The Windows 9x Family

Windows 95, 98, 98SE and ME all share the same underpinnings. As such, what works for one flavor usually works for them all. Windows 9x was based on Windows 3.x, which itself was derived from MS-DOS. By the time Windows ME rolled around, it was safe to say that all that could be done with that architecture had been done - and some would say probably too much so!

Windows ME was the worst operating system to ever come from Microsoft in recent times, regardless of what you might hear. It is buggy, prone to crashing, and rarely works well. Its release was really there just to satisfy a need to issue a new product. I hope Microsoft has learned from that experience. Windows 98SE was probably the best thing to come from that line. These versions of Windows are getting long in the tooth, but if you have a copy of one of them running, read on.

How to make Windows 9x run better

• Optimizing the SYSTEM.INI file
• Optimizing the MSDOS.SYS file
• Optimizing networking components