Which OS do I need?

[pinecone]

I will soon be building an MSI Pro2A/900 mhz. TBird/IBM ATA100 system for general business/internet use. I am now using Win95 OSR2 on an old 200 mghz. system and it has worked flawlessly. Can I get by with it or do I have to upgrade???? Would consider 98SE or ME upgrade edition. What do I need??

 

[DocDoo]

Why consider anything other then Windows 2000! Don't be intimidated by it

The more I use Win2K, Win98, WinMe, Linux, the more I love Win2K!

 

[UnixFreak]

Save your money. Try Linux (anyone surprised to hear that from me?)

 

[owensdj]

For almost all users, Windows 2000 Professional is clearly the best operating system for a workstation. I wouldn't recommend you even consider Win95, Win98, or WinME for a new workstation unless you have some legacy software that doesn't run on Win2K or you are only using your machine to play games. Since you say your new system will be for general business/Internet use, Win2K Pro is the ideal OS for you. If you liked Win95 OSR2, you'll love Win2K Pro. After several months of use, you'll be shocked at how much more stable Win2K is than Win95(98 and ME too).

If you pick Win2K for your new machine, remember to put in at least 256MB of top quality memory. More wouldn't hurt, if you don't mind paying extra money. I like using Micron memory sold at Crucial.com.

You'll probably want to get the OEM version of Win2K Pro rather than the Retail version to save money. The OEM Win2K Pro is less than $140 at most on-line retailers.

 

[jacobnero6918]

Try pricewatch they had some people who selling for $89 which is decent price.

Pricewatch

 

[paulip88]

I would have to say WIn2k as well, since for general business and web browsing, Win2k is clearly the winner. You would want 128MB of RAM, though I think 256 may be overkill if you don't plan on running several large applications at once.

 

[DocDoo]

UnixFreak.... While Linux is "free," the books required and time lost learning such an operating system makes it very expensive.

 

[FOBSIDE]

all the documentation you could ever want on linux is online. its just a little harder to find. linux is a good choice but if you dont really care how your os works and just want it to run, i suggest win2k. its stable and you dont have to have any idea how it works behind the scenes.

 

[Chatterjee]

i'd say... try everything and be happy with whatever floats your boat... all these guys in here are gonna blurt out some OS because they're running it.

-S

 

[jtshaw]

Heh, linuxdoc.org, that is about all the documentation most people will ever use, except the device specific stuff which is usually found at the hardware vendors site or sourceforge.net. I still recommend buying a book, but you don't need 50 books, you need one to help you learn the very basics, Running Linux for $25 is a good choice. That still saves you about $60.

 

[Sunner]

I say why not give Linux a shot?
I mean you can get Caldera if you want something really easy(I'd say OpenLinux is on the same level as Win2K for a newbie).

But if you're intimidated by the prospect of Linux, Win2K is clearly the way to go.

 

[paulip88]

Linux would not work in this situation because pinecone clearly says that he intends to use it for general business. I think its safe to assume that this business software (ie Office) is not available for Linux. Yes, I do know alternatives do exist, but its not the same without Office2k's abundance of annoying counterporductive features.

 

[UnixFreak]

DocDoo, actually, linux is very well documented, with man pages, help documentation, and a plethora of info on the net. It is the most well documented OS I have seen. I have not spent a dime on books or training, just utilized the free stuff. It takes a little time to learn, but such new distros as rh7, they are getting as easy to install and use as windows, if not easier in some areas. As far as office software, There are many programs out there developed for linux, you just have to look. I can guarantee you will get more bang for your buck. you just have to look. That is why I recommended it to him, It would seem like an economically wise desicion, and if you are counting time in as a factor, I think network uptime is more critical, and a good trade for a little time spent learning..

 

[thornc]

And why not a dual boot system......

Win2k and Linux....it's not very hard to set-up and you can get both worlds in one system....

One can do the office applications in w2k ( although staroffice is good enough and its "free"
for linux ) and internet application in linux, no more worring about weird attachments!!

Seriuosly, if you haven't got a clue about linux and just want to use the system and you don't
care what is happening go with w2k. Now if you want to start learning what goes on in your system
start looking at linux, you'll be suprised by the amount of customization you can have.

A dual boot system is a good start....

Have Fun

 

[UnixFreak]

actually, the dual boot method is an excellent way to try out any new OS, and I agree with you completely. Give it a shot, and if you dont like it, dump it.

 

[robisc]

Why not BeOS 5, try the free version first it's great.

 

[zzzz]

vmware! and linux inside win2k or vice versa. It is very good for trying new OSes.
Dual booting is good too but you have to boot to go to the other OS.

 

[UnixFreak]

yes, but I have heard bad press about VMware. A dedicated linux partition would be faster, besides, if he decides he doesnt want linux anymore, he can boot linux in text mode, and run fdisk, and convert it back to fat32, restore the MBR, format it, and wha-la, another win drive. It seems easy enough to me anyway.

 

[pinecone]

Please check my original post. I'm really looking for something simple here! Don't want to learn a new OS and don't need a dual boot system. Just something I can run MS Office, etc.

I appreciate the suggestions of Win2000 and will probably go with it. However, my question was "can I get by with win95". What would I be giving up with the newer hardware compontents/processors. I already own 95 and would have to buy anything else. Thanks in advance.

 

[Davegod75]

you need w2k

 

[Priit]

Well, Win95 should work with Tbird, and probably is fast as hell... If you like your W95, I say you keep it... (thougt it's little bit annoying to set-up cause of numerous restarts needed to install patches and stuff) no need to pay $$$ for W2k if you are happy with your current OS.

 

[thornc]

pinecone:
If your win95 OSR2 copy has USB support already built-in than you shouldn't need anything else...if not you'll need to upgrade...you see most softeare hardware requires a
version of windows that has the usb support built-in which indicates some libraries are there
also.

If you need to upgrade you'll probably can get winME or win2k, or even win98se. I don't like
winME but if can't get win98se and can't/won't afford win2k you probably have to get it...

 

[Sandan]

Another vote for Win2k. It runs Office suites well, connects to the internet better and faster than 98, and is very stable. I have 2k and 98 on my system and don't use 98 any more. I also play a lot of games which work well also. Good luck........

 

[JimboG]

Whatever you do--Don't get ME. To many hassels to deal with why MS gets the bugs worked out. Stick with 98se or Win2k.

-Jimbo