I have an old laptop that I want to format the hard drive and reinstall an OS from scratch. I've been using XP, but would like to use something that might be less taxing on my system (and cheaper). All I really need to do is web surfing and MS Office applications. What OS would you recommend? I'm considering Win98 because I can pick it up pretty cheap.
2006-08-16 21:23:00 · 8 answers · asked by firemedicgm 4 in Computers & Internet ➔ Software
excellant idea 2 go down with u'r os
1. win 98 is good, but check it out ... win 98 se (second edition)
most r se anyway ,, earlier 98, mean without the se was flawed
dunno where u buying from, cause i believe it's no longer supported. if otherwise, fine !
2. u may also want to consider win me
plus is - better driver base & pendrives if u'r using one,, easier on usb 2.0 devices
minus is - it is not as stable a platform as win 98
3. win 95 is good, but lacks security when connecting to internet
>> my vote is for win 98 se !
2006-08-16 21:40:59 · answer #1 · answered by sεαη 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'd ditch windows altogehter and install Linux. I'm currently using Mandriva Live 2006 on an old laptop (Celeron 500/128Mb/20Gb HDD) it runs better than win 98- Wireless networking was easier to set up than on my XP desktop). On your machine Linux would wipe the floor with any windows. for ease of use, I'd recommend Ubuntu. Most Linux distributions (distros) include all the software you could need. Firefox web browser, Open Office.org which satisfactorily replaces MS office (It can happily interchange documents with MS office and default to using microsoft document formats.
To dip a to in the water, try one of the Live CD's which let you run linux directly from the Cd/DVD. OK it's a bit slower than from the HDD but will give you a feel.
BTW I'm not a Linux evangelist, It just suits my laptop. My desptop (2.6Ghz P4) runs Win XP SP2.
have a look at http://www.cheeplinux.com/
2006-08-17 04:44:27 · answer #2 · answered by David D 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If you are just using some simple software applications, Windows 98 will be a very good choice for you. It is less expensive than Windows 2000 or XP or Windows ME and will be able to let you run all those Microsoft Office applications and internet smoothly. Windows 95 is cheaper but it is very old and not as good as Windows98 and it is currently running out of stock and can't be able to find that easily. So overall i think that Windows 98 is still the best for ya. GoodLuck.
2006-08-17 04:30:08 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Use WindowsXP lite, that's the same Window XP but with almost all of the special effects disabled. Ofcourse you have to use an app like nLite or something similar to do the liteing from the original source CD of WindowsXP. Run's on a Pentium 2 with 64 MB RAM.
2006-08-17 04:44:53 · answer #4 · answered by joamon 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You should post the specs of your laptop so we can understand it better..
but personally, windows 98, is alright but not stable and you got to be prepared to reinstall maybe every 3-6 months...
if your RAM is > 128mb, and since you mentioned you already have windows XP, then use that, turn off all the fancy visual enhancement, turn off all un-necessary startup program, and its pretty alrigth and stable, i would actually recommend windows 2000 but since u got XP, when why waste any more $$$.. but the KEY factor is RAM, and since ram is resonably cheap, its better to upgrade your RAM and use XP.
2006-08-17 04:34:53 · answer #5 · answered by skylabs.geo 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
What are the specs of the laptop? RAM is the big issue with XP, if you can use Windows 98 second edition - unless if you feel like discovering Linux.
2006-08-17 04:38:19 · answer #6 · answered by � Fuzzy Dice 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Windows XP
2006-08-17 04:29:30 · answer #7 · answered by SAREK 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
think abt win 95 or win 98 2nd edition. if you are willing to work with open office consider linux.
2006-08-17 04:32:13 · answer #8 · answered by gansatanswers 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋