has anyone here upgraded from Win98se to Win2k? I'm leaning towards Win2K and not the invasive XP.... not talking a clean install, i'm talking upgrading existing software? Was it easy? Did you run into any problems? Do you recommend doing this?
I have..as long as you do some checkin to make sure your old apps and drivers are compatible..you should be ok. I personally prefer 2K over XP also. Even tho XP is nothing more than 2K with cosmetic enhancements and a activation routine built in. MS has a program that will check to see if your machine can handle the upgrade...I'm tryin to find it right now...I'll post the link when I find it.
They appear to have removed the utilitiy that checks your computer. No surprise since they prefer that you go straight to XP instead of 2K. Here is the link to their upgrade checking area. Good luck. You will find 2K to be a really good OS (I don't say that about M$ products very often) if you can still find it. M$ is really pushing ppl to use XP by tryin to get 2K off the shelfs as quick as they can.
rH, What exactly is it about XP that you feel is 'invasive'? It DOES require a tad more resources, but with a little tweaking/mods even a PII 266 will run smooth. The privacy/middleware issues have already been resolved and are easily removed. When SP1 comes out soon, it will be as simple as unchecking a box to remove ANY feature 'integrated' into it. Even the Luna theme can be disabled in favor of the Windows 2000 desktop theme, if you prefer. There are several good reasons to move to XP. It is a superior gaming platform compared to any previous MS-OS. Future games will only reinforce this, as most are now being designed with XP certs in mind. You have the ability to run many 9x/ME programs that simply will not run on 2K by using the Compatibility Mode built in. There is increased Messenger functionality not available in previous versions such as Remote Assistance. There is the built in terminal services server, personal firewall, support for way more products, faster boot time, built in support for wireless, etc. etc. etc. Contrary to what many say, it is NOT a bloated 2000 with a new interface... As far as upgrading... I've done several corporate migrations (1000s of installs, literally ) and unless somebody INSISTED, I would not recommend an upgrade. Some upgrades go much more smoothly (like NT to 2000 or 2000 to XP) since the underbelly is so similar. Upgrades from OSes such as 9x/ME to 2000/XP are upgrades only in name, since the procedure really only takes certain files/documents/settings and overwrites the drive. It's not as if its 'upgrading' anything. But you still end up with a lot of unneeded junk on your drive. Of course, its more work to backup (most of this is automated with the Windows XP Files and Settings Transfer Wizard) than to cross the fingers and hit upgrade, but the result will be a faster running, cleaner install. (isn't the whole point to get rid of 9x/ME? You can download some compatiblity tools from Microsoft's website for 2000 and XP. If you can't find them, drop me a line; I'd be happy to send them your way. If you do end up going with XP, stay away from the Home Edition. Its a crippled version that does away with many significant goodies. Professional edition will only run you 50 bucks more anyway ($150). Let me know if you have any questions...I'm here to help but have said enough already!
Almost my entire summer job has essentially been upgrading computers on our school network from windows 98 to Windows 2000. 2000 is a lot more stable than 98 and is really good if you like to do networking. The only reason I'd tell someone not to upgrade to 2000 is if they like to play a lot of 3D games. If you play a lot of high end graphical games I'd say avoid 2000 at all costs.
I actually did the Win98 ---> Win2000 upgrade on a machine today. Went very smoothly, except when I tried to install too many updates at once and the machine would get stuck in a never ending restart loop. However, I just popped the CD in and ran the repair console and it was up and running perfectly once again. It's probably better to do a clean reformat and install it anew, but the upgrade route works well too. I tried XP before, but it was too unstable and was too slow for my tastes...Win 2k is just cleaner. I'd suggest keeping the drive on FAT32 at least for awhile, though, in cae anything does crop up. It helps if you have a cable modem/DSL line running during the upgrade, as it pops up with an upgrade console and leads you through several steps to ensure your system is compatible, plus downloads some upgrade packs from the web if it thinks you need them. The install also prepares an upgrade report so you can see exactly what drivers you might need to get before you upgrade - on one machine I had to get a special Ultra100 SCSI driver, but on the one I did today any of the drivers could wait until the upgrade was over (namely the modem and printer drivers). Win2000 isn't great for games, and that's why I dual boot it with Win98 SE on my main computer, but it will support a good number of games...just not the ones that need the DOS consoles or direct access to the computer. SimCity 2000 yes, NBA Live 2001 no. For anything else, though, Win2000 has 98/ME beat.
That might explain my probs so far with XP..I've only installed a couple of Home editions and I wasn't impressed. You're sayin that the Pro version is better?? I would also recommend a clean install, just because I have had better luck that way. Besides, if ya clean install you can take advantage of NTFS rather than having to try to run it on FAT32...I couldn't find the compatablilty checker online, doesn't matter to me(I have it somewhere here) but was tryin to find it for rHead...
what about all the registration stuff? register to use it... open your pc to install a new HD, re-register.... replace some memory, re-register....install a new DVD... what? I have to call now to register my software? does this happen? all I ever heard about XP was about how the registration can turn into a nightmare... is this unfounded? I told myself, when I upgrade to XP, it will be when I purchase a new PC, with all accessories already XP compatible. I would hate to upgrade my current PC only to find that my DVD or CDR is not compatible!? I'm not even sure I want to upgrade to Win2K, since I do love to play Counter Strike.... arghhh... thanks for everyone's replies...
I haven't really had to mess with Product Activation too much since I'm usually using the Microsoft Select version which doesn't require activation. The couple of personal experiences I have had with them were very quick and unobtrusive. Office and Visio are also doing the same thing, so it looks like their current strategy for the near future...but there's no sense in settling for an inferior version of Windows for what is likely to be a non-issue for you (as long as you play by the rules ) Link: Microsoft Product Activation From C|Net: If your worried about incompatibility, check MS's site for the compatibity tool. It will warn you of all incompatible software AND hardware...I've only come across a handful of components that XP didn't recognize. I seriously doubt that a CD-R or DVD wouldn't work, since its the first Windows OS with out of box support for both. BTW...Counter-Strike runs just fine (as mentioned, its a great gaming platform) I run a CS server from time to time, and have never had any problems playing it. I only wish XP would make me a better player....I tend to be cannon fodder... Good luck...keep us updated...