So You Got A New Computer – Now What?
April, 2010
By Wayne
Maruna
This appears to have been a busy first
quarter for the computer manufacturers based on inquiries I’ve received. Many
people have moved to new machines with Microsoft’s 64-bit version of its Windows
7 operating system. Deciding what to buy in the first place can be a daunting
task, but once done, then what? Beyond unpacking the box and maybe attaching a
few cables, many people are unsure about what comes next. What about email?
How do I get all my ‘stuff’ from the old machine to the new machine? What do I
do with the old machine?
I’m going to
assume that the buyer did not have a machine custom built to their
specifications but rather bought an off-the-shelf Dell, HP, Compaq or Acer or
perhaps gone online to buy any of several other brand name computers. While the
branded manufacturers continue to load their machines with ‘shovel-ware’, I have
to say that they have really improved their initial start-up experience. If
you’ve connected your computer, monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers, and
broadband cable properly, chances are good that when you press the power button,
you will initiate a start-up routine that is highly automated, requiring little
input from the user beyond providing registration information. Normally these
routines take care of finding and connecting to your broadband Ethernet
connection. If you connect wirelessly, you’ll need to provide the security key
used to configure your wireless router.
Most machines come with some form of security suite installed. You can choose
to opt into the trial period and then make your annual payment, or you can
uninstall the included suite and download and install one of the many fine free
alternatives that can be found online. (My two favorites are Microsoft Security
Essentials and AVG.) Many machines offer a 60-day trial of Microsoft Office
2007 Home and Student Edition. This is a version that includes Excel, Word, and
PowerPoint and the license can be used on three machines. If you buy through
the offer, you’ll likely pay $150. But note that you can find the same software
on line for considerably less, and just use that purchasd CD-key to activate the
installed trial version. Alternately, you can go to www.OpenOffice.org and
download their free alternative program, one of the best free deals on the web.
You’ll want to
install your printer, but don’t go hooking it up just yet. You should never
attach a USB-connected peripheral (printer, scanner, camera) without first
loading the ‘driver’ software. And since you have likely purchased a 64-bit
version of Windows 7, chances are high that the installation CD you got with
your old peripheral does not include the proper driver. You’ll need to go to
the peripheral manufacturer’s website and do a search to find the correct Win7
driver, assuming it exists. Hopefully you will find one; if not, you may be off
to the store again shopping for a newer device. If you’ve been able to download
and install a new device driver, the installation routine should tell you when
to attach the device and complete the job.
Moving
Email and Data
While Windows
XP came with Outlook Express as its default email program and Windows Vista came
with ‘Windows Mail’, Win7 does not provide any email application. However most
branded PCs come with ‘Windows Live Mail’ installed. You don’t have to use Live
Mail on the new machine. There are free alternatives like Mozilla’s Thunderbird
program. But in my experience, if you want to copy over your contacts list
(address book), email settings, and existing email from your old machine, the
easiest way is to install Windows Live Mail on the old machine. It will take
care of converting your Outlook Express or Windows Mail settings and data into
‘Live Mail’.
Of course, you
still need to transfer that Live Mail info to the new machine, along with copies
of all your data – word processing documents, spreadsheets, music, and photos.
The easiest way to do this is with a Windows 7 Easy Transfer cable. Note that
this will transfer data files only, not whole applications. Those you will need
to reinstall from scratch on the new machine. An Easy Transfer cable will set
you back between $20 and $40 depending on where you shop. Run the Easy Transfer
program included on the new machine, and it will walk you through the process of
installing the program on the old machine. You then attach the special cable,
let the machines load the device drivers, and then either accept the defaults or
choose what files and folders to copy over from the old machine to the new.
When complete, if all has gone well, you’ll find all your files transferred over
and your Windows Live Mail program will work seamlessly. In my experience
though, the transfer of email contacts is hit or miss. I often end up having to
manually export the contacts list as a CSV (comma separated values) file from
the old machine to a flash drive, and then import the list into Live Mail on the
new machine.
Allow yourself
a long afternoon to complete all the above tasks. It can easily take five hours
or more to complete the setup and data transfer plus install some basic
supplemental programs. Take your time and do it right, or find someone to do it
for you.
Dealing with your old machine
As for
disposing of the old machine, most people want to first wipe their hard drive of
all their personal data. The most effective way to do this is with a program
designed to write ones and zeroes to the entire drive, making one or many passes
depending on your degree of paranoia. You can download free programs to do this
and put them on a bootable diskette or CD. Active@ Kill Disk (www.killdisk.com),
DBAN (www.dban.org), and CopyWipe (www.terabyteunlimited.com)
are three such programs I have used. If you plan to give the machine away, it
would really benefit the recipient if you could provide a copy of the original
operating system disk. Otherwise you’ve essentially provided them with a very
large door stop.