PlayStation Development Network

Hello there,

so, I've been trying to build a Windows 98SE computer to have an actual physical machine to develop on how they did "back then", however, I am unsure what hardware I should buy. Are there any recommendations?

Vatuu

Get something a parallel port and you should be good to go.

The parallel port is useful for flashing Xplorer/Xploder or AR/GS 3.0+ or uploading code using Caetla.

DB9 Serial ports can be useful for a whole manner of things. I currently use a Toshiba Tecra Pentium 3 Laptop which runs Windows 98SE, has WLAN etc which is helpful, and has the parallel port for playing around with the Xplorer.

If you really want to, getting a machine with an ISA slot will give you the option of the DTL-H2000 or whatever should you ever need it or alternatively, the AR comms link card (For Action Replay/Gameshark v1 or v2) - but i really wouldnt bother unless this is something you are really wanting to do.

Good luck

Thanks for the reply, but this was not really what I meant.

Yeah, I do plan to create a proper development station with either the ISA dev cards or the PCI versions, and all the stuff belonging to it. However, I meant this question more in regards to actual computer hardware, i.e. MB, Processor, Graphics Card, etc. Seeing how the SDK and the Dev Cards were made for these old 98SE computers, I need to build a machine that is actually built with parts from that time. So, is there any advice for that?

Vatuu wrote: ↑February 27th, 2019, 4:46 am I need to build a machine that is actually built with parts from that time. So, is there any advice for that?

You can natively load win95/98 on any new machine I believe, I know DOS still works.
The hard part is the partitioning, DOS has to be first.

re hardware, Look for stuff made 1998 to 2001 (winXP).
Maybe even up to 2004-5, but just make sure it has drivers for win98se etc.
I think your looking at intel pentium 2's maybe even 3's.
Video cards, the early NVidia geforce.. but you probably wont need one.
Buying a PC/laptop already built and working is easier then in parts.
Same as Dan, I have an old laptop (IBM thinkpad) with printer port etc, but only use it for the floppy drive
But the info Dan is giving are the reasons why you would get old hardware and what to look for.

You don't have to go back that far - a lot of the early P4 machines supported Windows 98SE too. They typically shipped with XP on them, but since during that time frame a lot of business users were still using 98 they still had support (and drivers) for it.

More problematic, depending on the development boards you are using, is the bus support - these boards generally have PCI, but typical have only one or no ISA slots, which is a problem if you are using the DTL-H2000.

I use a HP Thin Client - no slots but everything has drivers and is more than good enough for Windows 98SE and has everything I need. Parallel/Serial/USB2/DVI/VGA which covers me perfectly. Only cost me £15 + P&P from eBay.

No ISA slots, but I doubt I would ever use a DTL-H2000 - the setup I have is good enough for my needs.

Well, my goal is to eventually get my claws on some actual DTL Hardware, not just the dev board itself, so a laptop is pretty much out of the question. Essentially, I simply need a nice recommendation for the motherboard and processor/graphics card. Currently, I managed to get a Pentium 3 SL35E @ 500MHz, a Intel SE440BX-2 Motherboard, 2 bars of 256MB SDRAM @ 133MHz and a NVidia Quadro4 580XGL graphics card. However, it doesn't seem to work so I wonder if the components might be incompatible.

That reminds me that I have my old working PC from 2010, If i remember the year correctly. Looks like that you trying to build much older computer I guess.

The kit you have will work for your needs if you can get it up and running.. Do some simple tests (take the graphics card out and listen for beep codes - same for memory). There were some incompatibilities with AGP card voltages hence why you might not be getting any video. Also, reset the CMOS so it goes back to factory settings.

The detail I outlined in my initial reply covered the basics.. just find a motherboard that is suitable with an ISA slot.. there are loads but they fetch very strong prices these days. I used to work in PC manufacturer when this stuff was new - the most reliable boards we supplied were the Asus P2B (there are loads of versions of this P2BS/P2BD (Dual), Asus P3B, Supermicro P6SBA from an intel perspective... They all are AGP/PCI & ISA.

Looking at your post, might be worth testing it properly.. Some 440BX motherboards pre-date Pentium III CPUs so may need a BIOS update to support them.

I use a thin client terminal for my Windows 98SE/DOS needs - It has a Via C3 CPU - has drivers for everything but doesnt have an ISA slot as I have no need for it (I use Caetla with a Freewing/AR or Xplorer).

Good luck - wouldn't worry about a DTL-H card too much - they may be useful but you can do some serious enough development without one.

Well, my current board does have 2 ISA Slots, all well as 4 PCI and one AGP, so that is not my concern. However there is a error that I keep getting through two short beeps after a while. Now, the documentations are not really clear on this. It either means critical ram failure, parity error or sometjing else that is not specified.

Sorry, am I missing something?

You asked for recommendations , you got pointed in the right direction. Then you said you wanted specific parts - I gave you some motherboard model numbers - but they you say thats not your concern. So, what exactly is your question?

It seems to me you need help deciphering beep codes and getting your PC running.. which is a different question entirely.

Read my signature

I use a HP Thin Client - no slots but everything has drivers and is more than good enough for Windows 98SE and has everything I need.