Windows 98 - Is it for you?


Yesterday (25 June) saw the official launch of Windows 98 and this week's article looks at the new operating system (and I promise NOT to mention the US Government versus Bill Gates saga!).

Windows 98 - What's New?

If you have kept your operating system up to date with the Windows 95 patches and you have Internet Explorer 4.00 on your system then the answer to the casual observer is not a lot! Unlike the jump from Windows 3.1x to Windows 95, the changes are not so noticeable - especially if you are using the aforementioned tools.

However, things HAVE changed and a list is shown below.

Full integration of the Internet Explorer 4 browser

Upgrade to FAT32 file system

Treat your PC as a web site

Enhanced system tools

Additional support for modern hardware

These are the main items which are covered in more detail below.

Internet Explorer 4.00 Integration

Aside from the legal battles going on about this, Windows 98 has Internet Explorer 4.00 integrated within and those of us using IE 4.00 will notice little difference in its' operation. For those taking the plunge, you will find a competent browser that supports all the main facilities of the Internet (Active-x, Java, Crescendo, Real Player et al) and one that I personally enjoy using over other browsers. I guess it is very much a case of what you are used to.

The integration however, does mean that operating system and browser will work closer together giving a more seamless look to your PC. In the past, the browser has most definitely been an additional program. With the Internet ready for such things as channels, on-line audio talking and video conferencing, it is important that these get along with each other.

For those not using Internet Explorer, it is worth mentioning that as well as the browser, you get Microsoft NetMeeting which lets you chat, have whiteboards, talk and can even support video conferencing. Outlook Express is a very usable email client program that supports html email. FrontPage Express is a cut down version of FrontPage html editor and Microsoft chat gives you an alternative IRC client.

FAT32 File System

This is one of the major parts of Windows 98. FAT - File Allocation Table is part of the operating system that is responsible for storing files. Up until recently, this has been done using a 16 bit system. This means that disk addresses become a problem on systems with very large hard drives. "Very large" means over 1 Giga Byte.

The copyright of the article Windows 98 - Is it for you? in PC Support is owned by Chris Cruickshank. Permission to republish Windows 98 - Is it for you? in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Go To Page: 1 2 3

Articles in this Topic    Discussions in this Topic