WIN98SE Re-install

[boofhead]

My daughter's laptop is not working properly, with lots of error messages and a line across the screen etc. It starts by calling for a scandisk but only gets to 29340 sectors then stops. Only a manual shutdown gets free of that, and I can force it to go into Windows only if I bypass the scandisk by selecting Cancel. If I accept scandisk I cannot then access the control buttons to cancel it, but have to manually shut it down.
I feel that reloading WIN98 will solve some of the problems, since I am pretty sure the hardrive is OK.
If I reload Windows using the original disk, will it wipe all of her programs and data? Is there a way to just get Windows to install without affecting what has been loaded already in the other programs?
Help will be appreciated, don't want her mad at me...

[amanoffewwords]

I reloaded Win 98 on a client's PC yesterday - as usual it just overwrote the existing installation without affecting anything else. It does give you the option of doing a fresh install in a different directory instead and then uses that directory as default from then on.

However this second method will mean you will need to re-install all anicillary software/email etc. But in both cases any personal data should remain in situ (somewhere in the old My Documents folder).

However, if you can back up the crucial stuff first your daughter will still be speaking to you for the next few years should things go pear-shaped by some freak chance (aka Murphy's law) during any re-install.

You could also try running the defrag/scandisk in safe mode - itmight have a better chance without opposition from any running processes.

hth
amofw

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

boofhead,

Before you do any reinstalls, you need to backup her data.

Depending on the speed of the notebook, this might be a good time to think about upgrading the computer's operating system to Windows XP.

Take Care,

Richard

[mazzy1026]

Be careful when reloading as laptops are a bit more difficult to load in terms of drivers. There is usually a package you can download from the manufacturer that contains all the required drivers for that model of laptop.

Regards

Maz

[timmcat]

The last time I had those symptoms, I'm afraid the HD failed shortly after. As Richard says, back up now.

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

Maz,

That is a good point. That too is one of the advantages of WinXP, it usually has most of the drivers to run notebooks right from the install. Usually with a notebook, using WinXP will recognize the NIC and Modem right from the install. From there it is easy to get on the Internet and download any Drivers you need.

Take Care,

Richard

P.S. boofhead, if you give us the make and model of the notebook we could help find drivers and better assist with options.