COMPUTING
WINDOWS 95's rollout 2 1/2 years ago was a loud, gaudy process, but so far the imminent release of its successor is a stealthy event.
Microsoft Corp. last week began sending release candidates to the Windows 98 beta testers, which means the operating system could be finished at any time, with boxes showing up in stores as early as April.
Computer users soon will be faced with the decision of whether to upgrade, which -- as many learned from moving from Windows 3.1 to Windows 95 -- is often is a process steeped in agony.
Complicating the issue is the fact that Windows 98 is, in most ways, not that different from Windows 95. There won't be software written for Windows 98 that won't run on Windows 95. That means Windows 98 is not a must-have. If anything, it might be a nice-to-have.
Pricing for the final version has not been announced at this writing.
So far, Windows 98 seems to be very stable. I have slapped it on about 10 different systems, and so far it has given me problems on only one. However, those problems were nasty -- specific files needed for the boot-up process began generating illegal instruction errors, making it impossible to start the system even in Safe Mode to do troubleshooting. Reinstalling Windows 98 from MS-DOS mode fixed it quickly, and that particular computer has been humming along ever since.
The upgrade routine is highly automated. It's definitely a less anxiety-producing endeavor, and it even gives you an accurate estimate in minutes of how long the process will take.
You do not have the option to customize the installation when upgrading from Windows 95 to 98. This is great for novices who were confused by Windows 95's many choices. But savvy users who want a say over what's on their systems will have to go back into the Windows Setup module in the Control Panel to add or remove components.
When Windows 98 comes up for the first time, the familiar desktop will look slightly different. The taskbar at the bottom of the screen has a series of small icons for launching Internet Explorer 4.0, the Outlook Express mail client and a channel feature for receiving Web content that's "pushed" over the Net to your machine. The most useful icon, though, is one that instantly minimizes any open windows so you can quickly get to some other object on your desktop.
Open a folder and the inside is an internal Web page that gives you information about the icons. This is particularly helpful in specialized folders, such as the Control Panel and the Printers folder. However, it also slows down the opening of folders, even on the fastest of machines. If you're frustrated by the delay, you can turn this feature off.
The interface also has the ability to open icons with a single click instead of a double click. To select an icon, which you previously would have done by single-clicking, you merely hold your mouse cursor over the desired item.
On the surface, single-clicking to open a folder or launch a program sounds better, but because many applications still require a double click to do things, it might be confusing for some users who won't know when to do which. Again, this is something you can toggle on or off.
I found that the test versions of Windows 98 ran somewhat slower than Windows 95, even on the fastest machines. The finished version may be peppier, but count on it bogging down less-than-muscular systems. If you have an older computer, be aware that the minimum requirements for Windows 98 include a 66-megahertz 80486DX processor and 16 megabytes of memory. You may want to stay away unless you have a Pentium-based system.
Some of the most important features of Windows 98 are under the hood -- but some of them also are found on the newer versions of Windows 95. For example, Windows 98 comes with FAT32, a new way to store and organize files on a hard drive. It works by requiring less space to store information about where files are placed on the hard drive. As a result, you can reclaim as much as 40 percent of your hard drive space.
However, FAT32 also is part of the OSR2 version of Windows 95, which has been available since Fall 1996. Most computers sold since then have it, but many don't have FAT32 turned on. You need a program such as PowerQuest's Partition Magic to do the conversion. Windows 98 comes with its own FAT32 converter.
Many of the bug fixes touted in Windows 98 also are found in subsequent versions of Windows 95, or in patches available at the Microsoft Web site. If you've been diligent about keeping your system up to date, you're probably already in good shape.
Windows 98-only improvements include a speedier shut-down process. However, I have only seen this benefit on one or two machines -- maybe it'll be more obvious in the final version.
There also are some intriguing maintenance features. Windows Update lets you connect to a Microsoft Web site and automatically download and install new drivers and upgrades for the operating system. Another component scans your hard drive for unnecessary and temporary files that can be deleted. Yet another checks your crucial system files, alerting you if some are missing or corrupted.
The Maintenance Wizard automates the running of ScanDisk, to check your hard drive for errors, and the Disk Defragmenter, which puts files in sequential order on your drives. The latter has a new feature that groups files belonging to one program in the same area, so your hard drive doesn't have to go as far to find what it needs. This is supposed to speed the launching of frequently used programs, but I saw only minimal improvements, if any at all.
There's also support for built-in TV tuners. Windows 98 will let you build a program grid and coordinate incoming video with Web content. It's part of Microsoft's bid to encourage -- and try to control -- the convergence of the PC and the TV.
Should you upgrade? It's really a tossup. If you have a relatively new
computer, you have some of the features of Windows 98 already in the OSR2
version of Windows 95. If you've installed Internet Explorer 4.0,
you've got the new interface. It comes down to a question of whether the
Windows 98-only features are compelling enough to get you to open your
wallet once again for Microsoft.