Can You Still Use Windows 98 Today?

Are you interested in a lesson in computer archaeology? It's quite easy: all you need is a virtualization tool or an old computer, a copy of Windows 98, and plenty of time. Next June 25, the original edition of this operating system will turn 19 years old. To the average user, Windows 98 is just a distant memory, but if you're willing to experiment, you can likely access all the basic functions, with the Internet being its weak point.

Windows 98 SE: A Fond Memory?

Windows 98 Second Edition was one of the best operating systems Microsoft ever made. It primarily focused on fixing the issues of the original version and adding support for new technologies. The Redmond giant would stumble again with Windows ME, which extended the presence of Windows 98 SE on computers even beyond the debut of Windows XP in October 2001.

Of course, it was not perfect by any means. Blue screens, the “DLL hell”, the instability of certain drivers, and the constant demand for attention kept us busy for years, and once it was retired, we secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Now, in the name of science... would you like to go back to that?

Putting It to the Test with OldTech81

The person behind the YouTube channel “OldTech81” decided to do it using a Compaq Armada e500, with a Pentium III processor at 500 MHz and 128 megabytes of RAM. Installing Windows 98 SE presents no problems on this kind of computer, and HP's website still has the necessary drivers (in fact, the documentation available for that model is impressive). Technically, its specifications are well above what Windows 98 SE requires, and with a bit of tweaking, its performance is excellent.

Of course, the software tells a different story. Portals like OldVersion.com and a pinch of Google-fu will help us determine which are the last versions compatible with Windows 98 SE, and all versions of Office prior to XP work fine, but the boldest can install KernelEx, kernel extensions that enable later builds designed for Windows 2000 and Windows XP.

The Internet: The Real Challenge

Needless to say, KernelEx is not an ideal solution, since it introduces multiple stability issues. However, the true Achilles' heel for Windows 98 SE is the Internet. The web had no mercy in abandoning this operating system, and the vast majority of pages with all their background JavaScript eat it alive.

KernelEx helps us install much more modern browsers than Internet Explorer 6.0 SP1, but even so, the experience is not pleasant. YouTube requires a very old version of Flash, or manually downloading the videos to play them in VLC Player or Media Player Classic. The ideal is to take advantage of the mobile versions of websites, which are much lighter and simpler.

In short: yes, you can use it, work, browse, play, and play multimedia content, as long as you accept certain (many) limitations and don't mind daily maintenance.