xp from desktop to laptop

TBJ

Gawd
Joined
Oct 9, 2002
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If I no longer use my old computer that has windows XP home retail on it, can I install it on my wife's laptop?
 
Depends on what license type. If you bought the OEM "systems builder" license, no. It can only ever be activated on one hardware configuration, and is not transferrable. If you are talking about a preinstalled XP on a computer you bought, then no (same as the first case above). If it's any other license, probably, as jmilcher said--only one instance can be used at a time.
 
I should be good to go then, her machine came with vista and is horribly slow. ThinkPad T series.
 
I should be good to go then, her machine came with vista and is horribly slow. ThinkPad T series.
Yep, it's retail, feel free to transfer the license.

How much memory does it have? Vista will run very well if it's at SP2 level and if you have 2GB of ram.
 
I should be good to go then, her machine came with vista and is horribly slow. ThinkPad T series.

If you run into problems with the license, you can use linux for free.

Well, it will cost you the price of a blank dvd if you burn a distro on it but that's a lot cheaper than a windows license! :)

A very windows user friendly distribution is Zorin linux for example: http://zorin-os.com/
 
If you run into problems with the license, you can use linux for free.

Well, it will cost you the price of a blank dvd if you burn a distro on it but that's a lot cheaper than a windows license! :)

A very windows user friendly distribution is Zorin linux for example: http://zorin-os.com/

And all the time to get the hardware to work, hope your wireless does not have issues.
Then trying to find replacements for software that you used to use. Other than all that time it is free.
 
I think my wife would freak in a non-windows environment, it would have to be very easy to use and setup. If it was my own laptop I'd give it a go. Using my copy of XP seems the simplest way to go.
Her laptop only has 1 gig of ram and its shared with the video.
 
I think my wife would freak in a non-windows environment, it would have to be very easy to use and setup. If it was my own laptop I'd give it a go. Using my copy of XP seems the simplest way to go.
Her laptop only has 1 gig of ram and its shared with the video.

Which T series is it? 4GB DDR2 is cheap these days.
 
And all the time to get the hardware to work, hope your wireless does not have issues.
Then trying to find replacements for software that you used to use. Other than all that time it is free.

Current distributions come packed with most generally needed applications and hardware troubles are not very common. 5 years ago? Your concerns would have been valid.
 
Current distributions come packed with most generally needed applications and hardware troubles are not very common. 5 years ago? Your concerns would have been valid.

Not 100% accurate or factual. I have an older dell laptop with built in wireless that still fights wireless connections with mint or ubuntu.
 
I think my wife would freak in a non-windows environment, it would have to be very easy to use and setup. If it was my own laptop I'd give it a go. Using my copy of XP seems the simplest way to go.
Her laptop only has 1 gig of ram and its shared with the video.

Those specs go along way in explaining why vista performance is unacceptable.
 
Not 100% accurate or factual. I have an older dell laptop with built in wireless that still fights wireless connections with mint or ubuntu.

There are a couple of chipsets which are troublesome. Then again all the hardware I have come into contact with have worked problem free with the linux flavors I use (xubuntu, puppy, sabayon etc).

I find it quite incredible that the 190mb puppy automagically detects and configures my devices without me touching a thing on USB bootup. I just love that thing.
 
I think my wife would freak in a non-windows environment, it would have to be very easy to use and setup. If it was my own laptop I'd give it a go. Using my copy of XP seems the simplest way to go.
Her laptop only has 1 gig of ram and its shared with the video.

TBH, the recent Ubuntu install is just as easy to use as Windows. I also had a terrible experience with trying to conveniently use linux 5-7 years ago, and where it's come up until now is like the difference between night and day. If not for gaming, I'd use linux for everything on my desktop. but since I still game on my computer, I still use Windows (don't much care for the inconvenience of dual-booting).
 
TBH, the recent Ubuntu install is just as easy to use as Windows. I also had a terrible experience with trying to conveniently use linux 5-7 years ago, and where it's come up until now is like the difference between night and day. If not for gaming, I'd use linux for everything on my desktop. but since I still game on my computer, I still use Windows (don't much care for the inconvenience of dual-booting).

Yep a Xubuntu, Zorin or Sabayon install will feel right at home coming from XP (only a lot better looking). Then again windows 8... :D
 
/sarcasm: Yeah, Zorin, where it looks as flat as Windows 8. /sarcasm Personally, I do not mind the look, but, those who hate Windows 8 because of the flat look then praise Zorin which has the same flat look?

Oh well, you should be fine with XP on that system. How much ram is installed on that laptop though? Vista may not be the issue but perhaps a slow, worn out harddrive or too little ram? If those are the case, XP will not make any difference in then. (Not trying to convince you not to do it, just giving a possible heads up just incase.) :)

Edit: I just saw that you posted that it has 1GB of ram with shared video memory. (XP will probably not run much better in that case.) Is there anyway to install 2GB of memory?
 
There are a couple of chipsets which are troublesome. Then again all the hardware I have come into contact with have worked problem free with the linux flavors I use (xubuntu, puppy, sabayon etc).

I find it quite incredible that the 190mb puppy automagically detects and configures my devices without me touching a thing on USB bootup. I just love that thing.

I have tried puppy, fast OS. Have not tried to do a windows replacement with it.
Unfortunately a dell B130 was what i had available, lost interest tying to get the wireless to work. A laptop without wireless kind of defeats the purpose.
 
/sarcasm: Yeah, Zorin, where it looks as flat as Windows 8. /sarcasm Personally, I do not mind the look, but, those who hate Windows 8 because of the flat look then praise Zorin which has the same flat look?

Zorin has desktop effects which Windows doesn't. And the looks are a concious decision to make it look familiar to new windows converts. This has been also my approach, whenever I migrated users from Windows to linux I custom made the XFCE desktop to look like windows. To one user I even installed a fake Win7 bootloader/shutdown animation :D
 
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