USB flash drives and other USB mass storage based devices are very common. Unfortunately, they often do not come with drivers because XP, Vista and W7 all come with many drivers already installed. This way all you need to do is plug the USB flash drive in, Windows will recognize it and you see the drive in My Computer as a removable device. Windows 98, especially in the second edition (also known as Windows 98SE), handles USB fairly well, however there are no generic/universal mass storage device drivers pre-installed in the operating system, so you will need to install the correct driver for it. Some manufacturers provide the Windows 98 drivers on CD, others have them available to download, and still others do not.
If you are using Windows 98, and you do not know the manufacturer of the storage device, or you can’t find the drivers, what can you do? Fortunately, there are some generic Windows 98 USB mass storage device drivers available that work with most devices. This means that these drivers will work with many makes and models of the following:
- USB Flash Drives (also known as Thumb or Stick Drives)
- Digital Cameras (that connect to the PC via USB)
- MP3 Players (including iPods after 2.4)
- Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP)
Installing the drivers
Before installing the drivers, it is important to know that there are 2 primary versions of Windows 98, and they each handle USB differently. You must install the appropriate version of the drivers based on your version of Windows 98. In order to determine your Windows version, do the following:
- Right click on My Computer and select Properties
- On the System Properties page that opens up click on the General tab, if it is not already on that page.
- Under the System heading, look for the version number
- Version 4.10.1998 is the original version of Windows 98 (98FE)
- Version 4.10.2222 is Windows 98 Second Edition (98SE)
- Click the link below for the download and installation instructions for your version of Windows 98
Download
Please click the link for your version of Windows 98:
Disclaimer
You should note, that these drivers are generic, and they may not work with some devices. It is also only intended for the English version of Windows 98. Installing on the wrong version of Windows may cause problems with your operating system. There is no guarantee that they will work with your device, but our experience shows that they work with most without problem.
Please also note that these drivers are not warranted in any way, and no support is offered for them; you use at your own risk. As a precaution, whenever making changes to your operating system, we recommend you do a full system backup. This means NOW, before you start.
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