Weirdest thing, Windows shows my USB ports are working fine, but my gamepad and infared mouse plugged into the ports no longer work.

 

I was thinking perhaps the ports themselves conked out at first, but I removed them and let Windows re-detect them and that went as if nothing was wrong.

My laptop will occasionally lag up when detecting something in the USB port. I blame Windows XP, frankly.

I use Windows 98SE still.

 

Before you laugh, remember that it's been out for 7+ years and is probably the most thoroughly patched OS MS has ever made so it's more secure than the newer OSes.

Before you laugh, remember that it's been out for 7+ years and is probably the most thoroughly patched OS MS has ever made so it's more secure than the newer OSes.

You're the only person I've ever read as having that stance. Almost everyone says/thinks that XP is more secure than 98SE. I don't have anything against using 98, as far as older computers are concerned, but there's no way I'd touch it without at least a firewall or no net connection.

 

How do you figure that the patches to 98SE haven't been applied to XP also though, where needed? I have a hard time imagining Microsoft allowing 98SE to be more secure than its latest OS. Also keep in mind that XP inherits most of its security features from the NT/2000 codebase, which was designed for security from the get-go as opposed to the 95/98/M.E. codebase where Microsoft foolishly didn't think it was needed for home users.

In theory, the longer an OS is out, the more secure it is because of patches and just the amount of time it's been exposed to the real world (ie: a new OS hasn't been picked apart by hackers yet so not all the vulnerabilites are known).

 

I'm not saying I'd run a server on Win 98, but it's been exposed to the real world long enough I don't see why running it at home is terrible just because Bill Gates wants an extra $100.

I'm not saying I'd run a server on Win 98, but it's been exposed to the real world long enough I don't see why running it at home is terrible just because Bill Gates wants an extra $100.

Me neither. I just don't see how a Win98SE with no security software would have an advantage over WinXP Home with no security software, as I don't think that theory always holds with Microsoft. Really though, if you have decent freeware firewall, antivirus, antispyware, etc., there really shouldn't be any concerns at all using an internet-connected 98SE.

 

To be honest, I only use XP because it came with my computer (I wasn't given a choice, it was a gift). Otherwise, I'd just dualboot with 2000 and Gentoo.

I don't understand Sek's theory. I work in an environment where NATIONAL SECURITY is our #1 priority and believe me, no one subscribes to the theory that the longer an OS has been exposed to the real world, the more secure it is. In fact, it's the opposite. After a certain period of time, Microsoft CEASES supporting or making patches of any sort for outdated OS's, basically forcing you to upgrade. But it's not all just to line their pockets, they do provide a more secure OS, too. So just because an OS has been around forever and has umpteen patches created for it, doesn't automatically make it more secure. By that rationale, the earliest version of Windows would also be the most secure. How thoroughly an OS has been "patched" or "updated" has no real bearing on actual security or effectiveness.

 

If security was an issue for me, I wouldn't go back any further than Win2K which was, as Danny stated, designed with security in mind. There is no way that 98SE is more secure than XP w/SP2 just because it's been around longer. I can see the logic there but it still makes no sense and furthermore, simply isn't true.

 

If you ran a facility right now where all your workstations had 98SE on them, Microsoft would tell you straight up to upgrade to the more secure XP OS and that they're not responsible for any security breaches, etc. to your network because they've already explained to you the vulnerabilities and that they no longer support it. I know because we went through it.

Let's get back on the topic at hand, namely my USB issues.

Well, if Windows still hasn't redetected the USB, there's a fair shot that the USB card is fried. If you've got another box, you might swap it out into that and see if you experience the same issues.

 

If the card is nerfed, then you get to spend a little bit of money: depending on how many ports you want to connect, prices on cards for USB 2.0 run anywhere from $15 to $50.