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Need Computer Help - Software

Boomer52

Boomer52

Good Friends, Good Cigars
Joined
Nov 6, 2007
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Location
Fountain Valley, CA
I recently got a new computer and am giving the old one to my son. The old computer is a 700 MHz Dell with a P2 or P3 processor and a 40 gig hard drive. It is running Windows 98 which will not support some of the educational programs I have tried to load for him. I need to upgrade the operating system and get a new monitor.

Questions:

What version of Windows would be the most cost effective to upgrade to?

Can it be loaded without disrupting the other software already on the system? (Microsoft Office and such)

What should I expect to pay for the newer operating system?

What should I expect to pay for a used 15” standard aspect ratio LCD monitor and what is the best place to look for one?

Keep in mind that I am trying to do this on a budget. Around $150 max. Since my son is only 6, I am not looking for a super system. Besides his educational programs and a few games, he loves the word processor which is why I don’t want to wipe out MS Office when I update the operating system. Wouldn’t be a problem to reload if the original software package hadn’t been lost.

Thanks for your help.

Dave
 
First things first, you're working with older hardware, so you're going to be faced with hitches because of this..
I have a few extra questions of you before I offer a strategy. Holler if you need a hand finding any of this information, if you don't want to go through all this in a forum we can certainly take this to email/phone:

1: what 'service pack' is this? I ask because you might be able to get along with just upgrading to Win 98 Service Pack 2. This is by far the easiest option.
2: How much RAM is in this machine? Also, what kind of processor is it? (Pentium I, II, III, Celeron, AMD, whatever)
3: You mention not having the original cd's, which is kindof crappy, any chance you have the 'system recovery disc' kicking around?

Thanks,

~R

Edited to add: How much time do you have?
 
How do I find out what service pack is in it? Not sure what was loaded by Dell when I bought it in 2000. The processor is a Pentium 2 or 3. Again, I will have to check the system when I get home to be sure. Same with RAM.

I think I have the original discs for Windows 98 so I will have to check for a recovery disk. I was refering to MS Office as the discs that were lost.

It may take a day or two to get all the info. It's hard to get these things done with a 6 year old wanting to "Help".

How much time do I need? :laugh:

Thanks for your help.
 
Hey Dave,

The easiest way I can think of to find all this stuff (and more!) is to go to start>run and type 'dxdiag'
'save all information' should be a button on the bottom of the window that comes up, save that to your desktop (or someplace you like better and email that to the email address I just PM'ed ya.
After I look at the system specs it'll give us a better indication of what would be wise for you to do!

Talk to ya soon!

~R
 
I always suggest buying a new hard drive when upgrading if you are concerned with losing data. They are super cheap. Pull the old one out...stick the new one in...install the new OS (certainly you have a friend with an XP disk right?)...then put the old drive back in and use it as a second drive...which will let you pull any and all info over to the new drive.

Used 15" display shouldn't be more than $35-$50.
 
Boomer52 said:
What version of Windows would be the most cost effective to upgrade to?
Click to expand...
As others have said, if you just "patch" it, you may be able to get by. Otherwise, the most cost effective would be XP with SP3. If you want better parental controls, Vista has some good ones, but take that with a grain of salt since Vista is really just a stopgap until 7 comes out. And I don't think your system would be able to handle it at all. May even be iffy with XP.
Can it be loaded without disrupting the other software already on the system? (Microsoft Office and such)
Click to expand...
My suggest would be to uninstall everything (while online so you keep your OEM keys), and make a backup of everything, and go for a clean instal.
What should I expect to pay for the newer operating system?
Click to expand...
Check out http://newegg.com for deals. They usually have a few. I've seen them all around $90. Make sure to check system requirements versus what you have (from DxDiag file). You can also get a "pirated" copy I'm sure.
What should I expect to pay for a used 15” standard aspect ratio LCD monitor and what is the best place to look for one?
Click to expand...

Craigslist? ebay? Local computer repair shop? Lot's of options. Heck, I was cleaning out my old computer suplies, and I just GAVE the 19" flat screen I had to a local school.
 
Except for saving the programs you already have I'd check craigslist for a used maching. Around here you can get a decent XP machine used with monitor for $150-200 used and some even have software installed.
 
You guys aren't wrong, a new machine is *probably* a good option if any money is to be spent. The real question is RAM, if there's 512mb in that box you can run XP, it'll be a bit slow, but free.

We'll see. I'll post hardware specs (the ones that matter) here when I get 'em.

~R
 
Thanks for all the great input everyone. Lots to consider.

Mysterea, I couldn't get the system info last night. Between T-Ball practice, dinner, homework, PJ's, story time, a cranky 4 year old, and PTA book keeping, there just wasn't any time left. Hopefully tonight will be a little better.
 
Boomer52 said:
Thanks for all the great input everyone. Lots to consider.

Mysterea, I couldn't get the system info last night. Between T-Ball practice, dinner, homework, PJ's, story time, a cranky 4 year old, and PTA book keeping, there just wasn't any time left. Hopefully tonight will be a little better.
Click to expand...

Hey, no problem at all, I completely get it, I'm a new dad with a new house!
There's no time for much of anything.
 
Bleh. I hate the idea of spending money on software that you can pirate for free (and get away with it). Then again, you usually need some decent computer knowledge in order to keep yourself from running into any trouble when you're running pirated software. :whistling:

Dell with 700 MHz...your memory will probably be 64 MB or 128 MB (quite possibly 256 MB RAM?). I ran Windows XP on a 800 MHz Pentium III HP machine with 128 MB RAM for years until I threw together my current desktop; as long as you keep it neat and tidy, XP will go on for ages, even on an old computer. Assuming it's an old computer that's been through many years of use, it could do you some good to open the case up and get all that dust out (remember--water and electronics is bad). Especially with prebuilt computers where the case is tiny, overheating can be an issue if you have a huge dust buildup, and this can affect the performance of the machine.

Vista is definitely not an option. Considering the inefficiency of the damn OS, I personally wouldn't be able to stand running Vista on anything less than a dual core processor. Hell, I refuse to run Vista on my two computers. I'd rather run ME. :laugh:

Although...if you're looking to spend money on a new monitor, you might as well just dish out the extra cash and buy a new machine alltogether. A few hundred will get you a decent desktop and monitor setup that will go a long way.
 
Here's what you get from Dell for a brand new machine: http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/con...ils~inspndt_530

I couldn't find any ways to "Downgrade" any of the components, so this is quite a bit more than what you are looking for, and at almost $500 it's probably more than you were willing to spend.

Then of course, there is craigslist, ebay, etc. If you feel adventerous, you can go to a site like http://ibuypower.com and customize one (or if there are local computer shops, they can probably do it cheaper).
 
LarianLeQuella said:
Here's what you get from Dell for a brand new machine: http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/con...ils~inspndt_530

I couldn't find any ways to "Downgrade" any of the components, so this is quite a bit more than what you are looking for, and at almost $500 it's probably more than you were willing to spend.

Then of course, there is craigslist, ebay, etc. If you feel adventerous, you can go to a site like http://ibuypower.com and customize one (or if there are local computer shops, they can probably do it cheaper).
Click to expand...


$500 :whistling: You got that right. All I am trying to do is get my old computer to a state where my son can use/play with it. $500 is a bit much for a toy for a 6 year old and his 4 year old brother. $150 is probably the limit.
 
Because of your processor you might be able to run XP, but I think your best bet would be with windows 2000 if you were going to keep your current setup. You could probably find an upgrade version on ebay for pretty cheap as long as you have your product key labeled on your computer somewhere. In case you don't there is software available to get it for you (I believe it is called "Magic Jelly Bean".)

You will have to upgrade your OS or you will lose your software if you don't have the original discs for the software. You probably will also need to re-install the drivers for your hardware (sound card, video card, network card, etc...).

Because the computer is old and you may not know how long it will last I would really consider getting a new computer as well.
 
Joho said:
Bleh. I hate the idea of spending money on software that you can pirate for free (and get away with it). Then again, you usually need some decent computer knowledge in order to keep yourself from running into any trouble when you're running pirated software. :whistling:

Dell with 700 MHz...your memory will probably be 64 MB or 128 MB (quite possibly 256 MB RAM?). I ran Windows XP on a 800 MHz Pentium III HP machine with 128 MB RAM for years until I threw together my current desktop; as long as you keep it neat and tidy, XP will go on for ages, even on an old computer. Assuming it's an old computer that's been through many years of use, it could do you some good to open the case up and get all that dust out (remember--water and electronics is bad). Especially with prebuilt computers where the case is tiny, overheating can be an issue if you have a huge dust buildup, and this can affect the performance of the machine.

Vista is definitely not an option. Considering the inefficiency of the damn OS, I personally wouldn't be able to stand running Vista on anything less than a dual core processor. Hell, I refuse to run Vista on my two computers. I'd rather run ME. :laugh:

Although...if you're looking to spend money on a new monitor, you might as well just dish out the extra cash and buy a new machine alltogether. A few hundred will get you a decent desktop and monitor setup that will go a long way.
Click to expand...

As long as Vista is run on a machine capable of running it it is fine. I have ran it since Beta 2 and have had no issues.


As far the the OP question, if the computer has 256mb or more RAM, you should be able to run XP. As Joho said it will be a bit slow but itll work. The only kink in that is XP is still over 100 bucks in stores. I would personally browse some classifieds as you can find older P4 machines with 512mb RAM and XP already installed for 150 bucks.
 
For all of those looking for the specs on this machine, here they are. Mysterea, I e-mailed the whole file to you.

System Information
------------------
Time of this report: 4/1/2009, 20:17:48
Machine name: M8F3F3
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 98 (4.10, Build 2222) A
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
Processor: Intel Pentium III, 733MHz
Memory: 128MB RAM
Page File: 95MB used, 1825MB available
DirectX Version: DirectX 7.0 (4.07.00.0716)
DX Setup Parameters: /PackageInstall
DxDiag Version: 4.07.00.0700

The computer still operates quite well. Even though it is old, it does not have that much use. It has been my home comupter and when not in use, has been turned off. Not like an office comuter that is almost always on.

Don't know if the above specs will help with narrowing down my options. Let me know.

Thanks to everyone who has commented and sent PM's.

Dave
 
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