My PC is four years old. For the last couple of years, I’ve had trouble connecting to the Internet. It will take two, three, four attempts to log on – and then I’m likely to lose my connection. I figured I just had a crappy connection, being out here in the rural PNW. But I got a PowerBook last week, and it always connects on the first attempt and never loses the connection. Sounds like a bad modem in the PC.
But that’s not what’s pissing me off right now. Yesterday I tried to open a Word document. I got a white box that said my system is experiencing a shortage of resources. I had to hard-reboot. After restarting, I tried again. Same results. I tried running AdAware, in case there was something interfering. Same results. I hate hard reboots, and I had to keep doing them. I tried running Gateway GoBack to revert my hard drive to an earlier, I’d hoped ‘better’ state. Nope. Word crashed the computer again.
So I started ScanDisc after rebooting (again!). I chose the thorough scan, and ‘automatically fix errors’. This takes a long time. After a while, I went to the PC to find the expected message: ‘ScanDisc has restarted ten times. There may be something running that is using resources’ (or something like that). I chose to ignore further warnings, as I didn’t want to babysit the damned thing so that I could tell it to ignore the warning. I went to bed expecting ScanDisc would be finished when I arose.
Nope. It’s still running. It’s only half-finished. :mad:
I’ve had just about enough. Whether or not I can open Word documents after ScanDisc is finished, I think I’ll buy an external hard drive. I’ll move my important files to the external drive. Then I think it will be time to reformat C: and re-install Windows.
What are the specs of the old pc? Last weekend I did a revamp of my friend’s mom’s old pc. same as you, the problem started with a modem suddenly failing to function. She was running an old Dell with 64 megs of ram and WinME. Not to mention the multiple installations of really old Real players and the 1000+ spyware instances caought by Ad-Aware. A buddy of ours had some old ram sticks, we got a copy of XP Home and started from scratch. You’d have guess it was a brand new computer. Quick format, XP installs perfect now that we bumped her to 256 megs of RAM, and what do you know, the XP finds and installs the old modem no problems and she’s back online. She’s now the happiest little old lady on the block.
It’s a 500mHz processor. I either have 256mb or 512 mb of RAM; I think the latter. IIRC the HD is 20gig, but it might be 40. I’d reformat it today, but I there are many, many files I need off of it first.
I have the original discs that came with it. Will I need to make a boot disc (floppy) in order to re-install Win98?
Shouldn’t have to make a boot disk if you have the original, otherwise, yes. The machine won’t be able to use the CD rom until it boots the drivers from the floppy. You can make a backup bootable floppy through one of the windows utilities (if forget which one, or where it is on the machine). I’ve reformatted windows 98 machines about 6 times in the last three years so I’m pretty comfortable doing it but by no means an expert.
If you want to find basic computer info just right click on the ‘My Computer’ Icon on the desktop and then select the ‘properties’ tab. This will usually tell you the prosessor speed and will always tell you the RAM.
If you want a detailed system info list then go into the Direct X Diagnostic utilities. Direct X will also tell you what kind of video card you have and how much video RAM you have.
It seems that every 18 months or so it was time to either overhaul the 98 computers or do a re-install if they are heavily used.
You might just want to consider installing a $60 40gig internal harrdrive on the thing and forget about the external one if you’re trying to save some beans.
Externals aren’t bad, but they are slow. Especially on your machine where you’re stuck with USB 1.0.
Keep talking, guys - I have a five year old PC which is doing similar stunts. I’m bookmarking this thread for future reference.
Actually, I did manage to fix the “System Resources Low” bullshit - under Internet Options, I set the “Temporary Internet Files” file size to the least possible - 1 meg. That seems to have cleared it up.
And I’m going to keep on running Windows 98 for as long as I can. It does everything I need to do at this point, and has some (maybe minimal) virus protection. My system crashing once a week isn’t my idea of fun, either, though.
Hey! I think I’ll try that! (After ScanDisc stops. Last time I checked, it had half a million clusters to go.)
I’ll still get the external drive (thanks for the advice, Uncommon Sense; but I want to physically disconnect it when it’s not in use) and back up my files on it. I’ll also re-install Windows. I’ve been wanting to play Tomb Raider, but it no longer works and I can’t re-install. Better to start from scratch.
Don’t ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, EVER user Windows ME! It sucks worse than teabaggin’ a bear trap. It is Microsoft’s bastard son. Win98 has a lot of security holes and fewer and fewer software apps will run on it.
I haven’t run into anything not running on Win98 that I had my heart set on (yet). Once that happens, we might have to go computer shopping. Until then, it does everything I need it to do. (And a few things I don’t, like crashing once a week, but oh well.)
ScanDisc didn’t solve the problem, so I’ll have to re-install sooner than later. I was going to get the external drive today, but I have to go down to Seattle to shoot a wedding. I’ll try to get the drive mañana.
Well, my guess is that Win98 is probably what came with his computer when he bought it, and that he doesn’t want to spend $70 or so to upgrade.
I know dozens of computer users, from geeks who know what they’re doing to amateurs who only know how to open internet explorer, and i think every single one of them uses whatever version of Windows came with their computer. With so many people turning their computers over every two or three years nowdays, and with desktop hardware being so cheap, not many people can be bothered spending the $70 or so that it costs to upgrade to XP on an older computer. Hell, you can currently get a Dell deskop with P4 2.8 GHz processor and a 15" LCD screen for $379, with WinXP included.
This is true. My computer does everything I want it to do, and I don’t see any reason to spend another $70 on it.
Of course, I am going to spend money on an external drive. This should give me a portable back-up, and allow me to use it on different computers. I should probably pick up a USB sticktoo, since it seems that fewer computers are using floppies nowadays.
I did make a floppy copy of the Win98 boot disc from the link in my laptop thread in GQ.