Microsoft Vista

[chocolatelab]

Hi guys

Need a little bit of computer help

My sweet wife has an HP laptop running Vista. It is slow as a dog but she is also a clicker. Meaning she clicks into any link she see's and I am very sure she has loads of spyware/free test soft ware ect running every minute she is on the machine.

Im not a computer expert but he said we has 32 bits and 2 ram.

It is so slow now that it is getting the way of the day to day business she does on it.

Day to day is....email, web research, facebook and quicken.

We went to the Microsoft store and the Tech said her computer is pretty strong but he recommends upgrading to Windows 7.

The process apparently cleans out the computer and the new Windows 7 is substantially faster.

This includes dumping macafee for windows virus program.

Question: Buy new computer or see if Windows 7 makes a difference.

[Flieger]

New computer if you are able to do it without too much financial trouble.

[aigel]

Why not clean the computer? Microsoft has applications on their website for malware check / clean. At least they do for XP and W7, so I am sure there are VISTA versions.

I am not an expert at all, but with some searching on google, you can easily learn how to clean up a computer of any operating system. Make sure you only use programs from genuine sites (Microsoft, spybot etc.)

HTH,

G

[aigel]

Also, a defrag / harddrive clean does wonders. Also make sure you install all win updates.

G

[Scott R]

Clean it, and upgrade the ram to 4gb. If it's 32 bit Vista you can't go above 4 anyway.

[mrbeasley]

Hi there. Why not just try a simple version of the Linux operating system ? If what on the hard drive of your computer is non- essential, reformat the hard drive with a downloadable Linux ISO..Look into Linux and the install process on Google.Upgrade you memory to 8 gig as well.

Reformatting a hard drive wipes all the information on it.So if you have something on it like pictures dear to your heart or tax information for example, you might want to think twice before doing it or at least let someone knowledgeable guide you through the process of save and then install.Good luck...

[Flieger]

Originally Posted by mrbeasley

Hi there. Why not just try a simple version of the Linux operating system ? If what on the hard drive of your computer is non- essential, reformat the hard drive with a downloadable Linux ISO..Look into Linux and the install process on Google.Upgrade you memory to 8 gig as well.

Reformatting a hard drive wipes all the information on it.So if you have something on it like pictures dear to your heart or tax information for example, you might want to think twice before doing it or at least let someone knowledgeable guide you through the process of save and then install.Good luck...

[intakexhaust]

I'd suggest to back-up any personal files and transfer to a new budget laptop. The price of a legite license Win 7 Home Premium upgrade is one thing but per your wife's needs, a budget light $250 range gets a respectable dual core machine, 3 or 4 gig ram and 250 g+ hard drive with DVD drive, 15" HD. Lastly, clean out any bloatware that might come with it, download and install the free Avast anti-virus.

[widgeon13]

Buy her an Apple.

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by intakexhaust

I'd suggest to back-up any personal files and transfer to a new budget laptop. The price of a legite license Win 7 Home Premium upgrade is one thing but per your wife's needs, a budget light $250 range gets a respectable dual core machine, 3 or 4 gig ram and 250 g+ hard drive with DVD drive, 15" HD. Lastly, clean out any bloatware that might come with it, download and install the free Avast anti-virus.

Woot had an i7, 4 core laptop for under $500 yesterday...

[Halm]

Vista is simply the worst product ever sold by MS. Add all the Ram you want, defrag until Thanksgiving, run anti-virus and malware until 2013 and the laptop will still be a dog. But if you add ram and do a fresh install of Win 7, it will run fine. But you are also well on your way to buying a new laptop.

So just buy a new box. All in all a better option.

[Joeaksa]

I would save her data, format the puppy and re-install the OS and start new.

Then put malwarebytes on it and teach her not to click anything that pops up!

[chocolatelab]

Originally Posted by widgeon13

Buy her an Apple.

Trust me i tried this one, love my mac

[chocolatelab]

Originally Posted by Joeaksa

I would save her data, format the puppy and re-install the OS and start new.

Then put malwarebytes on it and teach her not to click anything that pops up!

Bless her heart but she is a clicker. We all have someone we know who is a clicker.

[widgeon13]

Originally Posted by chocolatelab

Bless her heart but she is a clicker. We all have someone we know who is a clicker.

My wife is a clicker. She gets more junk mail than real mail X10 so I got her an Apple. She also doesn't delete any emails, even junk and it drives me crazy. She won't update anything, iPhone, ipad or Macbook.

Dr. what do I do??

I'm serious, I end up doing all the updates but at least it's Apple.

[chocolatelab]

Originally Posted by widgeon13

My wife is a clicker. She gets more junk mail than real mail X10 so I got her an Apple. She also doesn't delete any emails, even junk and it drives me crazy. She won't update anything, iPhone, ipad or Macbook.

Dr. what do I do??

I'm serious, I end up doing all the updates but at least it's Apple.

Not sure how we ended up married to the same woman. At least she can cook right.

[widebody911]

How old is the machine? If it's more than 3 or 4 years old, I say spring for a new one. Windows 7 64-bit + MSE + FireFox + AdBlock Plus + NoScript and you'll have a pretty idiot-proof machine.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Halm

Vista is simply the worst product ever sold by MS. Add all the Ram you want, defrag until Thanksgiving, run anti-virus and malware until 2013 and the laptop will still be a dog. But if you add ram and do a fresh install of Win 7, it will run fine. But you are also well on your way to buying a new laptop.

So just buy a new box. All in all a better option.

1 No, that was Windows ME

2 I ran Vista for a few years on my last PC. It ran fine, just as good as my current Windows 7 box.

[widgeon13]

Originally Posted by chocolatelab

Not sure how we ended up married to the same woman. At least she can cook right.

She does many things very well but the computer drives me nuts. Good thing she is so fantastic in so many other ways!

[tharbert]

Trust me, I'm a computer professional!

Vista is indeed a dog. An upgrade to Win 7 is well worth the $100.

While 4 GB is better, I see no reason to add RAM for the use you describe.

There is no reason to get a new computer unless you have money burning a hole in your pocket. Just upgrade to Win 7 32 bit. I haven't enough experience with Win 8 to suggest it. I normally wait until after the first OS service pack has been issued to start installing it on users' computers. Issuing the first service pack is a normal sign from Microshaft that the OS is mature.

I would stick with the 32 bit version. While 64 bit would run a bit faster, again, for the use you describe, you gain very little and may run into browser compatibility and driver issues. All are easily overcome but why cause the hassle for a slight performance boost?

I would serioulsy consider simply backing up her documents and saving her bookmarks and email. Then, as a security precaution, wipe the drive with something like DBAN.

Boot to the Win 7 Service Pack 1 disk, create a new partition and install. Win 7 likes to add it's own separate partition. Let it do it.

Kick McAfee to the curb. It's as much of a resource pig as Vista. For home use, Microsoft Security Essentials seem to work fine. It provides both malware and virus protection. MalwareBytes is also good except I believe it comes up with some false positives just to justify it's existence and goad you into purchasing the full version. Consider that upgrade to get realtime malware protection. I use the free version forensically to temporarily suspend compromises while I get to user files. Then I reload the OS...

NOTE OF CAUTION: Most all the compromises I've seen in the past couple years have been from unpatched third party software like Acrobat Reader, Java, or Quicktime. Look into a program like Secunia PSI that will help you keep track of and patch third party stuff. If there is an icon in the start bar begging you to update/upgrade, never let it sit for more than a week...ever! And, don't postpone restarts. If you don't trust those little icons, simply uninstall the program and get the newest version...quickly!

If your wife wants to remain a "clicker", I'd do this: Set her up on a standard account (non-administrative.) Set up a separate administrative account not named "admin"! Use a decent password like "Chocol@te1ab" for both accounts. If any software tries to make system changes, you have to put in separate administrative credentials. That may slow her down a little and make her think about what she's doing.

Hope this helps.