Advice on what operating system I should use?

[BChico]

You can check my rig out if you need more info, but i am running PIII 1.0ghz, 512mb PC133, and 2 IBM 75gxp 30.0gb. I have been running Win 98 SE forever, and i recently stumbled over a copy of win2kpro. I have read all the other posts and i just want a cut and dry statement, should i or shouldnt i. I mostly play games (Unreal Tourny and CS) and use the internet, as well as moderate usage of Dreamweaver and Photoshop. I use win2k at school and i have never crashed it so i thought i might want to use it, but i am worried about combatibility issues, please help, i really am not sure whether to change or not.....

 

[Noriaki]

I use Win2k pro for OpenGL, Glide, DirectX and WinG (old Win3.11 gaming interface) games, and it runs them all like a champ.

Plus it should run anything WinXP will (2k=NT5.0, XP=NT5.1) and doesn't have that stooopid Microsoft Authorized Activation BS.

Win2k has a much better memory manager for that big half gig you have there, and will use it much more effectively for photoshop and such than Win9x can ever hope to.

For webbrowsing, emailing and ICQing there's really no percievable difference.

In october I moved from Win98SE to dual boot Win2k/Win98SE, by the end of november Win98SE was just wasting space on my HDD.

Vote 1 for go all Win2k all the time, and don't look back. MS plans to make NT5 the standard, and I think Win2k is a much better representation of NT5 than WinXP will be (at least until they go back on this stupid activation thing).

 

[Mr. Burns]

I definitely recommend win2k over 98se in your case. Your geforce2 will run games roughly on par with win98, and win2k is a far superior operating environment. All your hardware looks fine for win2k. Only problem will be if you want to run games or other apps than require DOS. If so, you'll need a dual boot setup...

Go 2k, you will not regret it.

 

[TheVrolok]

Dear God man.. W2K! Better memory management for all your RAM and your GeForce will run a heck of a lot better in 2k, at least that's my experience with my GeForce II GTS Pro. Both CS and UT run better for me in 2k than in 98se, but I'd still have a small 98se partition for other things that might need it.

 

[BChico]

Ok, got some good advice there, say i decide to go to 2000, what do i actually need to do, eveything as of now is 98se compatible(obvious), but to go to w2k compatible what do i need to do? I read that win2k cant be installed in dos, this true? Does that mean i install 2k right over 98, just like an upgrade?

 

[BChico]

What do you mean when you say, "small 98se partition for other things that might need it", that mean i install 98se on there like a dual boot?

 

[BChico]

Few other questions as well:

Once i install win2k will all my drivers just kick out and die?

Does win2k support udma 100, i read that it dosent...???

DO i need to reformat my drives for win2k?

 

[BChico]

TTT

 

[BChico]

Anyone know?

 

[phatstyl]

98se is the best for games, 100% compatability is the best, just setup a 3gb partion for just games, do NOt use win2k for games, it is just plain stupid!

 

[Noriaki]

<< do NOt use win2k for games, it is just plain stupid! >>

How so? It's much more stable and nVidia makes excellent Win2k drivers. A GF2 is fast enough that you won't notice the loss. Besides, WinXP is replacing Win9x as the main home OS so obviously MS is confident in it's ability to play games. As I said before Win2k = NT5, WinXP = NT5.1. They are very close.


BChico:


<< but to go to w2k compatible what do i need to do? >>

Just look to the hardware manufacturer's websites for Win2k drivers. I see nothing in your P3-1Ghz system that would cause issues with Win2k. nVidia's Win2k driver's are top notch, as are the SBLive! drivers.



<< I read that win2k cant be installed in dos, this true? Does that mean i install 2k right over 98, just like an upgrade? >>

I installed Win2k from DOS. If you install from DOS make sure you load SmartDrv or it will take a LONG time...better to just boot off the CD and isntall from there. DOS can't read NTFS partitions, so if you are trying to install to an NTFS partition from DOS it might give you problem though I doubt it....in the Win2k setup it has a partitoning/formatting tool that lets you pick your partiton and pick your FS...I don't see why DOS would give you any problems...it didn't give me any.



<< Once i install win2k will all my drivers just kick out and die? >>

Well if you upgrade from Win98 to Win2k (highly unrecommend) then yes some will, becuase not all Win98 drivers are win2k compatible. But I strongly recommend you do a clean Win2k install (you can do this with an upgrade version CD, it'll just ask you to put in a qualifying upgrade product) and put in clean Win2k drivers.



<< Does win2k support udma 100, i read that it dosent...??? >>

No but there is a hotfix, and SP2 will support ATA100 (SP2 is due in about a month). And you could just limit yourself to ATA66 until SP2 is out. Even a pair of IBM 75GXPs can barely push over the 66MB/s mark if you had them both going full out at the same time.



<< DO i need to reformat my drives for win2k? >>

You don't have to. But I would recommend you make at least one clean partition for it. It can read FAT32 drives fine, so you don't have to lose all your data partitions or anything. But either dual boot, or remove Win98 and do a clean install.

Hope that helped some.

 

[dimsum]

i vote for dual boot!
98SE and Win2K

 

[NOX]

<< do NOt use win2k for games, it is just plain stupid! >>

Say like a what man? Runs all my games just fine, Rune, UT, CS, HL, TFC, Q3 bla, bla, bla, bla!

If you want to dual boot go for it, it wouldn?t hurt at all to do so. What may end up happening is what happened to me when I was dual booting Win98SE/WinME and Win2k. You feel the stability/power of Win2k and you?ll find yourself not wanting to boot back into Win98SE/WinME. Another thing I soon found out was that Win2k was running most of my games as fast or even faster then Win98, so I told myself what was the point of running Win98SE?

I dumped Win98SE about a year ago and never looked back.

Yes, install from CD, or if you dual boot install Win98 first on 1st partition (C:\) then when you have that all set insert the Win2k CD into your CR-ROM/DVD. When it ask you to upgrade say no, and that you want to do a clean install, and install it on 2nd partition (D:\).

It is very simple from here on out, just make sure you don?t install on your C: drive which Win98 will be. When you restart the Win2k boot loader will appear, this will give you the option to boot into Win98 or Win2k.

Read this article for some good info: Link

 

[BChico]

Ok i want to get this harddrive thing straight...

I currently have 2 30 gb Fat32 win98 harddrives.
To go to win 2000 i need to reformat the harddrives to NTFS?
When you say remove windows isnt that the same as reformatting, how would you get rid of windows without reformatting?
If i can backup all my stuff should i just start with a clean system?
After hardrives are formatted, how would i make them NTFS in dos?
Once hds are formatted do i need a win 2000 boot disk, or will it boot from cd rom?
I probably asked some of these questions already indirectly, but i still dont really understand...

 

[Mr. Burns]

BChico - it is highly recommended to do a clean install, rather than 'upgrading' your existing win98 installation to 2k. To do this, delete everything from your c: disk (after backing up of course). Then boot from the win2k cd. it will give you the option to format your c: drive NTSF and install win2k. Once 2k is installed, you can format your other drive from windows. You can also use fat32 if you want, but in a solo win2k environment, I would recommend NTSF. You might want to leave your second drive fat32 if it contains data, etc. that you don't want to back up and copy back after formatting...

The above example assumes you are only going to use win2k. If you want to set up a dual boot with win98, you need to install win98 first on the c: disk/partition. There have been lots of posts on this forum explaining how to do this in detail..

 

[Mr. Burns]

BTW -- if you can't boot directly from the win2k cd, you will have to create special win2k &quot;boot disks&quot;. There are instructions for doing this on the win2k cd. It will create 4 disks which you will have to boot from to begin the win2k install procedure.

And to clarify regarding how to uninstall/delete your existing win98 install--there are many ways to do it. Reformatting your drive before you begin the win2k install is probably the easiest. However, if you boot with a win98 boot disk and then use the format command, you won't have the option to format NTSF. I usually format fat32 to wipe the disk clean, the format again with NTSF during the install procedure...

 

[igiveup]

If you install win 2k your applications won't have been installed on your computer for win 2k, meaning that they aren't in the registry for win 2k. No, you don't have to change over to NTFS for win 2k. Its a bit slower overall than a FAT32 partition, but it does give you some added security features. Most of the people on the forum here wouldn't ever need to use em. Encryption for a drive, etc. Basically, if you install win 2k you can keep your current setup in 98 (if you want to. After feeling win 2k, I didn't). When you reinstall an application just point it back to the same directory where it is located for win 98. That way all you are basically doing is updating win2k registry files.

Just FYI: If you make a partition NTFS for win 2k, windows 98 can't read it. NTFS + 98 = bad. I would stick with fat32 for now, you can convert it later if you want to.

Yes, boot from CD, it makes things easier.

 

[Noriaki]

<< To go to win 2000 i need to reformat the harddrives to NTFS? >>

No, I use Win2k and I don't have a single NTFS partition. Win2k can use FAT32 or NTFS.



<< When you say remove windows isnt that the same as reformatting, how would you get rid of windows without reformatting? >>

&quot;deltree c:\windows&quot; that will leave all your programs, documents and other files on the hard drive.



<< If i can backup all my stuff should i just start with a clean system? >>

I personally would, but you don't have to. But don't upgrade win98 whatever you do, that makes a huge mess.


<< After hardrives are formatted, how would i make them NTFS in dos? >>

You format as either FAT32 or NTFS. There is a win2k tool to convert to NTFS if you want. I use partition magic 6.0 to make my partitons, then boot off the Win2k CD and install. Dos is only important inso far as it runs PQmagic. But if you don't have PQMagic you can use Win98 fdisk to make FAT32 partitions and convert them later. But you don't even have to use NTFS if you don't want.



<< Once hds are formatted do i need a win 2000 boot disk, or will it boot from cd rom? >>

Boot from CDRom for the install.

It's really very easy to install Win2k...make a partition for it and boot from the CD. Forget about NTFS if you're having trobles with it, just make FAT32 drives. You can always convert them after Win2k is installed.

You might want to try reading Suo's partitioning guide there might be something in there that is useful to you...

 

[BrianRick111]

Win 2k pro is nice but you may want to consider dual boot if you play any ea sports games. NBA Live 2001 wont run on 2000. Otherwise it is a good OS.

 

[MuffD]

Basically like what everyone is saying...if you want stability, go with win2k but if you want to play games then, dual boot to use both.

 

[steelnewfie]

My opinion...Definitely go Win2K.... Forget the dual boot..Install fresh, don't even bother to upgrade.. I tried that the first time and had to reinstall most applications anyway, and my reg, sys files were a mess... Clean installs seem to make Win2K much happier too...Set bios to boot from CD, pop it in, and away you will go...or, like others have said, it will prompt you for four floppies to create a setup/boot... Install the microsoft fix for ATA66/100, SP1, and your drivers...Should be fine in compatibility... Have fun utilizing your memory, cause most of it was just hangin out in Win98 !!

 

[AmazonRasta]

Cut and dry answer: Windows 2000.

As many others have said, you will not regret it. It's stable and it's compatible. It has great memoray management. Use it and enjoy it.

 

[BChico]

Ok, as you know i have two hard drives, ata 100 of course, now does win 2k run just as well in fat as it does in ntfs, if so is security really the only reason for win2k?

Does windows 2k install from dos, or will it just boot itself up?

&quot;Install the microsoft fix for ATA66/100&quot; what is this?

Where do i get the sp1, does that already come on the disk, separate disk or download?

You guys have been a great help and i really appreciate it!

 

[Noriaki]

<< Ok, as you know i have two hard drives, ata 100 of course, now does win 2k run just as well in fat as it does in ntfs, if so is security really the only reason for win2k? >>

Win2k runs just as well in FAT as NTFS...and security is really the only reason for NTFS (though NTFS does perform slightly better than FAT32, it's probably not a difference you'd notice). But security is far from the only reason for Win2k.

There have been lots of good reasons for Win2k listed so I won't try to make a complete list...but Stability, Memory Management and Dual CPU support would be a few of my favourites.

 

[BChico]

So are you saying that i should use NTFS?

Also where do i get that fix and sp1?