Tech: Transfer from WinXP to Win7, setup probs

Subject: Tech: Transfer from WinXP to Win7, setup probs
From: bfdk
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 05:13 AM

I need some nerd help here, please, I'm up to over my ears in problems transferring from XP to my new PC running Win7. Not all queries are about Win7 itself, some are about getting older external devices or programs to work with it. Some of these problems are a pain in the proverbial but may well have fairly easy solutions, I'm not that technically minded. I *knew* there was a reason why I've been putting off getting a much needed new PC for ages, now I'm being thoroughly reminded what that reason is - it never runs according to plan..

My versions of Win7, Office etc 'speak' Danish, so if you offer suggestions, please indicate which no. tab etc. you're talking about together with the name of the tab, or I may not be able to locate the point referred to.

Here goes, in no specific order of priority, there may well be additional questions later:

1. I've been hunting high and low for a driver that will allow me to keep using my beloved dualphone (Philips VOIP321) under Win7, but Philips doesn't - at the present time, at any rate - offer such a driver. I've seen several questions about this same problem while hunting around the net, and I've tried out some of the suggestions (newest version of Skype, yes, newest version of driver from the Philips homepage, yes). It still won't work. The driver installed, but the icon has a 'windows problem shield' on top of it, and when I click on it the screen goes darker (new Win7 alert feature, it seems) and I get a warning box asking me if I'll 'allow this program to make alterations on my PC?' I click 'yes' and get a notice saying the USB phone is already running - but it's not. Alternatively, I get a Skype warning saying a program tried to connect, but Skype couldn't communicate with it.

2. Installation of Office2007, sigh! This PC came with a trial version of 2007, and yesterday I bought a full version of same, as I realize it's about time with an upgrade from Office2000, which I've been using for years. I never use the full package, so I left out OneNote, PowerPoint and something called Visio. I was unsure about something called 'shared functions' and 'Office tools', so I left them in. Now, after installation I opened a document in order to see how it works, an ordinary text document which doesn't even contain much in the way of formatting, as it's intended for transfer to a homepage and therefore the less formatting the better. However, Word seemed to find this file 'suspicious'. I got a message giving me a long song about 'The function you're trying to run contains macros..!! and needs support for macros in order to run. You've chosen to disable macro functions.. bla, bla, bla' and indicating I may want to check my macro settings (the only macro settings I can find have been tried in succession, to no avail, except the one that they label 'not recommended'). This notice pops up EVERY friggin' time I open the program, twice each time, just to make sure. Also if I try to start a new document, for that matter. And the same function seems to bar me from making any changes to 'normal.dot', so I can get the program to use my preferred settings as standard. It's terribly annoying.

Another thing re: Word. I'd installed my old Word2000, as I'd like to keep a tool I'm familiar with handy for work assignments where I don't have the time to fiddle with something unfamiliar, but Word2007 blithely ruined that installation. On my old XP machine I had Word97 and Word2000 living peacefully together, but it seems Office2007 won't allow that? My Word97 is a full version, Word2000 an 'upgrade', so I'd need to install 97 first, or I can't install 2000, as I was reminded when installing it on here a couple of days ago.

3. Win7 opens fast; when you start the PC, the desktop is up and running really speedily. However, *then* it gets frustrating, because seemingly the system has to perform any number of 'very important secret tasks' before it gets on to hooking up to the internet. I've counted 7 minutes and more from appearance of the desktop and until the Skype button finally turns green for ready. Obviously, no mail or homepages can be accessed in this period, either. It takes so long, that the first couple of times I actually thought my internet connection must be down. Is there a way of speeding up this process? It feels a bit like waiting for my elderly dog while he spends ages investigating some interesting smell when I take him walking outside..

4. I've got a small program which runs a calendar showing dates far back in time, very useful and handy for a genealogy nerd like me. I've used this programs under Windows98 and XP and I *know* this program is harmless. Harumph!! Win7 won't even let me move the exe file from the transfer harddisk to the harddisk of the new PC. I get a message saying 'Windows has decided this file may be harmful to your PC'. My only 'choice' is a button saying 'OK', and when clicked, the file is banned from the PC. NO override feature of any kind. I'd really love a button here telling Windows to go do something physically impossible to itself, but the option's not there.. Any suggestions?

5. Is there a way to select smaller program icons for the desktop? The standard ones may be more visible, but they take up much desktop space that I'd like to use for 'storage' of works in progress. I know, I'm not a tidy person..

6. And is there a way to get the system to stop moving files 'parked' on the desktop around when they're saved again? That's one annoying habit, I think. I place a file on the desktop, open it to work on it, hit save, and the little beggar jumps to the next available slot down the screen. If you then leave it there and hit save again after further work on it, it jumps back where it was before..

I'm sure there'll be more questions as I go along, any help with any query would be greatly appreciated. Please bear in mind I have a dual handicap consisting of lack of knowledge and the fact that English is not my first language - be patient :o))

Best wishes,

Bente

Subject: RE: Tech: Transfer from WinXP to Win7, setup probs
From: GUEST
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 06:55 AM

I haven't looked much at Win7 details, as I'm still trying to make Office 2007 useful in Vista; but one of the "features" advertised for Win7 is the ability to run a "virtual WinXP" under Win7 that (supposedly) will let you use all the WinXP drivers etc. The clinker that they don't tell you up front is that the Virtual WinXP feature is available only in the top-dollar premium versions of Win7. Those versions are pretty expensive.

Since WinXP, all original full package installation disks have included all available versions, so you can upgrade $imply by paying the fee and getting an "unlock code" to let you install a more expensive version. Win7 probably is being distributed in the same way, but check the prices carefully after you look at whether the version you might upgrade to actually will do what you want.

Note that I'm not recommending that you upgrade, but that you look at what features are - and aren't - in the version you have.

Office 2007 defaults to use a whole new set of file types: .docx, .docm, .dotx, .dotm etc. These are not compatible with older Office versions, but most older versions can download free "import filters" to view them, but have limited ability to edit them. You can also set your Office 2007 programs to default to save all files in older formats, e.g. stick a click in the cow splat in Word, and at the bottom of the window click "Word Options." Click the "Saving" tab and set the default save as "Word 97 - 2003 .doc format" which all versions thus far can read and edit.

Office 2007 in Vista at least, and probably in Win7, generally blocks macros for all files that don't have a .docm .xlsm, etc file type. In some cases you can override the blockage to open the file with Administrator authority. Because so many users give themselves a login name that has Administrator authority, Mickey invented a new gimmick called User Account Control. When someone has a login with Administrator authority, the login token is split into an Administrator token and a User token. Login uses only the User token, which doesn't permit "system management" actions. When a blocked action such as opening a file that requires an Administrator is requested, you can usually (if you have Administrator privileges associated with the login name) right click on the file and choose "Run as Administrator." The option appears only if it's needed (in the opinion of the OS) and sometimes doesn't appear when the user needs it. For Vista, some info is at User Account Control and I would expect that Win7 follows somewhat similar "features," although I haven't checked it out.

See how much simpler the new things are. (If you're an idiot^* who never tries to do anything useful with them.)

^* Does not apply to people who don't need to do anything particularly useful, like certain persons here who claim to actually like Office 2007.

John

Subject: RE: Tech: Transfer from WinXP to Win7, setup probs
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 06:58 AM

I haven't looked much at Win7 details, as I'm still trying to make Office 2007 useful in Vista; but one of the "features" advertised for Win7 is the ability to run a "virtual WinXP" under Win7 that (supposedly) will let you use all the WinXP drivers etc. The clinker that they don't tell you up front is that the Virtual WinXP feature is available only in the top-dollar premium versions of Win7. Those versions are pretty expensive.

Since WinXP, all original full package installation disks have included all available versions, so you can upgrade $imply by paying the fee and getting an "unlock code" to let you install a more expensive version. Win7 probably is being distributed in the same way, but check the prices carefully after you look at whether the version you might upgrade to actually will do what you want.

Note that I'm not recommending that you upgrade, but that you look at what features are - and aren't - in the version you have.

Office 2007 defaults to use a whole new set of file types: .docx, .docm, .dotx, .dotm etc. These are not compatible with older Office versions, but most older versions can download free "import filters" to view them, but have limited ability to edit them. You can also set your Office 2007 programs to default to save all files in older formats, e.g. stick a click in the cow splat in Word, and at the bottom of the window click "Word Options." Click the "Saving" tab and set the default save as "Word 97 - 2003 .doc format" which all versions thus far can read and edit.

Office 2007 in Vista at least, and probably in Win7, generally blocks macros for all files that don't have a .docm .xlsm, etc file type. In some cases you can override the blockage to open the file with Administrator authority. Because so many users give themselves a login name that has Administrator authority, Mickey invented a new gimmick called User Account Control. When someone has a login with Administrator authority, the login token is split into an Administrator token and a User token. Login uses only the User token, which doesn't permit "system management" actions. When a blocked action such as opening a file that requires an Administrator is requested, you can usually (if you have Administrator privileges associated with the login name) right click on the file and choose "Run as Administrator." The option appears only if it's needed (in the opinion of the OS) and sometimes doesn't appear when the user needs it. For Vista, some info is at User Account Control and I would expect that Win7 follows somewhat similar "features," although I haven't checked it out.

See how much simpler the new things are. (If you're an idiot^* who never tries to do anything useful with them.)

^* Does not apply to people who don't need to do anything particularly useful, like certain persons here who claim to actually like Office 2007.

John

Subject: RE: Tech: Transfer from WinXP to Win7, setup probs
From: Mick Woods
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 07:22 AM

I also had a lot of problems - The BIOS on your computer needs to be updated to the latest version before installing win 7 - although this is recomended it is probably OK to do this after installation too - I did! Then you must update all your drivers this is normally done automatically for most of the windows stuff but things that are specific to your computer can be done bygoing to control panel - system & security - System - Device manager open relevant folders and right click against device and choose "update Driver". Lots of software will need patches from the vendor's websites. I had a nightmare but managed get it all going in the end - then thiought what was the point? There is nothing about win 7 that improves on XP!

Subject: RE: Tech: Transfer from WinXP to Win7, setup probs
From: Simon G
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 07:57 AM

#1 Philips Voip321 - take a look at

http://forum.skype.com/lofiversion/index.php/t91820.html

If course the recommended solution of a PCI USB card won't work if you have a laptop.

Subject: RE: Tech: Transfer from WinXP to Win7, setup probs
From: bfdk
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 09:03 AM

Thanks for the input so far. Mike, this is a PC born with Win7, not an upgrade from XP. Were it down to me entirely, I'd just keep going with XP for the duration, but seeing as they're phasing it out, and I badly do need a new PC. I waited long enough to avoid Vista, as I've not been hearing favourable reports on it.

John, this PC came with Win7 pre-installed and I'm not sure I've even got a system CD. There's a 'recovery disk' in the package, but no outright program package. The PC doesn't even have a label on it (anywhere visible) with the Windows system registration number the way my old PC has. Guess I shall just have to make do with what I've got for the time being..

I know about the .docx new file types, and I've already made a setting to save to the suggested Word format.

Re macros, the thing I don't understand is why Word claims a file that has no macros in it does contain macros? The file in question might as well have been saved in txt and would be equally useful to me in that format, so there's no fancy formatting in it whatsoever. And the fact that it does probably means that with the present settings Word will whinge over any file I try to open until I get it solved somehow..

Simon, the phone is what I've been fiddling with all morning. Someone (thanks, Giok) sent me this link: Philips homepage and the explanation helped me one step further. I managed to get the phone to show my Skype contacts. But the program icon still has a 'Windows alert' plastered on top of it (a blue/yellow shield), and when checking the device in the 'device handling' section of the control panel I get a warning saying it doesn't work correctly. (Code 10, device doesn't work). I then hit 'update driver' and Windows checked, came back and told me the present driver was the best available, but still the program is unable to work. The phone doesn't show up in the Skype sound device boxes, like it does in my old PC. I do wonder if it's by now a question of Windows for some reason blocking it? I left some feedback and my contact details in the feedback box on the Philips homepage, but I've no idea whether they actually take the time to respond to queries like that.

Did I mention I hate getting a new PC?

Thanks for the comments so far :-)

Best wishes,

Bente