Upgrade from W98

[Don]

I am running Windows 98. I have had some kind of
corruption. Several programs have fatal errors. Most of
the programs that error are games, one is a print utility,
but the big one is ScanDisk. 1) I suppose I could reload
W98 but I wonder if it is better to upgrade to Windows
2000 or XP. 2) If I do upgrade is it better to upgrade
(trying to keep my personal files) or with my corruption
do a clean install?

The computer is for personal use, small Word and Excel
files, games, and Internet through AOL. The Hardware is a
Dell Dimension 750 MHz Pentium III with 256MB SDRAM and 20
GB left on the hard drive.

 

[Don Coon]

I am running Windows 98. I have had some kind of
corruption. Several programs have fatal errors. Most of
the programs that error are games, one is a print utility,
but the big one is ScanDisk. 1) I suppose I could reload
W98 but I wonder if it is better to upgrade to Windows
2000 or XP. 2) If I do upgrade is it better to upgrade
(trying to keep my personal files) or with my corruption
do a clean install?

The computer is for personal use, small Word and Excel
files, games, and Internet through AOL. The Hardware is a
Dell Dimension 750 MHz Pentium III with 256MB SDRAM and 20
GB left on the hard drive.

Do a clean install after running the utility included on the XP CD to
migrate files and settings. That will save all your data files, address
book, favorites, etc. You'll have to reinstall the applications. One other
thing to think about is a hard drive upgrade before updating. You can simply
make your current "C:" drive a data drive so you'll save everything. An
80GB drive can be had for about $60.

BTW, you can buy a full OEM version of XP Home from www.newegg.com for $91
or the Pro version for $137 +/- shipped.

 

[Tom Barclay]

Check the Microsoft upgrade site before installing XP to make sure that your
hardware is compatible. If so, I'd advise a clean install. If XP isn't
compatible, then it may be time for a reformat and clean reinstall of 98.

 

[Alex Nichol]

I am running Windows 98. I have had some kind of
corruption. Several programs have fatal errors. Most of
the programs that error are games, one is a print utility,
but the big one is ScanDisk. 1) I suppose I could reload
W98 but I wonder if it is better to upgrade to Windows
2000 or XP. 2) If I do upgrade is it better to upgrade
(trying to keep my personal files) or with my corruption
do a clean install?

First check the hardware is adequate - at least a Pentium 400 and 256MB
RAM with 10 GB hard disk space to be worth it. Read Gary Woodruff's
article on upgrading to XP at http://www.aumha.org/win5/a/xpupgrad.htm
and read Gary Woodruff's article on Files and settings Transfer at
http://aumha.org/win5/a/fast.htm which would be helpful in taking data
files and settings forward if you do a clean install.

Generally my advice is to do an upgrade in the first instance.
Effectively the whole system gets replaced, so corruption problems are
unlikely to carry forward, and you can always go back to do a clean
install if it does not work out. You can do a clean install with an
upgrade CD provided you can still show the old system's proper CD as
evidence

 

[Don]

Thank you Alex and Tom most helpful

-----Original Message-----


First check the hardware is adequate - at least a Pentium 400 and 256MB
RAM with 10 GB hard disk space to be worth it. Read Gary Woodruff's
article on upgrading to XP at http://www.aumha.org/win5/a/xpupgrad.htm
and read Gary Woodruff's article on Files and settings Transfer at
http://aumha.org/win5/a/fast.htm which would be helpful in taking data
files and settings forward if you do a clean install.

Generally my advice is to do an upgrade in the first instance.
Effectively the whole system gets replaced, so corruption problems are
unlikely to carry forward, and you can always go back to do a clean
install if it does not work out. You can do a clean install with an
upgrade CD provided you can still show the old system's proper CD as
evidence