- Alex -

Download this article as a self-extracting text file
View this article in printer-friendly plain-text format
E-mail this article to a friend

Microsoft released a sequel of the Windows 98 saga with Window 98 SE (Second Edition). While it is not a major upgrade from the original version of Windows 98, check out this list of new features to decide whether you need it or not:

• New feature Internet Connection Sharing ICS to share one access to the Internet with multiple networked PCs
• The latest Year 2000 updates
• New versions of Internet Explorer 5 and Outlook Express 5
• Netmeeting version 3
• All updates since the original Windows 98 release as well as new updates and patches
• Additional device drivers
• New versions of WebTV, DirectX, USB and several other options

You can buy the Windows 98 SE Upgrade CD retail version in the store for $90 (upgrade version) or $170 (full version) depending on your needs as explained below.

If you own a Windows 98 CD (either upgrade or full), you can order for $20 an update CD from Microsoft. It includes the Windows 98 Service Pack as well as the new technologies. Order it here.

You can download and install IE5, the updates and patches from Microsoft's web site directly or download them here for later installation.

Note: You need to be aware of, though, is that you will not get all features from 98 SE when downloading. The download consists of individual patches and separate downloads for IE5, Media Player 6.1, Netmeeting 3 etc. It does not include Internet Connection Sharing or any other new features.
If you just want the patches and updates all nice and neat on one CD, you can order a CD with only the service pack directly from Microsoft. It is free plus $5 for shipping. Order it here.

Tip: If you have MSIE 5 already installed and plan to upgrade your existing version of Windows to Windows 98 SE, first uninstall MSIE 5 as SE comes with a newer version.

Also, an interesting little side note is that this new version of Windows 98 will not include TweakUI.

Upgrade Paths

Following are the different upgrade paths you can take. Find the paragraph that describes what version of Windows you own to know exactly how to upgrade:

You don't own any Windows version at all

If you don't own any version of Windows, you need to purchase the full version of Windows 98 SE in a retail store for ca. $170. You can clean install it on a PC that does not have Windows on it.

You own Windows 3.1 or Windows 95

If you own Windows 3.1 or Windows 95, you should purchase the Windows 98 SE upgrade version in a retail store for ca. $90. This will allow you to install it on top of a existing version of Windows 3.1 or 95 and upgrade it to 98 SE. If you want to perform a clean install, you can still do that using the 98 SE upgrade CD by running the setup and inserting your old Windows 3.1 or 95 disks when prompted at the beginning of the installation to prove your eligibility to upgrade.

You own the original Windows 98

In this case, you can order for $19.95 a upgrade CD directly from Microsoft. That CD contains the exact same features as described above. The difference to the retail upgrade CD is that this CD requires Windows 98 to be present on the PC that you want to update to 98 SE. This CD will not upgrade Windows 3.1 or 95. A clean install with this CD is not possible, Windows 98 original needs to be installed first.

But if you do not care about the new features and just want to get the patches and bug fixes, you can download and install IE5, the updates and patches from Microsoft's web site directly or download them here for later installation. It will not give you any of the new features, and if you want to get IE5 or Netmeeting 3, you need to download and install them separately.

For a list of the top issues with Windows 98 SE, click here.

- Alex -

Download this article as a self-extracting text file
View this article in printer-friendly plain-text format
E-mail this article to a friend