Taking the plunge into win 7

[devilgas]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

Ok I feel guilty now, Its just that I no alot of people thats upgraded to windows 7 and are having problems, but it always seems to be that they upgraded for the sake of upgrading, if its not broken, dont try and fix it! As a rule Ive never upgraded my windows for at least a year after the new release, I dont no why its just me. Im typing this on a vista machine and have no intention on upgrading to 7 in the near future, why would I, this does everything I want it to do.
Signing off,
Grumpy old Ash

i upgraded because the old XP os got corrupted in some way that stopped me accessing any web browser (IE, FF, Chrome, Opera etc - none of them would fire up). couldn't find a solution in a reasonable time and CBA to re-install XP so bought a new HD, new OS, more memory & a new gfx card. didn't NEED the last 2 though
if XP hadn't died, then i'd still be on that.

[ash]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

Fair doo's guys, everyone has there own agenda, Ill upgrade when mine goes cuput and they no longer give support for vista, they got ya by the balls really
It would be interesting to no how many millions are wasted by the consumer thinking they need to upgrade, when they don't!
Think its called marketing, or is it brainwashing

[JSR]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

Fair doo's guys, everyone has there own agenda, Ill upgrade when mine goes cuput and they no longer give support for vista, they got ya by the balls really
It would be interesting to no how many millions are wasted by the consumer thinking they need to upgrade, when they don't!
Think its called marketing, or is it brainwashing

I imagine there are some people who need to stay at the forefront of software and the only way to do that is to stay at the forefront of their chosen OS.

I'm an "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" guy and didn't even get into XP until years after everyone else (I think my first XP PC came pre-installed with SP2). I completely skipped Vista. I'm also a advocate of "buy what you need, not what you're told you need" (it seems to me that there are so many hardware salespeople, software salespeople, OS makers, etc etc who keep telling us what we need).

For the last 18 months, I've been quite happy running my computer activities off a Windows XP netbook. It's fitted me right down to the ground, and I haven't seen anything else that would make me "upgrade". So much so that when I saw Maplin selling old stock of the same netbook, I've just bought another one to keep as spare in case my current one goes off the boil.

Microsoft will continue providing security fixes for XP until mid-2014 and I guess that'll be the right time for me to look at upgrading.

With the advent of devices such as the iPad and OSes such as Android (and the maturity of Linux variants), I wonder if Windows will still be so popular in five years time?

[Mike Parr]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

Well considering I started this topic I have sat back and watched and enjoyed everyones opinion.
To make matters worse I like 7 so much i decided that I wanted to experience it with a pc built to enjoy the the experience, hence this is being typed on a 2 hour old pc with a 23 in hi def screen and quad core processor and some really fast Ram. Some people like foreingn holidays and flying, I like technology and computing.
This is my first upgrade for 6 years and wow what a good choice it is, power, display, storage and fun at an affordable price...............just got to transfer all the software over and Im away.
Yes Windows 7 is a big step from XP and I was a XP die hard!

[Ian]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

Well considering I started this topic I have sat back and watched and enjoyed everyones opinion.
To make matters worse I like 7 so much i decided that I wanted to experience it with a pc built to enjoy the the experience, hence this is being typed on a 2 hour old pc with a 23 in hi def screen and quad core processor and some really fast Ram. Some people like foreingn holidays and flying, I like technology and computing.
This is my first upgrade for 6 years and wow what a good choice it is, power, display, storage and fun at an affordable price...............just got to transfer all the software over and Im away.
Yes Windows 7 is a big step from XP and I was a XP die hard!

Very nice

I'm still using 32 bit XP on my office desktop. Three years ago this 2.8GHz AMD Athlon 64 X2 5600+ with 4GB RAM PC was pretty quick. Actually, it still is - especially compared to my laptop (2GHz AMD Turion 64 X2, 3GB RAM). It helps to have a fast hard drive and a decent graphics card, which laptops by their very nature usually don't have.

Now I have 60,000 images in Lightroom I do sometimes have to wait for a while as it sorts itself out, but usually only after starting Lightroom up.

But I would really like a fast quad core 64-bit Windows 7 system with 8 or 16GB RAM

Ian

[Danny Chau]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

I've been a Mac user for many years Ian, but I must admit I like the Window 7 and I have purchase a Core Duo to run the Window 7 Professional on it. It is fast, smooth and even Standby works beautifully.

By the way, I've had a don't a giant 60" test print from the EPL1, the secret is using a high end software RIP (ColorGate Production Server - runs on a PC), and the quality is absolutely stunning. All the details are sharp and the grain of the image looked very natural and I can not fault it at all. Here is the photo of the test print on my print bench.......

[Josh Bear]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

Well Ash I upgraded within 4 weeks off release, I liked Vista but Windows 7 is far better. I have had no problems of any kind.
Now I have the iMac I am running 7 on my laptop much quicker than Vista. I also run it on my net-book, it runs quite well.

I have to say that since getting the iMac running Snow Leopard, boot up times with any Windows system seems like an age, less junk running in the background. The iMac boots in 30 seconds ready to go, and that includes Photoshop as I have it setup to start with boot up.

Patrick

Glad you are enjoying the Mac Patrick. As you know I am a relatively recent apple convert and about 9 months in I am stilled thrilled with the move. Just ordered an Ipad so turning into a fanboy

[Autumn]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

I am thinking of installing Windows 7 on my desk top.

I have the Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit reinstallation disc as it came with my Dell laptop.

It is still in the sealed packet as it was already installed.

Would I be legally allowed to use this on my desk top?

There is also a message on the back of the packet saying:

"The Microsoft operating system Certificate of Authenticity (COA) is a multicolored label located on the side or bottom of your computer. The COA contains the product key code, which might be required to complete the operating system setup."

I have had a look on my laptop, but can't see a multicolored label anywhere.

There are many numbers and letters on the back of the packet.

Does anyone think that this DVD would be suitable or do I need to buy another one?

Next question.

Does anyone have a Workflow for doing this type of thing?

I have formatted two computers previously and upgraded with Windows XP, but need some directions.

I have Windows Vista at the moment.

[Patrick]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

Glad you are enjoying the Mac Patrick. As you know I am a relatively recent apple convert and about 9 months in I am stilled thrilled with the move. Just ordered an Ipad so turning into a fanboy

Yes I am enjoying it very much and have made the decision to sell my 17" Dell Inspiron, also my Asus Eee pc net-book and buy a Macbook pro.

I still need Widows for my accounts and a couple of programs I use occasionally, so I have created a partition (Bootcamp with Parallels) for my Windows 7, it runs great.

Patrick

[Patrick]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

I am thinking of installing Windows 7 on my desk top.

I have the Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit reinstallation disc as it came with my Dell laptop.

It is still in the sealed packet as it was already installed.

Would I be legally allowed to use this on my desk top?

There is also a message on the back of the packet saying:

"The Microsoft operating system Certificate of Authenticity (COA) is a multicolored label located on the side or bottom of your computer. The COA contains the product key code, which might be required to complete the operating system setup."

I have had a look on my laptop, but can't see a multicolored label anywhere.

There are many numbers and letters on the back of the packet.

Does anyone think that this DVD would be suitable or do I need to buy another one?

Next question.

Does anyone have a Workflow for doing this type of thing?

I have formatted two computers previously and upgraded with Windows XP, but need some directions.

I have Windows Vista at the moment.

Not sure what the legal situation is and wouldn't like to comment. I suppose technically you should buy a multiple license from Microsoft.

The disk you have will install perfectly on any machine you shouldn't require a new disk just the license.

You will find though that a second install on another computer will I believe work and activate successfully.

To upgrade from Vista is straight forward you simply install over the Vista OS. However upgrading XP requires a clean install but there is no need to format the HD, follow onscreen instructions and it will all be dealt with by Windows for you, and as a bonus there will be a file saved called "Old Windows" with all your info from the old system. I should still back up everything anyway.
Also use the save file & settings facility in System Tools. After the new install restore files and settings and everything like emails settings and the emails themselves, (you will need to download Windows Live Mail free from Microsoft its now separate, some EC regulation), many other documents will become available to you again from the old setup as the relevant software is installed. "Save files & settings" really does save a lot of work

Good Luck

Patrick

[Stephen]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

Yes I am enjoying it very much and have made the decision to sell my 17" Dell Inspiron, also my Asus Eee pc net-book and buy a Macbook pro.

I still need Widows for my accounts and a couple of programs I use occasionally, so I have created a partition (Bootcamp with Parallels) for my Windows 7, it runs great.

Patrick

I'm a bit confused Patrick. Bootcamp and Parallels are 2 different things. With Parallels it creates a virtual machine for Windaz to run on. Macos and windaz can be run side by side. However with Bootcamp, as I understand it, you have to boot up Windaz separately and Macos won't run along side it. Correct me if I'm wrong here. I also use Windaz using Parallels in order to use my accounts program

[Patrick]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

I'm a bit confused Patrick. Bootcamp and Parallels are 2 different things. With Parallels it creates a virtual machine for Windaz to run on. Macos and windaz can be run side by side. However with Bootcamp, as I understand it, you have to boot up Windaz separately and Macos won't run along side it. Correct me if I'm wrong here. I also use Windaz using Parallels in order to use my accounts program

You are of course quite right Stephen boot camp is a separate thing.
I setup bootcamp first but found it inconvenient to keep having to reboot, so I invested in Parallels and used the bootcamp partition already in place to set it up.

Patrick

[Autumn]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

Not sure what the legal situation is and wouldn't like to comment. I suppose technically you should buy a multiple license from Microsoft.

The disk you have will install perfectly on any machine you shouldn't require a new disk just the license.

You will find though that a second install on another computer will I believe work and activate successfully.

To upgrade from Vista is straight forward you simply install over the Vista OS. However upgrading XP requires a clean install but there is no need to format the HD, follow onscreen instructions and it will all be dealt with by Windows for you, and as a bonus there will be a file saved called "Old Windows" with all your info from the old system. I should still back up everything anyway.
Also use the save file & settings facility in System Tools. After the new install restore files and settings and everything like emails settings and the emails themselves, (you will need to download Windows Live Mail free from Microsoft its now separate, some EC regulation), many other documents will become available to you again from the old setup as the relevant software is installed. "Save files & settings" really does save a lot of work

Good Luck

Patrick

Thanks for that Patrick. I wont be doing it tomorrow, but I am getting into the mind set now.

[Ian]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

I very much doubt that you will be able install the Windows disc for your laptop on any other machine. Windows supplied by manufacturers, like Dell, are OEM versions and cannot be uninstalled and then re-installed on completely different hardware. The installation process checks the identity of the hardware. You may be referred to Microsoft to resolve any issues concerning the hardware mismatching.

If you bought Windows off the shelf 'full price' you will be free to uninstall and then re-install on replacement hardware.

Ian

[Autumn]

Re: Taking the plunge into win 7

I very much doubt that you will be able install the Windows disc for your laptop on any other machine. Windows supplied by manufacturers, like Dell, are OEM versions and cannot be uninstalled and then re-installed on completely different hardware. The installation process checks the identity of the hardware. You may be referred to Microsoft to resolve any issues concerning the hardware mismatching.

If you bought Windows off the shelf 'full price' you will be free to uninstall and then re-install on replacement hardware.

Ian

Thanks Ian.

Would it mess things up if I tried it or just refuse to install it?

You say "Cannot be uninstalled and then re-installed." I haven't uninstalled anything and as yet the disk has never been used as the OS on my laptop was factory installed.