I know Lol.. its kind of spammy but still.. why do people still use Windows 98 to 200 for there Home PCs? please people.. upgrade..
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Basicly Get a Windows 7 Upgrade.. Win 98 to 2000 are prune to viruses..
Started by
Chris Appleyard
, Jul 04 2012 07:24 PM
35 replies to this topic
#1
Chris Appleyard
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Posted 04 July 2012 - 07:24 PM
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#2
violetrose
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Posted 05 July 2012 - 06:17 AM
Hi Chris, LOL indeed! Have one on me. I still have my old dinosaur desktop with Win'98. Yep,I still use it as an old workhorse cos it has interesting vintage programs like Microsoft Word '98 which is easy to use for writing letters(snail mail documents). However, it is too old to be connected to the Internet so I had no choice when I decided I needed to be able to send e-mails. Just a year ago I took a quantum leap into cyberspace and here I am with a new-fangled laptop, Win 7, IE9 and Google Chrome. Altogether this is a big learning experience but thanks to many postings on this site I manage to solve occasional bleeping problems!
Cheers - Violetrose.
Cheers - Violetrose.
#3
Animal
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Posted 05 July 2012 - 01:34 PM
Not everyone who bought their computer when it was Windows 98 or 2000 or any of the other non supported OS's can afford the new hardware or license to upgrade. They may now be retired, unemployed, had to use their savings to support family members or any of a multitude of financial hardships. Which now leaves them with zero to no disposable income to upgrade.
So making such a bold statement of, Please spend your money the way I think you should, isn't practical. Nor is making the decision for others how to spend their money.
It would be wonderful if everyone one did or could, sure. But the reality of the world's economy today means more people will be using outdated OS's once XP is no longer supported. It will get worse before it gets better. Trust me.
So making such a bold statement of, Please spend your money the way I think you should, isn't practical. Nor is making the decision for others how to spend their money.
It would be wonderful if everyone one did or could, sure. But the reality of the world's economy today means more people will be using outdated OS's once XP is no longer supported. It will get worse before it gets better. Trust me.
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#4
lti
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Posted 05 July 2012 - 02:35 PM
Some old games and software will not run on a newer OS, and they may not run properly in a virtual machine. This means that a computer running an outdated OS must be used to run these programs.
There are also people who think that these older versions of Windows are better than Windows 7, no matter how insecure they are.
There are also people who think that these older versions of Windows are better than Windows 7, no matter how insecure they are.
#5
Orange Blossom
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Posted 05 July 2012 - 04:54 PM
and in some cases, there is some very expensive hardware or software that won't run on newer OS's. If these systems are kept off the internet, much of the security risk is mitigated. Not all, but most.
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#6
herg62123
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Posted 06 July 2012 - 12:02 AM
I know of a government group (a client of mine) that just upgraded to windows 98. I will not post this group cause the last thing we need is an out break on this group.
#7
violetrose
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Posted 06 July 2012 - 02:44 AM
Well ofcourse, important security issue. If they need help with the new upgrade there is an excellent book: "How to do Just about Anything on a Computer" published by Readers Digest in 2000. It covers Win95-98. There are good pictures in it, eg: showing what a mouse looks like.
#8
Keithuk
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Posted 06 July 2012 - 08:49 AM
There is nothing wrong with Win98SE I've used it for many years on my older computer which is now WinME.
I have an Artec AM12U+ USB scanner which is supposed to be compatible with Win9x/ME/2000 but it won't work on my WinXP/Vista. Now if its compatible with 2000 then it should run on WinXP but it doesn't, there are no updated drivers. I don't use it that much but its nice to have that option rather than buying a new scanner thats compatible.
As mentioned you can still run older games on Win9x and it has true DOS not the Command Prompt.
Its horses for courses.
I have an Artec AM12U+ USB scanner which is supposed to be compatible with Win9x/ME/2000 but it won't work on my WinXP/Vista. Now if its compatible with 2000 then it should run on WinXP but it doesn't, there are no updated drivers. I don't use it that much but its nice to have that option rather than buying a new scanner thats compatible.
As mentioned you can still run older games on Win9x and it has true DOS not the Command Prompt.
Its horses for courses.
Keith
Windows ME (spare computer)
Windows XP 2002 Professional SP3 (desktop computer)
Windows Vista Home Premium SP2 32bit (laptop computer)
#9
rotor123
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Posted 06 July 2012 - 04:40 PM
and in some cases, there is some very expensive hardware or software that won't run on newer OS's. If these systems are kept off the internet, much of the security risk is mitigated. Not all, but most.
Orange Blossom
That expensive hardware and software is exactly why I sold a used computer last year loaded with Dos and Windows 3.11, 3.5" and 5.25" floppy drive.
They needed a ISA slot for a controller card for some kind of machinery and the software wouldn't run in a newer windows. They were lucky I had a really old win3.11 computer that still worked.
I sold a used Win XP computer that I upgraded with a 5.25" floppy drive in the last year too. Thjey needed both size floppy drives.
Lucky I had a used drive and the old style floppy cable.
Roger
My next Upgrade, USB 3 on my remaining desktop. The only External storage devices I currently Buy are USB3 devices
How Does a computer get Infected? http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/t/2520/how-did-i-get-infected/
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#10
cryptodan
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Posted 07 July 2012 - 10:11 AM
Also there are legacy (old) applications that can only run on older versions of windows and DOS. In Windows ME and Later OS's DOS is in my opinion emulated, and as such very limited in what it can and cannot do preventing some of these older applications from running. Take for instance Doom and Doom ][ these are fantastic games, but require DOSBOX to run, because of the limitations of what I call PsuedoDOS mode in Windows ME and later.
#11
MJ-PC-H8R
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Posted 08 July 2012 - 06:43 PM
There is nothing wrong with having Windows 98/2000 still. The only reason people think they're prone to viruses is because they're older? Fallacious. It all comes down to your security programs, just like it would be on any other OS. Having Windows 98 is NOT a reason to say:
"it is too old to be connected to the Internet so I had no choice when I decided I needed to be able to send e-mails."
Too poor? Use the wide variety of Linux distros if you really want to appease your paranoia, (you ARE going to get antivirus support for it too won't you?) but I don't believe it's necessary. Those who re-install to an older OS (Win 98/2000) don't have to look far for security hotfixes. Bugger Microsoft. Try majorgeeks.com (plug!) for instance... Some people make it their life's mission to make perfectly good systems "up to date" even if Microsoft considers them "obselete".
It's all to get your money - after all, how many times could you try buying a NEW computer, and ask for a computer without windows pre-installed?
Try it.
"it is too old to be connected to the Internet so I had no choice when I decided I needed to be able to send e-mails."
Too poor? Use the wide variety of Linux distros if you really want to appease your paranoia, (you ARE going to get antivirus support for it too won't you?) but I don't believe it's necessary. Those who re-install to an older OS (Win 98/2000) don't have to look far for security hotfixes. Bugger Microsoft. Try majorgeeks.com (plug!) for instance... Some people make it their life's mission to make perfectly good systems "up to date" even if Microsoft considers them "obselete".
It's all to get your money - after all, how many times could you try buying a NEW computer, and ask for a computer without windows pre-installed?
Try it.
#12
rotor123
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Posted 09 July 2012 - 10:34 AM
MJ-PC-H8R
Easy to get a windowless computer. Build your own or Go to any computer store that assembles custom computers instead of some big chain store.
Roger
It's all to get your money - after all, how many times could you try buying a NEW computer, and ask for a computer without windows pre-installed?
Easy to get a windowless computer. Build your own or Go to any computer store that assembles custom computers instead of some big chain store.
Roger
My next Upgrade, USB 3 on my remaining desktop. The only External storage devices I currently Buy are USB3 devices
How Does a computer get Infected? http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/t/2520/how-did-i-get-infected/
My first Computer had a Whopping 16K of memory @ 0.89MHz. My first hard drive held 20 Megabytes and never filled up.
My Oldest Motherboard and Hard Drive are a 80286 @ 8Mhz and a Seagate 20 Megabyte MFM drive.
#13
violetrose
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Posted 11 July 2012 - 10:21 PM
Economics aside, I would think that some of those old computer games have become collectors items. Time will tell if it is possible to continue maintaining the early OS's to play them. Meanwhile, 'upgrade' doesn't mean to discard the old technology. A bit like keeping an old b&w TV set which still has a place in the house but getting a new one adds colour to our lives.
#14
myrti
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Posted 12 July 2012 - 06:45 AM
The issue is not getting the old fixes for known security holes at the time, but the fixes for security holes that were never fixed by MS in the first place because support had run out. This is what makes the OS vulnerable. They are not making them "up to date" to 2012, but only "up to date" to 2006. Can you still use it? Yes. Are you taking risks? Yes. The risk doesn't stop with the OS, though. If you're using Win98, chances are you will find that many secondary software such as Java/Flash/Etc stopped supporting Win98 along the way. Firefox/Opera/Chrome/IE in their current version all won't run on that OS either, so you're again stuck with outdated software. So you don't only have to worry about your OS being outdated, but also about your installed software.Those who re-install to an older OS (Win 98/2000) don't have to look far for security hotfixes. Bugger Microsoft. Try majorgeeks.com (plug!) for instance... Some people make it their life's mission to make perfectly good systems "up to date" even if Microsoft considers them "obselete".
If you have "no other choice" than to use an outdated OS, you may still run it and get by safely, if you are aware of the many shortcomings this OS now has. It is by far not something to recommend and I'd recommend anyone to switch OS (to a free one or a paying one is your decision) at the next possible occasion.
regards myrti
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#15
4dude
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Posted 13 July 2012 - 12:22 AM
Because they ARE MUCH BETTER!!!!!!!why do people still use Windows 98 to 200 for there Home PCs?
In my opinion Win98se was one of the BEST Win OS's to ever come out!!!!
The newer ones are more bloated,uglier,arent as easy to use,dont work as well,etc........... (And you cant be sure they arent spying on you)
Edited by 4dude, 13 July 2012 - 12:22 AM.
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