Aqua-Soft Forumsusually a week...
How Often Do You Re-install An OS
depends if the OS gets screwed up.. i always have linux to back up my windows files if that side gets sctewed.. but.. i formated 2 weeks ago because windows wouldnt boot (lucky for linux being there i could back up stuuff) had to reinstall.. and before that i didnt format a while back cause the system felt slow from being used so much and so many files being fragmented
so it al ldepends
-bolero
Number 200!
a year
XP is a fine OS. For me, with a Dell pc, I never had problems. If something happend its cause of me. Now i can quote microsoft's bull typical phrase during an OS install:
."windows has never been better before"
Its the truth for me.
I know bo have had quite a few problems with it.. :joystick:
Well, I dont know if this counts anymore, but Im using backup images now of my Hard Drive so I no longer just "re-install" windows, I actually "re-install" my system. But yeah, I have a normal life expectancy on Windows XP of about 3-4 months lol.
Just reinstalled my XP. So, my XP CD is now useless. There are only 2 activation allowed. Its my 2nd so, bye bye. Its so expensive. P4500.00? howdy
Only, I reinstall OS when my PC is damn screwed.
-jed
There are only 2 activation allowed.
If you wipe your drive clean there is no limit I believe.
Anyhooo, if you end-up RE-installing an OS more than 3x, that person is experimenting with things they don't know. I grant you that doing modifications means serious key changes but if you are backing your files and doing XP-backup points , there should be no need to re-install unless that person has little clue what they are changing. I've gone through Win95, 98, 98SE, ME, 2000, XP and I never had OS corruption to the point I had to re-install. Call me prudent :baby:
6 months to a year
When I didn't now of aqua emulation I used to re-install XP every two/three months, but now I am too lazy just to re-install all the aqua stuff as well.
@TheRagiaAsian: what app do you use to mae an image of your system? Does it back partitions information up also?
Life expectancy for a XP install: 4-6 months after which it really needs to have a clean install, as loading times, registry etc. has dropped/increased. Because I install (and de-install) lots of software, so the system tends to get sluggish after a couple months. The soultion? I do clean install where I configure the system, drivers and install my minimum required programs like Photoshop, CuteFTP, ACDSee, DriveImage and a couple others.
Then I defrag the drive, and make an image in DriveImage and save that. Thus when a "new" install is required, it only takes 15-20 minutes to get a fresh install of XP, and as I've already installed everything I need! No need to install Photoshop for example, it's already there! Talk about timesaver! And the best part, is that I can go do something while it (re)installs itself, come back to the computer, and it's set to go, with no more stupid (re)installing to do!
No more answering the same damn questions in the XP setup!!!
How often do I reinstall? Hardly ever. But I do regular maintanence and I can fix a lot of things without having to reinstall like if I mess something up tinkering.
I use to re-install after 6 months of use, but I never wait a year to do it.
Heh, that picture of the pimp above has IPIX written on it, brings back memories. I joined IPIX in 1998, in 2000 I was (one of) the highest ranking IPIX photographers in europe. I remember so many times dangling off the 6th story roof of a little decrepid condo or motel in southern europe, greece and turkey, trying to get a shot, lens fogging up every 5 seconds because of the 135F heat and 80% humidity. I got a friend to wipe the lens after the first 180 degree shot, just before it fogged again to take the second, when we hear the battery beep, and the camera go dead, all 6 stories up, balancing on one foot on a ledge. It was great.
Why does that photo have IPIX printed? It is not an iPIX photograph...
Im with Frankenchrist on the install period of 4-6 months. Usually my customization skills are good enough that I can destroy and hack several hundred files over that period of time before I fuxor something up that becomes just too annoying.
Although I dont do a drive image: I just keep all of my content/ resources on a seperate drive, so I can format, reinstall and then hit a couple of .exe's and be back in business in under a few hours. And it looks like Im about to do just that...Java is fuxored and one of my file hacks is messing with my shutdown/ restart. Time to clean things up a little and start over.
Frankenchrist: Instead of ACDSee you should give Slowview a try! Its a freeware version of ACDSee with many of ACDSee's bugs fixed.
Ever since I switched to XP on all my machines, I never had to re-install again. Had to install XP again in one machine because the hard drive broke down so I replaced it.
lol ya goku.. i had problems because i messed up a partition on windows
and reasons why i format is after a longggg time XP slows down ALOT i mean god.. ALOT after you use your system you can totaly see a difference from fresh install to a nice loaded harddrive.. thjats when i format to get some speed back...
-bolero
Ive only had to reinstall Windows XP twice in a year. Its pretty good, and the times I did reinstall it was because I messed up a system file or something, my fault.
Linux I reinstall every couple weeks, because im always messing something up. This is obviously not Linux's fault, Linux gives you A LOT more power, and I tend to abuse it. 
I just reinstalled Windows 98 for the hundreth time today. I use it as my DHCP server, and somehow it manages to break, even though all I do is log on to the internet to broadcast across my network.
I know how it is... I install Windows 98 from my HP OEM disc about 4 times a year.
Maybe you can help me...
Everytime i gopen my CD-ROM drive while audio is playing, the audio cracks and pops and snows, and sometimes the computer just plain frezes...
I checked and I had 85% recources when the audio stumbles. Windows 98 has become really unstable when I install all my devices, how can i fix this?
go into: msconfig and disable all services/programs you dont need.
I think Norton has a program called 'Ghost' that makes an image of your system. I do it before reformatting, transfer the ghost to my spare harddrive, reformat, then transfer what is needed back...
I used to re-install ever week or so when I was experimenting with Linux and FreeBSD
by the way---
Yeah, Ghost is pretty cool, for windows. Frankly, its an essential.
You dont really need any software to backup your whole system in Linux. Just copy every file to another partition. Theres no registry/"hidden" files, so thats all you have to do. Even LILO/GRUB and hardware choices are backed up.
And you can tar/Gzip up your files, so they're compressed as well.
damn i love linux lol
i remember i would just for the hell of it.. screw up my x windows just to learn how to fix it each time.. it works out well 
-bolero
thats the first thing i always do... Still the same...
does Windows 98 have a kernel?
I know NT systems do... Does Windows 98?
everyoperating systems have a kernel dude... thats the core of every operating systems.. thats how they work.. the kernel is the core.. the heart of it all.....
-bolero
Thanx for the info niblet of info. Is htere a way to customixe it like it Linux. I think its Kernel32.dll