Just in case you haven't found it, a good source to go to for WinME problems in general is the Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition: Help and Support page. (You may already have been there.)

FOR ALL Win98/WinME USERS: Windows 98 and Windows Me Error Message Resource Center Microsoft KB 315854 gives links to articles listing specific error messages for Win98 and WinME. In nearly all cases specific instructions will be linked if you can find your exact error message, and eliminate ones caused by stuff you don't have. (You will find numerous error messages analyzed that are specific to hardware and programs that are not fully Windows compliant, so ignore the ones that don't apply to your machine.)

Both the "easyclip" and "orgapi" cited are add-on utilities of the kind often installed by people who think that some free gimmick will magically make it unnecessary for them to learn how to use a program. Neither, so far as my quick look could tell, does anything that's not already available in WinME and/or Lotus if you learn how to use the program you already have. While there are a few useful utilities one might want, especially with the older OS versions, these sorts of things are a real problem for support, especially if you provide your own, and can be very difficult to "fix." – But that's just one opinion.

Separate Tech: Win98 and WinME Support

Since Win98 and WinME were declared obsolete, and Microsoft indicated they would be "no longer supported," there has been much confusion about just what is available to users of these and older programs. The original schedule called for an end to ALL SUPPORT for Win98SE and all earlier versions on January 16, 2004. Because of the number of users in "developing countries" who can't (legally) get later Windows versions, there have been a number of "extensions" of limited support. The following link is to a recent Microsoft bulletin that "clarifies" their support intentions.

ANYONE USING Win95, Win98, Win98SE, or WinME should take a look at the recently issued Windows 98, Windows 98 Second Edition, and Windows Millennium Support Extended bulletin.

The bulletin includes links to the "Windows Update Site" where you can still get CRITICAL security updates - free. It appears that "non-critical" updates are available only via "paid support" channels, but at least the paid support has been extended so you can still get them if necessary, for a while. The bulletin also gives a link, near the bottom, to the "Microsoft Support Lifecycle" site where you can get details of the schedule for "phasing out" support of these systems.

Personal Opinion (again):

Microsoft would very much like to get rid of all the older systems, simply because it's very expensive, and in some cases impossible, to support them all. Win98SE in particular has some "security holes" that probably cannot be patched without destroying the operability of the OS. There are, however, large numbers of Win98SE users, and a lesser number of WinME users, in countries to which later systems cannot be legally exported. Microsoft has conceded that they must provide at least minimal support to them, so other users benefit from the extensions.

While the "stated" reason for export restrictions is the "encryption" capability in later programs, the failure of some of these countries to adopt and enforce copyright treaties is also a large factor. Some estimates are that up to 60 percent of OS copies in use in some of these places are probably "pirated copies." As soon as the "dollars" can be reasonably protected, these older systems will probably disappear completely from Microsoft's inventory and support systems. It could happen quite suddenly, but more likely they'll just fade away.

Unfortunately, many machines that run the older versions quite well do not have the resources, CPU/RAM/HD space etc., needed for newer versions, so for many it's not possible to just install a "newer Windows." Many people will require new hardware to get a newer OS.

Stay informed, and start saving your nickels/pesos/euros/shekels, etc. for that new machine.

John