Re: New PC - What MS OS? -- MIDRANGE-L

Agree with James !

I'm running NT 4.0 on a Toshiba notebook (we did this about a year before it had
Toshiba's blessing...)

DiskKeeper DEFINITELY makes a difference. I didn't set it up to run 
automatically
and whenever my machine starts to bog down I run it and the improvement IS
noticeable !

Plug-n-Play has been called Plug-n-Pray by a number of us here too, for SOME
time...

My cohort was installing a PCMCIA modem card in his Toshiba (with NT 4.0) and it
crashed and started issuing OS/2 error messages and pointing to OS/2 code !!! A
bad drive turned out to be the problem.

I would NEVER touch Win9x after NT !!!

It DOES like memory, of course if you look at the box, Office 97 Pro has FINALLY
started owing up to what memory the apps "might" need !!!

I am running 144MB of memory and things are GREAT !!

Chuck

James W Kilgore wrote:

> Jeff,
>
> IMHO, NT is preferred, but there is a cost.
>
> Certain hardware will not work under NT.  There is a hardware
> compatibility list available on the net.  This is a factor in the cost
> of switching.  Remember NT is OS/2 (with a new face).  OS/2 is picky,
> therefore NT is picky.
>
> For those that do not believe that NT is OS/2, check your directory.
> You will find OS2.exe and you can read/write 2.88mb diskettes.  Before
> everyone gets their jets all fired up, NT does run under it's own kernel
> but whenever an OS/2 function is required, it gracefully punts the the
> OS that can actually do the job.
>
> The upside to 95/98 would be products like Cybermedia First Aid that
> fixes a 95 Reg file.  Not available under NT AFAIK.  NT does not come
> with a defrag, but search for Diskeeper Lite and you can find a low
> priced add-on.
>
> NT can deal with multiple NIC's and IP address' if that matters to you.
> Win 95/98 don't AFAIK.
>
> As far as 16 bit 95 applications like Word Perfect, load Win 95/98, load
> Word Perfect, load NT over Win 95/98 and it will run.  NT will not let
> it install.  You must have the disk FAT16.  Now this is an old rule and
> it may not apply for Win98 to NT but did for Win95 to NT.
>
> Now for you Roger:
>
> Roger Pence wrote:
> >
>
> > Here are other drawbacks that quickly come to mind...
> >
> > 3. Iffy twinax connectivity. NT won't recognize many twinax cards (or any
> > other hardware-dependent cards).
>
> I've found this to be true of 16bit ISA cards, especially with sound
> cards that want to grab the available IRQ.  Stealth cards may not create
> this problem.  Pulling sound cards and modems to get a twinax card to
> work has become standard routine for us.
>
> > 4. No plug and play support (which, although maligned for Win9x has saved me
> > lots of time and grief)
>
> My brother-in-law is the data center admin for a local CC and he calls
> it "plug and pray". ;-)
>
> > 5. Memory! Win9X reaches diminishing returns past 64MB, not NT. With NT, get
> > 128MB!
>
> True, for some reason you will actually degrade a Win95 box if you have
> more than 64k.  For NT, the more the better.  OS/2 will run is 32mb a
> whole lot better than NT.  IMHO, 64k for NT is a start point.
>
> > 6. No disk defrag included--get one and use it
>
> I've used Diskeeper Lite and to tell you the truth, it runs defrag every
> month so I can't tell if I've had an improvement because I've never had
> a slowdown.  But I feel better knowing it's been done.  Now this is on
> the workstation, not the server.  On the server side, if it fragments
> enough that you can actually measure the response and run a trial
> Diskeeper and actually measure the improvement it may be beneficial
> beyond personal satisfaction of having run a useless MS required task
> that no other OS requires.
>
> > 7. Spotty app compability. Generally apps work across platforms, but
> > sometimes there is still a stickler. Lotus ScreenCam was my latest headache
> > (Adobe Type Manager before that)
>
> Curious, are these 16bit apps?  Haven't used either myself.
>
> > 8. OS cost. For one workstation, the upgrade isn't a big deal. For lots,
> > though, bring your fat checkbook.
>
> Now Roger, don't quibble about acquisition cost vs cost of ownership.
> Isn't that the popular arguement of an AS/400 over an NT box? ;-)  But
> let's face it, it's easier to tell a committee that it's only $200 each
> vs saying it's $20k, one time, for all of them.
> >
> > One other thought, MS has backed off its NT-on-the-desktop strategy. There
> > is a wave of discontent building for very fat desktops and MS has seen the
> > light. Don't be bullied into thinking Win9X goes away anytime soon).
> >
> > Having said all that, if you can live within its constraints, I agree with
> > Bob that NT is the way to go.
>
> I believe that MS has made it clear that 95/98 is a consumer product and
> NT is a commercial product.  IMHO, pick accordingly.
>
> James W. Kilgore
> email@James-W-Kilgore.com
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