a friend of mine got a pc, win95. Nothing on it he wants to keep, no files, no nuthin. I now want to upgrade it to win98.
now, what is the best way for me to do that? I guess i must first make a boot-disk, and then do i startup in ms-dos and write format c…and after install win98?
what is the best way to do it?
get rid of the PC and upgrade to a Mac
sorry…I couldn’t resist being cheeky again. At least I’m not being snarky!!!
I realise this says more about my twisted mind than anything, but Izzeryn_du’s new cat avatar looks like a cartoon bottom at first glance.
Yes indeed, I thought it looked v.rude! Took me a long time to figure out it was a cat!
All cheeky, snarky comments aside, I’d say make a boot disk, format and install 98. If 98 is an upgrade version then you’ll need the original 95 serial number. I think that the 98 install will give you the option of reformatting so you may not need to do that ahead of time.
What I would do is make a boot disk, test it to make sure it works, insert the 98 CD and see what happens.
I personally never upgrade without cleaning and formatting the drive.
Snarky… it’s just so, well, so yesterday.
and i saw a pair at first glace! 
Yeah but I usually don’t get on C&F after 6:00 GMT so I miss a lot of the US posts. I have to work YOUR hours because I support a system in Sandwich. It means I have to get up when my wife goes to bed. Tomorrow for her is today for me. It means my life has little social contact with other humans except via this Intarweb thingy.
doooood, you da computa-man, what your take on diz?
Format the drive. Install 98SE. It’s a doddle, especially if your copy of 98SE is “for new PCs only” (in which case you don’t need a boot disk, it’ll run from CD).
I don’t think you’d need to make a boot disk just for the format command. Fire the machine up and press the F8 key as soon as the OS BIOS screen disappears and before it starts to load win95. You should get a menu, from which you can select the option to start in Command Prompt only (dos mode). Then just type “Format C:” and away it’ll go.
98SE is no longer supported by Micro$oft, so to be honest, win2k would likely be a better option, but that depends on the size of the drive available. Ever noticed how much more disk space is required for each ‘new’ version of BG’s Crash-OS?
i am just informed that my friend has win2000 professional edition that we can install.
So, tell me if this is how i must do it:
I start up the machine and hit F8 b4 it begins to load windows, then i will choose the dos prompt from the menu, then will write Format C. Once that is done i do…what? insert the win2000 and all is done by itself?
Yes indeedy. Once the drive is reformatted, reboot with the Win2k disk in and it’ll start to install. PROVIDED that the BIOS on the machine allows booting from CD-rom!
Check the BIOS first. You usually have to hit F1 or ‘Del’ or some other key to enter into the BIOS settings right on boot-up. In those settings you can select which device to boot up from… hopefully the machine is not so old that can’t support booting from CD-Rom.
If the PC won’t boot from CD-Rom then you’ll just have to bit the bullet and install it from win95 without formatting first, and then manually delete any kack you don’t want to keep.
but what if i make a boot disk first, then start up the formatted machine with the bootdisk inserted and the win2000 cd inserted, won’t it work then?
Alright fine. It’s the last time I answer any questions about computers. I’m not getting my usual fee anyway.
I’ve forgotten more then most of you know.
In fact, I’ve forgotten almost ALL of it! 
From now on my advice will come straight from the Flyingcursor Encyclopedia of Made-up Facts which clearly states you cannot upgrade without pulling your memory chips partially out of their sockets but not all the way. Just leave a 32nd of an inch gap. If that doesn’t work then wedge a long strip of tinfoil along your motherboard and fire it up. IF that doesn’t work, lay the computer on it’s side, take the power supply apart and poke its interior with a metal file. Look under the chapter on Computer Repairs.
Sheese. And your avatar is…is… snoodly!!!
Only if the boot disk has all the cd-rom drivers on it, so you can manually change to the CD-rom drive and run the setup file from the dos prompt.
Try it before you format the drive is probably the best advice I can give.
true, i have read that making your own bootdisk from a win95 might not have the cd-rom driver installed to the disc. therefore there are quite a few pages that offer a download of these boots that do contain the cd-rom drivers. i’ve of course downloaded one like that.
so, i’m all set, no?
format after hitting F8, shutting off pc, inserting the bootdisk containing the cdrom-drivers, inserting w2k, starting up machine and let it work.
should work..no?
if not i’m suing dale.
It looks like breasts busting through paper with a giant floating eye next to them. I guess we see what we want to see. 
I would try booting from the CD-Rom without the boot disk first. If that don’t work, then reboot with the startup floppy.
right, so, before i format anything i’ll just start up the pc and hit F1, and telling it to boot up from Cdrom. Once that is done i format, shut-down, enter w2k, start-up and hope it works, if it doesn’t i shut-down, enter the boot disk, start up. then i should work.
good?
Yup.