how do you change the splash screen?

Oops - http://search.experts-exchange.com/Storage/Q_20418363.html

Accepted answer from previous post:
>>>The windows load screen is simply a Bitmap (BMP) graphic file, but has been renamed with an SYS extension. The file you're looking for is listed here:

c:\windows\logo.sys = start
c:\windows\logos.sys = shutdown

To replace either file, its resolution must 320 x 400 resolution and in the Bitmap (BMP), PLUS it must be renamed to either logo.sys or logos.sys.

For example, to convert any JPG file or GIF file to logo.sys or logos.sys, load the .GIF or .JPG into your favorite picture editor program (Paintshop Pro, for example -- http://www.jasc.com) and:

1. increase color depth to 16.8 million colors
2. resize the file to 320x400
3. save the file as BMP to the C:\ drive (root directory)

Open an MS DOS Prompt (START -> PROGRAMS -> MS DOS PROMPT). Type in:

c:\> cd \windows
c:\windows> copy logo.sys logo.old
c:\windows> copy \logo.bmp logo.sys

If you want to modify the logos.sys file, repeat the above steps but change the appropriate file names.

Reboot -- you will see the image

source
http://www.infopackets.com/computer+questions/change+the+windows+boot+screen.htm
<<<

Nice to see my work propagating thru the site *grin*

It is important to know whether you have Windows 98 or Windows 98 SECOND EDITION.

I can't vouch for Windows 98, because I've never analysed it, but Windows 98 SECOND EDITION uses the following files containing the bitmaps:

LOGOS.SYS - Black screen orange text - "It's now safe to turn off your computer"
LOGOW.SYS - Blue sky, clouds, flag, Microsoft Windows98 Logo - "Windows is shutting down" in blue at the bottom.

Copy these files out to any other folder and rename them bot as .BMP to open them in your default image editor.

The difference relates to whether your computer is the type that uses an ATX Power Supply and Motherboard where it just kills the monitor to standby, or another type that comes to rest on that final "it's now safe to..." message.

Either way, Windows 98 SECOND EDITION does not use the file LOGO.SYS to display that Boot Screen which resembles LOGOW.SYS (but without the "Windows is shutting down" text).  The resources to display it are contained in the file C:\IO.SYS which is NOT an editable file like the other .sys files.

IO.SYS is one of the main and crucial boot files used by Windows and should not be messed with.

If you have ever altered your MSDOS.SYS file so that it always shows the Boot Menu options before it gets to Windows (options to boot to safe Mode, Command Prompt, step-by-step, logged, etc), then what you are seeing are the lines of text displayed from the resources within IO.SYS.

IO.SYS is called by MSDOS.SYS and, when you enter your choice at the menu, it returns this value to MSDOS.SYS to determine what action to proceed with next.

You can add the following lines to the end of the existing text in MSDOS.SYS (while editing it in NotePad) to force it to display the Boot Menu for 10 seconds before defaulting to Option 1 which is normal windows boot:

BootMenu=1
BootMenuDelay=10
BootKeys=1
Network=0
Logo=1

If you change the last line to Logo=0, then it will pass these instructions to IO.SYS and the boot screen will not be displayed at all as it processes all its functions.

Similarly, if you select the option to boot in Step-by-Step interactive mode from the Boot Menu, it will bypass the screen image because this method gets to the final command to load Windows (ie. WIN.COM) which doesn't contain the resources to display this image.  It's the same when you use the Start > Shut Down command from Windows and opt to boot to DOS.  The standard way of booting to Windows, is to type the command "WIN" (ie. WIN.COM) which loads Windows.

If you were clever (or reckless enough), you could probably use an image editor capable of saving an image as hexadecimal data, and then open IO.SYS in a hex editor.  I suppose their might be a chance you could carefully substitute all the 0 to 9's and A to F's from your saved image, and then totally screw up IO.SYS when you saved it.

My advice, disable it if you don't like to be reminded you have Windows 98 installed each time you boot.

It looks like sirbounty's link to the Experts-Exchange question might hold the answer in Monspot's comment.  I should have looked at the linked page first, but I haven't downloaded or tried the utility recommended by him.  I would say that this would be a "do at your own risk" thing anyway, and it would also pay to have a copy of the original IO.SYS backed up to a folder where it could be restored easily from DOS.

Bearing in mind that IO.SYS is a Read-Only, Hidden, System file, here's what I suggest if you intend messing with it:

Backup the original:
------------------------

Boot to your Win98 boot floppy and type the following commands

attrib  -h  -r  -s  c:\io.sys
MD  c:\IOBACK
copy  c:\io.sys  io.sys
attrib  +h  +r  +s  c:\io.sys

To restore the file if something messed up:
------------------------------------------------------

Boot to your Win98 boot floppy and type the following commands

attrib  -h  -r  -s  c:\io.sys
ren  c:\io.sys  c:\io.old
copy  c:\IOBACK\io.sys  c:\io.sys
attrib  +h  +r  +s  c:\io.sys

I notice that you have to email the author for Changer 3.0, and the return email then asks you to confirm that you want the direct download link and to be subscribed to the mailing list.

Maybe it works, but I hate that type of tactic for something described as Freeware.

Actually Bill, w98 SE will use the logo.sys if present. If not then it uses the IO.sys, but if there is a logo.sys, it will use it
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=http://support.microsoft.com:80/support/kb/articles/q232/0/42.asp&NoWebContent=1

http://www.futurehistory.co.za/articles/computerised/startupscreens_98.htm

Thanks for that, stevenlewis.  Learned something new there.

..and that's what this site is all about, isn't it?  :-)

It surely is, sirbounty.
Actually, it was a bit dumb on my part to make an assumption that, because the file logo.sys isn't present in Win98, it has been dispensed with since Win95.
I should have dumped one of my old Win95 logo.sys files in there to test and see if it worked first.