Buying a new desk top PC

[chris]

looking forward to getting a new one . I feel now I've waited so long that I'm probably way behind in the technology of using new computer with Windows 10 and whatever else will be different from my XP. Hopefully I can find what I like with price I like.

[clarencebunsen]

Nov 16, 2016 13:13:20 GMT -5 chris said:

looking forward to getting a new one . I feel now I've waited so long that I'm probably way behind in the technology of using new computer with Windows 10 and whatever else will be different from my XP. Hopefully I can find what I like with price I like.

I think you will be happy with Win 10, much more so than if you had purchased a Win 8 a couple years ago. I upgraded my netbook from Win 7 and it went well. I tried to upgrade my Win 7 notebook (which was my main computer) and it went horribly. With some help from my son, it is functioning as a dual boot system Win 7 and Ubuntu. (I thought it was time I learned something new.)

Last Christmas, I bought my wife a Win 10 notebook. She seems happy with it, it's light weight and easy to use. The one short coming is that it doesn't have a disk drive. When she wants to load different music into her iPod she has to dig out her old machine and then wait while it updates everything.

I think you will find that there is a lot of stuff available at prices which are not too outrageous.

[dave]

I like Windows 10. It's much more like XP than Win 8, but during the short time I had Win 8 I quickly got used to and liked that user interface too. (I regressed Win 8 back to XP because of Win 8's lack of drivers. Win 10 is better on that score and I haven't had a problem with drivers yet.) I still have Windows 7 on my netbook. Don't like it. It's a glorified Windows ME. But I must mention that it's Windows 7 on an HP. And HP always manages to make slight changes to windows, or what's apparent to average user.

[Clipper]

I have taken advantage of the free upgrade to Windows 10 on both my HP desk top PC and my Toshiba laptop. I like Windows 10 so far. I hated Windows 8. I think I read that it was developed with touch screen monitor users in mind and that was why there was the "tiles" and such on the screen that could be moved about and opened and closed with your finger if you had a touch screen monitor.

[dave]

All true, Clipper, from what I read.

[clarencebunsen]

My most used computer is a Win 10 with a touchscreen. I like it but working with the older Win 7 made me remember that I miss the full size screen and keyboard. Tonight my granddaughter used the older one for her homework. I made her boot it in Kubuntu. Told her it would enhance her nerd cred to use a Linux system. I don't think that's a big bonus for an almost teenage girl but she din't ask for help.

[dave]

I've got to get back to Mint.

[chris]

Just came off of Dell dot com..... after selecting my PC and adding all the features the pc I had and returned went from 1171.16 to 1478. and change. :(O What do they think I'm made of gold. I'm waiting for actual Black Friday....this is no deal to me.

[clarencebunsen]

Nov 19, 2016 19:52:34 GMT -5 chris said:

Just came off of Dell dot com..... after selecting my PC and adding all the features the pc I had and returned went from 1171.16 to 1478. and change. :(O What do they think I'm made of gold. I'm waiting for actual Black Friday....this is no deal to me.

Wow! I haven't spent that much on a computer in decades. Of course the last desktop I bought was an XP. Since then I've stuck with low to mid-range laptops. It's much easier at my age to sit in my recliner with something lighter than a Michner novel. I got this one with part of the proceeds from my Mom's estate last year so in my mind it's a gift from her. I think it was about $350. The only thing I find lacking is no disk drive. I transferred my Turbo-Tax files with a memory card but I think for tax season I'll have to buy the new Turbo-Tax on-line. The older laptop which is at least twice the weight is mostly for grand children to use. Someone does home work here 2-3 times per week so it still has some utility.

[chris]

Well CB I just got off the phone with Dell...got about 200.00 knocked off but still would have preferred to order much cheaper yet when shopping around I have not really seen anything cheaper unless I don't order support and damage control.

I just hope once it arrives I will have no issues in installation etc. He tells me I just need to plug it into the wall. I just have to figure out the best way to transfer old files to new PC. Then once I get all my files over need to clean the machine and remove all files from old machine.

Here it is www.dell.com/en-us/shop/productdetails/xps-8910-desktop/fddovmax101b

[clarencebunsen]

Probably the easiest way to transfer files is to upload them to "the cloud." One Drive if you have a hotmail account, the Google equivalent if you have a gmail account. You could also use a memory card or a jump drive. I have my Firefox set up so I can sync my bookmarks across multiple devices. One terrabyte is a lot of data but this still represents a chance to remove the detritus everyone accumulates .

I use a site called Ninite to download the applications I think I need, gives you a one stop place to get most of what I want. I'm trying to ween myself from MS Office by using Libre Office. Actually I really only need the word processor. Last spring I hed to set up a spreadsheet & realized it was the first time I had created one in about 5 years. Anyway have fun.

[dave]

Chris, now that you have your wallet out, might be a good time to buy an external hard drive. Seagate is a good brand, but I prefer Hitachi, since I've never had a single problem with mine. Here's a snazzy red drive from Amazon for $65, 1 terrabyte in size (1,000 gigabytes.)

www.amazon.com/HGST-7200RPM-High-Performance-Portable-0S03778/dp/B00IVFDN0K/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1479878170&sr=1-3&keywords=hitachi+external+hard+drive

I don't find my 4 year old model all that slow. It's faster than a memory stick, even though both use the same USB ports.

Here's how I migrate, for what it's worth. First, I've learned over the years to build key directories that I can quickly load them and take with me on a laptop on vacation or when I upgrade to new hardware. It takes a while, of course, but for an upgrade, I load the directories on the external drive (which I also use for backup) and then connect the drive to the new machine. Then I like to set up the new and old machine next to each other and run both for some time. When I realize I'm missing something from the old PC, I usually load it from the old machine on to a memory stick and then to the new computer.

This way of going back for what you forgot goes much easier if you have an extra keyboard, monitor and mouse to put on the old processor. Most of us do, after twenty years of using computers, unless you're not a pack-rat and you get rid of all unused items around the house immediately. If you don't have spares, you can probably arrange the PCs so that you can easily get to the connections and plug and unplug what's needed.

[chris]

Hi Folks...I am typing this on my new pc. Started at round 2 230p And it is now 8:52P All that time to set up, had to call in the guns to complete cause I was clueless what was where etc and what actually needed to be done. Tech was an Angel. This is going to be a huge learning experience for me from XP to Win10. Good thing all my brain cells are still working. You guys are the first to get a message from my new PC then Im going to go pour myself a stiff drink.

I thought I could use my old keyboard but there are no ports in back for it so had to use this dinky one that came with it, I can't tell if its on or not and the cap lock keeps staying on when I'm typing so annoying.....

I have a clickfree which is a backup drive where all my old files are from the XP. I tested my Excel Spreadsheets saved on my usb drive. All that I was concerned about. I think I have issues with speed as this is a fast computer but the tech said my files were downloading to slow. Maybe a new router. Have to call Frontier to see what the story is. In the past I have been loosing my Internet connection more than usual. They already checked it and the wires in the building. I liked the looks of my old tower more than this one. This one is ugly shiny black. Tech downloaded and checked if my printer was compatible. Im back in business .
Any tips suggestions for WIN10 will be appreciated. Okay back to my iPad and games. I need a break. Hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving.

[dave]

To check your network speed, go to speedtest.net. Then call your provider. Depending on your plan, you should be getting somewhere between 5 and 17 MBit per second.
You should be able to use your old keyboard by buying an adapter that looks like this:


They're 2 or 3 dollars each, usually with free shipping on Amazon and eBay.  Search for PS/2 to USB keyboard adapter.
HOWEVER, depending upon your new PC, there may be keyboard functional differences.  Worth a try, though.

[chris]

thanks for the info on the adapter Dave. I just downloaded my iTunes and went to check my files and they are there but I guess all I can do is look at them. It says my computer is not autorized that I have used up my 5 computers. Well I never owned 5 computers so if they are counting when they made me reinstall my itunes and my ipod and iPad. I think that really stinks. Guess I'll be busy Monday calling Apple and Frontier. Now lets see what other road blocks I stumble on.