My Vista Needs

[Judy]

Can some kind person advise me on migrating from an XP laptop to a
Vista desktop machine?
A. Do I need better than my current hardware?
RE462AV AMD Turion(TM) 64 X 2 Mobile TL-60
EW635AV 256MB NVDIA(R) GeForce(R) Go 7600
EW652AV 2.0GB DDR2 SDRAM (2x1024MB)

B. Which version of Vista do I need? This is my current software, in
order of frequency of use:
MS Word
ReadIris Pro scanning software
Abbyy Fine Reader Pro OCR software
Encarta
MS Excel
Adobe Acrobat Standard
MS Access
PowerPoint
Misc utilities

In graphics I’m a minor dabbler only, mainly need need to open work
done by others
Adobe Photoshop Elements
Adobe Photoshop CS3
Corel Paintshop Pro

Games other than Solitaire are of no interest to me.

 

[Spaceman]

Hi Judy,
The easiest way to find out your options is to run
the Vista Upgrade Advisor from here
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...83-C24F-4863-A389-3FFC194924F8&displaylang=en

Hope this helps.
--
James M Driscoll Jr
MCTS (Vista)
Spaceman


Can some kind person advise me on migrating from an XP laptop to a
Vista desktop machine?
A. Do I need better than my current hardware?
RE462AV AMD Turion(TM) 64 X 2 Mobile TL-60
EW635AV 256MB NVDIA(R) GeForce(R) Go 7600
EW652AV 2.0GB DDR2 SDRAM (2x1024MB)

B. Which version of Vista do I need? This is my current software, in
order of frequency of use:
MS Word
ReadIris Pro scanning software
Abbyy Fine Reader Pro OCR software
Encarta
MS Excel
Adobe Acrobat Standard
MS Access
PowerPoint
Misc utilities

In graphics I’m a minor dabbler only, mainly need need to open work
done by others
Adobe Photoshop Elements
Adobe Photoshop CS3
Corel Paintshop Pro

Games other than Solitaire are of no interest to me.

 

[Judy]

Can some kind person advise me on migrating from an XP laptop to aVistadesktop machine?
A. Do I need better thanmycurrent hardware?
RE462AV AMD Turion(TM) 64 X 2 Mobile TL-60
EW635AV 256MB NVDIA(R) GeForce(R) Go 7600
EW652AV 2.0GB DDR2 SDRAM (2x1024MB)

B. Which version ofVistado I need? This ismycurrent software, in
order of frequency of use:
MS Word
ReadIris Pro scanning software
Abbyy Fine Reader Pro OCR software
Encarta
MS Excel
Adobe Acrobat Standard
MS Access
PowerPoint
Misc utilities

In graphics I’m a minor dabbler only, mainly need need to open work
done by others
Adobe Photoshop Elements
Adobe Photoshop CS3
Corel Paintshop Pro

Games other than Solitaire are of no interest to me.

Thanks, Spaceman. Some help, but it’s the party line, and I’m not
looking to use the same machine that I have now. Interested in real
world experience. Seen too many company hypes for minimal hardware
only to have the software crawl.

 

[DDW]

Thanks, Spaceman. Some help, but it’s the party line, and I’m not
looking to use the same machine that I have now. Interested in real
world experience. Seen too many company hypes for minimal hardware
only to have the software crawl.

None of the programs you list are particularly demanding - the Vista
Aero interface will probably task your machine more. That said, most
any mid-priced machine with at least 2 gigs of RAM (the more the
merrier), a huge hard drive and a hardy video card will handle
whatever you - or Vista - will want to toss at it.

Go with either Home Premium or Ultimate.

 

[Malke]

Can some kind person advise me on migrating from an XP laptop to a

(snippage)

You need a fast processor such as an Intel Core2Duo or AMD64. The Turion you
have on the laptop is AMD's equivalent of Intel's Celeron and I don't
recommend either one of those.

Get a *minimum* of 2GB of RAM. Since you use Photoshop, I'd go for 3GB if
it's a good deal.

Any modern Desktop computer will have a nice big (over 250GB) hard drive and
a DVD burner.

You don't need a gamer's video card but I think I'd go for a discrete PCI-e
one rather than onboard (integrated graphics) because you do some Photoshop
work. A PCI-3 card with 256MB of RAM on it will be fine.

If you are never going to join a domain, Vista Home Premium is the best fit
for you.

Get a good flat panel monitor, remembering that this is the part you look at
all the time. The monitor is a good component on which to spend a little
more money.

Malke

 

[DDW]

Get a good flat panel monitor, remembering that this is the part you look at
all the time. The monitor is a good component on which to spend a little
more money.

I finally put my 17" flat screen CRT monitor on the closet shelf and
replaced it with a 22" Samsung LCD monitor.

WOW. No other word fits the experience.

 

[Malke]

I finally put my 17" flat screen CRT monitor on the closet shelf and
replaced it with a 22" Samsung LCD monitor.

WOW. No other word fits the experience.

Yeah, I know exactly what you mean. People tend to forget how important what
you *see* is. Nowadays 20" seems to be the minimum. ;-)

Malke

 

[Not Me]

On your video card, some offer the traditional VGA (blue 15 pin plug) others
offer a digital (usually white) connector.
Some adapters have both connectors on the same card.
Most new LCD monitors accept both types of input.
If your video card supports it, the digital input improves the display.
From WOW to WOWEEE! LOL