I am the lead PC tech for a mid-sized state government orginization. We are still running Compaq deskpro EP 233mhz and 266mhz PCs with Windows 95 and Office 97. We have long argued the need for us to move to a more current and stable OS and office suite, but the PTB (Powers That Be.) won't budge. They say that $200,000 for total desktop replacement is too much and that us being tech support should be able to support the equipment that we have. Obviously these people have no technical merit and don't understand, when the company that puts Windows 95 out has pretty much laid it to rest, there's not much that we can do as techs to help ourselves. Everyday time is wasted on chasing "illegal operations" and various print errors and lockups. In the meantime, the IS department, running on Windows 2000 machines hasn't had so much as a peep about anything. Can't they see the difference???? How in the hell is that not enough justification???? Anyway, the fact of the matter is, we in IS feel that a total desktop replacement is needed to at least attempt to stay somewhat on pace with the times.....Does anyone have any suggestions on how else to pitch this to these people???????? Windows 95 is dead/Windows 2000 is still alive and doing quite well though support will start dwindling to another stage in March of 2003(per microsoft)

Perhaps explain in detail the "Security" aspects of moving to 2000. A demonstration of how easy it is for someone to hack into a 95 machine might be a good idea as well.

Have you tried proposing a phased upgrade that would spread that cost out a little? They are looking at spending $200K + your salary for a working stable system, vs. just your salary for a working un-stable system. To them, your job is to save money by chasing down illegal operations.

Take a look at this...never worked with it...mabey it's an idea... http://www.98lite.net/

Enjoy the job security! :) I maintained the '95 boxes on our network by Ghosting a clean install (with Office 97, etc) and carried around a bootable CD to wipe problem boxes with. Have you looked into a thin client solution for the future? Most institutional users only use a few standard apps and don't need their own full-featured computers, which they would only screw up.