Win98SE help (don't laugh)

[draggar]

I know it's been a long time but I successfully installed Win98SE on a Dell D600. The splash screen comes up but then a DOS error message pops up:

"Insufficient memory to initalize windows.

Quit one or more memory-resident programs or remove unnecessary
utilities from your config.sys and autoexec.bat files, and restart your computer.

Press any key to continue..."

If I press a key or a minute (or so) later the screen pops up telling me it is safe to turn off the computer.

I get this in normal mode and safe mode.

Suggestions?

I know there is more than enough memory since I used to run Win98SE with 128MB and I'm sure this has more memory.

Config.sys has this lone line in it:

DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\setver.exe

Autoexec.bat is empty.

If I remember correctly, wasn't there an EMM386 command for larger memory management?

 

[south]

If I rememeber correctly, emm386 won't help you. Win98 manages it's memory on it's own I think. Normally this is a case of bad ram, not insufficient ram. However, if you want to try, in your config.sys put:

DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS
dos=high,umb
device=c:\windows\emm386.exe
files=60
buffers=70

You should be able to leave your autoexec.bat empty.

Cheers!

 

[draggar]

No help.

I've been reading - it may have too much memory and I don't know where to force it to 256MB (which INI?)

i can get into DOS.

 

[south]

No help.

I've been reading - it may have too much memory and I don't know where to force it to 256MB (which INI?)

i can get into DOS.

You shouldn't have to. Win9x will recognize it. It sounds like lower memory might be having the problem.

Have you tried changing the memory?

 

[draggar]

I dind't realize I had 2GB of RAM - I downgraded to 512 and it's fine now.

 

[stewie]

Win98SE isn't that the upgrade for Vista ???


:yo: Congrats!!!

 

[draggar]

Probabaly - it's stable as hell.

Now I need to find the drivers for it - Dell only supplies drivers for 2K and XP. I'm only concerned with network and sound.

 

[Johnn]

The key is cost effective.

Let say your time worth $10/hour (a little higher than McDonald or WalMart).
You spent 10 hours to fix the old pc and forget to go to bed with your wife.
If it is working you still lose 10 hours and get your wife upset ($1,000)
You can spend $100 to find a decent PC with XP on craiglist!

 

[draggar]

This laptop is for me and I want 98SE on it to run some older apps that won't run on XP.

 

[katherine]

I'm sure you realize win98 is real crap but I've used NT4 until 2006 and pushed it to the limit. I even have USB drivers for NT4
Perhaps this would be an alternative for your laptop.

 

[draggar]

Too many issues w/ 98SE due to drivers - I'm trying WinME now. Next is Win2K which Dell did provide the drivers for.

And sdsinc - 98SE was one of the most stable OSs that MS ever put out - next to MS-DOS. It flew on this laptop but due to drivers I couldn't get better video resolution. At least ME has a lot of drivers built in - even generics.

 

[south]

Too many issues w/ 98SE due to drivers - I'm trying WinME now. Next is Win2K which Dell did provide the drivers for.

Yuck! Dude, skip ME and go straight to win2k

 

[draggar]

Dude, I ran WinME for many year with NO problems - I only went to XP when I bought a new computer a few years ago (2007?).

Edit: I don't think I have 2K.

 

[south]

Dude, I ran WinME for many year with NO problems - I only went to XP when I bought a new computer a few years ago (2007?).

Edit: I don't think I have 2K.

MS gave up support on ME as quickly as they could. They had invested most of their R&D into w2k instead I guess.

 

[draggar]

Yeah, but I worked tech support (phone) when it was released - luckily if the system didn't ship with it, we didn't have to support it.

 

[Albert Tai]

My family has a window 95 laptop .
No crashes. Been working since I was six.
Still works.

And compared to right now my window 7....it's better
Window 7 is much more pretty but some how I have alot of crashes (bugs I suppose)