Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2019 June 7

= June 7 =

How to install Windows ?
I obtained a new(ish) desktop PC, which lacks the boot hard drive, but I'd like to make it bootable in Windows Vista. It does have another hard drive and a CD/DVD reader/write. I have no Windows CD/DVD, but I do have the serial number/product key for Windows Vista that go with it. I was able to boot it using a boot hard disk I attached with Windows XP on it, but only in safe mode, as otherwise the mismatched drivers were an issue. I was also able to boot it using a Puppy Linux CD. So, how can I get it fully running with Windows Vista (or, better yet, XP) ? Do I need to download Windows Vista from microsoft.com on my primary PC and write to CD/DVD there, then insert that in the new(ish) PC and boot from that ? Or maybe I could use the extra hard drive and attach that to my primary PC and download Windows Vista onto that and then install that as the boot device on the new(ish) PC ? But, in either case, won't mismatched drivers still be an issue ? Any other recommendations ?

Config info ---

New(ish) Desktop:


 * Dell Inspiron 531s
 * 5 GB RAM (max is supposedly 4GB, so I suppose it isn't using any past that)
 * 250 GB hard disk, not set up as a boot drive
 * Product key for Windows Vista

Old Desktop:
 * Dell Optiplex 360
 * 4 GB RAM (max)
 * 80 GB hard disk, set up to boot in Windows XP

Thanks. SinisterLefty (talk) 13:00, 7 June 2019 (UTC)


 * I hope you are aware that mainstream support for Win7 has finished. It's a 9 year old OS, even with the service pack in it is 8 years old.  Support ended in 2015, four years ago.  Extended support has only 6 months to go.  Upgrading to Win8 isn't much of an option, support ended 3 years ago and support for 8.1 ended last year.  You really need to bite the bullet and go for Win10, which will cost, or else one of the many Linux distros which will run happily on such a machine. Martin of Sheffield (talk) 13:38, 7 June 2019 (UTC)


 * I'm fine with running an unsupported version of Windows, I even prefer it, as they aren't trying to shove updates down my throat every other day. With the configs on these machines, running Win 10 would likely be a disaster. I suppose Linux is another way to go, but there's a steep learning curve there, especially with downloading apps to it. BTW, what's the diff between mainstream support and extended support ? SinisterLefty (talk) 17:32, 7 June 2019 (UTC)


 * I think that you should also check if you can use RAM from the old desktop to expand RAM in new one because 5 Gb is not very big memory by modern standards. Ruslik_ Zero 15:51, 7 June 2019 (UTC)


 * The RAM is compatible. The old PC is at capacity at 4 GB, and the new(ish) PC capacity is apparently also 4 GB, so it must not be using 1 GB of the 5 GB in there now. 4 GB seems fine for Win XP, at least, since that's a whopping 32 times the 128 MB recommended (although, at 2 GB I was getting the BSOD when I had a lot of apps/tabs open).  SinisterLefty (talk) 17:32, 7 June 2019 (UTC)

Linux instead ?
UPDATE: I may give up on Windows and try Linux Mint/Cinnamon/Tessa, as it promises to be more user friendly than the Puppy Linux I already tried. Any thoughts on this ? SinisterLefty (talk) 18:25, 7 June 2019 (UTC)


 * User friendliness isn't about the repo distribution (Mint, Ubuntu, Fedora, etc...). It is about the desktop manager (KDE, Gnome, XFCE, etc...). Most people are either KDE or Gnome users. Pick between those. I suggest picking a distribution that is based specifically on the desktop manager you want. 68.115.219.130 (talk) 19:04, 7 June 2019 (UTC)


 * Mostly I use a PC to browse the Internet, and play Java, Flash and HTML5 games. I'd like to be able to view PDF files, too, and online videos in every format they come in. If I download something, I want it to install automatically, without me having to find the installer first. And it should have an uninstall option so I can back out if it causes problems. In Windows, I also use MS Paint to edit and save screen grabs, and I'd want the same ability in Linux. I also have a 1 TB network drive accessible to my Windows XP box which I'd like Linux to be able to access. So, what Linux version and desktop managers best matches these criteria ? SinisterLefty (talk) 19:49, 7 June 2019 (UTC)


 * You don't download something and then run an installer. Instead, you open whatever program you like to access the repositories, find the application you want and click install (and if you want to remove it, click remove). It's the same way you install/remove stuff on your smartphone. Guess where the smartphone people got that idea from.
 * Another consideration: Pick a Linux distro with a good support forum. I use Xubuntu, which would be more than happy with 4GiB memory, but there are other distros that also meet your needs. Still, if things break, you may need some technical knowledge to fix it. PiusImpavidus (talk) 08:34, 8 June 2019 (UTC)


 * I see. SinisterLefty (talk) 08:48, 8 June 2019 (UTC)


 * It is very common to find people confused about "Linux." There is only one Linux. You can get it, install it, and use it. Nobody really does that. Instead, they get a distribution. There are hundreds of distributions. What a distribution provides you is a package manager. There are only a few package managers. So, you will find the same package manager shared among many different distributions. The package manager connects to a repository of everything that you could want to install. While multiple distributions share the same package manager, they will host their own repository. That is the key. Some repositories try to have the absolute latest version of everything. Others only host the latest stable release of everything. Some don't host programs that require licensing to use. Some heavily inspect all software for security and stability before adding it to the repository. What do you want? If you get the absolute latest version of everything, it will be buggy. If you wait for stability, you won't have the absolute latest version. If you leave out non-free software, you might not be able to download a program you want. If you require security, you will wait a while as experts test new changes. Then, regardless of which distribution you pick, you need a GUI. I have not seen a popular distribution that doesn't have at least Gnome and KDE. These are desktop management systems. In Windows, you get one desktop manager: Windows. On Mac, you get one desktop manager: Mac. In Linux, you get to choose. All of them have windows and menus and popups and such. They just have tiny differences. For example, do you want your windows to be semi-transparent so you can see the desktop in the background? Do you want your windows to wiggle like they are made of jelly when you move them around? Once you picked a distribution and picked a desktop manager and get all up and running, you will start the package manager. In there, you see a list of every program available in the repository (and you can add other repositories to get more programs). To install a program, select it. To uninstall a program, deselect it. That's it. The big difference is money. In Windows and Mac, you have to purchase programs. So, everything comes with installers and uninstallers. In Linux, you just select what you want and it gets installed. No need to verify that you purchased anything. So, no need for a custom installer. Now, you can ponder this... If Linux is the preferred OS for developers, why is everything free - avoiding paying the developers anything for their work? 97.82.165.112 (talk) 18:42, 8 June 2019 (UTC)


 * I imagine developers just hate using a program that's just about perfect, but has one annoying thing wrong they could easily fix, if only they had access to the source code, and Linux allows that. I know I'm that way on my cell phone settings (I want it to not use any data without asking me first), car settings (so it would actually give me the error codes to look up rather than just saying "CHECK ENGINE"), etc. SinisterLefty (talk) 20:05, 8 June 2019 (UTC)


 * Yeah I'd go for Debian with one of the lightweight window managers, maybe MATE (software) if you want a Windows-like UI. You can get a live install distro from here.  Regarding Vista, wow, that goes way back, but I remember the xkcd. 67.164.113.165 (talk) 02:41, 12 June 2019 (UTC)


 * I recommend Cinnamon for its familiarity especially for seasoned Windows user.-- Vulp here  08:18, 14 June 2019 (UTC)