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Tessa the Duchess

Computer says no

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DH's pc went kaput about 2 weeks ago. He has been sharing my Mac laptop, which I really don't like, I regard my laptop the same way I regard my toothbrush, don't wanna share it :shock: Have put a wanted ad on Freecycle for a used pc but no luck so far. Soooooo he is 'thinking' about buying a new pc in the sales. Trouble is they are all pre-loaded with Vista which I have heard very bad things about :evil: DH is a luddite and had only just got used to XP. Anybody have an views about Vista? I have heard that you can't use oldish printers or scanners with it and you have to update everything...true? Thanks

 

Tessa.

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You would have to update the dirvers, which you can do for free online. At work, I order all our machines directly from Dell, where you can specify which version of Windows you would like them to pre-load.

 

I have also heard that the first version of Vista is pants... no doubt they will supply downloads, patches and various service packs to remedy this... over time :roll:

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my PC has Vista on it and I havn't had any problems, although saying that, i can't burn cds on iTunes on my machine for some unknown reason. One thing I love about Vista is that if you scroll over the open windows at the bottom of the screen, it shows you a little screen version of it so you can see what's there (that doesn't make sense does it?!)

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I recently had to buy a new PC and that came with Vista. I was all prepared to reformat and load XP BUT I've found it very nice.

 

Now I can't say I've used it that much as I'm usually on my laptop in front of the sofa but there are some lovely features and I havn't encountered any problems. I've loaded all my drivers easily and been been using all my peripherals without hassle.

 

As will all versions of Microsoft software each one is supposed to make life easier for the PC novice. Personally I'd rather still be working in DOS when you had to have some idea of what you were doing.

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Thanks for the replies. So answers pretty divided then, some people think it's ok and others think it's pants :roll: I like the idea of ordering from Dell and choosing which OS is loaded, but DH won't buy one mail order as he says he does not want the faff of sending it back if it goes wrong, which with his luck, it probably will

:roll: I think I'll give Freecycle another go, hope someone got a new computer for christmas and is giving away the old one, otherwise it's PC world for me.

 

Tessa

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i have vista on my laptop and i must say its great.

all the laptops at my old school were from dell, several did have to go back and they took ages to be returned. luckily the school bought some spares and they were shared around. i thought my dell was great (luckily i didnt have a broken one).

with vista it has been great with all my old printers, scanners, cameras and camcorders. it downloads updates from the internet and you dont even have to load the startup disks the computer finds the programs it needs online. it is easier to use than xp but its easy to flick between the two as our desktop has xp and laptop vista and i am sometimes on both at once.

when we bought a laptop this time around i went to pc world as they did offer the best price (and i spent weeks researching) and they did a better deal on extra software.

have you tried john lewis?, they had some great deals in the sales.

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Sparklee wrote:

 

have you tried john lewis?, they had some great deals in the sales.

 

Didn't think of john lewis, might have a look tomorrow at their sale. I did go on Dell's website after hearing such good comments from posters. But all their stuff is also loaded with Vista and I couldn't see any mention of being able to choose the OS.

Anyway DH is now umming and aaahing between a pc and a laptop :roll::roll: blokes eh :roll: make up your mind already!! :)

 

Tessa

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i have found in the past that john lewis are great for aftersales service, they have replaced faulty goods without a problem and they often have a longer waranty than other stores. they do price match as well, unfortunately they didnt sell the laptop that i bought because i would have priced matched it at john lewis.

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I have two Dell pc's a desktop and a laptop both are fine. I am yet to hear a good word about Vista!

 

I run Linux Ubuntu on both machines, it is great and it's free including office applications etc. No real worries about viruses either.

 

Admittedly you need to be a bit more computer literate if things go wrong but they don't tend to so much.

 

With Windows I used to have to do a fresh reinstall every now and then to correct things.

 

I ditched Windows mainly because of the aggressive and poor piracy protection software included in the windows update which im my opinion is Spyware. This kept telling me that the legit version I had paid good money for from a reputable source was pirated.

 

Linux does all of the flashy gimmicks Vista does without needing a really high spec machine to run it.

 

The IT guy at work described Vista as XP with a bad respray.

 

The down side to Linux is not everything works perfectly due to problems with drivers being designed exclusively for Windows and the unwillingness of some companies to provide open source versions.

 

My laptop for example has a SD card reader that I can't get to work. That is a small gripe really. Linux isn't really for the gaming enthusiast either but I am sure things wll improve as it gains popularity.

 

I wouldn't touch PC World with a barge poll, maybe I am just unlucky but everytime I ask for advice in that place I end up speaking to the guy who only works there because he couldn't get a job at KFC.

 

A company I use a lot for computery stuff is CCL computers, I can highly recommend them. See link below.

 

www.cclonline.co.uk

 

Kev.

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I wouldn't touch PC World with a barge poll, maybe I am just unlucky but everytime I ask for advice in that place I end up speaking to the guy who only works there because he couldn't get a job at KFC.

 

 

:lol: :lol:

Oh, he must have changed branch then Richard, as he used to work near me!!!

 

The staff there are generally useless and more interested in selling you the 'insurance' as they earn commission on that!

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I work in an independant Computer Suppliers on Wednesdays (accounts - I know nothing about computers :roll: ) - if you knew how many people come in saying "I bought it at PCWorld....." The aftercare from the main high street suppliers is apalling.

 

Independants are pricier but you should get good aftercare and advice. Dell also have good aftercare.

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Kev wrote:

 

I ditched Windows mainly because of the aggressive and poor piracy protection software included in the windows update which im my opinion is Spyware. This kept telling me that the legit version I had paid good money for from a reputable source was pirated.

 

I am no Windows fan either, ditched it for Mac 8 years or so years ago. DH has never really come to terms with Windows so changing over to something else is not really an option for him :roll: His answer to any computer problems is to thump it, the way one used to thump old tellys when the horizontal control went wrong :( mind you I still thump our fridge freezer when it gets noisy :) I am aware that PC world is rubbish, and probably wont buy a new PC there, maybe Dell or John Lewis after a price check.

 

Tessa

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I had a work Dell laptop for a couple or three years and it was fine, but it was a brick; my arms just got longer and longer carrying it and it was a maul to get it in and out of the bag even.

 

We moved to IBM thinkpads and I have two - the bigger one is my own personal laptop and I really like it, but the work one is the tiny job - and it is fantastic.

 

It took a bit to get used to not having a trackpad on the little one, but the advantages of the size and the brilliant keyboard made up for it.

 

My home desktop is a Mesh - you could buy online and just buy the bits you wanted (don't know if you still can) and I've been very happy with it. I had a couple of Eaveshams which were good before that. I've been very lucky with computers (touch wood - things will no doubt now fall apart!).

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I have a Sony Vaio laptop and they are superb but very pricey. I saw one reduced in the JL sale but it was still very expensive. Mine is one of the really lightweight ones and is less than half the size of the bricks the rest of the staff have. Laptop is the one good thing about my current job!

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