11th July 2001

So, you want to "dual boot," you say? The concept goes beyond having a matching pair of foot garments, so pull yourself up by the bootstraps and take notes. Windows 2000 has a nifty boot loader that can handle multiple installations of operating systems. This is great if you care to run a copy of Windows 98 and Windows 2000 on the same PC. The best way to accomplish this is to start with a working installation of Windows 98, which will likely be housed in the C:\Windows folder. When you pop in the Windows 2000 CD and begin the installation, you will be prompted to upgrade your existing version of Windows or to install a fresh copy of Windows. In this case, you want a fresh copy, leaving Windows 98 intact. Since Windows 2000 installs itself to the C:\WINNT directory by default, you shouldn't have a problem with it stomping all over 98. When you're finished, a brand new boot menu will appear with your choices in operating systems. Note that using this setup allows you to install several copies of Windows NT / 2000, but only one copy of Windows 9x. Also, keep in mind that the various versions of Windows often use the same directories for Windows components, so be prepared for some version issues if you don't specify alternate directories for applications you install or upgrade in various operating systems. If you were considering 2000 as a replacement for 98, but weren't sure if it'd work properly, you now know it's safe to have your cake and eat it, too.