Win7 and new Walmart computer

[donecweb]

I have spent the last few days checking out the Acer Aspire 5534-1096 I got from Walmart. It is a 15.6 inch, 250 Gb HD, 4 Gb RAM, DL DVD/CD writer and a full size keyboard with number keypad for $348.00. Now the computer is quite good and the screen is great HD 1080 1382x738 res. however the thing I am most impressed with is Windows 7. It is what Vista was supposed to be. It may even pull me back to Windows from Linux. Maybe it is not just Win7 but the computer with the 4 Gb RAM and the integrated ATI Radeon HD 32 graphics card with 256 dedicated memory, but I kind of feel that with the smoothness of the operating system and the way the features work along with the compatibility I have experienced that it is a lot about Win7. I have noticed that the computer does not have any lights or other indicatoer of the condition of the Caps Lock or Num Lock but I don't seem to miss them since I have never paid much attention to them anyway just when the text was not right then I would change without looking at the lights on other computers. Oh this big computer only weighs 5.3 lbs. The battery is nothing special even though it is a 6 cell battery it only gives 3.5 hrs of use but recharges in 2 hrs. In any event I feel win7 is a good choice at this point.

[Mikey]

Mmmhmmm.  I have been using Windows 7 for some time.  I used it in beta and I used the RTM when it was released to all us TechNet members early.  It is a nice product.  My favorite part is the ability to snap 1 item to the left and 1 item to the right for side by side comparisons.  I still didn't have much trouble with vista though.  It all depended on whether or not your computer was powerful enough handle it's abilities.  But needless to say, I wish you luck with your new system.  Try not to close the door on Linux to quickly either.  Ubuntu just released a new version (9.10) saying its the best, Mandriva is releasing their new 2010 version saying its the best, and OpenSuse is going to be releasing their new version 11.2 claiming they have some nice improvements as well.  I may consider trying out the new OpenSuse and Ubuntu.

[donecweb]

Oh! I'm not closing the door on Linux it's just that so far it seems Windows has come up with an OS that is good enough to compete with what options are out there. I am having trouble finding a Linux that will work with the ATI Radeon HD 3200 Graphics card. I really like Mandriva and Spring 2009.1 and 2010 have problems with running X server on the ATI card.

[Mikey]

Oh! I'm not closing the door on Linux it's just that so far it seems Windows has come up with an OS that is good enough to compete with what options are out there. I am having trouble finding a Linux that will work with the ATI Radeon HD 3200 Graphics card. I really like Mandriva and Spring 2009.1 and 2010 have problems with running X server on the ATI card.

Well, nvidia cards are the ones that are best supported by linux in my opinion.

[donecweb]

Well, nvidia cards are the ones that are best supported by linux in my opinion.

Supposedly ATI has decided to make drivers for Linux but I haven't seen the results yet but here's hoping.

[Andy]

How about this idea:

an OS that mirrors itself between updates. So you work with the last stable version until you get a message that the new version has been prepared so you can toggle over to it to check it out. No more installing updates and re-booting in the OS installation that you are actively using. The OS does the update in the background on another section of your hard disk.

[Mikey]

How about this idea:

an OS that mirrors itself between updates. So you work with the last stable version until you get a message that the new version has been prepared so you can toggle over to it to check it out. No more installing updates and re-booting in the OS installation that you are actively using. The OS does the update in the background on another section of your hard disk.

That is kind of an interesting idea.  Some linux distros already have a Live CD you can boot into to see how the new versions work.

Another idea for you at the moment might be to invest in some backup software.  If I am a little worried about trying out a new version, I will usually backup my current drive first and then install the new OS.  If I don't like the new version, I just blow it away and restore to my backup.  But, you need to remember that each new version is 1 newer version than your computer which means it probably has more out of the box driver support for your hardware.  There is no doubt in my mind that a newer stable version will normally be better.  Although I use to love Suse but, since Novell became involved in the project, I haven't been all that impressed with the changes it has gone through.  But, that is the reason why there are many distros to choose from.  If you don't like the direction one of them is going in, there are other distros to choose from.  That is one of the main benefits I like with linux.

By the way, I just installed the new Ubuntu 9.10 and all I can say is WOW.  I am impressed.  What a nice version.  I also like the new Ubuntu One cloud storage they are offering.  Each ubuntu user gets 2gigs of storage space online for FREE.  You can upgrade to 50gigs for $10/mo.  When you save files to the Ubuntu One folder, it automatically syncs with your online account to make sure your backups stay up to date.

[donecweb]

The mention of backups reminded me I want to pass on a new free software I found it is called "Macrium Reflect™ Free Edition".
http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.asp
For more info see post....
http://forum.weblamp.net/index.php/topic,9656.msg43453.html#msg43453

I have been thinking of trying out the new Ubuntu but haven't since I have had problems when I have tried it in the past and Win7 has been doing surprisingly well.

The Live CD idea does sound a little like what Andy was thinking but I don't think it is really what he meant. I think that if you were to run an OS within a virtual window almost all the time and then when the new version came out and you ran it in a virtual window, allowing you to switch back and forth, until all the bugs were fixed this would be a little closer to his idea. However there are still way too many problems in virtual setup to make such a thing possible. Win7 has a feature if you get the 3 business versions that will allow you to download a free virtual XP image and run it in the special Win7 versions for compatibility of older and proprietary software that some businesses need.

[MLyon]

Windows 7 starting from Professional Version has windows xp mode, and it works even if you own just 1 license. Yo can donwload it and install it, and then run any windows xp software on your windows 7 machine, just like if it was installed on win7.