I run Win 98 on one computer, XP on another and Windows Me on the Laptop...
My Win 98 sometimes hangs also....
I then <control><alt><delete> to see whats there hanging; it's usually VSMON which is a virus scanning program, I think.
If it is , I just <control><alt><delete> twice for a warm reboot and it generally goes thru.
I think 99% of windows problems are directly related to the registry, specifically not using the uninstall program to get rid of unwanted folder.
Use something like On Track Fix It to clean the registry, then defrag the registry, the scandisk and defrag the drive. Most problems go away.
Kim