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Author Topic: My computer still has hope?  (Read 9950 times)

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tonyshaw

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    My computer still has hope?
    « on: November 12, 2018, 07:02:46 AM »
    My mother-in-law gave us this computer I believe it was purchased back in 2002, it's compaq, the operating system is xp-sp3.. if this make sense.
    Anyway, lately i've been getting into videos and presentations and my efforts and time-spent all futile, as my operating system is outdated or doesn't support certain types of files, plus all the viruses, junks that's accumulated over the years. The last time we brought this to the repair shop was about 5 years ago. and it cost too much money. will it be possible if i do the job, system restore the whole thing, (back to manufacturer setting), buy an operating system AND an anti-'junk' scanner/remover? I was thinking also of looking up as much programs installed here, up on the internet to verify if they're only mere games so i could uninstall them.

    many thanks guys.

    nil

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      Re: My computer still has hope?
      « Reply #1 on: November 12, 2018, 09:14:24 AM »
      Sixteen years is a long time in computer hardware. Often you can upgrade to a computer that's 4-7 years old for a very reasonable price, and going from a 16 year old computer to a 5 year old computer is a really big upgrade.

      Have you looked at the second-hand market? Even if you're on a budget, there's a lot of value to be found. Look for a laptop with many listings from multiple sellers -- this usually indicates that the machine was used in large quantities by large organizations who later upgraded all their inventory, flooding the used market with decent machines. These laptops also have the benefit of aging well, because many of them never left an office desk.

      If you're working on media projects, I might recommend getting a 256 GB SSD, and 8 GB of RAM, with an i5 processor. This appears to be a"sweet spot" in performance/price, and would handle apps like Adobe Creative Suite just fine.

      Example Ebay search:

      https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=m570.l1313&_nkw=i5+laptop+8+GB+RAM+256+GB+ssd&_sacat=0&LH_TitleDesc=0&_udhi=350&_odkw=i5+8gb+ssd&ssPageName=GSTL

      If nothing else, this will give you an idea of what a comparable model would cost. It's good to know what the market is getting for decent second-hand computers when making a purchasing decision.
      Do not communicate by sharing memory; instead, share memory by communicating.

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      myyskie



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        Re: My computer still has hope?
        « Reply #2 on: November 18, 2018, 01:13:35 AM »
        My mother-in-law gave us this computer I believe it was purchased back in 2002, it's compaq, the operating system is xp-sp3.. if this make sense.
        Anyway, lately i've been getting into videos and presentations and my efforts and time-spent all futile, as my operating system is outdated or doesn't support certain types of files, plus all the viruses, junks that's accumulated over the years. The last time we brought this to the repair shop was about 5 years ago. and it cost too much money. will it be possible if i do the job, system restore the whole thing, (back to manufacturer setting), buy an operating system AND an anti-'junk' scanner/remover? I was thinking also of looking up as much programs installed here, up on the internet to verify if they're only mere games so i could uninstall them.

        many thanks guys.

        That's too old to be honest, restoring it may work but eventually will work slow due to it's oldness plus if you buy a new OS lets say windows 7, I don't know if that laptop is capable running it I'm guessing you may have some trouble looking for the compatible drivers for it and it will work slowly, here's my proof for it, I own a desktop i5 4th gen (8gb ram) the mobo only support 8.1  I tried upgrading it to windows 10 it works I found a couple of drivers too but it was slow about 40% I can see the dip in the changes. So I think that will gonna happened too. So if you buy a new XP it will work but not sure how long, as stated above you should buy a new laptop so you can be sure to hold all the tasks you needed and saves you time.

        Geek-9pm


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        Re: My computer still has hope?
        « Reply #3 on: November 18, 2018, 03:38:20 PM »
        Tonyshaw,
        You did not say how important this PC is to you.
        How much might you to have it replaced?
        It can be replace by a refurbished newer model for under $200.
        It will have windows 10 and a  90-day warranty,
        Example:
        https://www.amazon.com/HP-Quad-Core-Windows-10-Refurbished/dp/B01CV9G1BO/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1542580383&sr=8-3&keywords=hp+refurbished+desktop+computer+8300
        Quote
             This Certified Refurbished product is tested and certified to look and work like new. The refurbishing process includes functionality testing, basic cleaning, inspection, and repackaging. The product ships with all relevant accessories, a minimum 90-day warranty, and may arrive in a generic box. Only select sellers who maintain a high performance bar may offer Certified Refurbished products on Amazon.com
            HP 8300 Intel I5 Quad-Core 3.2 GHz Processor
            What's Inside: 8GB RAM, 500GB Hard Drive, DVD Optical Drive,
            Operating System: Windows 10 Professional
            Includes: USB Keyboard and Mouse,

        › See more product details
        Compare with similar items
        Renewed (19) from $179.50 & FREE shipping.
        You can get a one-year warranty about $20 more.  :D


        Ajfer03



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        Re: My computer still has hope?
        « Reply #4 on: November 18, 2018, 04:52:11 PM »
        Like almost everyone has stated, this computer is getting to be quite old, and the computer that Geek put a link to in his answer would probably be perfect for what you need it for. However, one good program that seems to work good if I need an all around computer optimizer, is 360 Total Security. It scans for viruses, cleans out junk files, the works. You can download it here:https://www.360totalsecurity.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=CjwKCAiAuMTfBRAcEiwAV4SDkeJnLOvijPgqu7t7O_PD1x6AWFP5Ka9JFNrH3L19bQDRRR-jIX8amBoCeJsQAvD_BwE

        BUT!If you know how to correctly factory restore a computer and keep your important files, then I recommend doing that before doing anything else. You can then download a program like VLC Media Player to open those file types which have a hard time. You can then install all of your other programs that you has on your computer before the reset.

        Putting something like windows 7 on this machine probably wouldn't work all that well. So I do recommend buying the computer that Geek posted as your new daily driver.

        Hope everything goes smoothly!
        Anthony
        "You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take." -Wayne Gretzky

        joeymakesmusic



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        Re: My computer still has hope?
        « Reply #5 on: November 19, 2018, 12:59:23 AM »
        At 16 years, I don't think you have much hope left of salvaging anything from it. Plus, you say it's on XP. As much as I love XP, it doesn't have support and I wouldn't want to do any serious business work on a machine that can fail on me any time.

        You can perhaps look into a Chromebook if all you want is to access the net. I got a Chromebook for the heck of it since my work is primarily online, and I have to say that I'm impressed with the overall performance. It's not a laptop replacement but it works fine for majority of use cases.

        As for your computer, can you share the specs? You might be able to add a faster processor and upgrade the RAM for a quick performance boost
        Checkout my research on musician salaries here: MIDINation