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  • #2203444

    Can a first-time computer user handle Vista?

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    by jardinier ·

    A friend of mine is in the process of purchasing her first ever computer. It will be a laptop preloaded with Vista. Perhaps I will be required to help set it up. I have never looked at Vista and do not intend to.

    Question 1: Will I be able to figure it out and help her get started?

    Question 2: I have a large library of software, covering just about anything you could think of. Most of it was designed for Windows 95 or 98. How much of this stuff will run on Vista?

    I have plenty of Vista compatible software for general purposes, but there is a lot more that was released prior to Vista and especially also prior to XP.

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    • #2936301

      Its not that bad.

      by woko1133 ·

      In reply to Can a first-time computer user handle Vista?

      Jardinier.

      Its not that hard to get the hang of, you will have to have a little play about with it, when I first used it wasn?t that bad.

      and no the 95 98 software wont work, some of the XP stuff does.

      Thanks
      Tom

    • #2936300

      Why even ask when…..

      by the ‘g-man.’ ·

      In reply to Can a first-time computer user handle Vista?

      you state:

      ‘I have never looked at Vista and do not intend to’

      • #2936285

        Yes I realized after posting

        by jardinier ·

        In reply to Why even ask when…..

        that that was a dumb question. Naturally I WILL have to look at it.

    • #2936293

      a thought or two…

      by —tk— ·

      In reply to Can a first-time computer user handle Vista?

      Think of vista as a modified XP… Its all the same, just in different places. I would say about 25% of your old software will run… But what all do you really need? Open office, AVG, Spybot S&D, and FireFox3 will all run and are free…

      • #2936275

        Free software

        by jardinier ·

        In reply to a thought or two…

        Yes I am aware that all these programs will run on Vista. Incidentally I have discovered a new free AV “avast” which is worth looking into. Ad-Aware Anniversary Edition is a very good free spyware program — it detected a trojan and made swift work of it. Yes a trojan. I thought that was classified as a virus but whatever, Ad-Aware killed it.

        When I refer to other software, it is largely reference material — dictionaries, religious and so forth — that install onto the hard drive.

        I have collected software compulsively and unashamedly since I purchased my first Windows (3.1) computer in 1995.

        These days I buy a lot of miscellaneous software at very cheap prices from worldstart.com If you live in the USA it is especially worth checking out as handling and postage are free.

        Most of the stuff they advertise now is Vista compatible.

        But you need to understand that I am asking from the point of view of a software junkie. 🙂

    • #2936290

      YES and NO

      by mjd420nova ·

      In reply to Can a first-time computer user handle Vista?

      #1 You shouldn’t have too much trouble with Vista, and the intended user will most likely have no problems as it will be their first encounter with the OS, where you have had some preconcieved ideas from having worked with WIN95/WIN98.
      #2 I do however think you will be met with a brick wall trying to run any software made for any previous versions of Windows. Possibly some will work and you will have to work with the compatablity section on Vista to determine what will and will not work.

    • #2936261

      My answers (those asked for and otherwise)

      by maxwell edison ·

      In reply to Can a first-time computer user handle Vista?

      [i]Can a first-time computer user handle Vista? [/i]

      Yes, absolutely. In fact, in my opinion, it would be better to learn the newest technology rather than the older.

      [i]Question 1: Will I be able to figure it out and help her get started?[/i]

      You won’t have as high a learning curve as she will, but you will find that things are quite different, and you might struggle to find certain things that are named differently, in different locations, and so on. As such, I believe you would be more helpful if you learned it first.

      If you have no intention of learning Vista, then I would suggest you refer her to someone else for help. You might make it even more difficult for her to learn Vista. For example, you might have a tendency (as most people would) to say things like, [i]in Windows 98 blah, blah, blah…… and, I’m used to blah, blah, blah……. and, let’s look here…. no, it’s not there, let’s go here….. no, it’s not there either.[/i] Those kinds of things might only go to confuse a new learner more, not less.

      [i]Question 2: I have a large library of software, covering just about anything you could think of. Most of it was designed for Windows 95 or 98. How much of this stuff will run on Vista?[/i]

      All software license requirements should be followed. Sharing software is usually a violation of those requirements (unless it’s freeware). Learning software licensing requirements – and following them – should be part of the computing learning process for a first-time user.

      When a person purchases software, the compatibility list is made available. If it’s freeware, you might just have to install it and see if it works. Be advised, however; by installing a bunch of software, only to uninstall it later (or worse yet, leave it there) will only serve to junk up the Windows Registry. I’m a strong advocate of installing only what you’ll need and what you’ll use; leave all the other stuff off of it.

      • #2936243

        [i]in Windows 98 blah, blah,[/i]

        by jardinier ·

        In reply to My answers (those asked for and otherwise)

        No problems there Max. I am pretty good at teaching people anything, and I will be learning Vista for myself. I will not make reference to earlier OSs unless I am asked.

        As for software sharing, correct me if I am wrong, but doesn’t the EULA specify that the software is installed on only ONE computer at any given time? You see I have heaps of software that I have collected but either not installed, or uninstalled when upgrading.

    • #2936258

      Hey mate, give it a go

      by deadly ernest ·

      In reply to Can a first-time computer user handle Vista?

      and if it doesn’t work, you can always wipe it and load PCLinux or Mepis LInux or Kubuntu, all of which have a strong Win 98 feel to it so they’ll feel at home.

      But give the Vista a go first just so you know what it’ s like.

      Another aspect, when you look at buying the system, some of the Dells etc come with a special disc if you ask for it, the disc will allow you to Upgrade it back to Win XP using the same licence as the Vista install.

      • #2936246
        • #2936236

          XP downgrade?

          by jardinier ·

          In reply to On the XP downgrade

          Although I have never had my hands on a Vista machine, the OS was blasted so heavily here at TR that I decided to give it a miss. My mate Patrick who has a computer shop had customers coming in with laptops preinstalled with Vista asking to get rid of it and install XP.

          When I purchased a brand new laptop last year I was insistent that it had XP Pro. It is an ASUS computer. I daresay I could obtain a Vista upgrade if I ever wanted it.

          I am not the least bit interested in Windows “critical updates.” However my various XP machines do install upgrades automatically from time to time.

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