after being told i have a bad hard drive from someone on this site (thank you),i took another hard drive from a different computer formated it and thought i was on my way to installing win 98 when during the file copy process at 69% it says
"you interupted setup while it was copying windows files from a setup (.cab)file"

if you skip this file windows may not work properly.

the cd im using is an original win 98 and it does have a few scratches on it , would this be the problem?

Yes it can. You can try to gently rub the scratches out. Using ordinary toothpaste (not for smokers-too abrasive) Apply a small amount to a damp rag. Rub from the center hole outward in a straight, not circular motion. It may take some time, but it has been known to work

Always copy the cab files for Windows 95 & 98 to the hard drive and install it from there.
The reason is too detailed for explanation now.

I assume that you have an original 98 cd and licence.

Boot 98 from cd or floppy
Format the hard drive
Caps are emphasised for clarity only

type C: & hit ENTER
Prompt should say c:>
Type md win98 & hit Enter
Type cd win98 & hit Enter
prompt should say c:\win98>

With the 98 cd in the tray type
copy e:\win98\*.*
Copy the cab files to the hard drive.
If any copy errors your cd s bad.
If not, take the cd out and type SETUP

Try it and let us know

thanks, i took your suggestion and it does appear the cd is bad, it started copying files then stopped.

where can i get the files i need?

Try a scratch repair kit. Walmart, Big Lots or some place like that should have one for under 10 bucks.

thanks
used a disk copy program and copied the hard drive from a working win 98 computer.
got the files i needed and it seems yo be working for now anyway
thanks to all who helped and everyone using BC.