Topic: Windows 7 upgraded - very neat and clean upgrade (Read 3187 times)

Pat · « **on:** October 23, 2009, 08:33:42 AM »

Got my Win7 upgrade on 10/22, just like Amazon promised. I decided to upgrade first, back up my Media Player files, then possibly do a clean install. However, the upgrade was amazingly clean. I even ran HP update and found everything current. Might as well not bother with the clean install. One thing that's not clear is that Win 7 has to be registered. When I was rummaging about in My Computer Properties, I noticed a blue warning note. It was very quick to click on the line to register. I thought by installing while online and typing in the keycode, it had registered.

Interesting, MS had 162mb updates to this brand new installation.

The Quick Launch bar is replaced by a Taskbar. Supposedly the Taskbar has more functionality, but it's not as organized, with the launch buttons and open program bars mixed together. It's much more complicated than the old QL bar to make file and folder shortcuts. The shortcut properties have to be edited before they are dropped onto the bar. There is a way to replace the new Taskbar with the old Quick Launch bar, which I may do someday. I figure I should give the new system a chance.

--pat

TriadThinker · « **Reply #1 on:** October 23, 2009, 09:36:57 AM »

Congrats and good news. Just curious, what are the specs for the computer?

John Canfield · « **Reply #2 on:** October 23, 2009, 09:26:15 PM »

I read an article where an IT guy in a medium-size business said they are calling Windows 7, "Vista Lite" - it is basically Vista without the bloat and with a cleaned up interface that is not so demanding on hardware.

I've been toying with moving from XP to W7, but then my Adobe CS2 suite won't run on it (or Vista.) At this point, there is absolutely no practical reason for me to move away from XP - it cannot be justified, but there is the geek factor

Pat · « **Reply #3 on:** October 23, 2009, 09:57:28 PM »

I downloaded from Microsoft a program called Windows7UpgradeAdvisor.exe. it analyzed my computer and explained what compatibility issues I might have. Everything seems fine. I threw away the packaging with the specs on it. Just kept the strip with the key code and the two disks. Could have dumped the 32-bit disk, too.

It seems easier to upgrade from Vista than from XP based on the upgrade instructions. I think XPers have to do a clean install. I notice the performance has improved with Win7. Must be the Vista Lite interface. Other IT people are saying don't spend the money. For me, upgrading is entertainment.

I have a touch screen. I notice the mouse arrow disappeared now and then, and the only way to select whatever I was trying to click was by touching the screen. I found in the Control Panel mouse settings a check box that says "allow themes to change mouse pointers." I deselected that. Hope it fixes the problem. My screen's too large to position close enough to use the touch feature.

--pat

BernieD · « **Reply #4 on:** October 28, 2009, 10:12:17 AM »

I've basically finished upgrading my laptop from Vista to W7. I had run the Upgrade Advisor and was not notified of any issues for the upgrade. After running the upgrade, something hadn't clicked and the system was in a boot/Blue Screen of Death (BSOD)/shut down/reboot repetitive cycle. Calling MS Help, my overseas technician basically had not enough training yet in the W7 install and spent a lot of time checking with supervisors. I was finally handed off to a higher level technician who then walked me thru a clean install upgrade. While I was unhappy about losing all of my programs and settings, I was able to get back to where I wanted to be since I had all of my critical program install discs and all the hard drive data files were copied to a folder named windows.old in the W7 installation. I also use a Firefox add-on called Foxmarks which can synchronize bookmarks, favorites and passwords between 2 or more computers. Once I added Firefox and Foxmarks, all of my bookmarks, favorites and passwords which had previously been synchronized to our desktop magically appeared on the laptop.

Overall, the only negative of the upgrade was the lack of good help from MS, once I got around that it wasn't bad. I do like W7, it seems to have taken the good improvements in Vista and added more, a lot better environment.

Once Marlene and I figure out what programs and data she has on the XP Pro desktop that come over easily (Windows Upgrade Advisor shows no significant issues; wants an upgraded driver for the scanner), we'll run the new install/upgrade for her. There are a lot more programs, and older ones at that, with very large files on the desktop, so I anticipate it will be a somewhat more extensive/intensive process. Also, I picked up another 4GB of RAM very inexpensively so we'll be installing the 64 bit OS. Not sure how that will fly with the old programs, all of which were 32bit.

Tom · « **Reply #5 on:** October 28, 2009, 10:35:16 AM »

Methinks I'll stick with XP and Vista or our computers. Win 7 can wait until the next PC purchase.

John Canfield · « **Reply #6 on:** October 28, 2009, 12:11:52 PM »

Upgrades vs. clean installs from scratch can be nightmares and I never do them anymore preferring to buy an OEM version of whatever Windoze it is I'm installing. With disk partition deletions, then new formatting, you clean up a lot of junk that invariably accumulates over time.

I have used Foxmarks for many months and I can't imagine life without it since I want/need my bookmarks shared among several desktops/laptops. My standard suite of Firefox add-ons consists of Xmarks, AdBlock Plus, and Flash Block.

My opinion is that Vista users should seriously consider moving to W7 since W7 is everything Vista was promised to be. XP users - I see no reason to change.

Ned · « **Reply #7 on:** October 28, 2009, 12:14:08 PM »

Bernie, all your 32 bit programs should run fine on 64 bit Win 7. If you have any 16 bit programs, they won't.

BernieD · « **Reply #8 on:** October 28, 2009, 04:38:17 PM »

Quote from: John Canfield on October 28, 2009, 12:11:52 PM

My opinion is that Vista users should seriously consider moving to W7 since W7 is everything Vista was promised to be. XP users - I see no reason to change.

John

I'd say the opposite. My laptop had Vista, the desktop has XP PRO. I spent about half my time on the laptop and half on the desktop. I preferred working with Vista and had little in the way of issues, and when I did, felt it easier to work out of problems in Vista.

Ned

AFAIK, all of our programs now are at least 32 bit, thanks for the warning tho.

Pat · « **Reply #9 on:** October 28, 2009, 04:47:05 PM »

I'll probably do a clean install one of these days. Win7 worked hard at retaining old stuff that I know and love. It even put the photo resizer in the right click menu (I found one online for 64-bit Vista and Win7).

One thing I noticed in one of the Start Menu Programs folders were a few shortcuts to programs since deleted or installed elsewhere. It seemed as though Win7 scoured the Registry and accounted for old undeleted junk, just in case. Since this is a relatively new computer, it wasn't too crammed with old stuff.

I have everything thoroughly and doubly backed up and will do so just before the clean install. HP has some gadgets in this computer I don't want to lose, but I can always restore factory settings and reupgrade. I don't mind, except losing a few shortcuts I always have to redo.

--pat

FrontrangeRVer · « **Reply #10 on:** October 28, 2009, 04:47:17 PM »

Just installed my Windows 7 Home Premium over my Vista 64 bit without one solitary hitch...PIECE OF CAKE! I love the shake feature, the new toolbar with the Pin feature, and the home network new feature.....this OS ROCKS!

seilerbird · « **Reply #11 on:** October 28, 2009, 04:55:00 PM »

I have been using W7 all year long and Frontrange is correct, it rocks. I never do an upgrade, always a clean install. Clean installs are so much cleaner.

JNewkirk77 · « **Reply #12 on:** October 28, 2009, 05:18:04 PM »

I'm sticking with XP. I'm almost ready to buy my wife a new netbook (she loves my MSI Wind U100 and wants her own), but I was not overly impressed with the Win7 "starter edition" that the Toshiba netbook I tried out yesterday at Best Buy came with.

I suppose it would have been too much to ask for Microsoft to just keep refining the best OS they've ever come up with (XP). I'd much rather stick with a known quantity.

John Canfield · « **Reply #13 on:** October 28, 2009, 05:21:02 PM »

Quote from: BernieD on October 28, 2009, 04:38:17 PM

John - I'd say the opposite. My laptop had Vista, the desktop has XP PRO. I spent about half my time on the laptop and half on the desktop. I preferred working with Vista and had little in the way of issues, and when I did, felt it easier to work out of problems in Vista.

[OT]
Bernie - I'm not here to bash Vista, that has been done much more eloquently by others. I do have some experience with Vista - I ordered a Toshiba Satellite Pro a few months ago that came with Vista Business (or Pro, or whatever they call it) but had a downgrade option for XP Pro. I was anxious to give Vista a thorough check-out since the easiest thing to do was to use the Satellite the way it came from the factory. After using the Satellite for a few weeks (its primary duty is laptop nav and for VMSpc in the coach), I was really disappointed at the way it performed. I can't give you specifics since I didn't make notes, but using it with my extended desktop (a 9" monitor for VMSpc display) was an exercise in frustration - it would never behave the same way twice. I used the Toshiba XP Pro DVD and installed XP on the Satellite and life has been good for many thousands of miles.

I thought the user interface (Aero) was quite nice, but Vista came with way too much bloat and extra baggage. (Some IT shops are calling W7 "Vista Lite".)

Jane's Acer Micro-tower came with Vista Home and I was amazed at how slowly everything happened when doing anything. I installed Linux on it and it was like I added more memory and a faster CPU. I expected a performance improvement, but I was totally blown away at how much faster Linux was over Vista.
[/OT]

I do need to play with W7 - can't help it - it's in the genes

seilerbird · « **Reply #14 on:** October 28, 2009, 05:49:04 PM »

Quote from: John Canfield on October 28, 2009, 05:21:02 PM

I thought the user interface (Aero) was quite nice, but Vista came with way too much bloat and extra baggage. (Some IT shops are calling W7 "Vista Lite".)

I used Vista for several years from beta to finished product. I am dual booting between Vista and 7 on my current laptop. Vista doesn't have bloat and extra baggage, it is all the crapware loaded onto computers now a days that bogs it down. Every single piece of crapware has one or more programs running in memory to update that program. The typical laptop comes with 60 to 90 running processes. I eliminate them and get it down to less than 30 running processes and it screams. Both Vista and 7 on my machine run exactly the same speed since there is no crapware on either OS.

John Canfield · « **Reply #15 on:** October 28, 2009, 06:08:02 PM »

Tom - My Satellite Pro came with *none* of the typical home machine crapware (crapware is a real problem as you state.) Speed was not an issue since I ordered a fast machine; the big issue was unpredictable performance.

Speaking about performance...

Vista for a fact is a dog on PCs with only 1 Gb of memory. I am the Harper, Texas public library volunteer IT guy and responsible for six library Toshiba laptops (five of which have have 1 Gb of memory), the laptop I upgraded to 2 Gb performs fairly good. The five laptops with 1 Gb of memory are p-a-i-n-f-u-l-l-y slow - for me I would consider them functionally unusable.

Linux is very happy with 1 Gb of memory.

We now return you to the W7 discussion..

Pat · « **Reply #16 on:** October 28, 2009, 06:13:36 PM »

Makes sense to do a clean install of Win7. There's all sorts of junk that comes with HPs. Much of it I uninstall upon receipt. Be interesting to see how this works with just Win 7 as a start.

--pat

seilerbird · « **Reply #17 on:** October 28, 2009, 06:24:21 PM »

Quote from: John Canfield on October 28, 2009, 06:08:02 PM

Tom - My Satellite Pro came with *none* of the typical home machine crapware (crapware is a real problem as you state.) Speed was not an issue since I ordered a fast machine; the big issue was unpredictable performance.

Speaking about performance...

Vista for a fact is a dog on PCs with only 1 Gb of memory.

John - Unpredictable performance can be a problem if you don't disable the automatic defragging and the automatic indexing. Once you do that the performance is very predictable.

I ran Vista on a laptop with one gig for the first years I used Vista and it screamed. No performance problems whatsoever. I could run Photoshop, Lightroom and Adobe Audition all at the same time and still had no performance issues.

KodiakRV · « **Reply #18 on:** October 28, 2009, 08:20:03 PM »

Quote from: BernieD on October 28, 2009, 10:12:17 AM

I've basically finished upgrading my laptop from Vista to W7. I had run the Upgrade Advisor and was not notified of any issues for the upgrade. After running the upgrade, something hadn't clicked and the system was in a boot/Blue Screen of Death (BSOD)/shut down/reboot repetitive cycle...

Does your laptop have an AMD processor? I think the last XP service pack caused problems on machines with AMD processors by installing a file for Intel processors that it shouldn't have. I got into that problem with my sister's PC when I was rebuilding it after a drive failure.

BernieD · « **Reply #19 on:** October 29, 2009, 10:13:07 AM »

John

I ran VMSpc on my previous laptop with XP Pro and then on my next laptop with Vista (before the W7 upgrade). I didn't notice much difference between the two, maybe a little more stable in Vista. Not trying to argue, just hardware and software environments can provide different results.

John Canfield · « **Reply #20 on:** October 29, 2009, 12:44:19 PM »

Quote from: BernieD on October 29, 2009, 10:13:07 AM

Not trying to argue, just hardware and software environments can provide different results.

You are exactly correct Bernie - the hardware platform can make a substantial difference in how well the operating system or applications perform. Some environments don't play well with Vista.

FrontrangeRVer · « **Reply #21 on:** October 30, 2009, 09:04:08 AM »

I'm loving the Windows 7 (its amazingly fast), but the IE 8 that came with it has some compatibility issues.

John Canfield · « **Reply #22 on:** October 30, 2009, 09:15:49 AM »

Mark - IE8 has a 'compatibility mode' that might solve your problems. Try Firefox with AdBlock Plus (free add-on) that blocks about 99% of advertising.

FrontrangeRVer · « **Reply #23 on:** October 30, 2009, 01:44:08 PM »

Quote from: John Canfield on October 30, 2009, 09:15:49 AM

Mark - IE8 has a 'compatibility mode' that might solve your problems. Try Firefox with AdBlock Plus (free add-on) that blocks about 99% of advertising.

WOW! I just found the "Compatiblilty" button, pushed it, and NOW I am able to log into some of the websites I was unable to before! Thanks John! What I did was click on the button, close down IE8, open it again, and wala.....log in successful!

JNewkirk77 · « **Reply #24 on:** October 30, 2009, 05:12:02 PM »

To expand a little bit on what John said about Firefox, it's a MUCH more user-friendly browser. I have mine set up with all of the websites I frequent lined up across a taskbar.

John mentioned AdBlock Plus. Firefox does a pretty good job of keeping unwanted ads at bay, but ABP builds on that and makes it darn near perfect.

Also, if there's something you want to keep up on (weather, news, etc.), there is probably a free add-on application for it.

I tried IE8, but after Firefox, I'll never go back.

John Canfield · « **Reply #25 on:** October 30, 2009, 06:23:50 PM »

Quote from: FrontrangeRVer on October 30, 2009, 01:44:08 PM

WOW! I just found the "Compatiblilty" button, pushed it, and NOW I am able to log into some of the websites I was unable to before! Thanks John! What I did was click on the button, close down IE8, open it again, and wala.....log in successful!

Whoo-hoo - a lucky guess

Quote from: JNewkirk77 on October 30, 2009, 05:12:02 PM

I tried IE8, but after Firefox, I'll never go back.

Amen, amen, brother!!

Tom · « **Reply #26 on:** October 30, 2009, 06:38:16 PM »

Hate to throw a wet towel on all the euphoria, but today I checked store prices on Win 7. I couldn't help asking myself aloud in the store "why should I pay to fix the shortcomings in Vista?" This is deja vu all over again (many times); Microsoft charges people to fix things they didn't do right in the first place. I didn't purchase the upgrade.

John Canfield · « **Reply #27 on:** October 30, 2009, 06:42:37 PM »

I'm into free or low cost - that's why I have three PCs running Linux.

Ned · « **Reply #28 on:** October 30, 2009, 06:45:48 PM »

No one forces you to upgrade to Windows 7 but the improvements are far beyond just bug fixes. Bugs are handled with the monthly (or more frequent) Windows Updates. If you're happy with Vista or XP, there is no compelling reason to upgrade to Windows 7. Those of us that want the new features and improved old features will upgrade.

Or, like John, run Linux. It has updates almost daily

Tom · « **Reply #29 on:** October 30, 2009, 07:31:43 PM »

John,

I'm confused; I know you run Linux on some machines, but didn't you also just upgrade to Win 7

Tom · « **Reply #30 on:** October 30, 2009, 07:39:00 PM »

Quote from: Ned

No one forces you to upgrade to Windows 7...

Never suggested they did.

When I was in corporate America, if we designed/built/delivered a complex product that didn't perform as expected &/or had problems, we didn't/wouldn't/couldn't charge the customer to redesign/rebuild.

With the resources that MS has, and the numerous volunteer beta testers, there's really no excuse for them to deliver the buggy stuff they deliver, and absolutely no reason they should charge for fixing the limitations of the product. Calling them "new or enhanced features" is, at best, fooling the consumer.

By all means continue to line the pockets of MS and its over-paid people and, in so doing, encourage them to continually produce buggy &/or underperforming, over-bloated software.

There's a reason that Bill is the, or one of the, richest people on the planet

BTW MS has the largest number of $millionaire employees of any company. They respectfully ask that y'all continue to send them your hard earned $$.

John Canfield · « **Reply #31 on:** October 30, 2009, 08:39:44 PM »

Quote from: Tom on October 30, 2009, 07:31:43 PM

I'm confused; I know you run Linux on some machines, but didn't you also just upgrade to Win 7

Tom - nope.. not doing W7 yet but I will at some point since I'm a geek

Your critique of Microsoft I believe is accurate and well said. Bill G. happens to have quite a bit of technical and business prowess so here we are with W7. I think Apple's OSX is by far the absolutely best operating system - it has the efficiency and robustness of Unix with the corporate commitment to make certain all of the apps play well together.

DonTom · « **Reply #32 on:** October 30, 2009, 09:24:17 PM »

I got that three pack of Windows 7.

From the first install, I learned what to do for the second, so I could have it completely install when I am not even at home.

Here's some advice to those who are going to install it.

1. Uninstall I-tunes if you have it installed, or it will stop the installation after it checks for compatibility. And then you have to start over.

2. Turn all passwords off BEFORE upgrading. That way you can leave the computer for hours while installing and not have to enter any passwords. Or else you have to enter the password at every reboot and there are several reboots.

I was able to completely upgrade this computer to Win7 from the start to end without even being home.

-Don- SSF, CA

Tom · « **Reply #33 on:** October 31, 2009, 03:22:59 AM »

Quote from: John Canfield

... with the corporate commitment to make certain all of the apps play well together.

Aye John, that's a commitment they've stuck to from the beginning.

Ned · « **Reply #34 on:** October 31, 2009, 07:22:19 AM »

Since Windows runs on the vast majority of desktops, both business and consumer, in the world, and I make a lot of money writing software for those Windows systems, I benefit a lot more from MS than they do from me.

But I run Linux on my netbook

Tom · « **Reply #35 on:** October 31, 2009, 09:10:45 AM »

I found it interesting that Best Buy was selling Toshiba notebooks with Win 7 for approx $350. Didn't stop to check the specs on the Toshiba, or which version of Win 7. I've been thinking of getting a "cheap" computer for my grandson to play on, and was tempted to take a closer look. But I was on a mission yesterday, and figured I'd take another look next time I'm in town.

I realize that OEMs pay only a fraction of the retail cost of a full OS package, but it stuck me as ironic that I could buy a laptop with Win 7 installed for that price. Retail prices I've seen for Win 7 Home Premium range from approx $123 to $216.

BernieD · « **Reply #36 on:** October 31, 2009, 09:17:33 AM »

Quote from: Tom on October 30, 2009, 06:38:16 PM

Hate to throw a wet towel on all the euphoria, but today I checked store prices on Win 7. I couldn't help asking myself aloud in the store "why should I pay to fix the shortcomings in Vista?" This is deja vu all over again (many times); Microsoft charges people to fix things they didn't do right in the first place. I didn't purchase the upgrade.

Tom

MS has a "Family 3 Pack Upgrade" which has licenses for up to 3 computers. Costco sells it for about $131. Not that bad.

Tom · « **Reply #37 on:** October 31, 2009, 09:26:04 AM »

Thanks Bernie. I didn't see the family pack when I was in Costco yesterday, although I wasn't specifically looking for it. For some reason, they'd moved and compressed (shrunk) the software area of this particular store since I was there last, and it appeared they didn't have as many software choices as I was used to seeing there.

Meanwhile, since it's not broke, I'm not going to fix it, unless/until I need to. I have 2 laptops running XP, one running Vista, and Chris' desktop is running Vista. I'll let y'all find the bugs while I sit back and watch the same old scene play over again.

scottydl · « **Reply #38 on:** October 31, 2009, 10:54:15 AM »

Quote from: Ned on October 30, 2009, 06:45:48 PM

Bugs are handled with the monthly (or more frequent) Windows Updates.

More frequent, I'd say so! I get those things popping up every few DAYS.

Quote from: Ned on October 30, 2009, 06:45:48 PM

If you're happy with Vista or XP, there is no compelling reason to upgrade to Windows 7.

That pretty much says it for me. And I could probably even qualify for the $30 W7 upgrade for students. But I just don't see the need, and while I'm not thrilled to have Vista for "status" reasons (since it seems to be the "Windows ME" of this decade) I really have had no problems with it. Microsoft is my opinion has some major R&D problems if they can't come up with an OS that will last more than a few years.

I can't afford a Mac but this commercial rings awfully true...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpOvzGiheOM

FrontrangeRVer · « **Reply #39 on:** October 31, 2009, 11:15:36 AM »

In case it's interesting, and slightly off topic, but I work in the Energy Trading industry and have traded in the very biggest trade floors in Houston with over 1,000 traders/people on each floor. In over 25 years of trading, I have never seen a Mac anywhere....they just flat aren't the workhorse of the industry. I ran 8 screens on my workstation when I was trading in Houston....on a PC.

Now, at my church (mega-church), all the musicians have Macs....

Sorry, not trying to change this thread to a Mac vs PC thread....now back to the Windows 7 upgraded chat!

Tom · « **Reply #40 on:** October 31, 2009, 11:27:00 AM »

ROTFL Scott. Now if only Apple could meet some of the WinTel/WinAMD price points, they'd really see a huge swing in market share in their favor.

Ned · « **Reply #41 on:** October 31, 2009, 11:55:40 AM »

Apple will never see a significant market share until they open the architecture, and Jobs just won't do that. Proprietary architectures, even superior ones, have never survived long term in the technology industry. Remember Betamax, Arcnet, Microchannel, PS/2?

scottydl · « **Reply #42 on:** October 31, 2009, 12:23:03 PM »

True but Apple computers have been around for a LONG time, maybe never commanding the market but always holding onto a loyal customer base. And obviously the company trumped Microsoft in the music market, with the Ipod making up something like 95% of digital music players out there. Not to mention Itunes software... all proprietary creations.

I'm not even really a fan of Apple/Mac and do not own an Ipod (my mp3 player is a Sandisk Sansa) but their business position nowadays seems pretty secure.

Consumers seem to be Apple owners because they WANT to... and Microsoft owners because they HAVE to. Big difference.

John Canfield · « **Reply #43 on:** October 31, 2009, 02:31:32 PM »

Quote from: scottydl on October 31, 2009, 10:54:15 AM

Microsoft is my opinion has some major R&D problems if they can't come up with an OS that will last more than a few years.

Scotty - I don't think it is an R&D problem, but a business strategy. It would make no business sense to have a product so great nobody would ever see a reason to change

It is a shame Macs are so expensive and so proprietary - if they weren't, it would be my platform of choice (by a wide margin.) Macs are THE standard of professionals for video and graphics editing.

I have a older Mac 12" Powerbook and it is a thing of beauty (should be for the price!)

Pat · « **Reply #44 on:** October 31, 2009, 04:06:48 PM »

Just an opinion here, but many of the upgrades are not bug fixes, but rather security updates, in order to keep up with the bozoheads who keep spewing viruses and invading people's computers.

Now I'm going to back everything up and do a clean install of Win7 just for fun. I'm curious to see what components of this computer need updating from HP.

--pat

Tom · « **Reply #45 on:** October 31, 2009, 04:48:58 PM »

Quote from: Pat

... many of the upgrades are not bug fixes, but rather security updates...

There's two sides to that coin Pat. If MS did a better job of avoiding the gaping back doors that people keep finding in their software &/or if they did a better job of checking out the product before it ships, consumers wouldn't have to face the risks or put up with the continual security fixes. I detest the virus writers as much as the next person, but some of them do it just to show that MS can't deliver a secure product.

BernieD · « **Reply #46 on:** November 01, 2009, 07:59:29 PM »

Quote from: Tom on October 31, 2009, 09:26:04 AM

I didn't see the family pack when I was in Costco yesterday, although I wasn't specifically looking for it. For some reason, they'd moved and compressed (shrunk) the software area of this particular store since I was there last, and it appeared they didn't have as many software choices as I was used to seeing there.

Tom

It should be available on the website. I didn't see it either on the shelf yesterday at our local store. Costco has really cut back significantly on it's software selection. Somewhat disappointing. At least they stopped moving around the store what they did have.

RV Roamer · « **Reply #47 on:** November 01, 2009, 08:38:59 PM »

I updated my Vista system today and all went smoothly. I got warned in advance about one device driver but a check of the net showed I did indeed have the correct Win7 compatible driver so I went ahead and it worked fine.

Ned · « **Reply #48 on:** November 01, 2009, 08:40:17 PM »

To get back on topic, I did an install of Windows 7 to my MSI Wind netbook today. Followed the simple instructions on the MS TechNet article and copied the Windows 7 DVD to a USB flash drive and booted from it. Told the installer to format the C: drive and in about 20 minutes, Windows 7 was up and running on the netbook. Networking is so much simpler than previous Windows versions. It sees all my shares on my Vista desktop, but not the XP notebook. That one's getting Windows 7 soon so it's not a problem, I can still see it from my Vista desktop.

Pinning my most used programs to the task bar is a very useful improvement. No more setting keyboard hotkeys and trying to avoid conflicts although that feature is still available. I'll use it for less used programs.

So far, what I've seen says Windows 7 is the biggest single improvement in Windows since Windows 2000

Pat · « **Reply #49 on:** November 01, 2009, 11:24:32 PM »

Ned: I can't figure out how to pin Control Panel and Internet Options to my taskbar. I use them a lot and prefer them down on the bar. Any ideas? I did learn how to pin folders and other non-program shortcuts. I think pinning is a lot more complicated than the quick launch bar. I don't like the way the open programs mix in with the unopened icons. I think the new taskbar is a bad change for the sake of change the way the toolbars in MS Office 2007 are. I've worked with those things for a couple years now and still miss the menus.

Did you do any Win 7 clean installs? I upgraded on my PC, but I want to see what a clean install looks like. Hope it picks up the necessary video, audio, printer, scanner and other driversr for this HP. I have a touch screen and am interested to see if Win7 uses its own touchscreen drivers or if I have to do an HP update to get that back. I've had a tiny bit of mouse irregularity twice in the past week and a half since upgrading and had to recover the mouse functionaity by touching the screen.

One thing I have notice is that my internet connection has stopped crashing every hour or so.

--pat

Ned · « **Reply #50 on:** November 02, 2009, 08:07:26 AM »

I don't think you can pin control panel applets. I configure the control panel to open as a menu off the start menu so it's just 2 clicks to any applet.

Pinning should be used for the most used programs. I recall an article about recreating the quick launch toolbar but can't say where. A Google search should turn something up if you want to look for it. Applications on the task bar will be outlined if they're running, plain if not. I like the grouping of multiple instances into one icon. Makes much better use of the task bar space. The thumbnails make it easy to choose the instance too. It took me about 1 minute to see the benefits, but it is different.

The netbook install was a clean install. It had XP on it so I just formatted the drive during the installation. It has drivers for all the hardware too. Your HP may need some drivers from HP so have those on hand before you start. A clean install won't use anything from the old Windows on the machine.

Networking does seem much better, but I've never had a problem with the connections dropping. It's certainly easier to set up than either XP or Vista. Almost as easy as Linux

edjunior · « **Reply #51 on:** November 02, 2009, 08:45:45 AM »

Well, I just did the upgrade, and it went smooth as silk for me. No problems encountered. Took a long time though (at least 3 quarters of the Dallas Cowboys spanking of the Seattle Seahawks!). But it did just what it was supposed to, and other than a slightly new look, it brought everything over it was supposed to. I saw the part on "uninstall iTunes", but in the parenthesis it said "de-authorize the computer". That's all I did...I did not uninstall iTunes. Now, I haven't gotten around to playing with it, but W7 did install with no issues. More to come I'm sure.

BernieD · « **Reply #52 on:** November 02, 2009, 11:14:31 AM »

Quote from: Pat on November 01, 2009, 11:24:32 PM

Ned: I can't figure out how to pin Control Panel and Internet Options to my taskbar. I use them a lot and prefer them down on the bar. Any ideas? I did learn how to pin folders and other non-program shortcuts. I think pinning is a lot more complicated than the quick launch bar. I don't like the way the open programs mix in with the unopened icons. I think the new taskbar is a bad change for the sake of change the way the toolbars in MS Office 2007 are. I've worked with those things for a couple years now and still miss the menus.

Pat

I'm not on my W7 machine so am pushing my recollections very hard. There is a screen in W7 settings that offers you choice of desktop icons for "Computer", "Control Panel", "My Documents" and a couple of other choices. Don't remember how to get there.

Quote

Did you do any Win 7 clean installs? I upgraded on my PC, but I want to see what a clean install looks like. Hope it picks up the necessary video, audio, printer, scanner and other driversr for this HP. I have a touch screen and am interested to see if Win7 uses its own touchscreen drivers or if I have to do an HP update to get that back. I've had a tiny bit of mouse irregularity twice in the past week and a half since upgrading and had to recover the mouse functionaity by touching the screen.

I did a clean install after the upgrade issues with my Vista/Acer machine. The clean install cleaned up everything, but I did lose all of my crapware and some helpful programs (like keyboard mapping). All things considered, I am happier without the whole package. W7 had all of the drivers needed to get everything working after the install.

Tom · « **Reply #53 on:** November 02, 2009, 11:19:29 AM »

Just curious if there are printer driver issues going from XP to Win7 as there were going to Vista

BernieD · « **Reply #54 on:** November 02, 2009, 11:26:34 AM »

Quote from: Tom on November 02, 2009, 11:19:29 AM

Just curious if there are printer driver issues going from XP to Win7 as there were going to Vista

Tom

It depends on your printer. You must (most highly recommended) run the W7 Upgrade Advisor before doing the upgrade and it will tell you if the printer is compatible and where to find an upgraded driver, if available.

Tom · « **Reply #55 on:** November 02, 2009, 12:15:50 PM »

Thanks Bernie. When Vista came out, many printer drivers were either late or non existent, and Fry's was giving free printers way with new PCs.

Ned · « **Reply #56 on:** November 02, 2009, 01:11:18 PM »

XP drivers won't work with Windows 7 (or Vista either). Bernie's advice about the Upgrade Advisor is good. Be sure to have all your peripherals connected when you run it. This includes things like external disk drives, printers, scanners, etc. and be sure they're turned on

Tom · « **Reply #57 on:** November 02, 2009, 02:12:33 PM »

Thanks Ned. I wasn't asking if XP drivers would work with Win7, just trying to understand if Win7 drivers would be available for peripherals, unlike the Vista fiasco where a lot of folks had to buy new peripherals. I suppose this is down to the peripherals manufacturers, not MS. Is the Upgrade Advisor part of the Win7 package, or can it be downloaded without buying Win7?

Ned · « **Reply #58 on:** November 02, 2009, 02:26:00 PM »

The drivers are the responsibility of the peripheral manufacturer. Some chose not to write new drivers for Vista and 7 which forces the user to buy a new printer, scanner, etc. if they want to upgrade their OS. It's usually just the older models that won't have new drivers. Current products will almost all have Windows Vista/7 drivers available.

The Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor can be downloaded from here.

BernieD · « **Reply #59 on:** November 02, 2009, 02:48:39 PM »

Quote from: Tom on November 02, 2009, 02:12:33 PM

Thanks Ned. I wasn't asking if XP drivers would work with Win7, just trying to understand if Win7 drivers would be available for peripherals, unlike the Vista fiasco where a lot of folks had to buy new peripherals. I suppose this is down to the peripherals manufacturers, not MS. Is the Upgrade Advisor part of the Win7 package, or can it be downloaded without buying Win7?

Tom

Our Canon Pixma i4000 printer and Canoscan 9950F are both 3-4 years old and Canon has W7 drivers available. Many Vista drivers work in W7.

Tom · « **Reply #60 on:** November 02, 2009, 03:06:39 PM »

After reading Microsoft's privacy policy for the Upgrade Advisor, I decided not to run the app. I'll stick with XP on this and another machine, and Vista on two others.

Pat · « **Reply #61 on:** November 11, 2009, 09:34:00 PM »

Just did a clean install of Win7 yesterday. It's even better than the upgrade. Screen fonts are so much easier to see. I backed up well, but it turns out the clean install preserved all my data directories, such as music, audiobooks, personal files. All I had to reinstall was software. I had to reinstall HP Update from the HP Win7 64-bit web page, but running HP UPdate found nothing missing. I have a Touchsmart, and the touchscreen works fine with Win 7. I can't get over how clean, fast, and convenient Win 7 is.

I have to use QuickBooks and WordPerfect for workamping, and both installed better and faster with Win7 than they did with Vista. Intuit tried to tell me I need to buy QB 2010. Every time I reinstall and have to reregister QB, they waste a bunch of time trying to sell me stuff like payroll services. But I digress. QB 2008 is working just fine. The QB updates installed faster than ever.

I think the new video driver is better, and music is excellent. Then, again, this HP Touchsmart probably has especially good speakers or something. Media Player does a nice job with DVD movies. I'm leaving off all the stuff that came with the HP. So far Win7 is doing it all. Haven't written a CD or DVD yet.

--pat

Ned · « **Reply #62 on:** November 11, 2009, 09:49:05 PM »

Pat, thanks for the report. So far, I haven't seen much negative experience in installing Windows 7, either upgrade or clean install. I have 2 machines yet to do, but the MSI Wind runs it just fine. I expect the most problems with drivers for the Toshiba Notebook, but Toshiba has updates for most, if not all, of the hardware. My tower is a quite new, less than 1 year old, Asus system and I don't expect any problems upgrading it from Vista. I just need a day off to find the time to do the upgrade.

edjunior · « **Reply #63 on:** November 11, 2009, 09:53:48 PM »

Yup, I've been running it now for oh...nigh on two weeks with no problems at all. Put it on my laptop about a week ago, and though I don't use it much, it installed great on there also.

Pat · « **Reply #64 on:** November 11, 2009, 10:50:58 PM »

'Nother hint. I wanted to pin Control Panel to the taskbar. I found out I
1. Open Control Panel
2. It appears on the taskbar as an open folder
3. Right click on the folder and select Pin to Taskbar.

Works. I couldn't get the same thing to work for Internet Options, but I'll live with a Desktop icon.

--pat

Jeff · « **Reply #65 on:** November 11, 2009, 11:18:37 PM »

My copy of Win7 caught up with us this week so last night I did a full backup and got ready to install tonight.

Before ordering the pre-release upgrade I ran upgrade adviser that said my 2008 Toshiba was compatible with Win7 and listed about four programs they recommended removing and reinstalling after the upgrade. This seemed like no big deal so I ordered the upgrade.

Tonight I ran the install and got this message:

   The following issues are preventing Windows from upgrading. Cancel the upgrade, complete each task, and then restart the upgrade to continue.

   * For these items, make the following changes:

   Uninstall these programs. Open Control Panel and search for "uninstall a program".

   o Intel PROSet/Wireless

   Upgrading Windows will affect the following devices and/or programs:

   These devices might not work properly after the upgrade. Before upgrading, we recommend updating the drivers for these devices. Cancel the upgrade, open Control Panel and search for "update device drivers", or go to the device manufacturer's website to search for updated drivers.

   o Kernel USB Software Bus by TCP

   These programs might not work properly after the upgrade. We recommend uninstalling these programs before upgrading. Cancel the upgrade, open Control Panel, and search for "uninstall a program". (Note: Programs marked as * can be safely reinstalled after the upgrade.)

   o DIRECTV2PC *
   o iTunes (Please deauthorize computer prior to upgrade)
   o Bluetooth Stack for Windows by Toshiba
   o Windows Mobile Device Center 6.1 *
   o Bejeweled 2 Deluxe *

Still not too concerned until I went to the Toshiba website and found out that they only recommend upgrading 2009 laptops (those with the free W7 upgrade offer) and doing a clean install only on their 2007 and 2008 models.

Their software will only support an upgrade to the 2009 models and a clean install to the others. They do not recommend doing a manual install because there are "many" components that have to be individually downloaded and installed for the computer to operate properly.

I just had to reinstall all the programs on this laptop last year and am not very excited about going through this again so soon!

The new Apple TV ad about Win7 keeps coming to mind: "This time it will be different, trust me". (Or something like that).

KodiakRV · « **Reply #66 on:** November 15, 2009, 05:29:07 PM »

Quote from: Jeff on November 11, 2009, 11:18:37 PM

My copy of Win7 caught up with us this week so last night I did a full backup and got ready to install tonight.

Before ordering the pre-release upgrade I ran upgrade adviser that said my 2008 Toshiba was compatible with Win7 and listed about four programs they recommended removing and reinstalling after the upgrade...

Ouch. I think I have a similar Toshiba laptop model -- Satellite P105-S6197...

Please report back how it goes...

scottydl · « **Reply #67 on:** November 15, 2009, 07:33:04 PM »

2008 Toshiba here too... P205D-S7802

I'll wait to upgrade (if I do at all) until I hear back some status reports from other Toshiba owners.

tswms · « **Reply #68 on:** November 15, 2009, 09:10:43 PM »

I upgraded to 7 on my Toshiba L305. I did a clean install. Was easy and it works great. Check out Toshiba's website for instructions.
I can't wait to gety rid of Vista on my desktop.

Tony

John Canfield · « **Reply #69 on:** December 01, 2009, 02:29:49 PM »

Okay - I'm aboard... Just ordered an OEM version of W7 Pro 64 bit. My CPU will support XP Mode Virtualization so I'll be able to run my Adobe CS2 suite in XP Mode. Also all of my 8Gb or ram will be used (I run 64 bit Linux now, but 32 bit XP.) Also going to order Adobe CS4 so I'll have lots of stuff to play with this winter

.

Ned · « **Reply #70 on:** December 01, 2009, 03:46:31 PM »

I upgraded Lorna's notebook yesterday after installing Vista on it first. The upgrade to W7 was easy and everything was converted properly. After that experience I decided I would upgrade my desktop today. I have a LOT of software installed on this machine and a botched upgrade would be a serious problem as this is my development system. I did uninstall VMWare Desktop as I was going to upgrade that to version 7 anyway. I also uninstalled my backup software on the recommendation of the Windows 7 upgrade program. The actual upgrade took a couple of hours but everything works except my scanner. But that didn't work under Vista either, so no surprise there. This was from Vista 64 to Windows 7 64, both Home Premium editions.

John, I suggest rather than use the XP Virtualization mode, you get VMWare. It's on sale for 30% off today and tomorrow. Or if you don't want to buy a virtual machine program, get the free Virtual Box from Sun. Run CS2 in one of those, you have more than enough memory, but you do need a Windows XP or Vista 32 license. I'm sure you have one of those around that you're no longer using

Jeff · « **Reply #71 on:** December 01, 2009, 04:05:09 PM »

Ned:

Is that Lorna's Toshiba? If so did you follow their recommendation to do a clean install or did you do an upgrade? If you did upgrade did you use Toshiba's software to upgrade the drivers?

I still have the Win7 package sitting here.

My Xmas present was a HP Mini netbook with Win7 Starter installed that seems to work nicely.

John Canfield · « **Reply #72 on:** December 01, 2009, 04:06:15 PM »

Ned - glad W7 worked out okay for you. I might ultimately install it on my Satellite Pro. I don't anticipate needing to run Virtualization mode very much - only until I get CS4.

I'll totally blow away my XP partition on my big tower and start fresh with W7 - I was running out of room anyway and I can easily reinstall the few apps I run in Windoze.

I'm really looking forward to running CS4 in a 64 bit OS - I looked at the specs on the Adobe website and the CS4 apps are written for 64 bit

John Canfield · « **Reply #73 on:** December 01, 2009, 04:07:15 PM »

Quote from: Jeff on December 01, 2009, 04:05:09 PM

My Xmas present was a HP Mini netbook with Win7 Starter installed that seems to work nicely.

It's not Christmas yet! (You'll love having a netbook!)

Jeff · « **Reply #74 on:** December 01, 2009, 04:10:07 PM »

Quote from: John Canfield on December 01, 2009, 04:07:15 PM

It's not Christmas yet! (You'll love having a netbook!)

John:

If I get what I want around Thanksgiving everyone backs off spending money on me for something I will probably return.

Now I will get books and shirts.

John Canfield · « **Reply #75 on:** December 01, 2009, 04:11:52 PM »

Or maybe <gasp> underwear

Jeff · « **Reply #76 on:** December 01, 2009, 04:14:58 PM »

Quote from: John Canfield on December 01, 2009, 04:11:52 PM

Or maybe <gasp> underwear

Nah, I have three weeks supply.

Ned · « **Reply #77 on:** December 01, 2009, 04:16:37 PM »

Jeff, yes, it's Lorna's Satellite and I installed Vista clean, but upgraded that to 7. I did have to install the 2 Vista service packs first. Toshiba says that model doesn't support Windows 7 but everything is working. It even installed drivers for the fingerprint reader that never worked right under XP. I did not use the Toshiba upgrade software, just let Windows handle everything. There were several driver updates after the upgrade as well as a load of security fixes.

KodiakRV · « **Reply #78 on:** December 01, 2009, 09:52:05 PM »

Quote from: Ned on December 01, 2009, 04:16:37 PM

Jeff, yes, it's Lorna's Satellite and I installed Vista clean, but upgraded that to 7...

Was that W7 32-bit or 64-bit?

Ned · « **Reply #79 on:** December 02, 2009, 07:33:09 AM »

32 bit on the Satellite, but 64 bit on my desktop.

scottydl · « **Reply #80 on:** December 02, 2009, 08:54:23 AM »

Quote from: Ned on December 02, 2009, 07:33:09 AM

32 bit on the Satellite, but 64 bit on my desktop.

How does a person know which "bit" version they are running, and why does it matter?

tvman44 · « **Reply #81 on:** December 02, 2009, 09:07:23 AM »

I installed my Vista to "7" upgrade night before last on my new Toshiba laptop and it went smoothly and seems to work well. Have not used it enough to say it is any better or not. But have been told it is faster but I don't see how.

Ned · « **Reply #82 on:** December 02, 2009, 09:12:47 AM »

Control Panel | System and it will tell you if you are running a 32 or 64 bit version. It matters because 32 bit operating systems (not just Windows) can only address up to 3.3GB of memory while a 64 bit OS can address more than you can put in the computer. Also, not all peripherals have 64 bit drivers available, so if that's a consideration, it limits you to a 32 bit OS. If you have any very old 16 bit programs, they won't run under a 64 bit OS.

scottydl · « **Reply #83 on:** December 02, 2009, 10:20:53 AM »

Thanks Ned - I'll stick with 32bit for now, as I do have some older games that the kids play and I'm sure probably wouldn't handle the new software. My laptop memory tops out at 4gb of memory anyway (which I'm planning on doing soon, currently at 2gb) so I won't lose too much of that max.

Jeff · « **Reply #84 on:** December 02, 2009, 04:19:27 PM »

I have 64 bit Vista with 4GB of RAM on my T5800 Core Duo processor Toshiba and was concerned that Win7 with 1GB on my new HP Mini would be really slow. It handles what I bought it for very well running Firefox, Streets & Trips, and VMSPC while we are traveling.

I thought about selling the Win7 upgrade I bought for the Toshiba rather than reinstalling all the software but I guess I'll bite the bullet one of these nights and do a clean install.

John Canfield · « **Reply #85 on:** December 04, 2009, 10:43:56 PM »

Just loaded W7 on my primary tower and it went really well EXCEPT it wrote over the master boot record where Grub is installed (I dual boot into Linux and Windows, at least I used to do that.) Thank you very much Bill G. So now I need to start again (I guess) with installing Ubuntu.

W7Pro 64 bit is way faster than XP Home 32 bit, but that is to be expected. I think the Aero desktop is okay, but it has nothing over KDE or Gnome. 64 bit Ubuntu was a screamer as well.

One really neat thing was W7 had a driver for my pen tablet - that was a totally unexpected and pleasant surprise.

Ned · « **Reply #86 on:** December 05, 2009, 07:44:49 AM »

The boot record situation has been discussed at length in various Linux and Windows forums. I don't think you need to reinstall Ubuntu, just Grub. A Google search should turn up the discussions.

I was pleasantly surprised when Windows 7 had drivers for just about everything on the Toshiba notebook. I was planning on installing lots of additional drivers, but the only one that was critical was the Toshiba Raid controller driver that was needed to do the Windows install. I had to load that from a flash drive during the installation and update the BIOS to the latest version.

John Canfield · « **Reply #87 on:** December 05, 2009, 09:02:30 AM »

Quote from: Ned on December 05, 2009, 07:44:49 AM

The boot record situation has been discussed at length in various Linux and Windows forums. I don't think you need to reinstall Ubuntu, just Grub. A Google search should turn up the discussions.

Ned - after I realized Bill G messed with me, I then remembered reading about the situation a year ago when I initially set up the tower. I'll see what I can do to get Grub back into action - thanks for the suggestion.

KodiakRV · « **Reply #88 on:** December 05, 2009, 09:53:26 AM »

Quote from: Ned on December 01, 2009, 04:16:37 PM

Jeff, yes, it's Lorna's Satellite and I installed Vista clean, but upgraded that to 7. I did have to install the 2 Vista service packs first. Toshiba says that model doesn't support Windows 7 but everything is working...

What model # is Lorna's Satellite? Although I bought my P105-S6197 in March 2007, the second digit of "6" in the serial number means it was made in 2006, which knocks it out of the time period that Toshiba says they support for W7 installation...

Ned · « **Reply #89 on:** December 05, 2009, 11:42:55 AM »

The Toshiba is a Qosmio (not Satellite, my mistake) G35-AV650 and it's a 2006. Even though Toshiba doesn't officially support Windows 7 on it, doesn't mean you can't install it.

John Canfield · « **Reply #90 on:** December 05, 2009, 12:24:06 PM »

I messed with Grub and got Ubuntu booting again, then I couldn't boot into W7 from the Grub menu after I edited it to point to the W7 partition. Then, nothing would boot

. So, now I'm busy reinstalling W7, then I'll reinstall Ubuntu. Linux knows how to play well with other operating systems, Windoze doesn't.

Ran into a problem (W7) trying to add a network printer (HP Laserjet 1200) from a Linksys print server - even though it appears as a Windows network share, W7 will not recognize it. Downloaded the W7 driver from HP and it still didn't work. I'll have to do some more research (after W7 reinstalls

.)

Ned · « **Reply #91 on:** December 05, 2009, 12:37:46 PM »

Nice way to spend a cold Saturday, installing operating systems

I'm waiting for my hose bibs to thaw out.

John Canfield · « **Reply #92 on:** December 05, 2009, 01:08:49 PM »

- I don't think our heat pump shut off last night! Left a faucet running last night, so we're good on water. Our low was 21.3 a little after midnight.

Ned · « **Reply #93 on:** December 05, 2009, 01:26:34 PM »

I'm surprised a heat pump worked down to 21F. We ran the furnace as it heats the utility bay as well as the floor. Disconnected the hose and drained it.

Lowell · « **Reply #94 on:** December 05, 2009, 01:56:55 PM »

Quote from: John Canfield on December 05, 2009, 01:08:49 PM

- I don't think our heat pump shut off last night! Left a faucet running last night, so we're good on water. Our low was 21.3 a little after midnight.

Windows 7 comes with a heat pump

KodiakRV · « **Reply #95 on:** December 05, 2009, 02:50:58 PM »

Quote from: Lowell on December 05, 2009, 01:56:55 PM

Windows 7 comes with a heat pump

Only when you spend the extra 32-bits to upgrade to 64-bit.

John Canfield · « **Reply #96 on:** December 05, 2009, 04:51:34 PM »

Quote from: Ned on December 05, 2009, 01:26:34 PM

I'm surprised a heat pump worked down to 21F.

I wish - the heat strips were probably sucking up the kilowatts all night

W7 with a heat pump? Actually I should overclock my system (all of the components I chose for my system were designed to be overclocked) and devise a heat exchanger

Ned · « **Reply #97 on:** December 05, 2009, 05:20:11 PM »

Ah, heat strips will work at any temperature

Heat pumps won't work much below 35F.

My CPU core temps had been running around 90+C. I took the system apart the other day to install some RAM and vacuumed out about 10 lbs of dust bunnies, much of it from the CPU fan. Temps are now in the 60C range.

John Canfield · « **Reply #98 on:** December 05, 2009, 05:59:02 PM »

Save the dust bunnies to insulate your shed

It's amazing how quickly the dust collects - of course having five or six fans running helps the dust collection process!

I just installed Gigabyte's mobo drivers from the included CDROM and now there is a USB device that is not recognized in W7, but nothing is plugged in the USB ports <sigh> - I disabled the device. Dummy, dummy, dummy me - should have checked Gigabyte's download page first for W7 stuff. Gigabyte has a scan utility that supposedly scans your system and all it said I needed was a sound driver upgrade. W7 says I'm up-to-date.

Gigabyte does say my mobo (GA-EP45-UD3P) is W7 friendly - maybe the USB thing is an anomaly. I can always reinstall everything

Edit: our heat pump has worked at the stick house below freezing, not very well, but it has worked, I'm lobbying the treasurer for a wood burning stove - one of those high-efficiency types.

Ned · « **Reply #99 on:** December 05, 2009, 06:53:00 PM »

We'll bring the dust bunnies along on the 15th for your stove

The Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor said all my hardware was compatible except for the scanner. I really like Asus mobos. I have no flagged devices and everything works. Even the scanner with VueScan that installs its own driver for unsupported scanners.

John Canfield · « **Reply #100 on:** December 06, 2009, 09:12:51 AM »

The fun just doesn't stop - it looks like Ubuntu's partitoner didn't use the 140 Gb empty partition but somehow installed in a 2Gb partition - found out when I was going to upgrade to 9.10. Not enough room

Ned · « **Reply #101 on:** December 06, 2009, 09:50:04 AM »

John, that's what happens when you accept the defaults

John Canfield · « **Reply #102 on:** December 06, 2009, 08:55:32 PM »

Quote from: Ned on December 06, 2009, 09:50:04 AM

John, that's what happens when you accept the defaults

Welll...

I accepted the partitioner's defaults when I installed Ubuntu 9.04 on top of Mandriva and apparently it knew I wanted to reuse the existing ext3/4 file system, that worked out quite well.

I blew everything away and reinstalled W7 again due to the USB device not recognized error, but I don't think that was necessary - apparently I needed an optional Nvida update since I was still getting the USB error with the second install. So far, so good after all important and optional updates were installed.

This time for the Ubuntu install, I used the manual partitioner and all is well

I like the W7 user interface very much. Boot time is really, really fast - maybe as fast or faster than Ubuntu.

I installed the XP Virtualization application, but haven't used it yet - I'll use that for my Adobe CS2 install.

Ned · « **Reply #103 on:** December 07, 2009, 08:15:44 AM »

It did take a couple of trips to Windows Update after installation of Windows 7 to get all the device drivers needed, but none of them were overly large so it was a quick process.

News:

Author Topic: Windows 7 upgraded - very neat and clean upgrade (Read 3187 times)