Got a new computer with Windows 8 - it's like landing on a different planet

[JanetB]

Jan: Before you indulge in new equipment it may be a good idea to visit the website of the scanner's manufacturer. I thought I would have to buy a new printer when I upgraded from Vista to W7. However I was advised to go to the Kodak site and do a search for Windows 7 drivers for my printer. Which has worked well since then. Hopefully they will be there or the manufacturer will be able to tell you when they will be available.

Hubby went and did that (Microtek) and unfortunately they do not accommodate Windows8

[JanetB]

Ive been using XP since it came out and loved it.. Dont want to upgrade but sadly MS will stop updates in April
and so will have to upgrade or get a new computer with a new operating system. I HATE CHANGE lol

I can understand your apprehension. We were the same, hanging on as tight as and as long as we could. Our main problem though, was our computer (1gb RAM - 8+ years old) was running slower than I could take a shower. But, like you say, MS are discontinuing support/updates in April 2014 so we took the plunge and took advantage of the good deals now on offer.

[cheaver]

what OS run smoothly with 4MB Ram this days.

If it's 4GB then any of the distros will run - Mint being the obvious choice.

[lofty100e]

Ive been using XP since it came out and loved it.. Dont want to upgrade but sadly MS will stop updates in April
and so will have to upgrade or get a new computer with a new operating system. I HATE CHANGE lol

One alternative would be to go second-hand and buy a computer with either Windows 7 or Vista installed. (I would not reccomend Vista, but you can still pick up Windows 7 upgrade discs at the moment. From what I have heard of W8 I will not be using it unless I really have to. I have not read of or talked to anyone who likes it yet.

Or possiblly you could stick with XP, making sure you have up to date an ativirus and a non-windows firewall. That hopefully would keep it safe, although I am not sure how safe it would be.

[shabbird]

sorry.. yes 4GB. I have comdo security.. antivirus and firewall.. which has been rated very well.
But I wouldn't want to use without XP updates..I checked the google news and they will only support chrome updates..
which means other applications are still at risk.

I have 4 months and will use that time to come up with an alternative,. Thanks for the advice everyone. really appreciated.

[craig7501]

You sure it's windows 8 and not 8.1 which all new computers have been upgraded to now, if it is windows 8 and you upgrade for free to 8.1 you may find there is a problem with the WIFI signal becoming limited/no connection available should you get this just holla and I'll tell ya how to reset it so you still have 8.1 and full wifi internet

[burgyeb]

Hubby and I looked around all over, websites, stores, catalogs etc for at least 4 months with choices of laptops, notepads, desktops, all in ones, touch screen types etc and we ended up purchasing at our local Costco store - sale price + good specs + 2 years free concierge service

I will probably follow a similar approach over the next 3-4 months. This thread has been helpful in gaining insight into some of the options. Found it interesting that most have indicated purchase sources from local wholesale brick & mortar to catalog purchasing. I will probably start my search at a couple of my local wholesale clubs. The service package is very important for me, as well as the price and specs.

[JanetB]

Being not all THAT computer techie, we decided in the end it was best to go to a store where an expert could explain all the techno jargon, pros and cons etc. After all was said and done and tried, we went for another desktop tower computer. The all in ones and touch screen types were really cool, and, although laptops are very handy, we felt we didn't need one as we don't travel about to warrant having one, but in the end it was finances that kept us on the straight and narrow plus (and I keep repeating) we wanted at least 12gb RAM (that should keep us going, speedwise for quite some time).

[johnwash1]

sorry.. yes 4GB. I have comdo security.. antivirus and firewall.. which has been rated very well.
But I wouldn't want to use without XP updates..I checked the google news and they will only support chrome updates..
which means other applications are still at risk.

I have 4 months and will use that time to come up with an alternative,. Thanks for the advice everyone. really appreciated.

4GB? That's a huge amount of ram. I've been teaching a bunch of absolute beginners, using old computers with 1GB of ram. Linux runs beautifully in such machines, and in particular Ubuntu Linux is ever so easy to use. It's a far easier transition from XP to Ubuntu (or Linux Mint) than to Windows 8.

[sherlock07]

I have a question about Linux, is it possible to run windows programs on Linux, perhaps by using an emulator?