for you computer experts.... i have an old laptop that has windows ME that I want to give to my daughter (age 8). it's a little sluggish and so i thought I would reformat and then reinstall windows. however I can't find my original cd's for windows ME that came with the laptop(toshiba). I did find however my original cd for windows 98 that came with an even older gateway computer... so my question is can i install windows 98 from a Gateway computer to a toshiba laptop that had windows ME if i do a reformat?
Windows ME is a nice little OS -- it's old of course, but it only weighs in at 300 megs. Windows 98 is about 2 gigs (I believe) -- if your laptop is slow with ME it will be ultra slow trying to run 98. Win ME is basically a knockoff of the Mac operating system of the day. One problem with ME is it is no longer supported by Microsoft (ie) no more security patches, but that isn't a huge problem. Win 98 can't be far behind, but there are still quite a few companies running 98. _________ Lol, I totally didn't answer your question at all.
This article lists the minimum hardware requirements for Windows 98. It also lists the optional components that you can install. MORE INFORMATION The following list describes the minimum hardware requirements for Windows 98: • A personal computer with a 486DX 66 megahertz (MHz) or faster processor (Pentium central processing unit recommended). • 16 megabytes (MB) of memory (24 MB recommended). • A typical upgrade from Windows 95 requires approximately 195 MB of free hard disk space, but the hard disk space may range from between 120 MB and 295 MB, depending on your computer configuration and the options that you choose to install. • A full install of Windows 98 on a FAT16 drive requires 225 MB of free hard disk space, but may range from between 165 MB and 355 MB, depending on your computer configuration and that options that you choose to install. • A full install of Windows 98 on a FAT32 drive requires 175 MB of free hard disk space, but may range from between 140 MB and 255 MB, depending on your computer configuration and the options that you choose to install. • One 3.5-inch high-density floppy disk drive. • VGA or higher resolution (16-bit or 24-bit color SVGA recommended). MSN, The Microsoft Network, Windows Messaging, or Internet access require a 14.4 bits per second (bps) modem (28.8 or faster recommended). Optional components: • Network adapter • DVD-ROM drive and decoder adapter • Audio card and speakers for sound • Scanner or digital camera • Second monitor and second video adapter • IEEE 1394 bus (Firewire) • Universal Serial Bus (USB) bus and HID hardware • ATI All-in-Wonder graphics card http://support.microsoft.com/kb/182751/ Windows xp requires a 2 gig partition
thanks.... but one thing: would there be any problems that the original cd's were from my gateway and now i'm using them on a toshiba laptop i.e. does windows detect the manufacturer and/or the exact computer and prevent installing on other machines?
If you look at it strictly from a technical standpoint, there is no reason that a laptop that ran WinME cannot run Win98. WinME was the last of the Win9X series of operating systems from Microsoft. July 11 was the end of support date for WinME and Win98. Any holes or vulnerabilities that are discovered will not be patched (and believe me there are plenty). From a legal standpoint, OS licenses are for the machine they are installed on and terminate with that machine. So installing the OS from another machine is a violation of the license agreement. My suggestion would be to look at the specs of the laptop and see if it is capable of running Win XP. If so, get an upgrade to XP home.
Shouldn't be a problem if you've got all the serial numbers to enter -- Windows doesn't detect the manufacturer.
I've tried using recovery CDs from one manufactuer on another company's laptop before and it did not work. Unless they're generic Microsoft install CDs it's highly likey it'll detect the make/model of the laptop before letting you install. Though you should be able to put them in and try and boot up before formatting anything.
imo, windows me sucked and was the b*stard child of the microsoft operating system. Windows 98 and 2k were much more stable operating systems and I know people who still run 98 on certain computers just for the stability. Yes, they are both dead systems, but if its for your daugther I feel that 98 would have been the way to go even if you had your Me disks.
^ i agree. trust me i speak from experience: avoid winME at all costs. if you really have to just go win98. and yes you should be able to install it. plus it doesnt have the activation crap that xp has so nothing can really stop you from doing it.
Windows 98 or Windows 98 Second Edition will always be better then Windows ME. Windows ME is the worst OS Microsoft ever released.
I use ME on my old home system and I just don't really have any issues with it -- besides the constant crashing. Just kidding, but I do think that ME starts having increased problems if you let the registry get full of old useless crap. On my system that might be more a result of the old processor than the OS [I am maxed on RAM though]. I have XP sitting in my desk -- maybe it's time to stick it in the drive... utter laziness
Yes and no. Gateway CDs generally run only for Gateway computers. Not only do brand name startup disks give you Win98, but it also comes preprogrammed with garbage programs they choose like free AOL. You'll have to find out if your startup CD is an image of a Gateway harddrive or the Win98 program itself. A standalone win98 cd can run on your tosh laptop after a reformat. If it works, Win98 is much better than ME on older computers.
I felt the same way, but XP is a lot better. Less crashing, less rebooting from memory loss, and less reformatting from a bloated registry. It's also easier for networking and adding hardware.
ME had some really important new features (system restore, updated networking connections etc..) but by no means was it more stable than 98. ME was literally the worst piece of garbage Microsoft ever produced in terms of an operating system. It had holes all over the place, was caught in limbo over whether or not to be based on DOS, and was just flat out rushed so a lot of things never got fixed. Find a copy of Windows 2000 if you can, but if you can't go with 98.
Wow.....are you MAC people gonna stand for this. This man just compared Microsoft's biggest turd to the Mac OS of the day. I don't mind picking on you apple people every once in a while, but I know Apple puts out a nifty little OS. It doesn't have a truly relevant market share, so it doesn't have the big target on it's back for viruses and spyware and whatnot that plague Windows, but still........I'd never stoop so low as to compare it to ME. You guys should say something.
