After installing new hardware/software, I frequently get the "Windows protection error. You need to restart your computer" on the second reboot after installing the device. The problem is usually that the msmouse.vxd driver has become corrupt.

Instead of going through the rename and extract new copy from CAB files procedure that MS technet recommends, I copy the msmouse.vxd driver to 2 locations: a folder [directory] that I create named "drivers" and directly to the root of "C:". That way, I always have a fresh copy of the driver ready. I have saved myself several hours and more than a few reloads of Win98 or 98 SE.