PC Question

[Tdm]

Having had my Stag resprayed and just now finished putting new coachlines on it, my next task since returning from the U.K. is to swap over from my old Toshiba Laptop (which is`past it's use by date) to a new faster & larger capacity Acer Laptop I brought back with me.
The Acer has Vista pre-loaded but the Toshiba runs Windows XP (which I prefer).
I have done some initial tyding of the Desktop & s/ware I definately won't be using on the new Acer, but I have a lot of software on the Toshiba I wish to transfer over to my new PC and I was wondering the best way of doing this.
Can anyone recommend any PC to PC Transfer software to use - and will I need to purchase a USB to USB cable to use it with. I need to be able to split any transfer up into modules as one of the problems I have with my old PC is that it regularly overheats and switches itself off after about an hours use. Sooner if there is a lot of activity happening. The CD Rom drive also plays up but I can still write to DVD-RWs or CD-RWs etc. and regularly use a set of DVD-RWs for Back-Up.

Welcome your recommendations/suggestions.

[GDPR]

imported post

As a general rule Terry, you can't transfer pre-installed software from one machine to another - you will need the original installation discs or install downloads and do it from scratch. You would be able to migrate project files across though, to use on the new machine, assuming you can get the software to run on Vista

There are still issues with Vista and compatability with older pieces of hardware and software so you may not get stuff to work on the new one. Some manufacturers of new PCs have even gone back to offering the "downgrade" to XP because of general unhappiness with Vista, and that XP has finally become a mature and reliable OS...

Probably the easiest way for you to do it is via a crossover Cat 5 cable shoved in the network sockets - you then create a peer to peer network between the 2 and can transfer the files at high speed without having to burn loads of CDs

[mjheathcote]

imported post

You can't transfer installed software from your old laptop to your new one, you will have to install the software on your new laptop from the originalsoftware CD's/download from the web.

Transfering the data files the easiest way would be to burn some CD's assuming your old laptop has a rewriteable CD drive....you should be backing up your data files anyway shouldn't you.....!

If your old laptop does not have a rewriteable CD drive use a USB memory stick or USB external hard drive. Both are only a few cents, and you should be backing up your data files.....(second reminder!)

Yes you can link the two together via various means, both not worth the trouble for what you want to achieve.

[StagnJag]

imported post

Hi Terry,

I agree with the above, but I think the USB stick option is the best bet for file transfer. Easy to use and relatively cheap these days. Look on Amazon, 16GB for less than £18.00.

Regards

Dave

[KansasCityMilkman]

imported post

When I upgraded from an XP pc to a Vista pc I used a transfer cable which I picked up cheaply on ebay.

Vista has a function to do the transfer- it transferred all my documents, music downloads, photos and settings (ie. internet etc.). As previously stated it didn't transfer any software. I was surprised how easy it was although it did take about 5 hours!!

Good luck!

[Tdm]

imported post

Thank you for your prompt replies - Russ (Kryten), MjHeathcoat, StagnJag, KansasCityMilkman. All comments taken on board.

A lot of the S/Ware I use I downloaded from CNETs website Download.Com, so will just have to download all over again onto my new Acer PC. Other S/Ware I still have the original Installation disks for.

It is such a shame that I finally got Windows XP tailored to my needs & working really well, and from what I have seen on my Wife's PC which runs Vista - I just think think it's a backwards step rather than a move forward. Perhaps Windows 7 will be an improvement on Vista when it is released?

Going back to Stag matters I am about to put my whitewalls on my tyres now that I have replaced the coachlines, and am also considering putting on the Stag decals Chopperman kindly sent me. Tommorrow I am meeting up again with another couple of Stag Owners out here, Robert & Janet (15 Tag), who we have been out with before as they are regular Tenerife visitors.

Whilst on the subject of Tenerife it is such a shame that flight prices are so expensive at the moment as once you get here the cost of eating & drinking has been significantly reduced to attract more Tourists. You can now get a decent pint for 90cents, local Baileys & Ice for €1.80, and a (really good) main course meal for only €7.

Also, the more I think about it, having my Stag bodywork repaired, and the car totally resprayed for a £1,000 was a bargain.

[kstar]

imported post

Hi Terry,

Presumably you have a router for your internet connection. This is likely to have more than one network port on it. So you could probably plug your new machine into the router and effectively create yourself a little network. You would need to allocte an ip address.

Then you should be able to access the machines via a unc path if file sharing is enabled.

From the run do something like \\ip_address\c$

substitute the ip address of the machine you want to connect to (and change drive letter if you need to. You may need the admin password to the machine too.

cheers
Kevin

[marshman]

imported post

Terry wrote:

one of the problems I have with my old PC is that it regularly overheats and switches itself off after about an hours use. Sooner if there is a lot of activity happening.

Terry,

Try blowing all the dust out of the grills on the rear of the machine. Over time they get clogged with dust and on a laptop they are so small thet the resulting restriction greatly increases the inernal temperatues so that it shuts down. a good blast with an airline is what i've used in the past, its amazing how much dust comes out.

Roger

p.s. your car looks really good after the work you had done. not only was it done in a short time, it was ready when it was supposed to be and amazingly cheap as well

[NickA]

imported post

kstar wrote:

Hi Terry,

Presumably you have a router for your internet connection. This is likely to have more than one network port on it. So you could probably plug your new machine into the router and effectively create yourself a little network. You would need to allocte an ip address.

Then you should be able to access the machines via a unc path if file sharing is enabled.

From the run do something like ip_addressc$

substitute the ip address of the machine you want to connect to (and change drive letter if you need to. You may need the admin password to the machine too.

cheers
Kevin

XP assuming SP3 is firewalled by default so first you've got to enable file and print sharing for this to work on the source machine plus a lot ofanti virus software also helpfully block this type of activity.

It's easier with a memory stick, and it's a good chance to leave all the clutter behind.

In answer to Terry's question so far Windows 7 seemsway way better than Vista. Much faster too.

[Tdm]

imported post

NickA wrote:

It's easier with a memory stick, and it's a good chance to leave all the clutter behind.

In answer to Terry's question so far Windows 7 seemsway way better than Vista. Much faster too.

Given up trying to copy & transfer files & s/ware directly from old PC as it constantly falls over even usiing a memory stick & having blow cleaned the the inside to get rid of dust etc.; it still powered itself off before I could complete a transfer.
Now using Back-Up DVDs to copy & re-install all the stuff I want. I did a full back-up at the end of May onto 5 DVD-RWs and am presently in the middle of restoring & re-setting preferences etc. and ignoring Windows bits that are pertinent only to XP and not to Vista. Slow process but I am making progress and getting used to the differences between Vista & XP - whether I like them or not. At least my new PC does seem a lot quicker than the old one despite the extra memory & resources Vista takes up. Will only really know how much better it is when I start editing Videos.

Took a break from PC migratorary work yesterday to take Robert & Janet (15 TAG) out in my Stag and we had a good day together. One of the few downsides of living in Tenerife is car Insurance is expensive - & today it cost me €405 to insure my Stag 3rd Party Fire & Theft (can't get Comprehensive cover or Classic Insurance). Previously I could get 3rd Party only & last year this cost €325. At least Fuel is cheap & I don't pay any Road Tax. In 3 years time when it's 35 years old it only has to be ITV (MOT) tested once every 5 years instead of every year as at present.

[Tdm]

imported post

It has takem from the 3rd of July until now with countless hours spent at my PC to get everything that I had working under XP to run under Windows Vista.
The only software that wouldn't work (which I can live without) and have had to discard was an old version of "Sonic Record Now" and an old version of "Nero".
At this moment I still prefer Windows XP to Vista, but am coming to terms with it and when I have finally mastered it will be when Microsoft replace it with Windows 7.
Thanks again to all of you who offered advise on how to migrate my files etc., and in the end I think the process I followed has been sucessful. Now I can get back to working on my Stag again and going for more runs, but it's bloody hot out at the moment.