Windows 98 PC...
Windows 98 PC...
After finishing the setup stage, 512 works well. However, using that much memory isn’t necessary and might not offer any real benefit. The chances of getting headaches don’t really improve much. I’ll skip it.
It all comes down to the specific game. However, if you hit a later version of P4 with a faster clock speed, you might end up relying on your 6800 Ultra.
Focus on checking for chipset details, USB, audio, and SATA options on manufacturer sites. If you locate a suitable sound card and Ethernet, you won’t need additional purchases. Regarding PCIe SATA, I’m not sure about its functionality or where to look for it.
Pentium 4? That sounds too much, I own a Pentium 1 running Windows 98 which is *extremely* efficient (runs games at 60fps without a graphics card at all) you could definitely upgrade to something more powerful! In fact, the main problem here is that it lacks USB drivers—no way USB ports are working.
Essentially everything you're looking for is out there. A 98 would likely struggle to figure out what to do with a brand new board like yours. But based on what I've seen, it might be wiser to target a slightly newer Socket 478 model. Most of the 775 boards either look overused or are too costly, while the Asus P4V800D-X seems fairly reasonable. It has drivers for LAN, audio, and USB, though it's still quite pricey—just like older gear.
i discovered some models priced around 775 with "all the driver" listed on the site. however, there seems to be a lot of variation. i was aiming for the top choice but if missing certain features it might work better with an additional pci slot or a 98 sound card and ethernet. according to what i read, new products usually come with ethernet support, so chipset drivers are likely important too. i think i should look for a ddr2 model compatible with that price point.