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Guest WilliamD

No Win98 support for the Meridian

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One hardly has to be a computer expert to run FS2002 under Windows 98...many are doing this on these forums with far less experience than I, or you.... All that's needed is common sense--paying attention to what's happening during a software install, as well as not downloading every Tom, Dick and Harry proggie that appears as a web link. As for MFC--please expand. I find that an interesting comment, as our experience with those issues have been cross O/S....

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"Those stuck with Windows 98 are those who are honest enough not to want to use pirated versions of Windows, and/or lazy enough not to want to install a new Windows version and/or can't afford a new Windows version."Sounds like you need to get some time in.... Bringing insults into this discussion, even if meant to be funny, somewhat discredits your "opinion". See my reply to nutmeat regarding what I consider adequate support skills. Doesn't require an MCSE--just common sense. Perhaps XP is for all those without?

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Guest

If you're considering upgrading to Win XP, I say; go for it. It's like going from the dark ages into the light. Both my wife and I have XP on our new machines now. I'm still running Win98 on my office machine which I'm typing on right now. About once a week I can expect an illegal operation or a fatal exception error on Win98. The XP machines on the other hand are totally stable. Gone are the days of illegal operations and fatal exceptions. Also, if I have to reboot for one reason or another which you'll hardly ever have to do, you don't have to sit thru that stupid scan disk scenario. Starts and shutdowns only takes a few seconds. XP is is fast, completely stable and very, very, very simple to use. Trust me, you'll love it. Get rid of that old stuff. You'll be glad you did.

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Guest

Agreed John. I guess the key to this is "properly managed rig". I've also never had problems with WIN98 setups that I managed. But I know HOW to manage it :)I've found XP to be much more stable and easier to manage for the average computer novice. I know from the work end user to my side business (family :), they are all much happier since XP, and I have to troubleshoot FAR less on the XP os. I agree if it ain't broke don't fix it, but if you're doing a complete upgrade, it makes sense to move to XP, IMHO.steve

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"...if you're doing a complete upgrade, it makes sense to move to XP, IMHO...."No argument at all with that. XP is better than '98 I feel, no argument at all about that either. My move will be dictated by FS2004, if it requires XP. If it is a groundbreaking sim, and has the enhancements we all hope for, it'd be worth the upgrade. For now, there's no reason to upgrade. Flight1's package alone isn't enough to do it for me--it's one of the few XP only packages I've heard about.Which begs the question--where was it stated that XP is required for the Meridian? I tried to search Flight1's site, and haven't found any such info...

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Guest eko

Unfortunately, there is also a very select group of people (myself) for which Windows XP was a nightmare. On purchase of a second HD for my home-built rig (Athlon 1800XP - K7S5A Motherboard - GeForce2 - 512MB DDR RAM - Soundblaster 512), I got a copy of Windows XP Pro from the IT person at my school where I work, so I could install it to see if upgrading from W98SE was feasible.No dice.I am not faulting XP for my problems. In my particular case, the combination of hardware, motherboard, etc. that consititutes my home-built rig just did not want to play nice with Windows XP, and any games that I had installed, or installed after the fact.Whilst FS2002 runs flawlessly under W98SE for me, under Windows XP it was a nightmare of errors and lockups. I am no spring chicken when it comes to computer installs, and I did not immediately give up. But after a few weeks and exhausting every possibility (short of buying a new AlienWare PC with XP pre-installed and fine tuned) I decided that it would not be worth my money to purchase Windows XP and upgrade.My PC rig (I'm primarily a Mac guy) is used 99% for gaming, and W98SE runs everything like a champ. So, in MY particular case, a potential customer has been thwarted by Flight1's decision to not support W98SE.I personally feel it still too early to put the last nail in the coffin for W98. In the words of programmer Mark Rein of EPIC games (the creators of Unreal Tournament and Unreal Tournament 2003), when asked if Unreal Tournment 2003 would support W98, he simply replied: "At this point in time, given the installed base, it would be commercial suicide not to support W98".

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Guest rogue1

I'm already running XP on 4 of the 5 computers in my house. It's kinda costly to upgrade all of them. At about $600.00 in upgrade cost right now, that's 2 XP Pro and 2 XP Home. Have one more Win98SE machine to do, but funds are abit tight right now. And my wife still wants XP Pro on her laptop. So I'll probably have to buy one more XP Pro upgrade and use the XP Home from her laptop to upgrade the Win98SE box. Ouch.

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Guest SoarPics

I posted a link in message #5 of this thread. The link is to Simforums, hosted at the Flight1 site.Regards,

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Guest RobA

Hornit, Same for me......I don't recall ever seeing a blue screen to date.Rob

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Guest SoarPics

I was hoping this wouldn't turn into a OS debate...The more relevant issue for me is that a prominent and well repected add-on developer for our sim has decided to not support many of us with their much anticipated upcoming product. This doesn't bode well for anybody.The developer loses because they drastically reduce their market share. Never a good business decision, especially considering how small the market is for MSFS add-ons. Not to mention creating resentment amongst potential customers who might want to buy their products in the future.The community loses because many of us simply refuse to be held hostage by a software developer. I won't be buying the Meridian because of the overall cost to me... $230-$330 (depending upon which XP version I would buy for my machine). That is way beyond what I'm willing to spend for the Meridian (or any other add-on for that matter).I'm no where near astute enough in the area of software development to second guess Flight1's decision. But from a business perspective their decision is very poor, IMHO. I get paid to develop manufacturing solutions for my customers. When they call with a challenge, I and the people who work for me simply refuse to accept the position of "can't be done". That's not what business is about. We create a solution, no matter what it takes. We simply couldn't survive very long if we don't. No business can... even a developer like Flight1.Regards,

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Guest

I have to agree with Steve, the developer decides that W98SE is no longer worthy of support..? Kind of the tail wagging the dog, and it makes discussion of the price of the package rather more interesting. If the developers decide to reduce their market penetration by excluding one of the most popular OS's, who do you think is paying for the revenue shortfall? Now it makes more sense, this pricing structure. You XP owners are bearing the brunt, just like you did when MS imposed a buggy, bloated, ugly piece of software on you, and you bought it.And to the XP apologists who think that Windows XP is the Greatest Thing ever to hit a keyboard I have just one thing to say - "SP1..?"ChasW

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Guest Scott Campbell

Greg,I also still use 98se, and unlike some of the above - I have never, at any time, ever had to reinstall. That's mainly because I don't put stupid things on without knowing about them - and of course I have multiple archived copies of Windows. I've only had to copy back about 2 times in the last year.Nonetheless - I'm afraid the Meridian isn't the only thing. By this summer there will be few products with 98 support. Almost all the big companies are going to strictly XP-supported products. So in keeping 98, we won't have any updates for it, for just about anything.Now that being said, the main reason I haven't updated to XP is because I hate Mr. Bill's "Phone Home" crap. So I have now gotten ahold of a developer's copy of XP - no phone-home crap. No ridiculous security holes and other stuff.The other reason is because I've been waiting to get a new system. But since I'm still waiting and want to keep up my software, I'm installing XP next weekend - and of course installing every bit of software I have to their own drive to see what works and what doesn't.We just have to do it. We have to go XP.

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Guest JonP01

These reports about poor memory handling and instability in Win98 baffle me. So far as my experience goes, I still use Win98 and have not seen a blue screen in about two years. This is with about 4 hours usage each day minimum. I can't even remember the last time my computer ever fell over either. And I haven't experienced any memory management problems.As far as Win98 support is concerned, I guess it is inevitable that support for the OS will be dropped by more and more developers. To be honest, I am actually quite surprised, for example, that Directx9 even runs on Win98 and that Nvidia still make Win98 drivers.That said, I most probably won't be upgrading my OS to buy FS2004, let alone any add-on for FS2002. I'll probably just stick with what I have until it blows up, and then I'll go to Linux or something other than Windows. I'm as honest as they come when it comes to using properly licensed software (you only have to look at my bookshelf where you will see rows of identical boxes containing indentical CD's in them - including multiple copies of Win9x, FS2002, Office, etc), but I detest, as Scott puts it, this "phone home" product activation. And for that reason, and that reason only, I haven't upgraded to Windows XP.Scott, I was interested in your mention of a Windows XP "developer" edition. Does this mean I can format my hard drive and re-install the OS without asking Bill if it is OK to do so? Is this version even available for sale anywhere?

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Guest flightpro08

Why is the "phone-in" activation for Windows XP such a big deal to you? I've reformatted twice since getting XP about a year ago (once due to a system crash which was my fault, and once because I wanted to "start from scratch" and have ahd no problems reactiviating my copy of Windows XP. The whole phone-in process takes about five minutes, and couldn't be any simpler.I haven't seen one blue screen since getting XP, and have never experienced any kind of system or gaming lock-up. FS2k2 has crashed on me about five times since getting XP, and all of those times were due to a bad detonator driver install, which I failed to do correctly (it was my first time uninstalling, editing the registry, and installing new det drivers in XP, cut me some slack :-lol ). Going from Windows ME to Windows XP was the best thing I've ever done as far as computers are concerned.Ryan-Flightpro08 :-cool VATSIM Pilot/ControllerZLA ARTCC Senior Controller (C-3)ASRC (Advanced Simulated Radar Client) Beta Tester-----------------------------My "Home Made" System Specs:Intel Pentium 4 2.2GHz ProcessorTurbo Gamer ATX Mid-Tower with 420W Power SupplyEPoX 4G4A Motherboard with Intel 845G ChipsetVisiontek XTASY GeForce4 128MB Ti4600 (Det 42.01 Drivers)512MB PC2100 DDR RAM40GB Matrox 7200RPM Hard DriveWindows XP Home Edition SP1*No CPU or GPU Overclocking*3dMark2001SE Score: 11298-----------------------------Click Here to Download my American Eagle POSKY CRJ-200!

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