Ask Leo!: Windows Installation

What is Windows 7's "Windows XP Mode"? (And can I use it to get Outlook Express back?)

leo@pugetsoundsoftware (Leo A. Notenboom) — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 14:10:36 -08:00

I'm hearing a lot of backlash against Windows 7 for a completely unexpected reason; not for incompatibilities or instabilities but for the removal of Outlook Express.

Outlook Express was actually removed in Windows Vista, being replaced by Windows Mail. That, in turn, was removed from Windows 7, and replaced with ... nothing. The official approach is to download Windows Live Mail, which is very Outlook Express-like.

But it's not Outlook Express.

It turns out that, yes, Windows XP Mode might be a solution.

It's not terribly simple, but it can work.

In fact, it can work for many programs that for one reason or another simply will not work in Windows 7, but used to work in Windows XP.

What do I do if my machine didn't include installation or driver disks?

leo@pugetsoundsoftware (Leo A. Notenboom) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:00:00 -08:00

Hey Leo, I just bought a new laptop and I was very disappointed when I found out that my computer didn't have any drivers or cd-roms. As a consumer, can I demand to the manufacturer to send me a copy of the cd-roms system back up? I read about the c:\I386 but I feel like I should have a copy of the system without having to make a copy myself ... am I correct on this?

]]> The only right you have as a consumer is the right to take your business elsewhere if you don't like the practices or service of the vendor you're using. The vendors are actually under no obligation to give you CDs in addition to what's pre-installed on your system, as long as they didn't somewhere state that they would. As we've seen in recent years, they often don't, presumably as some kind of cost cutting measure.

That being said, there's at least one potential confusion in your question that I want to clear up, and before you walk away from your vendor some alternatives that I'd encourage you to pursue.

Does running Windows in a virtual machine protect me from viruses?

leo@pugetsoundsoftware (Leo A. Notenboom) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:51:32 -08:00

I have gotten to like Ubuntu even though I realize the learning curve is going to be rather long. One of the things I do is help poor people acquire computers and Ubuntu is perfect if all they need is an office program, internet browsing and email .

I have started to learn wine but I think a VM might be a good idea as well. I am limited to 4 gigs but I don't game so speed is not that important.

My question is if I run XP PRO on a VM inside of my Linux box will I still retain the advantage of virus resistance? And will I be able to save data on the drive when using the VM. Also would using Win98 be just as well as some of the older people I help have games that they are convinced will only run on 98 even when I show them the compatibility mode.

]]> Yes and no.

Virtual machines, or VMs for short, are one of the coolest technologies I've seen come along for some time. They're still pretty geeky, but as you can tell - I'm impressed.

Before relying on VMs for security purposes, though, we need to understand exactly what they are, and of course, what they are not.

If I replace my hard drive will I lose my ability to restore to original settings?

leo@pugetsoundsoftware (Leo A. Notenboom) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:31:41 -08:00

I have a Dell Dimension 8400 running Media Center 2005 (XP Pro.) There is a process that I can initiate during system boot that allows me to take the computer back to its original factory settings/state. If I remove the original hard drive and install a new larger drive on this machine then install Windows 7 on the new drive, will I still be able to use this factory settings option if I switch back to the old hard drive or will the BIOS be changed in a way that will make this impossible? I have a USB hard drive case I have used in the past for this drive and would like to use it for back up files but would also like to be able to switch back to XP with it if I don't like 7.

]]> If you replace the hard drive, you will lose that factory reset ability, yes.

But, in all honesty, from what you describe it's not that horrible a thing.

Let's review how the factory settings reset works, why it'll go away, and what you should be doing instead anyway so that you'd never to rely on it anyway.

How do I reformat and reinstall Windows?

leo@pugetsoundsoftware (Leo A. Notenboom) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 08:00:00 -08:00

In many of your answers you talk about "reformat and reinstalling Windows". What is that? How do I do that, exactly?

]]> "Reformat and reinstall" is the computer's equivalent of erasing the chalkboard and starting over.

And I do want to emphasize the "erasing" part.

It's conceptually very easy, but also somewhat time consuming.

And if not done with the proper preparation, you could lose absolutely everything on your computer.