security of stand alone pc

It is an ugly answer, all that you are asking about is in the windows 98 software, You'll have to get someone to help you initiate the security protocols and inset Authorized Access routines.

RIVER FREIGHT

There are a couple of ways to lock down a W98 PC.

Start with the W98 resource kit.
I found my copy at a discount book store. The included CD has a number of utilities to help you set up policies for W98.

Next, would be 3rd party utilities such as Bootguard.

http://www.bootguard.com/

As you know, NT is much easier to secure than W98.
While harder to secure than NT, it might be worth it for you to switch to Windows 2000. W2K is both more stable and more secure than W98.

Chas

Maybe this is a stupid idea, but....

What about pulling the CD-Rom's IDE cable? Or pulling the CD Drive totally and keeping a USB drive just in case. (maybe an aftermarket IDE to USB Drive kit?)

When someone "needs" the CD Drive they can ask for it. Then you can decide if the s/w "needs" to be on the machine.

Check the machine's BIOS options. Some BIOS will let you set Boot Device Security and Hardware Protection. Set it to boot from Hard Drive only, then disable reading/writing from floppies, CD-ROM, serial and parallel ports, etc. Then set a password to get back into the BIOS. Of course, this only helps if your BIOS has these options...