Laptop - looking for a new one, ideas please

[RogerC]

Why not try your local 'back street'...(non chain little guy) computer repair shop. They might just have a refurb one in. At least buying from them would give you peace of mind and somewhere to go back to if things did go wrong.

[JSR]

I upgraded from XP to a new Windows 8 laptop just before Christmas - mainly because Extended Support for Windows XP ends in a little over one year. This "Extended Support" is pretty much the last breath as far as XP is concerned (it will have been going for some 13 year by the time it's finally put to bed).

While your XP machines will still continue to work after this date, there will be no more updates or security fixes. You'll already be running a version of Internet Explorer that's two versions old (according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison ... rabilities there are currently 7 unpatched vulnerabilities in IE8, and you can't update to a newer version of IE if you're using XP).

Moving up from XP to something newer is something that needs to be considered sooner rather than later if you're concerned that your software and hardware won't work. This is why I made the move a year early - so I could continue running XP side-by-side until I'd solved all relevant issues.

I've found that some hardware and software works fine, some won't work at all, and some confuses Windows 8 so much that it's too scared to tell you about it. One thing is sure, though, that if you want to use Windows 8 to its fullest advantage, you're going to want a machine with a touchscreen. A friend of mine bought a new non-touchscreen laptop with Windows 8 and the new "tile" interface is a bit of a pig if you're having to rely on a mouse/touchpad. It was this that convinced me to get a laptop with a touchscreen. I don't use the touchscreen all the time but, when I need to use it, it's a lot more natural than faffing about with the touchpad. Had I decided against the touchscreen, I would have been regretting it by now.

While not convenient, it is possible to run Windows XP on top of Windows 8 using something like Virtual Box (I do this because my old version of AutoCAD won't run on Windows 8, even though my even older version of Lotus does). Whether your hardware would work this way is another matter (my Brother network printers work as they normally would but getting the USB one working is more difficult, so PowerDriver would probably work the same if it's on your network). Not ideal, but do-able until Sawgrass come update their software.

[bms]

I upgraded from XP to a new Windows 8 laptop just before Christmas - mainly because Extended Support for Windows XP ends in a little over one year. This "Extended Support" is pretty much the last breath as far as XP is concerned (it will have been going for some 13 year by the time it's finally put to bed).

While your XP machines will still continue to work after this date, there will be no more updates or security fixes. You'll already be running a version of Internet Explorer that's two versions old (according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison ... rabilities there are currently 7 unpatched vulnerabilities in IE8, and you can't update to a newer version of IE if you're using XP).

Moving up from XP to something newer is something that needs to be considered sooner rather than later if you're concerned that your software and hardware won't work. This is why I made the move a year early - so I could continue running XP side-by-side until I'd solved all relevant issues.

I've found that some hardware and software works fine, some won't work at all, and some confuses Windows 8 so much that it's too scared to tell you about it. One thing is sure, though, that if you want to use Windows 8 to its fullest advantage, you're going to want a machine with a touchscreen. A friend of mine bought a new non-touchscreen laptop with Windows 8 and the new "tile" interface is a bit of a pig if you're having to rely on a mouse/touchpad. It was this that convinced me to get a laptop with a touchscreen. I don't use the touchscreen all the time but, when I need to use it, it's a lot more natural than faffing about with the touchpad. Had I decided against the touchscreen, I would have been regretting it by now.

While not convenient, it is possible to run Windows XP on top of Windows 8 using something like Virtual Box (I do this because my old version of AutoCAD won't run on Windows 8, even though my even older version of Lotus does). Whether your hardware would work this way is another matter (my Brother network printers work as they normally would but getting the USB one working is more difficult, so PowerDriver would probably work the same if it's on your network). Not ideal, but do-able until Sawgrass come update their software.

Welcome back JSR - thought you'd fallen off the edge of the world

[mrs maggot]

thanks for that JSR, i am really at a loss at the moment, i have nothing like your computer skill, so would not have any idea how to run 2 programmes side by side or anything like that, i just want to use my ricoh printer, my corel draw (will be latest i expect) and my cutting software - surretnly use signblazer, and see no need to change it to anything else unless i really have to.

i use touch screen on other devices at home, but cannot see that i can use it for any of the above, which as thats all i want to use it for will i really need to factor that in ??

[harlequeen]

I think Dell will supply a laptop without an operating system so that you can install your own. I believe they will discount the price a little for this. It all depends, I suppose on whether Dell is up your street.

[mrs maggot]

yes i had thought of that harlequeen, but the windows XP i had came installed on the laptop, so i would not be able to re-load that onto a new laptop - its a catch 22 situation i think lol

[JSR]

Welcome back JSR - thought you'd fallen off the edge of the world

Still clinging on by my fingernails.

[JSR]

thanks for that JSR, i am really at a loss at the moment, i have nothing like your computer skill, so would not have any idea how to run 2 programmes side by side or anything like that, i just want to use my ricoh printer, my corel draw (will be latest i expect) and my cutting software - surretnly use signblazer, and see no need to change it to anything else unless i really have to.

i use touch screen on other devices at home, but cannot see that i can use it for any of the above, which as thats all i want to use it for will i really need to factor that in ??

A friend of mine replaced her laptop with Windows 8 before I did. She doesn't like touchscreens at all. I have touchscreens on everything from phones to tablets. So we're both different people. We both hated the experience. She was ready to throw her new machine in the bin and ask for her old Windows XP netbook back. That's how much she disliked it.

Windows 8 almost demands the touchscreen if you intend to use it as intended. It has pop-in areas around the screen that jump in and out when your finger gets close to the edge of the touchpad, or your mouse cursor reaches the edge of the screen. Apps from the tile interface seem to leap in and out at random, completely annoying you.

It is possible to avoid a lot of that by installing something like "Classic Shell" which attempts to hide the "tile UI" interface and gives you back your start button while defaulting to the regular desktop. You will undoubtedly find yourself back in "tile UI" mode from time to time. "Tile UI" pretty much demands a touchscreen, otherwise you'll end up pulling out your hair trying to figure out which part of the touchpad you're supposed to drag your fingers across, and did it need one, two, or three fingers, and what gesture was it you're supposed to be doing with your pinch-out, pinch-in, turn-and-squiggle, knees-bend-arms-stretch-ra-ra-ra.

Unless you're pretty adept at learning these things, it's much easier just to touch the screen - because the screen tends to do what you're telling it to do.

But, if the intention is to use it as a work machine and you set it up to default to the desktop (with an app like Classic Shell or similar), then you may well manage without the touchscreen. When I run mine this way, using my laptop on my desk with a larger monitor and external keyboard/mouse, I'm not using the touchscreen and I do get away with it. But you're going to want to set it up this way first, otherwise I'd recommend you wear a wig on your first day with your first machine to save pulling your own hair out.

I may only use my touchscreen 10% of the time, but when it's time for that 10% I'm certainly pleased I've got it.

[mrs maggot]

dont get me wrong JSR i have touch screens on just about everything else in the house, but this is just my simple machine, that i cut from and do some design work on - we try to avoid anything apple related, i even sold an i-pad i won before opening it, i have a galaxy pad that i am more than happy with, but still need a simple laptop for the more mundane work lol

[JSR]

The best advice I could give you, if you're moving up to Windows 8, is to visit a place like PC World and try it out.

I would probably have gone for the cheaper non-touchscreen option if I hadn't already had the "experience" (because that's what it was!) with my friend's laptop - because, prior to that, my overriding thought was "why on Earth would I need a touchscreen on a laptop?".

Try a couple out at PC World or similar. You don't have to buy on the spot, just give them a try.