All our current computers/laptops are in English. I need to configure a new
laptop with all our company software and then ship it to an employee who
speaks Mandarin - is there an easy way to convert an english windows XP SP2
machine to mandarin or do I need Vista or an add on?

thanks.

"DavidH" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>All our current computers/laptops are in English. I need to configure a new
>laptop with all our company software and then ship it to an employee who
>speaks Mandarin - is there an easy way to convert an english windows XP SP2
>machine to mandarin or do I need Vista or an add on?

Unfortunately, you can't change the language of the OS. You have to
buy the OS in the desired language.

--
Tim Slattery
MS MVP(DTS)
(E-Mail Removed)
http://members.cox.net/slatteryt

"Tim Slattery" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> "DavidH" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>
>>All our current computers/laptops are in English. I need to configure a
>>new
>>laptop with all our company software and then ship it to an employee who
>>speaks Mandarin - is there an easy way to convert an english windows XP
>>SP2
>>machine to mandarin or do I need Vista or an add on?
>
> Unfortunately, you can't change the language of the OS. You have to
> buy the OS in the desired language.
>
> --
> Tim Slattery
> MS MVP(DTS)
> (E-Mail Removed)
> http://members.cox.net/slatteryt

Are you sure?
http://www.microsoft.com/globaldev/r...up/Langid.mspx

DavidH wrote:
> All our current computers/laptops are in English. I need to configure a new
> laptop with all our company software and then ship it to an employee who
> speaks Mandarin - is there an easy way to convert an english windows XP SP2
> machine to mandarin or do I need Vista or an add on?
>
> thanks.
>
>


No. You cannot upgrade or convert from one language version of the
OS to another, so you'll have to purchase and use the full version of
WinXP (in whatever language you want) to perform a clean installation.

Cannot Upgrade or Install a Different Language Version of Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;282089

--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrand Russell

What about Vista - is there a version that would be able to be converted to
mandarin?

"Bruce Chambers" <(E-Mail Removed)3t> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> DavidH wrote:
>> All our current computers/laptops are in English. I need to configure a
>> new laptop with all our company software and then ship it to an employee
>> who speaks Mandarin - is there an easy way to convert an english windows
>> XP SP2 machine to mandarin or do I need Vista or an add on?
>>
>> thanks.
>
>
> No. You cannot upgrade or convert from one language version of the OS
> to another, so you'll have to purchase and use the full version of WinXP
> (in whatever language you want) to perform a clean installation.
>
> Cannot Upgrade or Install a Different Language Version of Windows XP
> http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;282089
>
> --
>
> Bruce Chambers
>
> Help us help you:
> http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
> http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
>
> They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
> safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin
>
> Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrand
> Russell

DavidH wrote:
> What about Vista - is there a version that would be able to be converted to
> mandarin?
>


Probably. It is possible to purchase "Language Packages" for Vista
Ultimate or Vista Enterprise that would give you MUI (Multi-lingual User
Interface) capability.

Guide to Windows Vista Multilingual User Interface
http://technet2.microsoft.com/Window....mspx?mfr=true

Windows Vista Help: How do I get additional language files?
http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/Win...b5ecc1033.mspx

But if you're going to buy Vista, why not buy it in Chinese to start
with? (And Microsoft makes no mention of Mandarin vs. Cantonese; they
only seem to differentiate between Simplified and Traditional Chinese.)




--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrand Russell