No, this title wasnt just to trick you to coming in here. I need help. My grandfathers mnotherboard crashed on his 5 plus year old computer and he needs a new computer. The catch is, that he runs programs on there that are REALLY , REALLY OLD. So what should I get for him? A computer with windows 95? He runs a lot of DOS programs too.... AND, he wants to transfer all his old files from his old harddrive (POS) to his new computer. Can anyone help me on what to do? My idea was to buy a brand new computer (cheap, like 3 or 4 hundred dollars because he doesnt need anything more than a processor, case, mother board, monitor and maybe a printer. And put windows 95 on it. But, I dont know if the hardware will be compat. with win95.. Can anyone help me?
Just go to a small computer store and ask them to build you an extremely basic computer running Windows 95. I think you can transfer files through the USB port, maybe even parallel? You shouldn't have to worry about the hardware being better, just make sure it's the same OS. I'm guessing he had like a Pentium 100 Mhz, so just get him like a 1Ghz custom made for like $300-$500
Put Win98 SE on that machine. It's just as compatible w/ old programs as Win 95 is and it's the all around best & stable version of the Win 9x/ME line. Drivers shouldn't be a problem at all (shouldn't be much of a problem w/ win95 either) and programs still support Win98 (Win95 isn't supported by MS Office XP and some other newer programs iirc). As far as hardware goes, just get some last generation cheap & stable components, avoid ATI and VIA if you can.
What other advice do you need? Win 95 and 98 shouldn't really have any hardware compatability problems. After the new machine is up and running, install his old drive as a second drive. He can easily access his old files that way.
go to the neighborhood mom and pop computer store, and ask them if they have the parts to build a Pent II or Celeron computer with the basic requirements for Win98. Pent II/Celeron of any speed...128M ram...16M video card...20G HD...CD..SBLive Value or just an old SB 16... These parts will work fine for what he needs, and will be really cheap.. Obviously, if he wants a better machine, go for it..Win 95/98 will run happily on newer machines (with driver updates) and running DOS programs on 98 is not only possible, but very easy. The hardware will work no problem...you may have to go online and get drivers for the hardware since Win 95/98 was out long b4 most newer hardware.. Like was said before, install the old drive as the slave drive and it will be accessible from the new operating system... Any other questions?
One thing I would do if I can afford it is to get him a nice/new monitor. Even if the PC is old, when people see a new monitor they think the computer is newer and better/faster, etc. I dunno, I just KNOW it improves the computing experience. Going from a crappy 14" monitor to a nice 17 or 19" monitor is a HUGE change. One time I put a 19" monitor on an old computer and this guy was like "Wow, my computer is so much faster now" . . . A PII 350 or so should be solid. Any of the Windows 95/98/ME should do fine. I assume you know how to put a PC together, so I won't bore you with that. You shouldn't have much problem putting together a PC like that for $200 or so. If you need help, I'd be glad to point you in some directions.
