Win XP compatibility questions -- HELP, please

[ghoti]

I'm loading Win XP Pro onto a new DIY (FX-53, SK89V). I've not used XP before. I'm wondering if I need to go dual system boot route, or if XP will run all the old games I love so much (Sid Meier's RR Tycoon; Colonization; MOO2; Rogue; Alpha Centauri, etc.) What about those DOS games that require extended or expanded memory (e.g., Betrayal at Krondor)? Does XP Pro have a DOS emulator?

My old computer (running Win 98SE) takes a full five minutes to load up RR Tycoon (a DOS game) -- why, I do not know!

Also, can I run Office 2000 under XP Pro, or do I need to go out and buy Office 2003?

What about other programs like Direct CD I am using on my old (Win 98SE) computer?

I realize these are OLD questions (since XP has been out so long), but new to me!

I appreciate any help. Thanks.

 

[viivo]

DOS games will be iffy in vanilla XP - you'll need a third party program like DOSBox or to make a boot disk with DRDOS to have any luck at all. The Win9x games should have no trouble and Office2k should work fine as well. No idea what Direct CD is, but it should work with compatibility mode at least.

 

[ghoti]

Originally posted by: viivo
DOS games will be iffy in vanilla XP - you'll need a third party program like DOSBox or to make a boot disk with DRDOS to have any luck at all. The Win9x games should have no trouble and Office2k should work fine as well. No idea what Direct CD is, but it should work with compatibility mode at least.

 

[ghoti]

Sorry, hit the wrong button!

Thanks viivo.

What do you think is BEST course -- one of those add-on programs (if so, which is best?), or dual boot?

 

[MrChad]

Check NT Compatible to see if your game is compatible. Many games have patches available for 2000/XP compatibility. I would try the emulation route (DOSBox, etc.) first before you do a full dual-boot system.

 

[DT4K]

XP's compatibility mode is pretty good, but certainly not perfect.
Old Lucas Arts games are especially troublesome.
I also some of those Lucas Arts games and quite a few Windows 95 era kids games (Reader Rabbit, etc.) that absolutely will NOT run under XP, no matter what kind of compatibility mode I use.

I decided to multiboot with Win 98 just so my kids can play the games they want to play.

I'd suggest dual booting with 98 since it's so easy to do. Just set aside a small partition for your 98 environment. On my 80GB drive, I've got 10GB for Win 98, 10GB for Red Hat, and 60GB for Win XP.