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Microsoft Plus! 98 was a paid companion package for Windows 98, not a separate edition of the operating system. Its late-1990s bundle mixed maintenance utilities with desktop themes, games, a CD player, and basic image editing. As a historical product, its appeal was breadth: practical tools and conspicuous personalization arrived together, while some advertised features depended on internet services whose present-day status is unverified.
What was Microsoft Plus! 98?
Microsoft positioned Plus! 98 as a consumer companion to Windows 98. It was announced as available on June 25, 1998, and Microsoft had previously described that date as the planned worldwide availability. Microsoft’s June 25, 1998 announcement and April 29, 1998 release notice document the launch and positioning.
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It is best understood as a distinctly late-1990s software bundle: maintenance helpers alongside a large collection of visual customization and casual entertainment. Microsoft’s estimated U.S. retail price at launch was $44.95; that is a 1998 estimate, not a current used-market valuation.
What did Plus! 98 include?
Maintenance and file tools
- McAfee VirusScan integration: Microsoft described six months of free updates and integration with the Windows 98 Maintenance Wizard for scheduled scanning. That was the launch-era offer; it does not establish that updates or related services remain available.
- File Cleaner: Licensed from CyberMedia, it extended Disk Cleanup by suggesting additional files that could be deleted.
- Start Menu Cleaner: It looked for broken or nonexistent shortcuts and empty folders.
- Compressed Folders: This drag-and-drop archive utility was presented as behaving like ordinary folders. Microsoft advertised compression of “up to 90 percent,” a vendor-stated maximum rather than a general guarantee or independently measured result.
Themes and screen savers
Themes could change a desktop’s wallpaper, screen saver, cursors, and sounds. Microsoft listed cartoon themes including Cathy, Doonesbury, FoxTrot, Garfield, and Peanuts, as well as subjects such as Architecture, Cityscape, Corbis Photography, Falling Leaves, Fashion, Geometry, Jazz, Rock’n’Roll, Science Fiction, and World Traveler. The package also included Organic Art screen savers described as accelerated through the Direct3D API.
#1 Best Overall
- Emergency Boot Disk for Windows 98, 2000, XP, Vista, 7, and 10. It has never ben so easy to repair a hard drive or recover lost files
- Plug and Play type CD/DVD - Just boot up the CD and then follow the onscreen instructions for ease of use
- Boots up any PC or Laptop - Dell, HP, Samsung, Acer, Sony, and all others
- Virus and Malware Removal made easy for you
- This is your one stop shop for PC Repair of any need!
Music, images, and games
- Deluxe CD Player: Microsoft said it could retrieve CD title, artist, and track information online and link to music-related sites. Those are historical feature claims; current service operation has not been verified.
- Picture It! Express: A basic image-editing and storage program with functions including contrast adjustment and red-eye removal.
- Games: Microsoft Golf 1998 Lite, Spider Solitaire, and Lose Your Marbles.
The feature list and launch-era claims above come from Microsoft’s product announcement; a period feature-description article is also preserved as Microsoft Knowledge Base article 269044.
What requirements did it have?
The archived Microsoft Knowledge Base requirements article lists Windows 98 as the required operating system. It says internet access required a 14,400-baud modem or fax modem. These are period setup requirements, not contemporary support guidance. The article is preserved at Microsoft Knowledge Base article 194795.
Rank #2
![Corel Easy CD & DVD Burning 2 | Disc Burner & Video Capture [PC Download]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51mTgKjY0nL._SL160_.jpg)
- Easily copy and burn CDs and DVDs in minutes, right from your desktop; preserve your photos, secure video backups, and create custom music CDs
- Capture or import your videos; plus, author DVDs with chapters, menus and personalized disc labels
- Convert CDs, LPs, and cassettes to digital audio files; capture audio from online, or import music directly to your playlist to create custom audio CDs
- Save time by quickly burning audio CDs; archive photo and video backups and other large files across multiple discs
- Make quick photo edits; easily correct and preserve photos with cropping tools, red eye removal, and more
How should you judge Plus! 98 as a product today?
As a period bundle, its most distinctive quality was the combination: utilities aimed at everyday PC upkeep sat beside extensive themes, screen savers, casual games, and media tools. That made it broader than a theme pack, but the available evidence establishes the advertised feature set—not present-day installation compatibility, performance, security, or service availability.
The Tool Desk
Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEFix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Microsoft’s Brad Chase called it “a natural choice for anyone looking to get the most out of their Windows 98-based PC.” That is launch publicity, not an independent assessment. A surviving retail disc or box can be of interest to collectors, but listing availability, physical condition, completeness, and successful installation depend on the particular copy and have not been established here.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- ✔️ Fast & reliable disc burning: Burn and copy data, music, videos and photos to CD, DVD and Blu-ray discs — powered by Nero’s industry-leading burning engine.
- ✔️ Rip & convert your music: Easily convert your audio CDs to MP3, AAC or other formats and take your music anywhere.
- ✔️ Protect important data: Secure backups of your files with password protection – keep documents, photos and personal data safe.
- ✔️ Includes Nero Cover Designer: Design and print custom disc labels, covers and booklets for a professional, personalized finish.
- ✔️ Made in Germany – trusted worldwide: Over 30 years of disc-burning expertise. One-time purchase, no subscription, works on 1 PC with Windows 11/10/8/7.
Rank #4
- An important CD on How to Learn Windows!
- Several tutorials and highlights!
- Even IF you are a beginner, this CD will help you !
Rank #3
- 【Best External CD/DVD Drive for Windows 11/10 Laptop】If your Windows laptop or desktop has no internal CD/DVD drive, this ROOFULL USB 3.0 & USB-C external CD/DVD drive is the best solution for reading and burning your CDs and DVDs. Just plug this external CD/DVD RW drive into your Windows laptop or desktop PC, it will be recognized automatically (you can see a DVD RW icon in Windows File Explorer), you can then insert your CDs or DVDs and use a media player (such as VLC), burning, or ripping software to read, write, and rip your CDs and DVDs. No complex settings, as easily as a built-in optical drive, plug and play!
- 【Perfectly for Windows OS】This USB external CD/DVD drive is designed for all brands of Windows 11/ 10/ 8.1/ 8/ 7/ Vista/ XP/ 2000/ 98 laptops, desktops, and all-in-one PCs including HP, LG, Dell, MS, Acer, Thinkpad, Samsung, Microsoft without restrictions as long as the system matches.【Kindly Note】This drive can not work with Chromebook, Android phone/tablet, TV, iPad, iPhone, projectors, trucks, cars, PS4/5, Xbox, or Blu-ray/4K discs, and It's supported but not recommended for use on macOS!
- 【Not Just CD-ROM External Drive】This USB optical disc drive is not just a DVD and CD-ROM (reader) but also a burner (writer) and ripper. You can use it to read movies DVDs/ music CDs, burn music, photos, videos, and files onto blank CDs or DVDs, import music, video, photos, and data from discs to your computer, install software, system, games, and everything else related to CD/DVD. It supports the reading and writing of various types of disks, including CD+/-R, CD+/-RW, CD-ROM, DVD+/-R, DVD+/-RW, DVD-RAM, VCD, and SVCD disks
- 【True USB 3.0 & 2 Types of Connectors】Unlike many budget drives that claim USB 3.0 but are actually USB 2.0 inside (with only 4 internal wires ), this ROOFULL external CD drive is built with a true USB 3.0 solution, with a full 9-wire cable, a genuine USB 3.0 PCB, and a dedicated high-speed controller chip. This allows for data transfer speeds of up to 5 Gbps (625 MB/s), almost 10 times faster than USB 2.0. The data cable under the drive has type-A and type-C 2 kinds of USB connectors, making it easier to connect most laptops or desktop PCs without an adapter required.
- 【Separate Power Supply Cord】Modern ultra-thin laptops may reduce the USB port’s output power to conserve energy and extend battery life, which can prevent high-power external devices from receiving sufficient power. To address this power shortage, we provide an additional power cable, allowing you to supplement power from a USB power adapter or a power bank to ensure the stable operation of the optical disc drive. You can remove the power cord if the USB disk drive can get enough power through a single data cable. (Note: The power cord is not a data cable; avoid using it independently.)
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