HOME
TOPICS
ABOUT ME
MAIL
Windows 98 works better than Windows 95 in
dozens of ways, but the one that matters most is its
enhanced stability. However, it's hardly crash-proof.
technofile
Al Fasoldt's reviews and
commentaries, continuously available online since
1983
Windows 98: Stable and fast, as well as 'new and
improved'
March 29, 1998
By Al Fasoldt
Copyright © 1998, The Syracuse
Newspapers
Microsoft performed an unusual feat in
its test version of Windows 98. The company made the beta
version of Windows 98 more stable than the current version
of Windows 95.
Beta software -- "beta" means
it's still being tested -- is always buggy in one way
or another. (That's why it's "beta," a
term programmers use for unfinished software.) But it's
highly unusual to produce a beta program that works better
than the thoroughly tested software it replaces.
Windows 98, which is likely to be
publicly available in late June, works better in dozens of
ways, but the one that matters most is its enhanced
stability. It's hardly crash-proof -- anyone can make a
Microsoft program of any kind misbehave by trying hard
enough -- but it's a paragon of temperance compared to
its weak-willed predecessor. In many ways, Windows 98 seems
as solid and crash resistant as its high-priced cousin, the
industrial-strength Windows NT.
Some of this comes from improved program
code in the main portions of the Windows 98 operating
system, and some of it results from seemingly minor changes
in the way Windows 98 does other things. (One change, for
example, lets Windows handle the all-important Registry
better.) A big help is the way the different parts of
Windows 98 work together: Unlike the current version of
Windows 95, which Microsoft heavily patched to fix
problems, Windows 98 has all the improved code in place,
working properly from the start.
Under Windows 95, my PC sometimes froze
up when I was doing many things at once while connected to
the Internet. This has not yet happened under Windows 98,
even though I've tried to set up the same situation
many times. I've also noticed that PC-to-PC networking
runs more smoothly under Windows 98 -- a good sign for the
coming introduction of cable Internet connections, which
actually use a form of high-speed networking rather than
the standard method of low-speed modem linkups.
Other ways that Windows 98 behaves better
and shows better integration than Windows 95:
- The Start Menu is no longer Mystery Meat. You can
drag anything onto and out of any part of it, and you
can rearrange it easily. You can also right-click any
item in the Start Menu for options.
- Logging on and off the PC makes more sense.
You'll have a better chance of creating separate
desktops and menus for different users of the same
PC.
- Folder windows are much more informative, and seem
to save their settings better. You can also drag an
icon for a program, document or Web site to the Links
bar of a folder window to make your own toolbar.
- The Taskbar seems more complicated, but users who
remember to click the right mouse button will find it a
delight. Slide-out sections can contain any shortcuts;
you simply drag icons to the Taskbar.
- The Task Scheduler, known as System Agent in
Windows 95, is about as advanced as such a program can
be. It's easier to use and more flexible than
System Agent.
Dozens of other improvements come to
mind, but Windows 98 does have a few annoyances. Here's
a short list:
- There's no way to change the way the Start Menu
opens. Items slide out horizontally, and scroll
vertically if you have too many to fit on the screen.
I'd like an option that would bring back the older
pop-out method, which was faster.
- There's still no built-in way to control the
priority of a Windows program. (You can control
the priority -- the amount of attention a program
receives from the operating system -- of a DOS program,
but not a Windows program.) This function is already
built into Windows, but Microsoft has not provided a
priority-change mechanism within the standard Windows
98 options.