drive then. and what are the advantages of SATA by the way?



even im sure there is a work around it for large quantities of RAM, will i still be able to use the use power of 2GB?

Optional? I wish. Pentium IV processors are getting faded out, as well as single-core AMD processors. Just like you can't buy 32-bit processors anymore except for the Pentium IV. They're trying to mass-market their latest advancements as usual.

Companies don't bother optimising their programs and making them run efficiently anymore. Then we get people complaining about how slow something runs, and instead of blaming the software, they blame it on the hardware not being fast enough. It's sad, really.

What is also often forgotten is that the processor isn't the only thing that determines the speed. In the case of 3DS Max, a good graphics card is a must, not just a good processor. A friend of mine can tell some good real life stories about this.

Note also that I said for most people.

I think it'll be quite hard until the source code is available.

At least with Via boards, the IDE mode for Sata (on the later boards that have that available) is not workable unless you're using XP or Vista (or Linux, he, he). Only the Sata mode with the Via Sata/Raid driver (even though you're not using Raid) works on 98SE. This can be installed once the operating system is setup and you've booted for the first time to the desktop.

This always worked for me with Sata drives, except for the last time when I didn't install the Via Hyperion right away. I think that was my mistake and why once I did, the partition table was corrupted. Gotta install the driver immediately upon the first desktop.

Sata with the driver is actually better than ATA since you'll be able to use the whole large drive. Just make sure you go into msconfig and deactivate running Scandisk on bad shutdowns. Scandisk's thorough mode and Disk Defragmenter as shipped with 98SE are not compatible with large drives. Gotta use substitutes. I used Norton Utilities 2002.

I kind of think what you're building there is a bit too modern for problems with 98SE to not arise. As much as I love 98SE, a nice XP Pro SP2 would love that board. Just use Classic themes if you like the old look. Then run 98SE on either VMWare or Virtual PC and use Dosbox natively on XP for your MS-DOS game fix.

More power to you if you manage to get all that hardware and drivers to work stable on 98SE. It could work, as some have done it on modern boards. And it sure would be zippy as 9x has less overhead than XP. But really, that kind of hardware has no problem being zippy with XP running it and today's drivers are about as optimized as they're going to get for XP. (Manufacturers are soon going to be concentrating on Vista, but that's okay for XP since whatever they can get out of XP with their hardware at this point, they're getting.)

I've just had too many headaches the last few years when I've tried 98SE on even my AthlonXP 3200+ Socket A boards. It might just be the speedy processors, let alone the gig of Ram. Things work for a bit then fart out on me. Yet I can run XP, Vista, or OpenSuSE Linux 10.2 without a hitch. And I've used the patches and recommendations available for 98SE in I think an intelligent way. 9x is just designed for slower processors and less memory.

Sometimes the tweaks and patches work and sometimes they don't.

I've moved on to a Vista dual-boot with Linux. The Vista performance, for me, reminds me of when I started with XP, and dual-booted with 98SE. It was an Abit KT7A with an Athlon T-Bird 1.2 and 512MB SDRAM. XP was sluggish. Vista runs this now older board (the AthlonXP 3200+ and a gig of DDR RAM on the Epox Socket A) and hardware a bit sluggishly, with plenty of waiting for all the previous version imaging and indexing to finish their hard drive thrashing before I move on to my next task. But that's really just when installing stuff or making large changes. Vista has run nearly everything I've thrown at it so far. And I'm used to working with it already. I guess I don't mind the transition period, or working around new things.

Keep us informed on how it goes. I'm rooting for you being able to keep 98SE alive.

well, as for the whole RAID thing, i am not entirely sure about that, all i know is that my motherboard is an Asus P5B Deluxe, i dont know wat to look for to help resolve that question. also i am worried that when it comes to installing the OS, will it recognise the Hard drive in the first place?

also, i will refuse to use any kind of eumlator for the PC to run another operating system, cause there wouldnt be a point at all, and i HATE the classic look on windows XP, cause it still bloody does have the XP way on the theme.



whoa...okay then...i donty know if u were serious or one of the sarcastic kind (like myself), surely there are other people here and out there who literally is doing a much better job than i am. right?

anyone?

anyways, hi im back everyone! and i like to tell you, i am literally 1 part away, which is the PSU coming up in a day or so, and i was hoping now, if you lot can help me now on what to do exactly.

i was also hoping to use this thread for the newbies around here, so they can just pop in, and read along to know what to do.

now iw ill give the full ad once again my system specs:

Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 (to be overclocked to over 3GHZ)
Tuniq Tower 120
Asus P5B Deluxe WIFI
2GB DDR2-800 RAM Crucial Ballistix
500GB SATA Hard Drive
Floopy Disk Drive
2 DVD-/+R/W Drives
7600GT Nvidia Graphic Card
Noctua NC U6 or Thermaltake Extreme Spirit-II
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition

oh yes, that is my baby, and i dont know if anyone here has those sspecs running for Windows 98, but i intend to do htis from hte start, and because of htat, i want to do this right and perfect. as from what Wikipedia said, Windows 98 can gain on-par stability with newer or the latest OS already, and i hope this is correct, please someome tell me this.

so thus, can anyone, once again perhaps, tell me what to fo exactly when instaling Windows 98 on to these specs, cause i will be using the computer upstairs which the one im using now (with internet connection) downstairs, thus i dont want to be going up and down all the time, thus wanting to know what to do and what to get.

i would really appreciate it if anyone....can help me with this, this is it, and im being serious.

thanks again for hte previous ones, i will look forward to many more.

Excellent.

Heh, heh. I wasn't being sarcastic at all, but then did not mean for you to be the sole person to be a hero and all in keeping 98SE alive either. I was just wishing you success and hope that you will keep posting about your experience.

Since 98 was my first Windows and got so comfortable running it I have a soft spot for it and do not abandon this forum even though I've found it nearly impossible to run, in my experience, with my current hardware and the more modern software that I install. No problem running it in VMWare. But see, since I'm mostly on Linux now and also have Vista dual-booting with it, I'm really pretty much satisfied. Plus, there's a new VMWare now. For reasons I'd rather not get into I would need to pay full price for this now fully Vista and newer Linux Kernel compatible versions. It's a tad too much to spend for just running 98SE for nostalgia purposes on it.

I don't agree with you about running emulators. I use them for all my Nintendo stuff even though I own most of the games from the NES, SNES, and N64 period anyway. I just would rather play them on my computer and not split my cable TV signal with all the splitters. And there is almost no difference using Windows in a guest virtual machine from using it natively with the exception of 3D Direct X gaming.

So I root for folks to get 98SE going and relate their experiences so we all can gain from it and use the posts as a possible model for using 98 with current stuff. But if problems result, I wouldn't dismiss emulators. The technology is fantastic. The best combo if you wind up having problems getting 98SE working with your new system might be one of the fantastic Linux distributions (OpenSuSE 10.2, Fedora 7, Ubuntu/Kubuntu, etc, choosing one that works with all your hardware and has the tools you want) and VMWare for your 98SE fix. That way you wouldn't need to splurge on a new Windows license if you didn't want to use XP or Vista. Assuming you have a valid license for Windows 98SE and are willing to devote the learning time (which I've found to be worthwhile), you'd have everything you need.

I just like the updated Windows (Vista) so that's why I went the route that I did (Vista and Linux).

that is very interesting indeed, and it is glad to hear from you again.

i would like to see and hear from another person in this forum that has a PC with a near or close or even higher specs than what i have, running Microsoft Windows 98SE on their computer.

to my opinion, Microsoft Windows 98(SE) is probably or one of the best operating systems that Microsoft themselves have ever constructed, abd i am ever so happy to actually find and be a part of this forum as well. i have tried many times before to convince people that Windows 98 is the best but regardlessly, they disagree or dont believe it, and thus i want to prove them all WRONG! one of the matters is security. now if i am correct, if i install the AutoPatcher, will it give me every single patch, hotfixes, updates and so on ever created by microsoft? and in addition more that was created by ethuisasts? therefore will gain the exact same protection as from newer OS from microsft when they update them and not for Win 98?

also another thing, another way to protect my lovely upcoming computer, is to install Kaprinsky AntiVirus software, to which some would say, which is like the Fort Knox of all antivirus softwares out there. what do you think?

when i say i ont like emulators, i was refering to Virtual PC's, but emulators for consoles is a two thumbs up for me, especially the Saturn and Dreamcast, and PS2 emulators, as u can see, i am a SEGA fan and wanting and encouring for them to come back into the console business as right now it is not very competitive with the consoles right now, they all differ so differently that Sega could slip in and win it all. sorry for going off topic there.

also, as i said before, i intend to use Windows98SE on the whole Hard Drive with no other booting, as i am confident that i can anything on the Os as i would on XP, please back me up on this anyone please.

aaannnddd, i am thinking of starting a new thread called 'Help on Installing Microsoft Windows 98(SE) on my (new) system' Specs included, and hoping to get people to tell me how to do this and that to install the OS on the high specs i have to bypass them or how to work around them. u know what i mean i suppose. the 2GB of RAM, 500GB SATA HD, and a Dual Core CPU, as well and trying to put on directX10 and the new graphic cards as well etc.

about the Dual Core, i do again plan to make a new thread called 'Wanted! on those who wants Microsoft Windows 98(SE) running on Dual-Core processors', as in the 2 cores! hoping to get modders and kernal writers or whoever that wants to dedicate their time on making Windows 98 recognise the 2 cores on CPUs. how heavenly would that be? and what do you think about that too?

i dont know quite else what to say now, as i think ive said enough for thisd one post, hahahahaha, but im sure i will remember what i was ought to say, but i really need and want the help that i want to suceed on this, cause i really to intend to use my PC to do editing, encoding and 3D modelling and i want to use them in a error free system without any problems.

sorry if i said alot, it was quite enjoyable for me but in any case, please dont hesistate to say anything sir or anyone, we can do this!

Long Live Windows 98!!!

i cant see why there wouldnt be a problem with a 500g hdd, as long as you use the 48bit LBA patch you should be fine with that

You don't need anti-virus software if you have BRAIN.EXE.

wow, short answer from a long question. hahahaha.

anyways, about this patch, would it help resolve me installing Windows 98 on a big SATA Hard Drive? like is this a work around for it?

and what is BRAIN.EXE???

anyone else may i ask, can help me answer some of my questions that i asked above?

also may i ask, what else am i to expect that might prevent me while installing Win98 onto my system?

lol brain.exe.What he means if you use trusted sites no warez porn or downloading free screensavers etc your less likely to recieve malware,viruses.I think things will work out fine,im surprized your putting 98se on a pc that good enuff for vista but u gotta admit 98se is a fun os to tweak.Good luck.and enjoy.

ahh i see, well, the internet is ever so full of suprises, im sure u are very aware of that as well that u would have experience some of these stuff.

again, anyone else may i ask, can help me answer some of my questions that i asked above?

also may i ask, what else am i to expect that might prevent me while installing Win98 onto my system?

OMG! That's some nice system! From what I understand, even if you're successful in getting Windows 98SE to run on that you'll only use one of your processor core's. And Direct X 10 isn't going to happen either. You'll be lucky to get drivers that'll run a PCIx videocard. And that huge amount of memory might cause problems even with all work arounds applied.

So, I don't think so. But good luck trying.

Yes, you'll need an anti-virus scanner installed and running. A software firewall too, unless you use a router as a firewall. You can be attacked successfully just by being connected to the internet without any browser being open. Less likely on 98SE since most attacks these days are designed to take advantage of the way NT operating systems process things, but still a possibility. Kapersky is a known excellent virus scanner, so no problem there. I've usually used McAfee but I'm a glutton for punishment I guess! Don't know whether Kapersky still updates for 98 but check it out to be sure. If not, Avast or AVG are fine choices that are still 98 compatible. Free, too!

If you like Windows you'll have far less difficulties if you just bite the wallet and get Vista, or at least XP Pro SP2, and run your 98 in either VMWare or VirtualPC (VMWare being the better choice, but not free like VirtualPC is). Sorry, but that's simply a truth and in no way diminishes my love for Windows 98SE.

Yes, the Auto-Patcher is a great way to make sure you're giving 98SE what it needs to be fully up to date. Some of the other projects around here are attempting to go further towards your goal of getting the latest do dads and programs, looks, etc, running on Windows 98SE. Those are used after first getting 98SE updated using the Auto-Patcher. 98SE2ME (if you have a Windows Me cd) and 98MP10 are also extremely helpful and I always used those as well (after the Auto-Patcher did it magic first).

It's not going to be easy on that hardware. Nothing to stop you from trying though. Keep us all posted on your experience.

woah...you just realised my system specs? even though u posted after i wrote them? hehehehehe.

i am aware it will only use and recognize one of the cores, but as i mentioned before, i am thinking of starting a thread called 'Wanted! on those who wants Microsoft Windows 98(SE) running on Dual-Core processors', as in the 2 cores! hoping to get modders and kernal writers or whoever that wants to dedicate their time on making Windows 98 recognise the 2 cores on CPUs. would u like to help?

for now, i only have a 7600GT which is a PCIx card correct, should i just install everything in (hardware) then smack i a Windows 98 CD? and see what happens? i looked at my box of it and it says Drivers for XP, 2000, ME i think and NT. any hopes?

and again about the memory, even with the work arounds (which i am trying to find around here) what problems should i expect then? how can i install the OS if it wont allow me to from the boot section?

and Kaspersky should be able to be alright for my system, although i know for a fact that F-secure still does updates for Windows98 appratly, this is wt i read from a BBC site wen Microsoft announces no more support for the beloved operating system.

although i really really want to use windows 98 on my new computer, all this is making think 'why not just use XP?' which kinda irratates me, cause i want Windows 98SE on my computer!

i will make a new thread asking for help from those who can help me do the work arounds when installing the operating system on a fresh computer with these specs. i cannot find any, unless what i have to ask for them.

also wen i do finally install the operating system, Autopatcher is the main thing first right?
then i will put in 98SE2ME, which maybe help me install some of the later drivers that cannot be installed on a Win98 machine? am i correct?
...anything else would i need to do after that?
although i do want to install IE6 with every update and so on, possible too?

Dual-Core Windows 98!!!

Yeah, I'm the guy who gets the joke a half hour later. It's just that I read your specs with a bit more interest the second time around.

Really, most of those questions would be answered just by your browsing around the forum. Do your research and you just might succeed.

You'll likely need to do the memory optimizations immediately just to get the system to boot with all that memory. If you're lucky. 98SE will at least start to the desktop after the install so you can do it in the GUI using sysedit. If not you'll need to edit from the command prompt only using the dos edit program in the Windows\Command folder. It's in the path so you'll likely just need to type edit system.ini to open it.

ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1
DMABufferSize=64
MinSPs=16
MaxPhysPage=40000

Those lines go at the end of the 386Enh section

MaxFileCache=393216

That line goes in the vcache section

So the MaxPhysPage=40000 limits 98SE memory use to 1 Gigabyte so it won't throw up. And the MaxFileCache=393216 fixes more crash problems with over 512MB of memory installed. The other stuff stops Windows from swapping everything to the hard drive, making it use the memory instead, and increases stability by leaving more room for other stuff than the 98 default settings allow.

Then you reboot (unless you did all that in the GUI, in which case you do this before rebooting) and set the System Properties advanced page, changing from Desktop Computer to Network Server (even if you only have a desktop computer).

I would then get your motherboard chipset drivers installed and restart again. I wouldn't bother with the rest of your drivers until after running the Auto-Patcher. In fact you're better off if you disable your onboard sound or remove the soundcard, disable the ethernet in the bios, and keep all USB stuff disconnected until you're all updated. Just have your monitor, keyboard, and mouse hooked up and nothing else when installing Windows. Then proceed as above. Then install the rest of your hardware drivers, and then 98SE2ME (if you have a Windows Me cd) and 98MP10.

These days with XP, Vista, or Linux I have everything installed and turned on that I'll want to use but that stuff can really confuse and wreak havoc on a 98SE installation as it doesn't have native drivers for any of it, nor the motherboard chipset drivers to deal with properly even setting up unknown devices (or known devices, until you install the chipset drivers and do the Auto-Patcher).

The Auto-Patcher will take care of Internet Explorer, WMP, Direct X, and about a million other things needed. Just go through each section of it and toggle on or off what you want or don't want and then watch in amazement as it installs stuff, restarts the computer, installs more stuff, restarts your computer, many times over before it's done.

Read, read, read all over these forums and use the Search to find particular things. You should do all that before starting your thread so you have a good idea about how most of this stuff works.

Utilize the mdgx.com website to learn more. Don't worry about downloading much as most of what is needed is in the Auto-Patcher. However, there are many tutorials and there is much information that'll help you.

Have fun! (You'd better think of this as fun, as troubles and stumbling blocks are bound to occur.)

You've got XP? Why do I have the feeling that's what you'll end up with? That board is fully Vista ready too. Funny enough, it's probably too new for some of the current Linux distro's. But some of the latest released ones with newer Kernels could likely deal with it.

Didn't the nVidia drivers that were recently discovered offer support for some PCI Express cards?

It is foolish to get a new Windows version before at least SP1. Not to mention that XP SP2 is more mature, will still be supported for five years, and is less demanding.

Unless there's a retarded version check on the installer, installing the drivers will probably work fine on Win98 SE.

Yes I've kept tabs on that thread regarding the PCI Express widescreen supporting Nvidia drivers. That should help this fellow out since the official 81.98 didn't support the latest models and PCIx.

Vista's fine, and that's the one that'll be given attention to by hardware and software developers now. With his RAM and processor it'll fly. I run it with my specs and it's still fine.

Now if he has a copy of XP SP2 already there's no big need for going for Vista immediately, but if he has neither I would skip over XP and just buy Vista.

But that's besides what he'd really like to do. If he gets his games going with 98SE running that machine he's gonna beat everyone on the internet! 98SE really stays out of the way so his gaming performance should be incredible. I remember my friend's old Porshe. He would put it into drive and we'd zoom away! Give it gas and we'd be waving to folks flying by in 747's.

please do remember that i do intend to overclock the RAM, so would i need to make othe adjustments in Sysedit?

and also with wha u have noted me with that, with those numbers, are tose the only ones that will help me bypass it? or will it help me use the full power of the RAM itself? thus, where do you get them?

again, also remember, i do intend to overclock my CPU, and wanting to gain a good overclock. any changes now may i ask?

as much that i love windows 98, i will admit, the only thing that is holding me back for abit, is the fact that it will not recognise the 2 Cores in my CPU.



wow, really? i know you are on the sarcastic term i assume, but will it really be flying fast?? as in computer wise hehe.

anyone may i ask?

You haven't been doing your reading, which makes me think you might be better off going to the store and buying a pc. Then if it doesn't perform you can pester the manufacturer.

What, were you quoting yourself then calling it sarcastic?

Lots of memory optimization for Windows 98SE is available here in these threads and on the mdgx.com site. You've been pointed there before and wouldn't have asked about the particular numbers if you had been reading. No, those aren't written in stone but most testing for both reliability and performance have made them what is placed in the system.ini by most of the 98SE tweaks in the update programs around here.

Most would use your amounts of memory for an XP, Vista, or Linux system then put limits, as I described, to 98SE use of memory since limiting memory will allow 98SE to startup and operate. Limiting it to a gig usually works, and on some motherboards it needs to be limited to 512MB.

If using Windows 98SE as the only operating system then purchasing more than 512MB of RAM is actually pretty pointless in my view. Usually greater amounts are purchased because the operator will be dual-booting with newer operating systems. In fact, purchasing the system you've described is huge overkill if all you want to run it is Windows 98SE.

Please search and read first, then ask questions.

well, i definatly will not buy a computer off a computer store, cause i now already have all my parts and i am actually building it as i speak.

i have of course taken your advice and have been doing some searching, but i will admit that i am having difficulty, i even went to windows tips and tweaks and made a thread there about win98Se on 2GB of RAM, and yet not replies, probably im asking in the wrong place.

i to think i was being sarcastic, i think we are all, right? please prove me correct or wrong.

and right now, i am checking out mdgx.com, ought to have 150pages of crack for the PC Excellent.

i am hearing alot of XP here, as it is tempting me very much to install it instead of windows 98SE, i want the power in which XP can recognize and can be passed onto 98SE.

also, i hear of Limiting as well, does that mean that when limiting memory, u are like pushig it down to the fact where the operating system can recognize it or something? Remember....i have 2GB of RAM! going on 4GB...and thats what i am starting with, fresh.

ohmss006 :

- MSFN is not known for encouraging "flame-fests", so please be nice and do not assume anyone is "going there"
- With your specs, you are being encouraged to AFAIK RTFM (no offense intended; just a euphamism), i.e. look around in MSFN, to overcome problems in utilizing Win98SE on your MOBO; do so and all will be well
- It is im-poss-i-ble to expect your MOBO to utilize all resources with Win98SE - trust the experts!
- WinXP Home will not utilize both CPU's, only 1... go with XP-Pro, 2k3, or Vista; If you do that, then go for Virtual PC (free) running "on top of" one of the three or dual-boot...

Peace, brutha!!!

well, i wasnt 'going there' whatsoever, i dont know where that came from, i was intentionally being nice, as i assume though.

i have tried going round here to look for possible answers and using the search as well, but i hardly find anything direct to my questions. that is why i would rather prefer to ask them seperately, and to concentrate on them individually, thus i would gain better knowlege and a better performance on my almost complete PC with windows 98SE.

and about my Motherboard, remember, it is an Asus P5b Deluxe, and wen u say it wont utilize all hte resources on it, does that mean that i wont gain hte full power of it?

as well as when coming to 'limiting' the memory? my mobo can take upto 8GB of RAM.

what do you think? does that help may i ask?

P.S. i hear XP again!

Heh heh he, more pages than that probably! ROFL

I remember the old advice for 98 was that past 64MB of RAM, adding more had less and less benefits as opposed to adding more up to that point. It's just that with todays operating systems and software we do need to bulk up on the memory and processor speed.

With those numbers you're putting in there the more you add the less likely 98 will even be able to bootup.

I have no idea what you mean regarding sarcasm but it seems you enjoy the word so I'll leave it alone.

At any rate, good luck! Post up your results when you get it all installed and, hopefully, running.

I think you'd be better off just lurking around all the forums and reading lots and lots of threads. You'll find links to interesting stuff as more was discussed about 98 than just about any other software out there. A lot was just different theories on how to get the darned thing to run stable. The mix of a 16 bit base with 32 bit stuff fooling its base that it's 16bit and the limits to GDI resources made for quite a lot of yapping on the internet and whole books were written.

I know you've been looking around, but less posting and more reading on your own might be more helpful to you. Until you have a specific problem to report, nobody really knows how to answer you questions. All we've got is really, "we don't know if it'll work. Why don't you try it first and report back?"

So I'm not surprised that you haven't gotten a lot of response to starting up threads. You're not asking questions anyone can answer. Have some specific problem, know your details, search first around for someone who had the problem previously (you've got about 8 years of stuff to help you) and then open up a thread with something an experienced 98 person can sink their teeth into.

Well, yeah. Resources = power, basically.

ohmss006 :



You had mentioned previously just going to XP... just giving info on the Dual-Core utilization. And my response intended that if you were to go that route, VPC would allow you to install and run Win98SE on top of XP (within VPC)...

Peace, bubba... and do as Eck suggests. You will get to your goal a lot faster!

well with the specs that i have mentioned, will i get a fast performance on XP than on win98SE? or probably on par? or Win98SE being faster may i ask?

Win98 SE will always be faster than XP...

Well if you are going upto/over 4 gig of ram you will be looking towards a 64bit os 2^32

well i never ever wanted to run 64bit OS's, as they are not for me whatsoevver.

and that i tend to have 4GB of RAM later on, how will that be on Windows 98SE?

according to the downsides of Win98 here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_98#Disadvantages

it was orignally made for to run 2-4GB of RAM.

so, even with my specs and to be overcloked too, they will not match hte same speed to Win98 when those running on XP then? i am really confused to which to go over!

A Maximum is a Maximum as far as Win98SE (and any other OS for that matter) is concerned... it is an OS limitation... use what you find here on MSFN, push it to its max, and expect to reach it and have wasted your money on a perfectly good XP/2K3/Vista machine...

Not to say "don't use Win98SE", but a dual-core processor, 4GB ram? Come on!!! You're building a Toyota around a jet engine!!!

Case closed... I'm outta here (apologies for being curt/rude, but this is getting ridiculous... are you, like, 5 yrs old or something? how many times do you have to be told?)...