Subtitle : How to transfer an XP operating system to a new computer ?
Oh woe !
Went to switch on my wife's XP desktop
(she has the printer and I wanted to do some more card-model engine shed :) )
and it is dead :(
Time she had a new one but does not want to go through the drama of learning a new OS like W8 or whatever.
I have seen a "barebones" desktop on PC World's web site and am wondering how to / or even if I can / what is involved /
in installing her old drive/OS on a barebones.
The last time I installed an OS was Win 3.11 and Win95 !!
I guess things are a little different now in respect of the M$ protections.
I know there is some proceedure to upgrade a drive or a mb on your existing OS, but can one upgrade a whole machine ?
Aside : I suppose I could nick the printer onto my laptop,
but I think she might suffer withdrawal symptoms if she can nolonger play her fav. games ! :)
Thanks for any thoughts.
I would recommend you get a basic PC nothing too fancy. A copy of Windows 7 will be a lot more familiar to her than Windows 8 if moving from XP.
Using one of the spare connectors in the PC you can put the hard drive in from the old machine and then you will see it appear in windows. You can then move across any documents etc.... that are on there.
Most of the the games she likes will still work on XP. Any little local IT guy will be able to help you out if you get stuck.
Are you sure it's the machine that is dead and not the hard drive?
You may find a new barebones PC has different hard drive connectors.
I've recently upgraded from an XP machine to one I bought with no operating system and purchased Windows 7 CD, you can set that up to display the "Classic" display very similar to XP, there is also a free downloadable XP simulator available. Which will be handy if any of your older software won't run on 7.
Cheapest Win 7 I found is at (scroll down to the CDs not the licence only, that can only be used if you already have a Win7 CD)
http://itrevive.co.uk/windows-7-home-premium-key-64bit.html?gclid=Cj0KEQjw6deeBRCswoauquC8haUBEiQAdq5zh0uuxZGtQT17G-BDngJ76LFvC9-gVayVfurh5Owpc0UaApv_8P8HAQ (http://itrevive.co.uk/windows-7-home-premium-key-64bit.html?gclid=Cj0KEQjw6deeBRCswoauquC8haUBEiQAdq5zh0uuxZGtQT17G-BDngJ76LFvC9-gVayVfurh5Owpc0UaApv_8P8HAQ)
For a new PC try
http://www.ebuyer.com/634850-zoostorm-desktop-pc-7260-3009 (http://www.ebuyer.com/634850-zoostorm-desktop-pc-7260-3009)
ebuyer also do a full range of monitors
Quote from: cjdodd on March 02, 2015, 04:40:35 PM
I would recommend you get a basic PC nothing too fancy. A copy of Windows 7 will be a lot more familiar to her than Windows 8 if moving from XP.
Thanks CJ,
Yes, something not fancy is all that is needed, didnt realise that W7 was like that, and anyway I have Vista so it should be familiar to us both then !
(oops, I am about to xpost with Mike , , , >>
QuoteUsing one of the spare connectors in the PC you can put the hard drive in from the old machine and then you will see it appear in windows. You can then move across any documents etc.... that are on there.
I have a USB ext.drive harness that can take the old drive to give up its documents etc. so should be no probs there, and (fingers xxed) wont need to go inside the new computer and risk disturbing anything !!
My thoughts turned to that 'barebones' cos I have never seen PC World offering that, may be their new, or maybe cos I have not looked at computals for a long time. ( I could be really wicked and put a Linux on it, but I may then need some physical protection lol! :) )
It may ofcourse be something simple like the PSU as there is no ( i forget the name) startup beep diagnostic error noises, nor any noise at all for that matter. But if something is dead on the old machine who knows what would be next so she may as well have new !
Doesn't W8.1 now have the classic display as well?
If you want XP familiarity then W7 is definitely the way to go (don't stick with XP which has not been supported with patches for some time).
Cheers, Mike
Quote from: Dorsetmike on March 02, 2015, 04:59:27 PM
You may find a new barebones PC has different hard drive connectors.
Ohhh good point, I had not considered that, yes old drive will be IDE or something, new ones will be SATA ? or something even more modern ??
Thanks for the links, and daughter has had good dealings in the past with ebuyer, so 2 recomends must be good :) !
So the general considered opinion is for me not to try to persuade the existing XP to accept a new machine ? :)
EDIT : Wife now home, I think a little familiarisation trip down the road to PC World is indicated (not to buy yet, :) just for a look )
back later >>
Quote from: Dorsetmike on March 02, 2015, 04:59:27 PM
Are you sure it's the machine that is dead and not the hard drive?
You may find a new barebones PC has different hard drive connectors.
I've recently upgraded from an XP machine to one I bought with no operating system and purchased Windows 7 CD,
Thanks everyone for a crash course in things to think about modern OSs etc., a great help.
It seems that there are handy little cables to internally convert old drives into modern desktops, so that would take care of needing an extUSB harness/caddy.
Also we had a quick tour of Win8.1, very helful guy, and swmbo didnt look too fazed :), - in fact I think that may be something else long gone in the mists of time, the trauma of just about everything changing when changing the OS !
Also, as Dmike showed and the PCW man aswell, the differential cost of a Windows installation vs, a licenced thing is not as rip-off as it once was.
It looks like she may be having an all-singing all-dancing modern desktop and I may get a barebones just to get familiar with things again ( shhh dont mention Linux :) )
All very educational, thanks everyone,,
followed by fish&chips brought home and a bottle of wine,, cant be bad ;)
Personally I would be very careful about a jump from XP to windows 8 or 8.1. It's a huge leap and I personally find 8 and 8.1 abhorrent systems to use. I would shoot for windows 7 personally, but buy the package rather than the free version. I bought the package for my last netbook as silly restrictions on customising appearance etc really infuriated me.
I'm not adverse to technology, but on a PC I want PC software, not tablet appy style. Windows 8 is just infuriating in it's layout and how you find (or can't find) things. Just simple little things like not having a start bar, having to search for everything using a not very user friendly "app", lots of teeny tiny things which just drive me mad other wise it's OK and I could maybe understand it on a tablet as it's more like android. Upgrading to 8.1 was really not worth it, it's not that much different (still no start bar, not even a regular way of shutting down), sold to me as a 1h upgrade but took 12h to complete so I never went back.
I just could not get a replacement laptop with Windows 7 on it 18 months ago. For a desktop I'd find a local PC builder and go that way. These days computers are cheap enough on the high street, but you usually get 10x the spec you actually need and it'll be obsolete almost just as quick as you take it out the door, I'd personally get a PC built to my own needs with the software I want rather than stuck with laptop manufacturers defaults.
Hi Malcolm, as has already been said, Microsoft no longer supports XP, this means there are no security updates and you leave yourself open to abuse from the www.
Windows 7 is pretty stable now and a lot more 'comfortable' for those moving up from XP. Windows 8 is still, despite having been out long enough, full of glitches and seems to have never-ending updates to try and get it to operate in a stable mode, despite all the updates there are still a raft of issues with it (and please don't get me started on the dog that is the mobile version for tablets etc!!)
I would still recommend, for the mean time, spending money on good hardware loaded with Win7, you will have a nice fast machine that has lots of backward compatibility to older windows versions built in.
You may also want to consider getting yourself a nice cheap HP wireless printer which simply connects to your wireless hub in the house and once set up you can print to it from your laptop, smartphone or tablet. Really pleased with the one we got and it means I don't have to go upstairs to put the PC on to print something out now :D
Malcolm I honestly think Windows 8 is the way to go never go backwards with operating systems that way they last you longer, the first windows to be dropped will be windows 7 before Windows 8, I run Windows 8 on 2 machines and have no problem with it, and I boot straight into desktop mode, I have put a start button on my desktop which was free and it just works like normal Windows.
Good luck with your choice.
Quote from: Dorsetmike on March 02, 2015, 04:59:27 PM
I've recently upgraded from an XP machine to one I bought with no operating system and purchased Windows 7 CD
,,,
Cheapest Win 7 I found is at (scroll down to the CDs
,,,
not the licence only, that can only be used if you already have a Win7 CD)
Do you mean one of the 4 at the bottom of that page 44.99 and 49.99 ?
They all seem to need a COA whatever that is and I dont understand
" Purchase includes ,,,, The C.O.A label has been taken from a decommissioned PC." :(
Yet again M$ totally confuses I :(
Ahhh, more postings, from RST, Lawrence and Geof, whilst I was typing the above, thanks guys >> going to read now >>
As a slight aside, regarding sharing the printer, wifi printers are super cheap these days and you can print from anywhere in the house from multiple computers - of course you'll still have to go there to get the bit of paper! ;D
Quote from: RST on March 02, 2015, 08:57:23 PM
the package rather than the free version.
Errr ?
:)
Quote from: Bealman on March 02, 2015, 09:05:54 PM
As a slight aside, regarding sharing the printer, wifi printers are super cheap these days and you can print from anywhere in the house from multiple computers - of course you'll still have to go there to get the bit of paper! ;D
:laughabovepost:
I did have WiFi on this laptop, but as there was nothing else nearby I turned it off a year or 3 back, , , dunno how to turn it back on ! lol!
Quote from: Geoff on March 02, 2015, 08:59:54 PM
Malcolm I honestly think Windows 8 is the way to go never go backwards with operating systems that way they last you longer,
On the other hand, if you always use the OS one before last you will be safe, because all the ne'er-do-wells are busy writing malware for the latest OS.
ie.dont jump into Win10 until Win12 is on the market.
That way you can go from Win3.11 to Vista without ever having a virus or trojan or whatever :) , now if that dont tempt providence I dunno what will LOL!
Quote from: MalcolmAL on March 02, 2015, 09:21:14 PM
Quote from: Geoff on March 02, 2015, 08:59:54 PM
Malcolm I honestly think Windows 8 is the way to go never go backwards with operating systems that way they last you longer,
On the other hand, if you always use the OS one before last you will be safe, because all the ne'er-do-wells are busy writing malware for the latest OS.
ie.dont jump into Win10 until Win12 is on the market.
That way you can go from Win3.11 to Vista without ever having a virus or trojan or whatever :) , now if that dont tempt providence I dunno what will LOL!
Never had a virus yet on Windows 8 but I did in Vista horrible OS, I got my windows 8 for £25 because no one would buy it lol, and I believe I can upgrade with Windows 8 to Windows 10 for free so yes please I do not mind being a guinea pig, its all word of mouth how bad an operating system is if the majority do not like it and they have never used it who is right and who is wrong.
People just do not like change.
Quote from: RST on March 02, 2015, 08:57:23 PMI just could not get a replacement laptop with Windows 7 on it 18 months ago.
Likewise, PC World - you can have any colour of Windows you like as long as it's a black&white Win8.1 :(
but they were always like that,
and never before seen them selling 'barebones' either,,, man was surprised and reknd they were only available online anyway.
So no good supporting local highstreet, may as well go to overclockers or someone after all :(
Quote from: Geoff on March 02, 2015, 09:30:15 PMand I believe I can upgrade with Windows 8 to Windows 10 for free
Yes, something like that, 'my man' said buy 8.1 this year and you get a free W10 upgrade,
I forgot to ask him, if W10 gets delayed beyond your 1y wot then ?
so they do say about Vista , and did same about ME, neither bit bit me tho'
Mind u Vista on this wee laptop of only 500Mb ram does run out of breath from time to time and hammers the swapfile pretty bad at times, 'specially with Firefox.
QuoteQuote from: RST on Today at 08:57:23 pm
I just could not get a replacement laptop with Windows 7 on it 18 months ago.
Likewise, PC World - you can have any colour of Windows you like as long as it's a black&white Win8.1 :(
but they were always like that,
and never before seen them selling 'barebones' either,,, man was surprised and reknd they were only available online anyway.
So no good supporting local highstreet, may as well go to overclockers or someone after all :(
...yes high street names will only sell you the latest (and good at selling it they are too, they don't like it when you start asking tricky questions outside their training!!).
I'm waiting for windows 10 to come out, but like said before, I'll wait a good while as Microsoft are terrible for rolling out stuff without the bugs fixed!
I helped so many folk out at work using windows 7 and trying to get equipment hooked up to computers (software designed for XP but
supposedly compatible with 7). There's a few hoops to jump through and downright perseverance, the data comms side really went downhill. God help us if / when windows seven is obsolete and we have to run industrial machines off the likes of windows 8. No doubt you experienced IT guys will go PFF and say it's easy but no so for those of us who just want a PC and need things to work.
2 things I learned over the years: Any mention of Norton (McAfee these days also) and I scrub it off straight away, I have been there rescuing too many PC's in the past where Norton has proved to be the death of the hard drive. I
only use Kaspersky now. Also, I
never use Internet Explorer on my own computers, I use Firefox with a couple of simple add-ons. Makes internet browsing so much more pleasurable and both together almost totally hassle free. I hate using my mothers PC (uses internet explorer), cluttered with so many ads, junk and downright spam all over the screen -but I live too far away to have put firefox on it yet. I might do it next time I go down though.
Quote from: MalcolmAL on March 02, 2015, 09:21:14 PM
On the other hand, if you always use the OS one before last you will be safe, because all the ne'er-do-wells are busy writing malware for the latest OS.
No, you won't! Most malware will work on any version of Windows.
As others have said, avoid XP - it's out of support and if anything the malware writers will be targeting it more now - when a security patch is released for more recent versions of Windows, they will be looking to see whether the same security hole also applies to XP, and if it does (many will) and they didn't know about that hole, they will be looking to exploit it.
Windows 7 is my preference, but you won't find any new computers in retail channels with it on now (although it's still fairly available through business channels). The most sensible option at the moment is 8.1, and if you want a start menu (which does make it easier to use), there are a number of third-party programs available for this. My preference is for one called Classic Shell (google it), which is a free download and works well.
Windows 10 is due out later in the year, and has a start menu of its own again. I've had a good play with the pre-release version and it's not bad at all - provided they don't make any daft changes before release it should be much better than 8.1.
Quote from: davidinyork on March 08, 2015, 02:57:49 PM
As others have said, avoid XP - it's out of support and if anything the malware writers will be targeting it more now
I've stuck with XP, always with Firefox and Thunderbird and a separate firewall and antivirus (for the past few months I've switched to BitDefender so as to have the two integrated in one package), and haven't had any problems. I reckon a good firewall and antivirus are going to give me better protection than any operating system.
Quote from: keithfre on March 08, 2015, 04:13:10 PM
Quote from: davidinyork on March 08, 2015, 02:57:49 PM
As others have said, avoid XP - it's out of support and if anything the malware writers will be targeting it more now
I've stuck with XP, always with Firefox and Thunderbird and a separate firewall and antivirus (for the past few months I've switched to BitDefender so as to have the two integrated in one package), and haven't had any problems. I reckon a good firewall and antivirus are going to give me better protection than any operating system.
That will help, but a determined attack on a security hole in the operating system itself may well still succeed.
Quote from: keithfre on March 08, 2015, 04:13:10 PM
Quote from: davidinyork on March 08, 2015, 02:57:49 PM
As others have said, avoid XP - it's out of support and if anything the malware writers will be targeting it more now
I've stuck with XP, always with Firefox and Thunderbird and a separate firewall and antivirus (for the past few months I've switched to BitDefender so as to have the two integrated in one package), and haven't had any problems. I reckon a good firewall and antivirus are going to give me better protection than any operating system.
I've found BitDefender is pretty good, although it sometimes comes up with false positives - but you can tell it to ignore them anyway. I also use Malwarebytes which works well in flagging up dodgy web sites etc.
I use to love my XP machine but run a Windows 7 box right now. Not keen on Windows 8 for a desktop, maybe the next version will be better. :)
Quote from: austinbob on March 08, 2015, 04:17:58 PM
Quote from: keithfre on March 08, 2015, 04:13:10 PM
Quote from: davidinyork on March 08, 2015, 02:57:49 PM
As others have said, avoid XP - it's out of support and if anything the malware writers will be targeting it more now
I've stuck with XP, always with Firefox and Thunderbird and a separate firewall and antivirus (for the past few months I've switched to BitDefender so as to have the two integrated in one package), and haven't had any problems. I reckon a good firewall and antivirus are going to give me better protection than any operating system.
I've found BitDefender is pretty good, although it sometimes comes up with false positives - but you can tell it to ignore them anyway. I also use Malwarebytes which works well in flagging up dodgy web sites etc.
I use to love my XP machine but run a Windows 7 box right now. Not keen on Windows 8 for a desktop, maybe the next version will be better. :)
Apparantly they have still not sorted the start button in Windows 10 at this present time in beta, but whether they do on release is another question but there is allways Classic Shell.
Quote from: Geoff on March 08, 2015, 04:29:42 PM
Apparantly they have still not sorted the start button in Windows 10 at this present time in beta, but whether they do on release is another question but there is allways Classic Shell.
The W10 beta does have the start menu - I've played with it quite a bit and it seems fine, and provided there aren't any daft changes between now and the final release I'll have no problem with gradually rolling it out onto the computers I manage (about 120 in total).
As you say, with 8.1 there is always Classic shell, which is good and makes W8.1 behave pretty similarly to W7.
For reasons I won't bore you with I needed to upgrade our terminal servers for remote users from the server version of W7 (Server 2008 R2) to the server version of W8.1 (Server 2012 R2). I rolled out a test first to a small number of users and spent several days fielding phone calls because they couldn't find things. I put classic shell on and the problem went away! When I came to set up the live servers, I also put classic shell on, and I've had very few problems and even those users who struggle with computers have mostly not had any problems. I think the main problem with 8.1 and its lack of a start menu is that it's disjointed.
Thanks David for the update, it is just my friend told me Windows 10 start button does not work as good as on Windows 7, but it is work in progress and I am sure Microsoft will want to get Windows 10 spot on.
Yes you are correct about Windows 8 being disjointed, but at the time I think they needed to fill a void with tablets, just a shame you have to rely on third party software houses to install a start button.
Quote from: davidinyork on March 08, 2015, 02:57:49 PM
No, you won't!
,
,
Windows 7 is my preference, but you won't find any new computers in retail channels with it on now
Theoretically you may be right, but in practice there are no kudos for writing malware to target anything other than the latest release by M$ ( including, or even more so, their 'patches')
So you stick to your plan, I'll stick tp mine ! - I've never been infected by malware since I started interneting in the days of DOS ( remember telnet, ftping, archie and gopher ? ! ) mind u I have been able to point out to chums when they have been infected, by the nature of their emails ! Could be down to practicing safe hex :)
Oh, and put not your faith in resident Nortons, McA and the rest, they are always one step (or more) behind the badboys.
,
,
Yes I know there isnt anything other than W8.1 retail, I was asking about experiences on installing XP on modern hardware, to keep the boss happy - me ? I'm ok wiuth Linux if need be !!
But you've all convinced me, she'll have to get used to W8.1, and if she gives my grief I'll blame you lot :bounce: >:D
Quote from: MalcolmAL on March 09, 2015, 12:04:43 AM
Quote from: davidinyork on March 08, 2015, 02:57:49 PM
No, you won't!
,
,
Windows 7 is my preference, but you won't find any new computers in retail channels with it on now
Theoretically you may be right, but in practice there are no kudos for writing malware to target anything other than the latest release by M$ ( including, or even more so, their 'patches')
So you stick to your plan, I'll stick tp mine ! - I've never been infected by malware since I started interneting in the days of DOS ( remember telnet, ftping, archie and gopher ? ! ) mind u I have been able to point out to chums when they have been infected, by the nature of their emails ! Could be down to practicing safe hex :)
Oh, and put not your faith in resident Nortons, McA and the rest, they are always one step (or more) behind the badboys.
,
,
Yes I know there isnt anything other than W8.1 retail, I was asking about experiences on installing XP on modern hardware, to keep the boss happy - me ? I'm ok wiuth Linux if need be !!
But you've all convinced me, she'll have to get used to W8.1, and if she gives my grief I'll blame you lot :bounce: >:D
The malware writers aren't bothered about kudos - it's all about getting your bank details, etc!
As regards running XP on modern hardware, it will depend on the hardware but in most cases the drivers won't be available so it won't work properly.
Wot 'e said, squared ... ... No-one (mfrs, anyway) develops new drivers for old kit - only some hackers (and I use that term in it's
classic sense) who see if they can work around the limitations (eg running the Phillips Toucam on something more recent than XP)
On malware, the ones who won't be ar$ed are those who do it for 'fun' etc - but they seem to be quite a minority these days ... as David says, it's all about money (either yours or a corporations), and a lot comes out of China
et al hot on the tails of the announcements. If, like some recent ones have been, the vulnerability extends back into old code, they
will attack those systems as they are
not being protected / updated now.
Quote from: MalcolmAL on March 09, 2015, 12:04:43 AM
I've never been infected by malware since I started interneting in the days of DOS ( remember telnet, ftping, archie and gopher ? ! )
Actually, I remember t'interwebthingie back in the days of a teletype on a 1200 baud modem from school to the local Uni ... no screen etc, just the keyboard for input and the teletype printer for output ... and yes, that pre-dates DOS ::)
And Sir Tim inventing the Web :-[ But in my usage, not by a lot (boy, am I glad he did ... those teletypes were s l o w . . . .
One of my first jobs when I started at the Beeb was maintaining Creed 7b teletypewriters and yes they were slow. 50 baud was fast in those days and no ASCII, 5 bit Murray code was used.
Quote from: Malc on March 09, 2015, 12:43:05 PM
One of my first jobs when I started at the Beeb was maintaining Creed 7b teletypewriters and yes they were slow. 50 baud was fast in those days and no ASCII, 5 bit Murray code was used.
So your the one making the scores come in on final score 20 minutes late lol.
If you go to Win7 then a useful free tool is Classic Shell - it can allow you to set up the start menu and window display as well as the taskbar even more closely to XP than Win 7 (for example, restoring the back up button on explorer windows, and restoring the traditional programs menu on the start menu).
Highly useful, I feel, taking away some of the tellytubby feel of Win7 as it comes.
http://www.classicshell.net/ (http://www.classicshell.net/)
HTH,
Alan
Quote from: davidinyork on March 09, 2015, 08:48:25 AM
The malware writers aren't bothered about kudos - it's all about getting your bank details, etc!
:) quite agree, but kudos has many values depending upon your environment :)
max saps = max reward
XP users = few saps = little reward :)
This is getting serious aint it ? how did we get here from there :-?)
> "As regards running XP on modern hardware, it will depend on the hardware but in most cases the drivers won't be available so it won't work properly"
looks like it !
(Baldrick) I have a cunning plan, I have an old ME box in the attic , , , (/Baldrick) that may keep the boss happy, , ,
I note no one jumped in to say "me neither" in the no-malware 'since Dinosaurs roamed wild' stakes :)
Frank Sinatra rules - I'll do it my way :)
A diversion : she has, since the days of full time employment, liked to have compatibility between works documents and stuff generated on her home machine, usually meaning some "M$Orifice" compatibility.
Open Office has often led to domestic upset !
One of the modern vendors is offering Office365 bundled,
wot is that,
should I tell her ?
No, I'll google it,
what ! £8 / month ?? I should *"#% !
Quote from: Malc on March 09, 2015, 12:43:05 PMmaintaining Creed 7b teletypewriters
Argh! Clutches clove of garlic :(
and the first "computer" I used (at uni) had a boot loader on 5hole tape, and a memory on a magnetostrictive delay line
(not RAM, deffo a queue !) I cant now remember how many bytes it was - - yep bytes not mega or whatever - - might have been 50 ! ?
Quote from: MalcolmAL on March 09, 2015, 09:51:07 PM
max saps = max reward
XP users = few saps = little reward :)
That's really not the case! There are still loads of people using XP, and coupled with known security holes that creates an obvious target for the malware writers. Plus much of the malware is designed to attack multiple versions of Windows. If you want to continue using XP that's your choice, but do it with your eyes open - the reality is that XP is insecure and gets more so with every passing month.
As regards Office, the successor to Open Office is Libre Office, which can be set to save in the Microsoft formats and in my experience this works well almost all of the time.
What davindinyork said - XP gets more insecure as time goes on. Any vulnerability in Windows could well affect XP (as well as more modern versions), but XP won't be patched. You may not even be aware that there is a problem. Given that there are so many (cheap or free) options it seems foolish, bordering on stubborn to stick with XP. Here's a good example of why XP is a problem for you and others: http://www.zdnet.com/article/windows-xp-still-big-in-botnets-after-all-these-years/ (http://www.zdnet.com/article/windows-xp-still-big-in-botnets-after-all-these-years/) (and very clearly contradicts your opinion that malware writers won't bother with XP - it is an easy win for them!).
Sorry to be picky but Open Office still exists (under Apache's guidance), Libre Office is a fork IIRC!
Cheers, Mike
Quote from: davidinyork on March 10, 2015, 04:37:53 PM
the successor to Open Office is Libre Office,
Haha ! Is it really !
Well just goes to show, not only is the OS out of date, so is our software !!!
Even when it is free we dont get round to updating :) "if it aint broke , , " well it
wasnt , honest !
Thanks for the info.
Interesting discussion, but I'll let you all into a little secret, she
does not did not use the XP on the interweb, lol!
She uses this one (laptop - vista, yea I know dont tell me ! )
it was Lawrence in reply#9
" this means there are no security updates and you leave yourself open to abuse from the www. "
and then I compounded the felony in #15 with my "ne'er-do-wells" comments.
Something good -
all this spare time she now has without a computal -
she just knitted me a new woolly jumper, result !!
Mike - I'll just pop along into her room and tell her you think she is stubborn !
(Cpt. Oates) I may be some time, , (/Oates)
I hope that Office Fork doesnt end up in my back :)
Quote from: red_death on March 10, 2015, 05:29:27 PM
foolish, bordering on stubborn to stick with XP.
Dont go getting overly excited, and mind your language.
Go back to my original, think about what I was asking and the rest of the thread is by way of conversation, if you cant do conversation and smileys then dont jump in with insults.
Sorry, I've only just found this thread, Malc. When you say that her desktop is "dead", don't forget that the whole point of having a desktop is that, like a model railway, you can add bits, take away bits and repair bits. If she is so fond of it, why not mend it? You don't say what has killed it. It may be just the battery for the CMOS if it is an old machine.
And if you can wire a model railway you can certainly build a desktop to suit what she wants. It takes me longer to fetch the bits for a new machine from Aria or Overclockers than to put them together.
David
Quote from: LAandNQFan on March 10, 2015, 11:20:15 PM
When you say that her desktop is "dead", don't forget that the whole point of having a desktop is that, like a model railway, you can add bits, take away bits and repair bits. If she is so fond of it, why not mend it? You don't say what has killed it.
Hi David,
thanks, yes, you are quite right, I should !
It turns out to be a dead psu :(
now somewhere in the attic I have a spare atx? psu, possibly of the right form factor?! , just a question of finding it, , , !
It's always easier to replace like with like, Malc. If you can't cannibalise, try sourcing the make and model of the psu you are replacing. If the machine is elderly, the psu is unlikely to be modular, which would be a doddle, but the price now of even last year's kit will be a fraction of what it cost to start with. Some supplier may have old stock just taking up space on the shelves and be eager to get whatever he can fot it. Even if it is the old type with a wiring loom to replace, that is still easier than fitting a Seep motor! ;)
David