General system tips, such as essential programs and fixes for
basic incompatibility problems;
Links to external websites for downloading programs/games for
your legacy system;
Serial numbers for Windows 98 SE and paid programs
compatible with Windows 98;
Installation
You need to have the system installation CD and the boot floppy disc.
If you don't have the original CD, you can download this
ISO and burn it to any CD using imgburn.
If you don't have the original boot floppy, you can
download this
IMG file and write it to an empty floppy using rawwrite
for windows.
IT'S VERY IMPORTANT
THAT YOU HAVE *ALL* THE DRIVERS OF THE COMPUTER YOU'RE INSTALLING
WINDOWS 98 ON (in case you are installing it on a real
computer). If possible, find and download all the drivers and burn the
installation files onto a blank CD. Or throw the files onto a USB stick
(formatted in FAT or at most FAT32) and burn the USB drivers
(THAT SPECIFICALLY WORKS ON THE TARGET COMPUTER) onto a blank floppy
disc and, when you install the drivers on the system, install the USB
driver from the floppy first.
If you know the name of the drivers for your computer where you want to
install Windows 98, but don't know where to find quality drivers, try
looking on this website here.
All the drivers for my computer were downloaded there and they work
perfectly well, I recommend it.
During the second part of the installation, after the automatic restart
of the computer, the installation will ask for a serial key, which if
you don't provide, you won't be able to proceed and the installation
won't finish. If you don't have the original serial for your disk, here
are some serials that worked for me on the past:
Once Windows 98 has been completely installed and correctly configured
with the correct drivers, proceed to the next steps. If you are a
beginner or inexperienced in installing older systems, I highly
recommend that you take a look at a very detailed tutorial first, so
that you learn and feel more confident when installing the system and
don't make any mistakes. A good tutorial for beginners, which I highly
recommend, is this
one from Michael MJD on Youtube.
Updates
Windows Update
Restored;
Definitely the most authentic and original way to update your system.
The experience is what you would expect at the time: slow, laggy and
with the sound of a noisy old HDD running non-stop. If you want to live
like you did back then, this is the best option. The link to the official Windows Update
Restored page is here. I recommend version 3.1 for more
authenticity, but any version after that also works
Offline update
package;
Windows 98 SE Autopatcher, you can download
it here. Once it's downloaded, extract it and open the file
labelled "2007" first and, once everything is ready and the computer is
restarted, open the file labelled "2008".
I recommend that in the menu to select what you want to install in
Autopatcher, you click on A (All), this will install not only all the
updates, but also install very useful tools and programs to manage your
computer! (Just don't install it if your computer barelly meets the
Windows 98 requirements)
After the system update has been successfully completed, install Plus!
98. This will add
native support for various important things (such as .zip files), as
well as adding more customisation options and system settings,
interesting programs and some fun games. You can download Plus! 98 here.
To activate Plus! 98, if you don't have the original serials, you
can use these, both of which worked for me on the past:
411-2781863
450-0535503
Nice-to-have Extras:
An important complement is the .NET Framework,
where the
latest version that supports Windows 98 is 2.0 . You can download
version 2.0 here.
It is highly recommended that you have U98SEUSB
installed on your
Windows 98 computer. U98SEUSB is the best tool, at the time of writing,
for managing USB memory sticks in Windows 98. You can download it here.
(Immediate download as soon as you click on the link).
KernelEx
is also
a great addition to Windows 98. It is optional in this list, but I
sincerely recommend that you install it. You can download it here.
If you decide to install KernelEx, I highly recommend that
you also install its latest update! This will guarantee much greater
compatibility and stability for your system and for the programs that
use this tool. You can find
the latest update here.
If you have any doubts about how to install and update
KernelEx, I recommend you watch this video here
made by “Adventures in Nostalgia (1)” on Youtube.
Important (Extra) Tools:
Daemon Tools
v3.47
is a good program for creating virtual CDs. Very useful for installing
and running certain programmes and games. You can download
this specific version here.
7-Zip 9.20is a
useful program for exclusively extracting .7z files. Very useful in
many situations. You can download this
specific version here.
Retrozilla
is a
modern browser for computers running Windows 95 to 2000. It is highly
recommended that you have it installed on your Windows 98 computer if
you plan to connect to the Internet. You can download it here.
If you've made it this far and want to download some additional old
programmes and games for your newly installed and configured Windows
98, you can visit these sites here:
OldVersion (Useful
for obtaining older versions of programs. For Windows 98, I recommend
versions released before 2008).
My Abandonware
(Useful for finding and downloading mostly old games or obscure old
games).
Archive.org (Useful for
finding everything, really, this site has it all).
Other websites related to Windows
98 that I recommend you check out: