Windows 7, total crap, new OP system recommendations?

[Zundfolge]

The biggest problems caused by Windows 7 and 8 is the transition from a 32bit OS to a 64bit one ... older software written for 32bit Windows often doesn't quite work right when it finds itself installed in C:\Program Files (x86) instead of C:\Program Files

I also think the 32bit flavors of Windows 7 (is there a 32bit Win8?) don't work quite as well as they should. ESPECIALLY when installed on a 64bit machine.

This is unfortunate, but necessary. The advantages of 64bit are just too great (ability to use more than 3.5GB RAM alone).

[nynco]

How old is your computer? Because at a certain point, its just best to upgrade it all. You can a screaming good system that will put anything older than 3 years to shame from Microcenter for around 400. Just custom build one and shop the sales there. No matter how good or bad you think Windows 7 is, if the system is older than dirt, well there is no helping that.

If you can't afford to upgrade then look into a Linux distro. I personally favor Mint now over Ubuntu (unity can suck it). But if you have a really old system, then even Mint might be too much.

[nynco]

If price is a concern then the AMD stuff is cheaper but still way better than older anything. Get a chip and mother board combo for like 160. Add 8 gigs of RAM for like 80, DVD drive for 20, Solid State HD (BEST UPGRADE EVER) for like 80, 1tb storage hard drive for music or movies 80, case for like 40 and yer done. Reuse your old monitor and keyboard if you want or buy a new one for cheap too.

http://www.microcenter.com/site/products/amd_bundles.aspx

I also know you said your computer was new, but new is relative to some people. If you computer is new then you might have a virus or a root kit going on. You need to get some virus scanners to fix that. As another poster suggested, registry cleaner too.

[Gman]

(is there a 32bit Win8?)

Yes, there is. It's part of the 'being able to load that turd on anything' strategy from Microsoft.

[MarkCO]

We just put W7 on a computer to test compatibility and such...runs like a champ. When I put a 64bit system on a computer 6 years ago, nothing would run, had to go back to a 32bit. I got a bunch of tweaks from a MS employee. I retried the 64bit OS last year and man on man did it run better.

[MED]

Ubuntu 12.04.3 LTS loaded with Wine for your windows aps. If you have a licensed copy of windows then configure VirtualBox and run a VM. This is the setup I use at work. If you are not familiar with the Linux environment, it takes some time and patience, but it runs great without the overhead of windows. If you are building a gaming machine, Win8 with the Start8 add on and fix the mess Microsoft created.

[cstone]

Back up your data, wipe the drive and load Linux Mint - http://www.linuxmint.com/

Find a replacement program for every program you used to pay for on your M$ box and know that if you have problems with it you can easily find help on the web. Only one box I use at home has WinXP on it so that I can access work related stuff, but every other machine (except for the old PowerBook running OSX) I use is running a Linux distro.

[Holger Danske]

It is too bad OS2 Warp never took off...

[cstone]

It is too bad OS2 Warp never took off...

I liked OS/2. Compared to the DOS/Windows shell combination that most computers came loaded with, OS/2 was a much better OS. BeOS was even better but was tougher to get running and NeXT Cube was probably one of the best systems available in the early 1990s. Does anyone remember CP/M DOS?

[wctriumph]

We have all of our computers at work on Win 7 and my home laptop is as well, no issues to speak of other than at work we had to (finally) replace some of our printers as Win 7 could not get drivers to support them. I liked XP but no complaints about 7.


TEA

III