Expert: Kevin - 6/17/2009

Question
I recently bought a older P3 computer. The person who sold
it to me put on an unauthorized version of XP, so when I ran
it I would get a notice that in so many days it had to be
registered. The person didn’t have the numbers to do it so I
installed a copy of Win.98 which copied over XP. Now I have
some questions. The modem in it worked when I had XP but
after installing Win98 it either couldn’t find it or it
wasn’t working for who knows why. If I bought an upgrade to
Vista, would that help me get online by making my modem work
again? I was told that Win98 won’t even get online anymore,
is that true? Plus, my color dropped down to 16 colors and
offers no other setting to improve it. Is that just because
it’s Win98? Can you help me out?
Thanks
Rob


Answer
Hi Rob, Windows 98 should be able to go online as long as you have the correct drivers (software) for your modem/network adapter. Did you check the manufacturer's website for this computer to see if a driver exists for Windows 98?

If you plan on upgrading to Vista, I suggest you run the Upgrade Advisor first to see if your hardware are up to par to run it:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-vista/get/upgrade-advisor.aspx

Yes, the color and resolution will be minimum due to the missing drivers for your video card or display adapter. You need to find the drivers and install them.

If possible, provide me the exact brand and model of the computer you have. If they have Windows 98 drivers, you can install them for both the video and modem. You should be set then without the need to update to XP or Vista, unless you want to.

Kevin.
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