An OS that won't give me headaches?

[Hikeon3]

OK, I've had it. WinXP just doesnt seem to like ANY of my hardware or games. It's over.

What other operating systems are even worth looking at for a frequent gamer?

Thanks in advance.

 

[But_Why]

Try 98SE That should be sweet. Its great for games and the like. Pity about XP though.
Your 4200 should work fine with the NVidia drivers (i still use the 29.42's as they seem best for me)
As for other hardware, what are you having problems with?
Also i can't say as there are many games XP wont run (i've come across a couple of COOL old ones that it won't)

 

[Candyman]

I've used Windows XP since the day it was first released, and have only had one game not run which was Need For Speed Porsche Unleashed, which now works because of patch put out recently. You should not be having so many problems with your games or hardware, so I don't think it's a OS issue but rather a piece of bad hardware that is causing your problems. List your hardware, and the problems you are having, and maybe some of us here can help.

 

[agw_01]

Windows XP was quite a good OS and I had little problems with it, even though I was constantly changing hardware.

I have found Win98 First Edition or Windows 2000 w/ Service Pack 3 have been the best OS' for gaming and general use.

I'm never going back to XP because it pisses me off after a bit, but when I next format my hard disk (seems to be a recurring thing for me ) Windows 2000 is going straight back on!

 

[BadBrain]

Windows98se remains the best PC gaming platform. However, what you gain in full compatibility and strong performance you lose in overall stability, features, and laughable security.

Probably your best bet is to dual-boot WinXP and 98se. Use 98se exclusively for gaming but keep XP as your primary OS.

 

[Hikeon3]

For some reason, I get a LOT of errors in windows XP. When playing UT2k3 and Unreal 2, I get General Protection Faults. When I try to play Morrowind, it crashes to desktop. Ugh...

 

[yellow_cloud]

Win98SE. Never gives a problem. You can get a copy for $20 or $30. I am exclusively for gaming, and I meant it - gaming. I do not want to spend even a second of my time looking for a patch for XP. Win98SE lets you "just install and go".

 

[nodnod]

Originally posted by Hikeon3
For some reason, I get a LOT of errors in windows XP. When playing UT2k3 and Unreal 2, I get General Protection Faults. When I try to play Morrowind, it crashes to desktop. Ugh...

I play ut2003 almost daily and played through unreal 2 twice and have never encountered a problem with win xp. I don't think it's the os.

 

[But_Why]

Originally posted by nodnod


I play ut2003 almost daily and played through unreal 2 twice and have never encountered a problem with win xp. I don't think it's the os.

agreed

 

[F_A_L_C_O_N]

sounds like a memory problem which is always much more obvious when going with XP
(this OS simply demands stable memory)

you might wanna try doing a search on the net for your MB and RAM make,to see if there are any reocouring incompatabilitys

and UT/UT2k3 are notorious for exposing system instability anyway

and yes no problems playing both in XP here either

 

[Raccoon]

I use Win98SE and it works very well. Sure, it has its flaws; it really can't quite cut it when it comes to stability, and it isn't as neat looking as XP, but it works okay. Compatibility with other software/hardware is great.

Win98 First Edition was good also, but gave me some problems since it didn't have support for some programs (like Windows Media Player 9) and drivers (the computer just hung when i tried to install those WDM-drivers).

 

[Ruffian]

W98SE has always worked for me

 

[krupted]

i find xp to be FAR better than 98se, in fact nascar revolution works now after being useless for a year.... too bad its crap compared to whats out now~~~

anyway im not ever looking back.... xp handles memory so much better (long as you got enough), and i find i dont have to reformat every 4 months because of artery clogs (fricked up registry)

 

[Leeren]

if all you do is game, then 98SE is your ticket. if you want productivity w/ some gaming, NT. If you want productivity w/ gaming for the future go 2k /XP. ME is out of hte question as its dos support for gaming is lacking somewhat compared to 98SE.

 

[Ruffian]

Originally posted by krupted
and i find i dont have to reformat every 4 months because of artery clogs (fricked up registry)

I've never had to reformat W98SE its always worked very well for me. Yeah you get the occasional BSOD but hey its the best gaming OS and is generally stable for me.

 

[Leeren]

ruffian. How long did you have to wait for your replacement to get to you? i have a flaky 45GB 75GXP in a shoebox w/ of course the antistatic bag

 

[Ruffian]

I think 2 weeks at the most, but its been a while since that. The replacement has worked very well, I havent had any problems with it and no weird noises either.

 

[Leeren]

glad to hear that

 

[Chiles4]

Win98SE is great in terms of compatibility for games and hardware. I keep mine in shape with Norton Systemworks and do a full fresh install whenever I upgrade my mainboard. I never get any BSODs, ever, period. And yes it has no security but I have a router for that.

I run Win98SE with 512MB of memory and my father-in-law runs XP with 512MB and my PC runs circles around his. But I guess you have to tweak XP to get it to perform right. Probably too much bloat in the default installation. Unfortunately, I don't know enough about XP to help his machine.

XP should have a default install option for power users who don't need cute dogs, animated windows and help messages. I'll get XP soon as I need it if I'm going to keep building rigs for people. But I'll probably make it look/work just like Win98...i.e. shut up and let me do my work.

 

[Leeren]

what are your complete system specs? and his? 512 MB w/ XP should be spiffy..install service pack 1 yet? although 98 does have less overhead XP shouldn't have any problems