Hi I've moved a DVD player from a broken (unrelated problem) computer to an older one that I intend to use only to watch DVD while on the treadmill. (Seems cheaper to recycle old parts than to buy new electronics for this purpose) The install went fine and Windows 98 recognizes the (generic) DVD drive and the files on the disk. I downloaded several freebie DVD player software, none of which work. I either get a runtime error after the install, an error message about updating my system (no internet connection on this machine), or the software installs just fine but will not run (or even see without prompting "all files") the files on the DVD. Does anyone know if there is any way I can run DVDs on this old (probably 10 years) machine? I've not even come to the point of seeing if the graphics card can handle these files.

Is it a DVD-rom drive (only reads CDs and DVDs, or reads and burns CDs, only reads DVDs) or a CD/DVD combo burner drive (reads and burns both CDs and DVDs)? Is the computer using Win 98 (the original version) or Win 98SE? If you're not sure, Right click on My Computer - select Properties - if it's 98 Second Edition, that's stated there on the first window you see. If it's using Win 98 (the original version), DVD player software meant for use with Win98SE or Win98SE/ME may not work, because if it includes drivers they may be incompatible. Win 98 drivers are the same format as used for Win95, and cannot be used for 98SE/ME. If you originally installed that DVD drive yourself, or if someone installed it for you and supplied the CD that came with it, there is usually a suitable freeware version of a DVD player on the CD that came with the drive. However, depending on how old the drive is, there may be no support for using it in the original Win 98, or, possibly, in 98SE and ME. If the DVD drive is a CD/DVD burner drive, all the software on a CD that came with the drive may require a 400mhz or so cpu or faster. Win 98/98SE may not recognize a DVD drive (or any optical drive, or a hard drive for that matter) properly if it wasn't present when Windows Setup was run. Look in Device Manager and make sure DMA mode is enabled for that drive. Some older video cards (that you install in a slot) came with DVD player software. If you have the CD for the video card, if that is there, you can install that, and it is likely to be Win 95/98/98SE compatible. However, if you don't have the CD, because of licenseing agreements, you can't download that from the maker of the card's website. ...... "I either get a runtime error after the install, an error message about updating my system (no internet connection on this machine)..." State the runtime error(s). You probably don't need an internet connection, but there's a strong chance you may need files from the Windows CD in 98 and 98SE. If you don't have a suitable CD, that presents a problem, unless there is a \Win98 folder on your hard drive because someone installed that there by copying the folder from the original CD. If you can't borrow one, you can let it search for the files and when you get an error message it can't find the file, note the names of the files it wants and where it wants to install them, skipping each file after that in turn to show you the next one it wants, until you determine all of them, download them from the web on another computer or copy them from someone else's Win 98 or 98SE installation onto, or copy them onto, a flash drive or a floppy or a CD, and install them on your hard drive in the proper places. If you DO have or can borrow a Windows CD, Win 95, 98, and 98SE often dumbly default to looking in the wrong place - make sure it's looking on the drive letter for the drive the CD is in, in the \Win98 folder. If there is a \Win98 folder on your hard drive because someone installed that there by copying the folder and it's contents from the original CD, then correct the path to point to C:\Win98 when Windows wants files from the CD. .... A side note. If it's a CD/DVD combo burner drive capable of burning 16X or greater DVD +R or DVD -R disks, the drive cannot run at it's max rated speed unless it is connected to an 80 wire data cable and the mboard IDE is capable of UDMA 66 or greater, and in some cases the drive will not be detected properly unless it is.

If your able to put a DVD into your DVD drive and then select it using Windows Explorer file manager and read the directories and files, then there's nothing wrong there. One thing to check is that the DVD drive will most probably support DMA and Windows will not enable that by default, you can select the drive's properties from the device manager and check the DMA box (requires restart). But, that's just to help with the bandwidth after you are able to play DVDs. I never had luck with free DVD players in Win98SE. Don't know why, most free or open source software works good, but the the DVD players don't. I think it has to do with the CODECs. Even the Microsoft DVD player that is on the Win98SE setup CDROM does not work (not installed by default, but not worth installing). I got a copy of PowerDVD bundled with a DVD-RW drive I brought some time ago, and it works perfectly. It is version 4.0 and the requirements are: -Windows 98SE,ME,2000,or XP -Pentium II 350MHz or higher -64MB RAM -Display card supporting DirectDraw overlay -PCI sound card, USB audio, or motherboard built-in audio -Supported DVD drive -40MB of free HDD space If your computer can meet these specs and if you can get and install PowerDVD XP4.0, then I believe you will be able to play DVDs just fine.

Thanks to both of you. This machine is running 98, not 98 SE. I think it's just too old for this exercise. I don't even think it's a P-2 and might not even have enough guts to run movies, anyway! I'll head into the basement tomorrow and take a closer look at the hardware specs.

The DVD player software, or at least one other DVD player package that has been installed in Windows, has to have the codecs included that can decode the data on the DVD. E.g. Power DVD and other DVD player software you get on a CD that came with an optical drive capable of reading DVDs DOES have the codecs; the one on the Windows 98SE CD does not - Windows Media Player of any version does not - but if you also have other software that has the codecs installed, then other DVD players that don't have the codecs can play the DVDs. E.g. If you have the CD for a video card that has DVD player software included , that has the necessary codecs too. Made by ATI video cards for the Rage 128bit series (they first came out 1999, 2000) or newer (Radeon 7000 and up) have the ATI DVD player software on the original CD. Clone cards with ATI chipsets that age or newer may or may not have DVD player software on the CD - if they do, it's not ATI's. Almost all ATI video chipsets and ATI video chipsets on cards that age or newer have hardware DVD decoding support built into the chipset. NOTE - I found out the hard way the Un-install for version 4.0 of PowerDVD is not properly written!! If you don't install it in the default folder location, make sure you install BY ITSELF in a folder, somewhere. The Un-install will delete EVERYTHING in the location the Power DVD software is installed in, even if it was not put there by installion of the program, and what it deletes it doesn't show up in the Recycle bin. I have also seen MANY mentions of problems when you use other versions of PowerDVD, and other Cyberlink Software, so there programming is probably sloppier than average.

I believe the specs I included in my previous response was pretty much the bare minimum computer for playing a DVD. I suspect even the PII 350MHz would need a good video card with a well written driver in order to consistently play DVDs. And I've never seen DVD playing software which would work in anything but 98SE (and above, of course). It's true that the basic PowerDVD software that comes bundled with DVD drives and other DVD related software, is cheap stuff. What can you expect, it's doubtful the hardware manufactuers paid much more than a dollar a copy to Cyberlink. If it hadn't come with the hardware, I wouldn't have brought it. But, no, even with PowerDVD installed and playing DVDs perfectly, the DVD player that comes with Win98SE still won't play DVDs. It plays the sound okay, but no video.

"But, no, even with PowerDVD installed and playing DVDs perfectly, the DVD player that comes with Win98SE still won't play DVDs. It plays the sound okay, but no video." I haven't actually tried that one. In fact, I've never ever heard of it before. What is it's file name, and what's the name of it? A friend of mine had two monitors connected to each of two monitor ports on the same video card. PowerDVD 4.0, and the much newer version I installed for her that came with a LG drive I bought about a year ago, will only display the DVD video on a monitor connected to what Windows detects as the primary video adapter - the other display had no DVD video in PowerDVD. There are a few other programs that will only display on the primary adapter as well.