Windows 98, Me or 2000 on HP Compaq 6715b? [ Edited ]

[Chatobg]

Hello, can any of these older OS be installed on such a machine?

I guess the XP drivers can also be used on 2000. But the user of the machine prefers Windows 98/Me (the laptop is not used for working on the Internet, it's used only for Word processing).

[CherylG]

I wouldn't try anything below Win 2000 on this model.The Audio & Graphics drivers would be probably hard if not impossible to find or even get installed on 98/ME. Lack of Graphics driver would make for a very unpleasant experience,with slow screens,scrolling,etc. Personally, I would encourage the user to go with XP..but that is just my opinion. Someone else may step in and offer suggestions.

[Chatobg]

Thank you for your reply!

Is ME considered below 2000 (as far as I know it was released after 2000 Pro, but it's from the 9x series)?

The user is elderly and used to Win98. They don't like the look and feel of XP and Vista.

[CherylG]

ME would be in the same category as W 98 as far as drivers. Win 2000 may even be a bit difficult, but as you memtioned most XP drivers should work.

I can understand the owners hesitation -my Mom was also hesitant about using/learning it..now she loves her XP machine. Vista_I wouldn't even recommend.Win 7 is a much better OS than Vista but still a big learning curve for seniors.

[Chatobg]

Are there actually any 9x/Me drivers for this machine? I haven't found any. Probably I should suggest switching to ubuntu (it's somewhat cleaner than XP)?

[CherylG]

Nowhere that I am aware of.

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Hi:

Please note that you can change the appearance of Windows XP to look just like Windows 2000 and close to Windows 98.  Just change everything to classic view and classic start menu.

That will reduce the learning curve. I ran XP like that for years because I didn't want to learn anything different.

Paul

[CherylG]

Great suggestion, Paul,