98se to XP

[Boomarang]

I wish to have XP installed.Current system is as follows:MSI main board w/800c Intel processor.On board sound and graphics.Ram 256mb.H/D 20gig.Question?Will I notice a drop in speed with XP installed using my current system. It's about 2 years old.Hopefully I do not have to upgrade to faster processors.Would a little more ram be of any use.I mainly surf and email.Look forward to someone's help.Regards.:confused:

[YODA74]

I mainly surf and email No shouldn't have any problem..More ram is always a bonus..Just make sure all your hardware is compadable with xp seems it's only two years old that shouldn't be a problem.

[Budfred]

Welcome to http://www.pcguide.com/ubb/pcgubb.gif

You should be able to install WinXP without any changes, but you may notice a slowdown. WinXP really likes to have a lot of RAM so another 256 if you machine can handle it wouldn't be a bad idea, it will get by on 256 though. WinXP comes loaded with a bunch of background stuff that you don't really need. If you shut a bunch of this off, you will find that you have more speed. You may also find that some of your hardware is not compatible with WinXP, but in most cases you will be able to find updated drivers.

You can go here for clues on how to streamline XP:

http://www.blackviper.com/

[saphalline]

Win XP also has a lot of fancy graphical effects like fade-in windows, real-time dragging, etc. Considering your onboard video, you'll want to turn these settings off. Properly configured, I see no reason WinXP should be any slower than 98SE on your system, even with 256MB of RAM. I used to run XP Pro on 256MB of RAM, even played games on it, to no detrimental effect.