| Author | Message | ||
     Tommy_black_shark |
Last week after years of faithfull service from Daytona to Sturgis (and a lot of places in between) my laptop PC gave up the ghost. After being bounced around in saddlebags for as long as it was it seemed fitting to give it a decent burial and get a new computer. Got a new laptop. Loaded with Windows Vista. I was wowed by the "look" of Vista, but I hate just about everything else about the new OS. I have been researching workarounds to some of the nonsense (IMO) and I am tired of it. My questions are: is there a practical way to go back to XP Pro (my previous PC was the same brand and I have the recovery CDS's). Is it just a matter of loading the software> Is there a reason the new PC would n't be able to run XP? I have never been really happy when Microsoft has "upgraded" Windows in the past, but always after a short time was able to adapt. This time I absolutely HATE the new OS. | ||
| Hdbobwithabuell |
If you have the XP install CD, just put it in the Laptop, boot to it and follow the prompts for a new "Clean" installation. I would imagine the "recovery" cd's would contain the XP installation, | ||
| Pammy |
Just how long should one expect a laptop to live? Mine only lasted about 3.5 to 4 years. At 2.75 years I had to get the screen replaced and then it just wouldn't boot up anymore. It was a Sony Vaio. I would like to get another laptop but am unsure about what to get. Of course, I want the most for my money. Sorry for the thread hi-jack, but the stories about Vista are a concern as well. | ||
| Coal400 |
Your original media may not work for that new machine. Assuming it would matter, its probably not legal to run either since it came with your other machine but I will not waste time on this argument. The problem with laptops is that they contain proprietary componentry that can sometimes lead to a greater dependency on the manufacturer for OS support (since the components may not work with generic drivers). You certainly can check the manufacturers web site, and look up the driver downloads for your laptop. If you find Windows XP drivers, then all you have to do is find the XP media and do your install. Personally, I would advise that you set your theme and menu to the "Windows Classic" mode as described in this article: http://www.latimes.com/technology/ny-bzdolinar0812 ,1,1910878.column?coll=la-utilities-technology Then you don't have to reinstall anything, and it will feel like you're still using XP. I'm sure you'll still run into some differences that will pi$$ you off, but at least they will come 1 at a time  | ||
| Zenfrogmaster |
Pammy - my Sony Vaio lasted 5 tough years. During that time I replaced the hard drive twice ($80 each). I don't expect a portable machine to last more than 3 years, so the extra two years were a bonus. I considered it not worth repairing when whatever drives the screen went south. It still works, but needs an external monitor to see anything. I was worried about Vista, so I replaced it with a Mac.  | ||
| Pammy |
You replaced the hard drive yourself? I am thinking that may be my problem. Although absolutely nothing comes up on the screen. When I had my screen replaced, it was under (extended) warranty. I have given Mac some thought, but learning something new.... | ||
| Zenfrogmaster |
Pammy - PM sent. | ||
| Reepicheep |
Those OEM install disks are typically tightly bound to a particular model of machine, so I doubt you can just "downgrade" to the old software. You *do* have a valid XP license for it though, but figuring out how to use it could be a mess. You might be able to get a general purpose XP install disk, and put in the license from the old machine (look at the sticker somewhere on the laptop) and it might accept that as a valid license. Microsoft CS should be able to field your questions as well. They might be able to point you in the direction of a license that will work or install media you can use for the valid license you have. I have not tried it, but I believe Vista has a "legacy interface mode" setting somewhere in the control panel. It makes it look and act a LOT more like XP did. That might be enough to temper your annoyance. Pammy, if you have nothing on boot, its probably more then the hard drive. If you are lucky, it's the power supply (check the voltage it is putting out with a DVM... the voltage it is supposed to put out will be marked on the adapter). Otherwise, you have some sort of motherboard failure. It could be CPU or RAM or some other component as well, but by the time you find it and scare up a replacement, you would have been better off moving on. I have three 10 year old thinkpad laptops floating around working like clocks... and a couple HP / Compaqs less then 4 years that are doorstops. To be honest, I have never been thrilled with Sony's... as a company, they seemed fairly confused about the whole "you are supposed to be serving me, not vice versa" theme. I have used Dells *hard* for work, and they seem to start getting a little flaky after 3 years. I don't blame them for failing, but I beat on those thinkpads just as hard, and they held up. Everyone I know that has switched to Mac is thrilled with the result. It's a painful curve, but you end up in a happy place. A bad hard drive will usually boot, but go to an "operating system not found" type message. | ||
| Interex2050 |
I recommend an XP install... (It will be a long while before microsoft works out all the bugs) And I think that you may be able to give microsoft a call and get them to reassign a key from the old computer to the new, although since its a brand specific installer it may not work as planned. As for good replacement laptops, I highly recommend the IBM/Lenovo Thinkpad T series... My little T40 is still kicking and its been quite some time now... I also got to see the newer T60p which was also very nice And I believe that Lenovo still offers their computers with XP installed. On a side note, a mac would also be a fine choice; great build quality/reliability/etc.. Just make sure that the software you intend to use/(or equivalent) exists. So it leaves CAD out of the question, that is until they finally are able to natively run windows on a mac. | ||
| Froggy |
Who makes your new laptop? If its a Dell, send me a PM. | ||
| Doon |
AFAIK OEM versions of Winders are not Transferrable. So on the odd chance that the restore CD does work, you will still be in violation of M$ licensing terms. YMMV, IANAL, yadda, yadda, yadda. -Patrick | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
I simply abhore Mac know-it-all partisans, don't you? On the other hand........................... With the release of Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard, in 10 days, 2 hours, 9 minutes and 28 seconds as I write this, there really is no reason at all not to own a Mac, especially if you want a modern computer and like to run Windows XP, which will install easier and run natively on an Intel Mac. Read all about Leopard on the Mac site. Boot camp is the program that runs Windows. I believe there is another program called Parallels which allows you to run Windows on a Mac without rebooting and whilst running Mac OS X, but it cost extra. http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/ You may be delightfully surprised to discover that you can transition to the Mac easier than transitioning to Vista, and you end up with a much better operating system, and a slicker computer, knowing all the while that you can do all your old PC stuff anytime you want to. But then, perhaps I am just a wee bit of a Mac partisan m'self.  | ||
| Doon |
As a Unix Geek / Mac-Know-it-all / Apple FanBoy I am happy to say the 12+ computers at home (and 8+ Virtual machines) none of them are running any version of windows at the moment. And of the 50 some odd computers I manage at the office, only 2 of them are running a version of windows Now that 10.5 is shipping, time to get ready to order the new work laptop.. /sigh Tis rough being a geek... | ||
| Reepicheep |
Doon... not transferrable between *owners* (which may be the case) or not transferrable between *machines*? In this case, the old machine is dead and gone... so in theory, the new machine *is* the old machine, just with every part replaced | ||
| Tommy_black_shark |
Thanks to all for the responses. My biggest problems with Vista are 1) No Outlook Express, 2) All the security and confirmation messages. I like Macs, (or at least I am not against them) but, I'm really not into learning a new OS at this point, and I have a brand new laptop that is not a Mac. I'm not going to lose a lot of sleep over the OS license, since as has been pointed out I already have a license for an inoperative PC. If the MS police come and kick my door down some night, I'll update the forum. | ||
| Froggy |
Tommy, outlook express is still there, they just call it Windows Mail now. As for the security and confirmation messages, its for your own protection, but it takes only a few clicks to turn them off. Honestly you shouldn't even see any confirmation boxes with normal day to day use as it only prompts when you are doing administrative things like deleting files, installing programs or changing advanced settings. | ||
| Tm74 |
Good suggestions here. One word of caution and a suggestion if you downgrade. Be aware some of the notebooks floating around are built with Vista in mind. You need to make sure there are drivers for the notebook. I had a friend who just downgraded a new notebook. It's an Acer. He called and complained about Vista and they sent him a copy of XP so he could downgrade. They did warn him that his built in wireless card would NOT work. There is no XP driver for it. He could live with it(using an external card) so he downgraded. I would call the manufacturer first. There have been many complaints about Vista and your manufacturer might send you an XP CD. They should also be able to tell you if there are drivers for everything. | ||
| Doon |
as far as I know the OEM license is not transferrable between machines, that the license is for the machine it was purchased with, Then again IANAL (I Am Not A Lawyer) so know knows. | ||
| Jackbequick |
I've had good luck with Toshiba and ThinkPad laptops, using a four year old T'Pad R-40 now and it has never missed a lick. For *tough* nothing approaches the Panasonic Toughbooks fully ruggedized models. Higher priced and come with a weight and size penalty though. I've been running Windows 2000 Pro on everything I own for the last 7-8 years. It is a little work but I don't think that there is a mainstream laptop model that is arriving with Vista that I could not get running with XP or W2K. You just have to tough it out and keep trying drivers from similar models until you find one that works. What makes the driver thing hard work is that the downloads seldom make any mention of backward compatibility, whether it be incidental or intended. Pammy, That Vaio probably has a little trap door on the bottom or side where you can replace the drive quickly. Usually the drive will be mounted in a tray but the task is usually just one of removing some screws (small Phillips or tiny Torx) and sticking the new drive in the tray and remounting it. Then boot with your recovery CD and it will format the drive and bring back to as it came new (all your data will be gone). If you run the recovery CD now it will tell you if your drive is bad or not when it tries to reload the O/S. But remember, you lose everything on it with the recovery CD. If you can shop on eBay you can still find good deals on models with XP Home or Pro on them, most of the stores are only carrying the Vista loaded models. Mounting the podium: I won't consider using Vista until it is at least another year or two old and then that is only a maybe. M$ is force feeding that to the world and used/ is using gestapo type tactics to shut the door on XP. And now M$ is offering buyers of Vista Ultimate and Vista Business a free downgrade to XP Pro if they want it. Google "vista downgrades" for the details. And tell me again how good the Vista O/S is... But notice that only the big bucks OEM Vista buyers will be entitled to downgrade. For the teeming masses, if you bought a new machine with Vista Home on it your are stuck with it whether it works for you or not. Tell me that is fair and honest! Stepping down from the podium... Jack | ||
| Blake |
I'm into year number 8 for my Dell Inspiron laptop. One hard drive went out and also one backlight for the screen. Other than that it's been great. Time for an upgrade though. | ||
| Blake |
I'm likely to be of the same view as you Tommy. I like my Win 2000 Pro and XP Pro just fine. I don't need or want the Vista. |
