Wednesday, July 05, 2006

The end of Windows 98/ME technical support

The second Tuesday of this month brings something else in addition to Microsoft Security Updates. July 11th will also mark the end of Windows 98/ME technical support. It's now the end of their lifecycle.

According to IDC figures, there are an estimated 70 million 98/ME machines still in operation worldwide.

So what to do if you're still running an older OS? Make sure that you have a good antivirus product and a firewall. Check out Microsoft's Security At Home 98 & ME for more information.

If you're still holding on to older hardware because you're a hobbist, you might also consider trying out a lightweight distribution of Linux. Live CDs make it quite easy to give it a try.

2 comments:

Ric Brennan said...

Interesting - and the end of the line not only of Win95/98, but the 16-bit code of MS-DOS as well. Kind of the end of an era, wouldn't you say?

Also - what happened to Windows Fundamentals for Legacy PCs, due last month? That was supposed to be the stop gap between Windows 98 and Vista - at least as far as security patches go.

-- Ric Brennan
http://richardbrennan.spaces.msn.com

John said...

I would definitely say it is the end of an era. I kinda miss MS DOS, we really learned allot with that when I was younger. As for Windows Fundamentals for Legacy PCs I am sure that it has faced yet another delay, if they even decide to release it at this late date.