New Computer and Aggravations

I've have my head down this week, buried in the install of a new computer at my office desk. My old one was getting....really old!....so I decided to get a new one that has promises of faster/better, you know the drill. Money has been tight, but I decided I could spring for the $ 999.00 HP Quad Core unit at COSTCO after getting seven years out of my current one. I made the jump.

Then the horror began.

The new computer, in fact every new PC, comes with Windows Vista. Not the older 32-bit one, but the new 64-bit architecture. Microsoft is really pushing the 64-bit engine and I didn't pay much attention to it. Take it to the store, plug it in...its BEEEUUUTIFUL. Fast, sleek, and sexy (as sexy as a computer can get). Love the display! So I start loading up my existing software and hooking up my color laser printer, scanner, photo dock, all sorts of things. The computer revolts and gives me the Blue Screen of Death. Hours and hours of updates, setting tweaks and studying what went wrong ensued. And guess what? Not one single piece of existing hardware or software that I owned would run on this new 64 bit machine.

I bought new software. $ 600 i had not planned on spending.
I bought a new color laster printer. $ 400.
I bought a new scanner. $ 200
Took out my Kodak Printer Dock (no driver updates for V64)
Gave up using Quark, Adobe Acrobat, and my Photoshop since that would be another $ 1,200 to upgrade all that.

Once I realized that nothing old runs on this machine, I had to go back and remove drivers and software routines to get it all off the machine. Finally - today about 5 p.m., after about 25 hours invested in this and 2x what I wanted to spend I think I have a stable new computer.

Microsoft needs to put a big red label on the box of all 64-bit Windows Vista systems that says "NONE OF YOUR OLD HARDWARE OR SOFTWARE WILL RUN ON THIS MACHINE".

I anxiously await the new Windows 7 due out a year from now. Supposedly it runs smooth and quick, and far less fussy than Vista.

BTW, I use an iMac at home. The setup on that one took all of 15 minutes.

Once you get a Mac you never go back. It is like you always say----you get what you pay for.

Duane,
I've been migrating from PC to iMac for about a year now, with both machines sitting on my desk. The PC still runs on Windows XP. I am ready to turn it off but my wife still uses it for e-mail (she has not invested any time in trying to use the iMac). Our favorite feature is iChat. We hookup with our son and grandson in Conn. every Sun. for a great video call. This feature alone is worth the added cost. We tried using Skype on our PC for similar calls to our PC friends and family without much success. There always seems to be a different problem. I also just added a new laser printer that took about 30 min. to set up on the iMac (only issue was the fax feature on the printer). Anyway I feel your pain (crashed a hard drive about year ago and spent an entire weekend installing a new drive and reloading the operating system, software, drivers, backup files etc.). So now I'm an Apple convert. Good luck with your new system, I'll think about you when I see the PC vs. Mac commercials on TV.

By the way I might try stopping by the store on Sat. to look at your current floor stock if you will be there. PM me.

Larry

One industry secret is that Dell still offers PCs with XP on their Small Business website. They come with a Vista 'upgrade' coupon for changing operating systems when you are (or rather it is) ready. I have one Vista machine among many XP machines in my business, and as long as I only use it for a couple specific tasks, it works fine. But I wouldn't want to rely on it for everything.

Oh, and I do have one Vista machine at home for my daughter. It works just fine for her, but she is 4, and isnt' too demanding on it -- yet.

I have a lot of friends running the pre-release Windows 7 (available as a download) and they all love it. I hesitate to replace the O/S on this new computer however, because I'm thinking seriously about returning it to COSTCO and buying another iMac to replace it. My 24" iMac at home is simply fantastic! However I worry some about interfacing a new platform into the store when the other computers here are older PC's. I can run the iMac as a Windows platform, however - using FusionWare or booting it as a Windows box, so thats an option as well. I'm still having issues with this new rig....

Update! Finally got the new Vista 64 rig running after hours and hours of work on it. Turns out a Kodak Camera driver that was supposed to be VISTA compatible ....wasn't. Not with 64 bit operating systems. Once I figured that out and removed it from the system I'm good and stable now.

I did have to buy all new software for the computer (unexpected expenses) and also a new printer and scanner as my old ones would not work with it. However, I have a really fast computer now, so I can get on the forum and post photos in much less time. Its a speed machine .....

Also, if you haven't tried the new Beta of Firefox's Mozzila browser - give it a whirl. Its incredibly fast at acquiring websites and blows away Internet Explorer. It's pre-release Beta, but I've only found one website it rejected.

http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/all-beta.html