so i got an OLDER computer running windows 98 family uses it for emails and school.  past few days everytime we turn it on it has the illegal opperations thing come up and turn off explorer wich i know is bad it doesn't come back and just sits there displaying the desktop picture, ctrl+alt+del shows nothing to be active/running. computer is basically useless at this point. any ideas?
350 mhz, windows 98, anything else ya need to know ask and i'll try and find out.Do you have anti-virus protection?  Have any spyware removal tools installed?  What type of Internet connection?  Dialup, DSL, cable?  Do you use a firewall?it's got anti virus in the way of avg, it did have spyware tools last time i used it, cable inet connection, no firewall i beleive unless the router has one.A formatting of the hard drive and fresh installation of WIN 98 would be a good solution.  This would erase everything on the hard drive.  Would that be a big problem, as far as losing school-related files, etc.?  Do you have your Win 98 CD?  Ever done this before?i have done a FORMAT before am actually in the process of try when i start up with the disc in it says i'm mising a file "command.com" it makes me type it in and i get the a drive command prompt typing anything there does nothing switching to c drive yields the same i think we may need to start looking at purchasing a new computer.Which disk do you mean?  A Startup Disk (floppy disk) created with Win 98?  yup
Can you type the dir command and see a listing of what's on C?  

You might try downloading a boot disk from http://www.bootdisk.com/bootdisk.htmyup it lists 11 files is there anyhting i am looking for?
No, just wondered whether drive C was really being recognized.  Why only 11 files?  What happened to the Windows files?  

Anyway, can you use the Format command, using the boot disk?nope time for a new computer i guess oh well that one was comming up on 9 years with no work done to it can't complain at all.Yeh, you can't complain about that.  If you wanted, you could see if you can get your hands on a used hard drive and try installing it.  I think your problem could be a failed hard drive.  I belong to a computer group based in Newark, Ohio.  They have an annual drive to collect old computers.  They also refurbish some of them, and they give away some of the components, including hard drives, that are removed from these computers.  ebay is another option for a used hard drive.  Or, maybe LOOK for a good rebate deal on a new hard drive if you know you could make good use of it if it won't work in the old computer.  

Keep in mind that the old computer surely has a limitation as far as hard drive size that it will recognize.  But, there are ways of working around that, such as a drive "overlay" provided by the hard drive manufacturer.

I STILL have a Pentuim that's now 11 years old.  The OS is Win 98SE.  I have a 15.3 Gig hard drive in it; partitioned into two partitions.  It is formatted FAT32.