Dear Computer Lady,
I purchased a new HP laptop a few months ago and was told I could get Windows 7 when it was available. What feedback have you received, any problems? Do you recommend installing now or waiting until any “quirks” are corrected. I don’t want to mess up my computer. Thanks. Looking forward to receiving your newsletters.
Barbara
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Dear Barbara,
The fact that you have Windows Vista now, and are able to also get Windows 7 at no extra cost is a very good deal!
If I were you, I would send for the Windows 7 upgrade disk now, and then you can decide if you want to upgrade, or just want to hold onto the disk and upgrade at a later date.
Here are some questions you can answer to help you decide if you want to upgrade now, or wait until later.
Is Vista working good? Remember the old saying, “If it aint broke, don’t fix it”? This applies to computers as well. I would never recommend changing something that is working great for something that is new, different, or even potentially better. Eventually, your computer will develop problems, and that would be the time to decide to try the new version of windows.
Is the current setup with Vista meeting all your needs? Again, if everything is working great, I wouldn’t mess with it.
Is your computer too slow? Windows 7 is a leaner, faster operating system, so if your computer is bogged down by Vista, a fresh install of Windows 7 would speed things up a bit.
From your email, it sounds as if your computer is currently working great for you. In that case, I would order the disk, but then hold onto it until you need to use it.
Elizabeth
I upgraded from XP to Windows 7 on an older Lenovo and have no trouble now, however…
I upgraded memory and installed a larger hard drive, and installed clean. Windows 7 refused to accept the registration code for the upgrade software. It took a couple of hours on the phone with Microsoft tech support, three customer support techs, two of whom spoke broken English, and shared computer install, before the matter was resolved.
Depending on the state of your schedule and nerves, it may pay you to get the new install version rather than the upgrade, if you are planning to install a larger hard drive while upgrading.
I’ll keep Vista on my other machine until either solid state drives are larger and cheaper, or until a 1TB drive becomes available at my price point–probably a couple more years.
Thank you, Elizabeth–this is an incredibly helpful site.