cannie

I loaded Win2000 and XP in dual mode. Even having both I always use Win98 because all the programs I need run perfect and I feel more comfortable: guaranteed startup stability console has no price. I use Win98 to restore both from scratch instead. Having this experience, in this moment I would not even loose my time loading any of them two. I have modified many things with the help of this forum and don't need really anything more. Maybe I'll delete both 2000 and XP.

Really true. I have Win2000 and XP installed on dual boot, but only use them occasionally. IMO XP and Vista dedicate most of its resources not to do what you would like it to do but to avoid the system doing most things without external permits, be it from the Administrator, Microsoft, DRM, or the software providers. Backdoors, controls, and controls and more controls, most of them unwanted.

It is an Nvidia 5500 card. Your link gave me the possibility of using it for Win 98 because there are not drivers for this OS on the drivers disk supplied by the manufacturer with the spare parts.

You have saved my Windows 98 SE computer. Thank you very much!

Thank you for ratifying my post, Dave-H. Somebody said: "Information means advantages for you, misinformation means good business for others. That's why for every single cent for teaching there are hundreds of bucks for ads".

You are totally right. This is valid only for Windows 98 users. As you may see in the text I assumed that Windows 98 was already installed to begin with. Thanks.

FAT 32

Good to know it. Apparently it seemed to be good. Since long ago I always make backups by copying to an external HD (copy-paste). Well, I'll keep doing it in my own way! Thanks for the excellent link, E-66. I really enjoyed it!

By using dual boot you can safely use Windows 98 SE to backup 2000 or XP and restore completely all its files from scratch in less than 10 minutes. You must be using an ATA/PATA drive for Windows 98, so this can not be applied if you use a SATA drive AFAIK. All units must be FAT32 and if you choose XP as second OS all must be smaller than 32 GB . The procedure is as follows: 1 .- First you must have Windows 98 installed. For best results we may have a cloned copy of Win98 on a different drive to boot it using a boot floppy (there is another post in this forum which explains how to do it easily here: http://www.msfn.org/board/Clone-Win98SE-on...D-t118623.html) . The new OS may be installed in the same logical unit or in a different one. For advanced users: you may create a new main partition and make it active before starting the installation. 2.- If you installed in the same active partition, even when you have used a different logical unit, it will appear a double boot screen at start, giving you the opportunity to use any of both OS. For advanced people who used a different main partition, you may use fdisk to activate the one or the other ("fdisk /deactivate" and "fdisk /activate:x" being x the number of the partition). To return to Windows 98 you must use a boot floppy or alternatively an XP capable program like Partition Manager. 3 . - Once fully installed the new OS, to avoid problems with the trash bin you must introduce in autoexec.bat the following lines: deltree c: \ recycled> Nul deltree d: \ recycled> Nul deltree e: \ recycled> Nul ... (as many times as logical drives). 4 .- Using Win98 go to Tools> Folder Options, and choose to see all files and all extensions. Delete Pagefile.sys. 5 .- Create a folder on a different drive unit or on an external HD and copy to it all C:\root files, the "System Volume Information" of the XP drive, and the folders Program Files, Documents and Settings, and the new Windows/Winnt. 6 .- To restore from the backup using Win98, compare the used C:\ root files, Documents and Settings and Windows.0/WINNT folders with the corresponding ones in the backup, delete the new ones and substitute all the modified ones. You may use any comparator program for this, there are many in the internet. You may also delete all files in the XP drive and copy all in their place and empty the bin, but NEVER FORMAT THE DRIVE OR USE DISK MANAGING PROGRAMS NOT DESIGNED FOR NT LIKE DEFRAG OR SCANDISK. The system won't start. If eventually it happens you need to use the recovery console, or alternatively begin a new install and afterwards substitute it for the old one in the backup. 7.- While using 2000 - XP you may also backup Windows 98 by simply copying in another internal drive or external HD its Windows folder, deleting first the Win386.swp file. To restore Windows 98 while using XP you only have to delete its folder and paste the one that you had previously stored. HTH

It is a fine backup system. Very interesting. Thank you Marius 95!

I agree totally.

The same folder as "Install.exe", anywhere it may be.

Updates or upgrades are better for the user than the precedent situation in the measure that they are made in the interest of the user, but never when the interest of the software supplier or any other not known "partners" are the main reason for it. Even when there's a free market, this is only in theory. Most users are in the hands of the same software/hardware_driver providers.

You may have the drivers on any folder of your hard drive, using DOS to copy them, always unziped of course. The install program will ask you where are they, and you only have to answer the question. No problems at all.

Thanks, Valerie!

Hi SlugFiller! Of course, you are right!: Explorer always works. I'll try to explain you what I really meant: I discovered this forum very recently and found no mention at all to cloning, and that's what made me start this thread by copying the old note that a proffesional gave me years ago, so that others could take profit of it. In fact I've not had any problem at all using indisctinctively 3 drives. What I really mean to post if anybody knows is any complementary idea, such as those that I had by myself after I was tought, i.e. using F: drive for swapping, temp and IE Temporary Files and formatting it at every boot using Autoexec.bat (format /q). I've already learnt here the use of XXcopy for cloning using DOS and BIOS posted by another member of this forum, which also is a really interesting way of cloning. Maybe there are other interesting ideas which I don't know, and that's what made me write the words that you quote. Hope that it helps. Cheers!

If anybody knows any new idea to improve cloning please post it here. Thank you!

"Errare humanum est", old latins said. If anybody says "I am never wrong", he is wrong.

Peace, please! This thread was started by another member and he deserves to be respected. You may open your own thread if you wish. Thank you.

If your formatting was quick (format E: /q) you may recover almost everything. You may use this link: http://www.winundelete.com/?rid=google&kid=wu0401. If you made a complete format (format E:\), don't blame yourself: nobody is infallible. Good luck!

All Microsoft OS have advantages and disadvantages. The only problem is the decision of MS and consequently HP and several other driver providers to cut the throat to Win98 and after it to all unsupported operative systems according to the "lifecycle policy". Their goal is to increase sales by forcing users to buy new machines in which, of course, Vista now and Windows 7 or Windows 8 afterwards, or any other even more hardware demanding OS is preinstalled. IMO for them we are not customers, but servants, having to obey forcedly their orders. Doesn't matter if you are happy with your present OS: it was sentenced to death at birth. But many of us wonder why upgrade if we feel comfortable with our computer and our old OS, be it Win98 or XP. In a near future also Vista users will have the same problem: Windows 7 and Windows 8 have been already announced. Most users are not prone to follow that kind of implicit commands. In my case I'll never leave Windows 98 SE for as long as I can: I have even bought spare parts in prevention of the "blocus". I simply like it. Ambition must have a limit. Old romans said: "When gods want to destroy a man, they listen to his prayers". This fight could be their Vietnam...

In any case I would demand from Microsoft and the hardware providers a little more sensibility towards Windows 98, XP, 2000, 2003 and most probably afterwards also Vista users.

I find it totally silly to make this a bone of contention. Nothing is perfect under the sun, and preferences don't need to be justified.

In fact I never tried to use more. That's what MS says. I never tried to use SATA. I've read it in forums. The drivers for every USB2 device are supplied by vendor, but if you use a generic driver you don't need a different driver for each device. About the final note: I don't use my computer for games. I've been told it. Even when Windows 98 SE is not what it could have been with a little help of Microsoft (they abandoned it in their own interest and so opened the door for future problems in the supply of motherboards and periphericals) it is great and I'll never upgrade, for as long as I can. Of course I find it perfect if other people "fall in love" with Vista, Linux or XP. Love is blind. But I think we the Win98 "lovers" deserve the same respect, hopefully also from MS and the hardware providers.

As for resources, there's a 512 MB limit for memory usage. There are some problems when using high speed processors. Concerning games I mean the ones designed for XP or Vista. Of course, there are a lot of games to play also under Win98! Apart of this, the lack of drivers makes it impossible the use of a SATA HD. It would be excellent if someone created one. The same thing happened with USB2 drivers and it was sorted out in the unofficial SP2!