Resolved Updating an old computer from XP to W7

I've been running into issues with various items out there because my steam-powered box is still on XP. I've been keeping it that way because DW's ASUS eeePC net-book was also an XP machine.

A few days ago, DW dumped a glass of Pinot Grigio over the keyboard of her machine and didn't realise it until the next morning. the eeePC is now toast!

We don't want to go Win 8. All the available replacement small laptops and refurbished eeePCs I can find locally are Win 7. I want to keep my box and hers to have the same OS. At the present time, buying a new computer for me isn't an option.

I've looked at the requirements for W7 and I appear to meet them all for the 32-bit version, except for the graphics device.

Here's my comparison chart:

Current configuration:
Processor AMD Athlon XP3200+
Proc. Speed 2.2 GHz
RAM 1.93 GB
Op. System Windows XP Home (2000 ed.) thru SP-3
Graphics device NVIDIA GeForce4 MX Integrated GPU
HD-Capacity (C:drive) 300GB nominal 259GB free space

MS says requirements for Win 7 are:

Processor - 1 GHz or faster
RAM - 1 GB for 32-bit version, 2 GB for 64-bit version
HDD - 16GB for 32-bit version, 20 GB for 64-bit version
Graphics - Direct X 9 with WDDM 1.0 or higher

It looks as though the 32-bit version would work, except for the graphics card and maybe the RAM is on the edge. I'm at the maximum the mother board will accept, I think, but that may be an XP limitation. Any advice on those concerns would be appreciated.


Comments, please.

 

Win 7 32 bit should happily work on the system.

Most of the motherboards can go upto 4 GB RAM but it depends on the number of slots you have. If you have only 2 slots, you would have to purchase 2 x 2GB RAM to upgrade to 4 GB & chuck out or trade in the existing RAM.

 

Did you run the test or just look at the specs? Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor

 

Thanks, Bill. I've just run the Advisor, and as I expected, my IGP can't hack it. I did install a good separate video card a while back, but something got scrambled and I had to remove it and revert to the IGP.

I'll be taking a closer look later today. I suspect another card may be necessary.

Thanks for your help. Most folks I've talked to who are long-time Microsofties don't have much good to say about Win 8 so I'm not rushing out to buy a new computer, as they all seem to have it these days.

My MS exposure started out with Win 3.0 and I'd been working with simulation software in assembly language on Honeywell DDP and Singer Link computers for several years before that. At one time in the ancient past, I was fairly competent in ALGOL and FORTRAN, too.

Momma just got an iPad as a gift, and I can't understand it. I'm not sure I want to start over with Apple software after all this time with MS. She wiped out her Asus net-book a few weeks ago by dumping a glass of Chardonnay over the keyboard while it was switched on and it remained on all night, swimming in the wine. Our local repair shop says it's toast. She's having so much grief with the iPad, there may be a used Windows net-book in her near future!

 

There are still some Windows 7 machines left over for the taking at good prices. Check Newegg out.

 

James:

I had all kinds of trouble with NewEgg's website and gave up in frustration. If I were to replace my desktop, it would be with a middle-range laptop, but the financing is just not there. I fear I'll be driving my 10 year old eMachines rig until it dies of old age!

If we get DW another netbook, it will probably be a refurbished ASUS eeePC like the one that died from too much wine. A local computer store is in the process of restoring one and it will have Win 7. If the price is reasonable, we'll probably buy it. DW is having a difficult time converting to the logic and style of Apple software on the iPad our kids gave her. I'm so ****** off at Apple's deliberate effort to make their devices incomprehensible to Microsofties, I've given up on the thing!

If we get W7 on a replacement net-book, I'll probably update my old clunker to W7 also. I will need another video card, particularly if I want the translucent "Aero" format. I tried a new stand-alone video card a while back, which worked beautifully when I first installed it, but it scrambled my entire system after I added more RAM.

I'll also need a newer Quicken (no big deal). A few MS programs I've never used won't work with W7 - no big loss. The link to the analyser was very useful - Thanks, Dr.Bill

 

Try this book from Que Publishing. My iPad http://www.quepublishing.com/store/...-ipad-2-ipad-3rd-4th-generation-9780789750334

 

Here's a link to a Windows 7 machine that SpywareDr posted awhile back...

http://www.dell.com/us/eep/p/inspiron-660s/pd?oc=fdcwst06bw7&model_id=inspiron-660s

The price went up a bit since then.

I saw an article on the web about a month ago declaring that Windows 8 laptops can be had for black Friday prices due to the public's dislike of Windows 8 user interface, but that can be fixed with programs such as Classic Shell.

 

Dell Inspiron 660s, with Windows 7, start at $359 (USD)

Dell Outlet > Inspiron One 2020 - $409 (USD) (Computer, 20" Monitor, Keyboard, Mouse, Windows 7 64-bit).