Windows 98 Upgrade Recommendations in the University

Microsoft recently released Windows 98, the follow-on product to Windows 95. Unlike the previous upgrade from Windows 3.1x to Windows 95 which included a tremendous change in the user interface and how everything worked. Windows 98, using a very similar user interface, is an enhancement to Windows 95 with many software corrections and additional tools to help each user maintain his or her system better.

Windows 98 also provides good support for the latest marketed hardware, such as large hard disk and Universal Serial Bus ports. Despite its advantages, Windows 98 demands more hardware resources including CPU, memory and disk space.

Although the ultimate decision on whether or not to upgrades lies with you and your network administrator, here are a few recommendations:

If you are going to buy a new computer,
We recommend installing Windows 98 if you are replacing computers in your department. The OS upgrade costs can be absorbed in the system acquisition costs. Similarly, if you are going to buy a new PC, you should consider choosing Windows 98.

If you are currently using Windows 3.1x,
Windows 3.1x is no longer a viable platform. If you are still running Windows 3.1x on your PC, you probably have old hardware with only a minimal amount of memory and free disk space. If that is the case, you may wish to investigate the costs of upgrading your computer hardware to support Windows 98. Ideally, you should replace your system with a new one that will meet the requirements for running Windows 98.

If you are currently using Windows 95,
Windows 98 demands more system memory and free disk space than Windows 95. Unless your system can meet the Windows 98 requirements, you should stay with your existing system configuration.

While CSC/ITSU staff members have worked with early releases of Windows 98, please remember that developing a high level of expertise will take some time. Because of this learning curve, early users of Windows 98 should be advised that they may experience some difficulties in obtaining immediate solutions from CSC/ITSU.