slow boot and fragmented io.sys file

Many system files (like io.sys) cannot be defragmented easily, as they are tagged with attributes so that they cannot be easily moved or changed.

The BEST cure for a slow boot of W98 is to format the hard drive, and start over again.
Windows builds up a lot of extra system files, and bloats the system registry over time.

If you decide to do this, make sure to copy all critical files and settings.
Have the latest drivers for your hardware on hand.
Have some time to spend without interuptions.

Short of wipeing the drive and starting over, you can see if there are any programs that load at startup that you do not need.

From the run box, type in msconfig
click on the startup tab, and see if there are any programs that you do not need, or want to run at startup. Uncheck them, and click on apply.
If your system starts "normally", and everything works okay, you can delete the unchecked items from the startup tab.

Another good idea, is to download and run AdAware from www.lavasoft.de
This program searches out and removes spy programs that are placed on your PC from some programs and websites.
These can also slow down your system.

Next, clear out any files that are over 2 weeks old in the C:\Windows\temp
and temporary internet folders.
This will free up hard drive space so that windows will have more room for virtual memory.

Finally, while it won't speed up the boot process, ading an additional 128MB of RAM to your system will speed up "normal" tasks.
Chas