WTB NEED XP OS

[Michael Ratliff]

Hey guys looking for xp to replace vista on my new laptop. It has been very frustrating trying to find the right drivers for all my stuff . If anybody local has it i would be willing to pay you for putting it on my craptop I mean laptop. MIchael



405-245-0465

[email protected]

 

[David Drummond]

Problem your going to run in to is many manufacturers are not putting out XP drivers for laptops that were sold with Vista. So you may or may not have the drivers for your basic functions on your laptop under XP.

 

[Robert Dewey]

Your new laptop should be able to handle Vista. That would be the easiest / safest route.

You can remove all of the bloatware and use 'msconfig' to shut off services you don't need / want.

 

[cdcollura]

Good day,

I went that same route with an "attempted" Sony Laptop purchase a few months back...

The laptop came with Vista 64 and tons of trial-version / bloatware crap.

I found that 50% of programs (including Premiere 6.5 and Visual Basic 6.0) either did not work right and / or would not even install.

I attempted to use my trusty XP Pro disk and it blue-screened with a STOP 00000xB error meaning the 250 GB hard drive was not being recognized.

I tried this same route with my new desktop I put together myself, which as two 1.5 TB drives, and XP Pro installed fine (I had Vista 32 for that box but tried it, did not like it, so I went with XP Pro).

Much of the XP Pro install disks blue screened on the laptop. I was told pressing F6 (or F7) during the boot-from install CD and have the driver (for the HD) on a floppy / USB card or something.

The hard-drive was 250 GB Hitachi laptop, and no where could I find the driver. And Microsoft? Forget it.

Frustrated, I called it quits. Bringing the laptop back nailed me with a costly re-stock fee (but that story is in another ST thread).

I wout recommend for you trying to find the driver for the HD of the laptop, and putting it on a floppy or USB drive, and pressing F6 (or F7) to load it.

If you cannot install the damn OS, nothing will be possible with XP.

Sorry to say, XP is less and less available on laptops.

The next best thing is to simply use Vista, but you will need to upgrade / replace the programs (especially the older ones) that do not work - Costs lots and lots of $$$.

Windows 7 is showing a bit more promise...

 

[David Drummond]

With all due respect Chris, you can't seriously expect software that came out 7 years (Premier 6.5) and 11 years (VB 6.0) ago to work on a modern operating system without issues and upgrading them to a newer version.

 

[cdcollura]

Good afternoon,

With all due respect Chris, you can't seriously expect software that came out 7 years (Premier 6.5) and 11 years (VB 6.0) ago to work on a modern operating system without issues and upgrading them to a newer version.

That's very true because how fast technology is moving along - You want a newer / sometimes faster OS - you HAVE TO upgrade.

There's no downgrading for compatibility.

I just hope MAC / MS (or something) consolidates and comes to a common ground of compatibility ... That probably won't come soon, though.

Thanks,

 

[Joey Ketcham]

Keep Vista, it is a good OS. I use it and have since July and it has worked flawlessly.

 

[Jason Boggs]

I like Vista a whole lot. I was a real big XP fan because of how stable it was. To be honest, I was a bit worried when I bought a new desktop and laptop because of all the fuss about Vista. I have to say that Vista has been nothing but a happy surprise. It's stable and it has worked with every program I have tried to install on it. I still can't figure out why some people fuss and cry about Vista.

 

[Shane Adams]

Seems like OSes are like vehicles: all pretty much the same and the good/bad reviews are direct results of individual taste. I've seen people who swear a particular OS great and those who wouldn't touch it with a ten-foot-pole, all of whom know their stuff.

All it comes down to is what you want to do with your computer and what conflicts.

 

[Gerrit Gulden]

Michael, just wanted to let you know that if you do decide that you want to use XP as your OS, just make sure you backup all your drivers while Vista is still installed.

A program named "DriverMax" is free and will literally export all your drivers for every hardware item you have to a folder of your choice. Simply do the backup/export of your drivers to a folder and then burn a data cd with the folder of drivers that drivermax made for you.

When it comes time to install your drivers after XP was installed just direct the "browse for driver" to the cd you burned. In most cases if you dont have a driver that is needed just go to Driverguide.com or check your model number and go to the manufacturer website for the driver.

I do have Vista running and I do like it. I did disable the "UserAccountControl" and changed the theme to Windows Classic and disabled all the 3d elements to the menus, etc. There is more to do with Vista to optimize, just search "optimize vista" in google but be advised that some changes can actually slow your machine rather then speed up. Also be sure that if you get into overclocking that you understand what your doing and use preventative measures to keep your board from burning up or getting to hot. Thats a whole nother element that I would rather stay way from to be honest.

Good luck....

-gerrit

 

[Jason Foster]

For those with older software...I can't promise it, but my buddy is running the Windows 7 OS and that is suppose to solve a lot of the driver issues of Vista. Vista was a real 'b***h', but it has everything to do with Vista, and not the older software. I also ran into the issue of trying to load older Adobe Products...and there is a hack for fixing it, but it isn't a perfect fix...so I decided not to try it.

But if you're looking for a solution faster than waiting for 7, XP is your best bet.