Long boot-up time for Win98

I just reinstalled windows 98 this weekend because I replaced my KT7-R with a KK266-R motherboard. After I got it installed I loaded the lastest drivers for my MX video card and the soundblaster. I also installed WinPoet to get my DSL connection going. Now it takes around a minute or more for the system to boot up and I notice the lights on the modem blinking during this time. I've checked everything I can think of and found nothing. Is this normal?

Also, a monitor question. My monitor used to go into sleep mode after the 20 minute wait period I had designated. Now it just goes to a blank screen but appears to be still running at full power. I thought this might change after I reinstalled windows this weekend but it still does it. Is there something in the bios that can change this because I haven't changed any settings in windows.

Thanks,
Doug