Personally, I didn't like Stars or SE4 at all. Too much micromanagement, too much time required to complete a game.
In the way of free entertainment I would suggest:
X-Com 2000. A user made program that uses files and data from X-Com 1 to create a playable hotseat multiplayer variant of the game (only player vs player, unfortunately. No cooperative.) Hotseat, Network, and internet compatible.
http://ufo2000.sourceforge.net/
Star Control 2
Remake of one of the greatest adventure/RPG games of all time, free and compatible with modern operating systems.
http://sc2.sourceforge.net/
Star Control: Timewarp
A remake of Star Control 2's melee. Supports up to 16 players at once, and includes all ships from all three games (and many fan made ships; don't worry, you can delete the files of ships you don't like). Also hotseat compatible.
www.classicgaming.com/starcontrol/timewarp