Windows 98

[jackedwardmorris95]

I'm looking for a good old windows 98 machine that will run CFS2, CFS1 and old dos games (Which are now free to download) CFS1 never detects the joystick on vista, CFS2 has a load of bugs (Incl. Mission Builder) and dos games do not even work, Please reccomend me some good'un's but if much expense can be avoided then that will be best,

Jack

[bearcat241]

Any used or new machine you find with a single core, 32-bit processor is a Win98 machine, regardless of whatever operating system it has on it currently. Just format the hard drive to wipe the existing operating system out and install Win98 from its CD. Any other programs you install besides CFS2, CFS1 and old dos games will have to be Win98 compatible also, including all hardware drivers.

You should be able to find a Win98 CD on Ebay or a local store that sells used hardware and software.

[erufle]

The best CFS2 machine I have is one that I purchased just a couple of months before everybody went to dual-core processors. It came with XP, but XP works fine with CFS2. It has a single processor 3.4 GHz. It was (and probably still is) the fastest computer you could get with a single processor, and it came with 1Gig of RAM to boot. This may be one of the best machines ever built to run CFS2 on. If I upgraded the memory to 2Gigs and installed a better video card it would be even better. Maybe I should do just that. However, it is hard for me to justify spending money on an older machine that already works quite well for gaming.

I usually mess around with CFS2 on my one-year-old laptop that runs Vista. Specs: HP Pavilion dv6700 Notebook PC
Intel Core2 Duo CPU T9300, 2.5GHz, L1 Cache 64 KB, L2 6,144
Installed memory 3.072 GB ; 1-2GB module + 1-1GB module.
Even though it is a much faster machine, it is slightly more enjoyable to run CFS2 on the older machine. As you have implied, Vista is just a little buggy, especially when running CFS2. Yet, it is so much easier to sit in my favorite chair with the laptop and play with CFS2. The reason is that I have a terrible back, and it is important that I be able to recline.

I had thought about buying a portable stand so I could use the old desktop and still be able to sit in a recliner, but they want so much money for those things- even at Wally World. As it is I can make CFS2 work in an acceptable manner with my HP Vista laptop and the memory and processor speeds are never a issue.

I am torn between the fine manner in which Vista takes advantage of the dual-core processing capabilities of modern computers and a desire to have CFS2 run trouble free. The fact is, if you get online and research the little tweaks that make Vista machines a little more user friendly there isn't much of a reason to go back to the old XP or Windows98 operating systems. I can get CFS2 to run just fine on Vista. But if you want to run even older programs I guess you have no choice.

If you are really into combat flight sims I do not know why you would even want to mess with sims older than CFS2. As time goes by, more people seem to realize that CFS2 is the best combat sim ever offered. Jack, there is so much to learn about CFS2 and so many add-ons that it will take you a good deal of time and effort to learn it all. And another fact is, you really don't need to go back in time to an older machine to get CFS2 running well. I suggest you concentrate on learning the fine points (tweaks) of modern computers and the fine points of CFS2. There will be many that disagree with me and many will support my position.
:a1451:

[mariereid]

Jack, around here, if you placed an ad for an old computer, the next day your yard would be full of old computers, monitors, printers, etc.

[Cowboy1968]

Any used or new machine you find with a single core, 32-bit processor is a Win98 machine, regardless of whatever operating system it has on it currently. Just format the hard drive to wipe the existing operating system out and install Win98 from its CD. Any other programs you install besides CFS2, CFS1 and old dos games will have to be Win98 compatible also, including all hardware drivers.

You should be able to find a Win98 CD on Ebay or a local store that sells used hardware and software.

This is not necessarily the facts. Some newer 32 bit computers running certain hardware configurations will not work. These configurations include large herd drives, Ram that runs in the Gigs (example RAM sets over 2 Gigabytes), faster P4, Cellar, and some up to date architectures like DDR2 RAM, S-ATA drives, and so on. I recently purchased a motherboard that isn't even supported by XP, but i will put a condition on that statement. The board is designed to either take a single or duel core. processor.

You have to remember that Windows 98 was created long before DDR2, DDR3 ram, large hard drives over 20 gig and so on.

Best bet is to find an old computer using a P3 type era processor using older SDRAM dimms for the RAM, and a hard drive under 20 gigs.

[bearcat241]

Guess i should have likewise conditioned my statements: you can rig anything to run 98 if you know how...;) Some configs are turnkey for 98, others require some hardware massages. It all depends on the user's knowledge in working the finer technical points.

Before i upgraded completely to XP, i ran WinME (Win98 third edition) and Win2000 in a dual boot with DDR2 RAM and extra large hard drive above Win98 prescribed limits. I used advanced formatting techniques to make WinME accept the hard drive capacity (250 gigs) and i simply kept the memory capacity within Win98/ME specs. Most internal SATA drives also allow the option to be configured and used as IDE drives (which i did) if the user has the knowledge to do so, so you don't have to be snagged by SATA either.

[Devildog73]

I have my SATAs running in IDE mode also. Running XP on both machines. I do miss 98SE, but not enough to give up some of the features of XP.

[p14u2nv]

I am really curious as to what sort of problems might occur when Win7 and CFS2 are thoroughly mixed!

Just when will this MS fun ever end?

[demorier]

Don't forget the file system format, gotta be FAT32 for Win98 rather than the later NTFS. I still use an old machine on Win98SE for running CFS2 because my older flight control set does not have compatable drivers for later OS's.

[simonu]

there is one negative to win98 that might affect your running of cfs2 mission builder , win98 cannot allocate as much ram as xp or vista so you will not be able to edit missions with MASSIVE infrastructure layouts!