I wonder if anyone could help me, I have an old computer which runs windows 98 that my children use to play their games on. We recently tried to install a sims game on it which failed to work but since then a couple of other games do not work,
we tried to play mall tycoon today but got an error message which said
a required d11file DDRAW.DLl was not found
Any ideas , this computer is not connected to the internet , would it be worth uninstalling windows 98 and starting again and if so is that easy but I'm really hoping someone will have an easier solution
any help would be greatly appreciated

Yes, there is an easier solution

The file that you refer to is the DirectDraw DLL file. DirectDraw is part of Microsoft's DirectX multimedia / display driver software.

You can get the latest version of DirectX for Windows 98 from Microsoft's site here: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/d...displaylang=en

Note that it is a relatively big download though, so it might take a couple of hours if you're only using a 56k dial-up modem.

Let us know if that helps

Sorry, my apologies - I've just read your post properly and I see it's not connected to the Internet. The link I gave you was a shortcut for the "online setup".

Do you have another PC that is connected to the Internet that you can download on and transfer the setup file to the kids' PC using a CD-writer or USB thumb drive or something? If so, I'll try and find a link to the full install package for you that doesn't need an Internet connection for the PC you want to run it on.

Thanks for your advice , it would be REALLY handy not to have to uninstall windows 98 and then put it back on.
I have a re-writer on the one that is connected to the internet so would I be able to download the necessary files onto a cd and then load them on the kids computer
Seeing as you sound as though you know what you're doing, we are hoping to get another computer for our sons bedroom that will also run on xp , will both computers be able to connect to the internet at the same time and if so how does this work.
Thanks for your help

Originally Posted by hotgoss

I have a re-writer on the one that is connected to the internet so would I be able to download the necessary files onto a cd and then load them on the kids computer

Great - here's a link to the 32Mb "redistributable" download of DirectX 9.0c that allows you to chuck it onto a CD and run it as a full install on other PCs: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/d...displaylang=en

Originally Posted by hotgoss

.......we are hoping to get another computer for our sons bedroom that will also run on xp , will both computers be able to connect to the internet at the same time and if so how does this work.

Yes, that's perfectly possible. Windows XP has a feature called "Internet Connection Sharing" that allows you to set up an Internet connection on one PC and use the same connection from other PCs around the house. Note that you'll need to have the two PCs networked together though - this either means some long network cables going up the stairs and physically connecting them or a wireless network that works off of radio waves - this is a little more expensive but much easier to manage (especially if you decide to re-arrange the bedroom layout or switch bedrooms - it means you don't have to re-do the cabling). Wireless networking with Internet Connection Sharing also gives you the potential to have a laptop that you can take ANYWHERE in the house and get onto the Internet

I understand the main principles of Internet Connection Sharing and wireless networking but I haven't set either of them up myself. My advice would be to get your son's new PC and then post a new thread in the Networking section of the forum if you need further advice - someone with more experience will undoubtedly be able to help

Just got round to trying your advice , downloaded what you recommended and it worked a treat thank you. still having problems with the sims game on there but haven't got time to post details on here at the moment but will try to get round to it as this site is brilliant and I'm sure someone out there can help me.

Originally Posted by hotgoss

......downloaded what you recommended and it worked a treat......

Great

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