What OS to use for the games I need?

[Sylentwulf]

OK, on the high end of the gaming spectrum I want to play are Killer Instinct .chd files, mortal kombats, Capcomvsmarvel, etc...etc....

So, obviously, for at least the KI .chd files, I'm going to need a fairly decent/above average system going to make it perfect. I can handle that part.

As for the OS, I'd like to stick with either win ME, or windows XP. I'd LIKE to use windows XP, but, well, honestly, I don't want to buy another damn full version of windows XP. Would winME be ok, or should I go through the trouble of getting windows XP on there the, uhhh, not so morally correct, pain in the ass way.

So, nutshell - will windows ME be sufficient and run at full speed and everything?

[maraxle]

Windows ME is full of problems.  Use anything other than that.  Even downgrading to Win98SE is preferable.

[GGKoul]

XP is preferred but 98SE works good too.  Either one should work.  
Just don't use 2000 or ME.

[etumor]

GGKoul,

Interesting...

I have to agree with you about ME.  Use anything but ME.

But I'm curious about your objection to Win2k.  It's what I'm using for my MAME cabinet, and it has worked out well.  I am currently using Win2k because it has better compatibility with Daphne than Win98 does (otherwise I would use Win98SE).

What is your opinion on using WinXP for a MAME cab?  Better than 2000?  Why?  What specific problems do you see with 2000?

-Jeff "etumor" Allen

[vputz]

Well, Linux is free... and, er, very educational.

(grin).

It's been an experience getting the beast running, but it does seem to work well.  I can't really recommend it as an introduction to Linux, though.  You may want to try some of the bootable CDs out there (KnoppixMame is one, I think there are more) to give it a go.

-->VPutz

[barvaz]

My OS choices for MAME machine would be in the following order:

1. Linux - it just screams to be used in a MAME machine, it is powered by the same spirit as MAME. It's free, it's powerful and you actually can learn a thing or two just by installing and administrating it. My personal choice of Linux distribution would be Gentoo but any other will do.

2. Windows XP Pro/Home

[maraxle]

6. DOS

[barvaz]

Linux does not work better than DOS on old hardware.  Old hardware that was designed for DOS or DOS-based operating systems like Win95/98 works great with DOS.  

Linux can run on any old hardware as well as DOS. You have Linux distributions that are specially tailored for old machines, you have Embedded Linux distros that run on various devices. People are hacking PocketPC

[Tailgunner]

As for the OS, I'd like to stick with either win ME, or windows XP. I'd LIKE to use windows XP, but, well, honestly, I don't want to buy another damn full version of windows XP. Would winME be ok, or should I go through the trouble of getting windows XP on there the, uhhh, not so morally correct, pain in the ass way.

So, nutshell - will windows ME be sufficient and run at full speed and everything?

Seeing as you have a WinME disk, you could use it along with a WinXP upgrade disk to install XP. Therefore you wouldn't need to buy a full version of XP, just the update.

On the other hand, how long has it been since you installed XP on whatever system you're currently using it on? Microsoft purges the XP authorization records after 120 days, so if it's been at least 4 months, you can reuse the XP disk and code and it'll activate like it's never been used.

[barvaz]

Microsoft purges the XP authorization records after 120 days, so if it's been at least 4 months, you can reuse the XP disk and code and it'll activate like it's never been used.

Really? Are you sure about that?

(*wonders if this is because the MS SQL server that is used to store the codes can't handle that much data*  )

[Tailgunner]

Really? Are you sure about that?

(*wonders if this is because the MS SQL server that is used to store the codes can't handle that much data*  )

I'm pretty sure it's 120 days, but you can definately reuse the code after awhile.
I figure the authorization thingy is mostly to keep people from buying one copy and installing it on their machine(s), their family and friends machines, ect. You still can, just not one right after another like you can with the earlier Win versions. Where it get's annoying is where you have multiple XP disks, and multiple systems sharing authorization codes. I have to keep a cheat sheet of which disk was used on which system and when it's code was last authorized.