Which is the best way?
Is it OK to install a full version over the top?
or
Is it safer to use upgrade disk?
Any pitfalls to be avoided?
A clean install is always the best way. I know it's a pain, but that's the bottom line.
John,
As has been said here already, the best way to install any version of Windows is as a clean install - and you can do that with the full copy or an upgrade, it's just that the upgrade will ask you to put in a CD of a previous version of Windows at some stage in the procedure.
However, the easiest way is to do it is over the top - and you can do that with either version, too.
The advantage of doing a clean install is that none of the oddities of the previous Windows installation will be carried over - and these oddities may, in part, have caused you to want to upgrade!
The disadvantage of a clean install is that you will have to reinstall all your programs again and, of course, will need to have backed up any important data, and made copies of things like preference files - I'm thinking here, especially of MS Word and Excel files that may contain macros and layouts and other stuff you've patiently honed over the years to get the programs working just the way you like.
Naturally you need to make accurate and full notes of all important information, such as your email settings, and to have copied off your email address book and message database, so that you can bring them back into the new configuration.
Here's how to do this - as per Tim Callaghan's series on upgrading to Win2K, which ran Sep-Nov last year in Computer Video magazine
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Email and address books are important to most users, so it is essential they are backed up, but it's not always obvious where they're stored. First choose the location where they'll be backed up. For a clean install this must not be on the partition that's going to be wiped. Even if the partition is not going to be wiped, save the back up somewhere else, just in case something does go wrong. Ideally, and especially for video editors, things should be backed up to a second hard disk. Even better is burning everything to a CD, but some might have too much mail to do that, or might not have a CD-R burner.
Follow these step to backup email. In Outlook Express 5 (OE5), go to Tools > Options... > Maintenance Tab > Store Folder... Select all of the text in the Store Location box that pops up - do this by left clicking and dragging across, press Ctrl + C to copy to the clipboard, and click Cancel > Cancel. Do NOT click on the Change... button!.
Click on the Start button and click Run... Press Ctrl + V to paste the location into the box and click OK or press enter. This takes us to the directory where all of our mail is stored. Press Ctrl + A to select all files and then Ctrl + C to copy. Go to the chosen backup folder and Ctrl + V to paste everything into the folder. Et voila - mail backed up.
It's similar in Netscape. Go to Edit > Preferences... > Mail Servers > Local Mail Directory and copy the location of the mail, then do the same as above. Both programs have features to export address books, so backing up addresses is easier. In Outlook Express, go File > Export > Address Book, choose text file and store the file in the directory created to back email up. In Netscape, click on the address book icon > File > Export... and save in the backup folder location.
After the installation, email programs will need to have their mail and address books brought back in. In Microsoft Outlook Express 5 (OE5), this is done by the reverse procedure described above - by copying all of the files back into the directory that OE5 stores mail. The same applies to Netscape, just restore the mail files to the directory that the application points to for mail. Address books can be restored by going through the import address book menu option on OE5 or the address book application on Netscape Communicator.
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One other thing to be aware of, if doing an upgrade, is that if you are using an OEM version of Win98SE, it is possible that it will completely refuse to install over first edition 98.
What will have happened is that it will have detected that the version of Windows there is NOT 98SE, and since it is supposed to be be used as a clean install (and, of course, to re-install over 98SE), it refuses to install when it detects standard edition.
However, there is an easy way around this - you need to rename any version of win.com on the hard disk to something else - say, waswin.com.
To make life easier if this problem occurs, I include step-by-step instructions on how to deal with this eventually.
Hope this helps
Cheers
Bob C
How to upgrade to Windows 98SE from 98
using an OEM version of 98SE
The reason for these detailed instructions is because the OEM version of 98SE will NOT install if it finds a copy of the main Windows com file - win.com - anywhere on the hard disk onto which it is to be installed.
1/ Follow the instructions in file called, "How to make a back of Windows in case things go pear-shaped.doc
2/ Make sure you have a Windows 98 boot floppy. If needs be, make one by going to Control Panel>Add/Remove programs>Startup Disk
3/ Do NOT yet put the boot floppy in the drive!
4/ Insert the Win98 SE CD and reboot the PC
5/ Dab the f8 key every second-and-a-half, until you are presented with a multiple-choice boot-screen
6/ Choose to boot from, "Command line only"
7/ Type CD.. (ie CD, followed by two full stops), followed by return
(CD means "change directory and has NOTHING to do with the CD drive!)
8/ Do step 7 again!
9/ Type CD Windows (followed by return)
This should put you in the Windows folder
10/ Rename win.com by typing,
ren win.com waswin.com (followed by return)
[There must be one space between each of the three words]
11/ Check that win.com has been renamed by typing first,
dir win.com (followed by return)
[This should show there is now no such file]
12/ Next, type,
dir waswin.com (followed by return)
[This should show that there is one file by this name]
13/ Repeat steps 7 & 8
14/ Type CD winback (or whatever the name you gave to your back up folder of Windows (followed by return)
This should put you in that back up folder
15/ Rename that copy of win.com by typing,
ren win.com waswin.com (followed by return)
[There must be one space between each of the three words]
16/ Check that win.com has been renamed by typing first,
dir win.com (followed by return)
[This should show there is now no such file]
17/ Next, type,
dir waswin.com (followed by return)
[This should show that there is one file by this name]
18/ Put the boot floppy in and restart
19/ Choose to have CD-ROM support, when the menu pops up (takes a minute or so)
20/ At the A:> prompt, type
E: (followed by return)
21/ Type
Dir (followed by return)
[This is to check you are on the CD - you should see the CD's contents listed out]
22/ Type
Setup (followed by return)
Follow the on-screen instructions and make SURE that Windows is installed into the existing Windows folder.
The rest of the process takes about 40-60 mins.
That, with luck, should be it!
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[This message has been edited by bcrabtree (edited 31 January 2002).]