Computer operating systems

[Xaccers]

Dell will give a refund if you contact them, so other suppliers should, it depends what the EULA says.

Something is horribly wrong if you've got people wanting to go back to Vista. Not that I ever had issues with it, and I can see several features that are better in Vista than W7.

[myglaren]

Xac, I completely agree

Dad now tells me he wants Vista back and after I put Ubuntu on his old Vista laptop. Gosh, Ubuntu really flies on there too.

I can understand his desire though. I'm still swearing an Win8...

Richard, is it possible to get an OS-less laptop or one with Ubuntu pre-loaded? Be lovely if you could...

Jim, depending on the model of Tosh, I have a Tosh Vista installation disc here that you can try if you like.

I tried to get a refund on Win 7 as I didn't want it but got nowhere with that, however, Nigel did have a link to a firm on the south coast that will supply a bare metal laptop.

Then there is also System 76, an American Linux hardware supplier with a British branch. I looked at them but went for an Asus laptop with W7 installed and just ignored it.

Also, as I have mentioned previously, Linux Mint is as easy and quick as Ubuntu but much more like the Windows interface of the Vista era.

[RichardW]

Novatech do laptops with no or option of operating systems, Jim. Nigel (falling-out-with-my-car) recommends them.

[CitroJim]

Thanks Steve, I think I have a Vista disk here somewhere so if I do need it I should be OK. Dad is now saying he's going to try to get to grips with 8.

I'm going to give mint a go too.. If it looks a bit like Vista then for me that's a good potential alternative for him...

Xac, I support Vista professionally. Nowadays after 26 million or so updates it's actually not bad when run on fairly reasonable hardware. From my point of view its biggest issue is its security weaknesses. It's more of a colander than an OS. So much for MS claiming they spent ages making it secure..

Richard, it's reassuring that there is a laptop available that allows you to choose its OS. Good. More should to try and break the terrible MS dominance.

I did find one way of making Win8 a bit more usable on a laptop today. I got a wireless mouse. Much better than the touch pad...

[Chris570]

Linux is free. Wipe the chosen laptop and put Linux on it.

MS dominance avoided, if of course you're of a penguin persuasion.

No need for a moan about MS pre-installs then

[myglaren]

If you are still considering a Linux distro Jim, here is a review of Mint 16 "Petra" from The Register.
I ran the RC for a couple of weeks and it was fine except I was rather stumped at installing a profile for my grandson and Flashplayer didn't work in Chromium.
Installed the final release yesterday to face the same problems. Found a sort of work around for both but neither of them entirely satisfactory.
While YouTube works perfectly well in Firefox it will only play selected clips in Chromium, after repeated attempts to install Flashplayer using different approaches. It still says it is not installed, even though it did play a clip I selected just to see what it would do. After a few clips it stumbled over some it couldn't play.
Oddly enough there are no such problems with Chromium under Ubuntu Or Kubuntu.

It is quick and slick though.

I am using the Cinnamon interface - there is an untech reason for this. Long and boring story.
Perhaps the Mate interface would be more suitable though.

[CitroJim]

Thanks Steve, I'll have a look at that in the coming days.. Been very preoccupied with getting to grips with Windows 8 recently..

I was delighted to see how beautifully it integrates with my Windows phone One of the good things about it.

Still struggling with some aspects of it though...

Ubuntu is still a joy to go back to...

[spider]

I can't (personally) recommend Vista at all.

I'd suggest Win7 if they hate Win8 as its as good as XP was really and once a few minor adjustments are made it behaves itself nicely.

Thinking back Win2K was relatively awesome at the time. I still have a virtual installation of it although apart from my parts data it does not have a use. Nothing wrong with XP although its aging a bit now and I don't know what the support / update situation is.

[CitroJim]

XP remains on extended support until April next year Andy. Amazing for an OS that first saw the light of day in 2001...

Thing is that many corporate organisations still use it.

Here's the full list

Vista is supported until 2017 and Windows 7 until 2020...

[Xaccers]

Not that it will make a difference to the man himself, but Alan Turing is due to be pardoned on the 24th.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-25495315" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[CitroJim]

Alan Turing is due to be pardoned on the 24th.

Bit late

And not before time either...

[Northern_Mike]

Not that it will make a difference to the man himself, but Alan Turing is due to be pardoned on the 24th.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-25495315" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Royal pardon my arse. It just stinks of the Royals trying to be a bit PC.
It beggars belief that Mr. Turing was treated in the way he was by a supposed compassionate country, especially after Nazism and the war - I mean, imprisonment and chemical castration? Not much better than some of Hitler's regime's "experiments". Bloody disgraceful.

I'm glad he's been pardoned, not that it helps him but whether being homosexual was a criminal act (a bizarre concept!) or not back then, no one should treat any other human being like that.

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

[Chris570]

Not that it will make a difference to the man himself, but Alan Turing is due to be pardoned on the 24th.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-25495315" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Royal pardon my arse. It just stinks of the Royals trying to be a bit PC.
It beggars belief that Mr. Turing was treated in the way he was by a supposed compassionate country, especially after Nazism and the war - I mean, imprisonment and chemical castration? Not much better than some of Hitler's regime's "experiments". Bloody disgraceful.

I'm glad he's been pardoned, not that it helps him but whether being homosexual was a criminal act (a bizarre concept!) or not back then, no one should treat any other human being like that.

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+1

[myglaren]

Too little, too late.

[Xaccers]

Not that it will make a difference to the man himself, but Alan Turing is due to be pardoned on the 24th.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-25495315" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Royal pardon my arse. It just stinks of the Royals trying to be a bit PC.

It was at the request of Justice Minister Chris Grayling. The Royals don't just pardon people without it coming from the commons.

It beggars belief that Mr. Turing was treated in the way he was by a supposed compassionate country, especially after Nazism and the war - I mean, imprisonment and chemical castration? Not much better than some of Hitler's regime's "experiments". Bloody disgraceful.

I'm glad he's been pardoned, not that it helps him but whether being homosexual was a criminal act (a bizarre concept!) or not back then, no one should treat any other human being like that.

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

"Chemical castration" consisted of oestrogen injections to temper his testosterone which obviously is what makes you gay
It made him develop moobs and put on weight which for an olympic marathon runner must have been absolutely hell on his body let alone his mind.
My blood boils when I think of how he was abandoned by the powers that be after all he did for the world, helping to bring the war to a much quicker end and saving countless lives. For goodness sake he didn't even do anything other than admit that he invited a man back to his home, a man who robbed him and yet got off scott free!