windows 98 wont install driver

**Staticage** · August 3rd, 2007, 01:29 AM

This question is probably in the wrong forum but since I'm a noob I'll ask anyway...

Windows is telling me I need the windows 98 CD-ROM to install the sound driver I need. Is there a way around this, or a way to get the files I need without having the CD-ROM?

**Platypus** · August 3rd, 2007, 04:58 AM

There may be a way around it. Win98 isn't very smart about finding things and sometimes just asks for the CD when it can't locate stuff.

If I remember correctly, if you answer OK when it asks, you should be offered a dialog to choose alternative locations. There you can try telling it C:\Windows\cab if your computer has this folder (check first), or also C:\Windows\system and system32 in case the file is there already & Windows is too dumb to look...

If what you are doing is installing drivers from a CD or folder on your hard drive, you can also try pointing the installer to that location, again in case the file is actually there, but Windows has just assumed it should use its own from the Windows installation CD.

Alternatively, until you find your CD or can temporarily get the use of one, let us know just what it is you're needing to install, & we may be able to give more specific help.

***DonJ*** · August 3rd, 2007, 04:00 PM

Yeah, what kind of sound driver are you looking for? Is it a PCI card or built into the mobo?

**Staticage** · August 3rd, 2007, 10:10 PM

I'm tryin to install this: Windows 98 Sound Driver for ADI Sound System (v5.00.2229-RC3; 09-13-1999; 3.15M)

...from the Toshiba website. The driver I have now says its not working so I used a list of drivers for my computer off their site and thats the only one for windows98.

**Staticage** · August 3rd, 2007, 10:51 PM

now it says that the SoundMax audio device works properly.. before it listed a different driver in the Other Devices section and now that driver is gone. But there is still no sound.. I'm assuming it's just installing it incorrectly?

**Platypus** · August 4th, 2007, 01:58 AM

If you're sure it's the correct driver (and the sound is not just muted or no sound device selected in Multimedia), try starting the system in safe mode, and in the Device Manager remove any and all sound drivers shown. Safe mode will display any "phantom" driver installs that may be partial or failed installations that can prevent a fresh installation from working properly. Then reboot, and install the Toshiba supplied driver again, see how it goes.

**Staticage** · August 4th, 2007, 02:29 AM

how would i check if theres no sound device selected in multimedia? theres def. no volume control available to use and theres definatly 3 unknown drivers in the driver listing. if you can tell me how to check the multimedia thing i'll try safe mode.

**Platypus** · August 4th, 2007, 06:21 AM

Follow Start - Settings - Control Panel - Multimedia and among the options you'll find both options to Show the Volume Control on the Taskbar, and to select a device for audio playback and recording. But if no sound device is operational, these won't be able to be set. If Device Manager reports the SoundMax driver operational, you should be able to select SoundMax as a playback device and advance the volume from the taskbar after a re-boot.

I'm a little unclear on your explanations of "and now that driver is gone" and "theres definatly 3 unknown drivers". There may be further unknown devices listed the manager which can also be sorted out once sound is dealt with. If it says SoundMax is operating but you can't set it as a playback device or get sound, then I think you should try the cleanout in Safe Mode & start fresh.

**Staticage** · August 4th, 2007, 10:46 AM

in system properties, there used to be a sound driver in other devices. now that one is gone and i don't remember seeing the SoundMax one until recently when I was trying to both reinstall the toshiba driver and the new driver from their website, so i'm not sure when the SoundMax one appeared. It says it is working, when i click its properties. it also lets me select it for audio use in multimedia but still doesnt actually let me toggle with the audio fuctions at all.

The unknown ones may have been from me having failed installations of either video or audio drivers.. i'm not sure but i deleted them.

**Staticage** · August 4th, 2007, 11:07 AM

I tried Safe Mode...It showed one unknown device... I went back to normal mode and it said was trying to reinstall the joystick i tried to delete in Video,Sound,Game devices, and also tried to reinstall the original soundcard and the one off the Toshiba website. Then windows asked me for the windows 98 CD-ROM like 4 times. Then I went and deleted all the weird stuff it had just tried to install, and tried to install the Toshiba website driver. That didn't work and it for some reason just showed two unknown drivers listed which I deleted... So no it doesn't list any audio device..

**Staticage** · August 5th, 2007, 10:06 PM

anybody?

**Mayet** · August 5th, 2007, 10:32 PM

You will need the windows 98 disk to help load the driver. It will need to take files from the cd for the platform and driver. Joystick is part of the sound driver install.
Also you will probably need to do a system file check if you have deleted drivers...

what is now listed under sound video and game controllers?

**Staticage** · August 13th, 2007, 01:21 PM

whoa. so i put in my windows98 recovery CD and it flashed WRONG MACHINE on the screen after I did all the stuff on the setup screen. So it just aborted it. How would this happen?

**Staticage** · August 15th, 2007, 03:05 PM

bump

**Humilliation** · August 16th, 2007, 02:14 AM

I believe someone asked this question already. Do you have an onboard sound card or a PCI sound card? Do you have any conflicting devices in system tools? It is quite possible that the sound card is fried. Many onboard sound cards fry if your speaker plug gets un-plugged while your computers powered up, same with PCI sound cards. If anybody other than yourself has access to your system while it's powered up un-plugs the speaker plug from the back of your computer while it's powered up can cause a sound card to bugger up bad. I would try another sound card. Really, the model described is out of date anyways.

Good luck..............bump!