Paul K Posted October 3, 2013 Share Posted October 3, 2013 Ladies and Gentlemen; So the MOBO on my old 'puter is no more. So I bought a new computer and did the Win 8 thing instead of trying to keep the the old girl running on XP. I am totally lost. At least I downloaded an app that gives me back the "Start" button. But damn. All my stuff in Outlook is not yet accessible. I've not a clue how to update my music library. Even the keyboard is shitty: I keep hitting the "\" button instead of the shift key. But there's no PS2 port for the old keyboard. I can't eve import my favorites list to Firefox. Advice, please. Peace Paul K Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EddiePlaysBass Posted October 4, 2013 Share Posted October 4, 2013 Buy an Apple? Sorry, I got nothing AND I am a technological illiterate. But I did hear about the woes of Win 8 from some friends the other day. "I'm a work in progress." Micky Barnes The Ross Brown Shirt World Tour Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy c Posted October 4, 2013 Share Posted October 4, 2013 I'm using Windows 8 on a Microsoft Surface notepad. I'm gradually learning how to use it. Last week I was helping my sister-in-law with 8 on her desktop, which is not a touch screen. It turns out that a lot of the functions which are obvious on my touch screen require a right-click when you using a mouse. meanwhile try this link: Windows 8 for Dummies Free download of my cd!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michele C. Posted October 4, 2013 Share Posted October 4, 2013 Windows 8.1 will reportedly iron out some of the rough ends. Remember: - the Windows-X combination is pretty handy. - I think Media Player is an optional download - yes, without a touch screen it is sillier Ah, and you can have the book Jeremy mentioned for free (thanks to Dell) -- Michele Costabile (http://proxybar.net) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wraub Posted October 4, 2013 Share Posted October 4, 2013 I went from XP to WIN7, been very pleased thus far. No help with 8 though, sorry. I also have several friends with WIN8 horror stories, including a couple IT professionals. I'm a lot more like I am now than I was when I got here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wally Malone Posted October 4, 2013 Share Posted October 4, 2013 I stayed with XP until 7 came out and have been happy with it. Not planning on going to 8. This is my work computer, my personal computer is a Mac. Wally I have basses to play, places to be and good music to make! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slowfinger Posted October 4, 2013 Share Posted October 4, 2013 In the first few days after building a new PC and installing Win8 (see below) I had to do a lot of googling to find out how to get my info from the old one. The Start button: easy fix - get a free app Transfer mail from Outlook Express: not so easy - install the old hdd in the new PC, find where the mail and contacts is stored, then import. (Google found detailed guidance for this). We have got used to the way Live Mail works (separates the 3 email accounts - ie 3 inboxes) but still don't like it. Music library: again with old HDD installed, copy the contents of the old 'My Music' the the new 'My Music', likewise for My Documents, etc etc. Your music app should rebuild the library. If it's iTunes, copy the iTunes folder from within My Music. (see note below) Firefox faves: again Google should be able to tell you where Firefox keeps bookmarks etc. I use Chrome, and that enables me to sync bookmarks, setting including forum passwords across a number of platforms (currently Win7 and 2 varieties of Linux on this laptop, my iPad and the new PC mentioned above.) Keyboard: I bought a wireless keyboard and mouse for about $40. iTunes: When I was a school computer tech and a student needed Windows re-installed (common issue - virii, crashing, unstable etc) I would first copy away or backup the iTunes folder from 'Program Files' and the whole of 'My Music', then when Windows was reinstalled (actually I just restored an image with all the school software etc pre-installed) I copied the iTunes program folder and My Music into the new setup, and told the student to re-install iTunes when they got home. This should pick up the settings, playlists etc. I never had a complaint about this, so it must have worked. New PC: Intel i5 CPU, 8Gb RAM, 80Gb SSD system disk, 1Tb data disk. Boots it 15 seconds. The SSD disk is a wonderful thing. Epi EB-3 G-K Backline 600 2 x Eden EX112 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul K Posted October 4, 2013 Author Share Posted October 4, 2013 Struggling. I did find the app that gives you back the start button, and am relieved. And I got Outlook re-installed, and address book and old e-mails imported. Must say that the on board sound card sounds incredible. I found the windows media player, and have 2/3 of the music collection in the new library. Old hard drive is installed in the new box as a slave. Box does the USB3 thing, and my old hard drive is SATA3 (I think I got that gobbldygook near correct), so the data freakin' blazes. Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wraub Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 Cool that you want to go to the latest and, um, greatest, um... but IME it was better to go to 7 instead of 8 for a desktop application. My homebuilt box needed nothing beyond the usual updates on installation, except for a video driver that I had to search for. Not that hard, really. No copying, no transferring (unless I want to, easy enough from flash drive), no hassles, etc. Surprisingly easy, considering it is still a Win product. Not trying to sway you from 8, just my experience. Again, considering a desktop application here. I'm a lot more like I am now than I was when I got here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul K Posted October 6, 2013 Author Share Posted October 6, 2013 Ha! Too late. If'n I'd have known that a 7 transition would have been easier, then that'd have been my plan. But unfortunately my thought process was to either make my old XP hard drive work with a new Mobo, or make the leap to the newest. Since I couldn't guarantee the former i went with the latter; time was of the essence..... So: Is it possible to make a downgrade to 7 without much more of an investment? Google here I come. Although I plan to buy a USB 2 audio interface that'll record 4 or more tracks at a time, the on board sound card has about a half second latency between when I play a note to when I hear it from the speakers. I haven't found which icon to click on to fix that. Ideas? Peace Paul K Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J. Dan Posted October 8, 2013 Share Posted October 8, 2013 Not sure if you'll need to wipe everything already on there, but basically you'll need to buy a full version of Win 7. I will not go to win 8. Win 8 was designed for touch devices and is horrible for most typical desktop stuff - win 7 is the way to go. I will likely be building a new computer in November and will use Win 7. Dan Acoustic/Electric stringed instruments ranging from 4 to 230 strings, hammered, picked, fingered, slapped, and plucked. Analog and Digital Electronic instruments, reeds, and throat/mouth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michele C. Posted October 9, 2013 Share Posted October 9, 2013 To be honest, I could not miss the start button less. In the main window of windows 8, just type a P and an A and there you have MS Paint, N and O go for Notepad. There is automatic search. Anywhere you can use Windows-X to summon a menu of the most commonly used administration tools. The desktop apps I use the most are pinned to the desktop, so that their icon remains on the app bar. Some of the gadgets are nice, I like for example how the address book links to Twitter and Facebook. Then, again, my real computer is a Mac, which might look a bit traditional these days, but has a lot of time saving little features. Regarding the poor adaptation of windows 8 to keyboard and mouse situations, they say it is going to be better in the 8.1 update coming real soon. -- Michele Costabile (http://proxybar.net) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy c Posted October 9, 2013 Share Posted October 9, 2013 Most of the touchpad features can be accessed with a right-click. Free download of my cd!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul K Posted October 12, 2013 Author Share Posted October 12, 2013 Baby steps. Not gonna buy a full version of Win 7, so making do is what I'll do. Outlook works. Downloaded a newer free version of Microsoft Money and got the accounts imported. New version wouldn't recognize my wife's account, so I installed it first on my netbook running XP, opened the file, and backed it up to a flash which then worked fine on the Super Computer. I'm like a mouse in a cheese maze. I decided to bypass the onboard sound card due to the silly latency issue that had become a time sink. One of these is on it's way: http://www.behringer.com/EN/Products/FCA1616.aspx No B'inger flames, please. I know. I just couldn't fire up the mastercard to double the price of the nearest competitor. With 8 ins plus 8 more on optical, I plan on removing my Multimix 8 mixer from the signal chain, and will use my Older Than Old Yamaha REX-50 for vocal reverb using one of the channel inserts. (Yes: 8 channel inserts!!!) Guitar and bass reverb will come from the stomp box. And I'll be able to record more than two channels at a time! Hooray for me! Media Player is all loaded and works great. Dunno where all the extra music came from, I think courtesy of Microsoft. I'll have to give the same library treatment to the living room win 7 PC and see which tunes show up. Gotta go play golf. Peace Paul K Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy c Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 Windows 8.1 coming shortyl This may solve a lot of your problems. Free download of my cd!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul K Posted October 17, 2013 Author Share Posted October 17, 2013 But nothing about audio latency or the fact that you can use only one audio output at a time. Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenstrum Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 Paul, you need to download Classic Shell. I did for my non touch screen Win 8 virtual machine. http://www.classicshell.net/ The problem with Win8 is that is makes a great touch screen interface. However, if you don't have a touch screen, then its pretty worthless. Tenstrum "Paranoid? Probably. But just because you're paranoid doesn't mean there isn't an invisible demon about to eat your face." Harry Dresden, Storm Front Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul K Posted November 24, 2013 Author Share Posted November 24, 2013 So an update 'cause I like to type. Whole system is back on track, works great. classic shell thing helped a lot; that was my first download, IIR. Weird about Windows Media Player: I've got crapload of music listed that I don't remember loading onto the hard drive. Like, 16 albums by Bob Mintzer and his big band. 11 albums by Brand X (Yes, I love Percy. But no way I loaded in 11 of them) Camel? Nope not Frampton's Camel. 11.6 hours worth. Dunno where it came from. I could go on, but I don't like typing quite that much. Win 8 boots seriously fast, 'puter deals with audio tweaking silly fast, and the "Tracktion" DAW program included with the DA interface just totally rocks. I like it a whole lot. Am looking forward to the indoor weather season to get more playing/recording time. Peace paul K Things are just the way they are, and they're only going to get worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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