# Ordered a new laptop



## Marie5656 (Nov 16, 2018)

I broke down and ordered a new laptop. Getting a Dell, with enough bells and whistles for what I will need. It even has a cd/dvd drive, which I guess is unusual these days.
I had to take my old one off life support. Just need to get the hard drive out before I recycle it.  
The new one will be delivered Monday. Going to take the opportunity to change all passwords. So for now I am on my kindle and my older laptop, which will suit me for the weekend.


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## hollydolly (Nov 16, 2018)

Ha!! we're doing similar things Marie. I've just got a new Mac desk top to replace my old one , but it needs all formatting etc, so until my hubs has time to do it, I'm using windows  on my laptop...talk about out of my comfort zone..it's very odd to be using windows, and also sitting with the laptop on my knee, I really much prefer the MAC desktop.

I hope your new Dell Lappy last you a long time...


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## Marie5656 (Nov 16, 2018)

Holly, we are different in that I prefer Windows. Could never get the hang of a Mac. I think I will enjoy the Dell. It has good enough Amazon reviews. I cannot wait.


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## Ruth n Jersey (Nov 16, 2018)

Good luck with your new computer. I doubt I could ever get one up and running. My daughter handles all my computer needs. My son has an Apple which just looking at it gives me the chills.


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## Trade (Nov 17, 2018)

Marie5656 said:


> I broke down and ordered a new laptop. Getting a Dell, with enough bells and whistles for what I will need. It even has a cd/dvd drive, which I guess is unusual these days.
> I had to take my old one off life support. Just need to get the hard drive out before I recycle it.
> The new one will be delivered Monday. Going to take the opportunity to change all passwords. So for now I am on my kindle and my older laptop, which will suit me for the weekend.



If you don't mind, what model Dell are you getting? My Dell laptop is six years old and it's starting to act up. This morning when I turned it on I only got a white screen. So I shut it off and tried again and it gave me a screen with the message that it was unable to start and would I like it to start some kind of repair attempt. So I clicked on that and it kept me hanging for about 10 minutes going through some kind of process but it apparently was able to fix itself because it started. I also sometimes get a fancy light display on my screen that looks like the aurora borealis. Apparently that's from the cable that connects to my display getting worn out. Since this is my only internet access I really should be getting something for back up. So I'm thinking about shopping around. I like Dells.  

I've been putting it off because A. I'm cheap and B. My current computer has Windows 7 and I am not looking forward to having to get used to a new system. I suppose that would be Windows 10.


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## StarSong (Nov 17, 2018)

My husband and I each have a desktop and a laptop, all four run Windows 7.  Like Trade, we're holding off for as long as possible before moving to Windows 10.  Recent news accounts of Microsoft's glitchy automatic updates are hardly confidence-inspiring.


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## Marie5656 (Nov 17, 2018)

My new computer is a Dell. 13565-A453BLK. DUAL CORE A 6 DVD driver.  I paid $258 on Amazon. It has a 15-6 inch screen


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## Trade (Nov 17, 2018)

Marie5656 said:


> My new computer is a Dell. 13565-A453BLK. DUAL CORE A 6 DVD driver.  I paid $258 on Amazon. It has a 15-6 inch screen



Thanks Marie. 

It looks like you got a good buy.


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## Trade (Nov 17, 2018)

StarSong said:


> My husband and I each have a desktop and a laptop, all four run Windows 7.  Like Trade, we're holding off for as long as possible before moving to Windows 10.  Recent news accounts of Microsoft's glitchy automatic updates are hardly confidence-inspiring.



My laptop is my only internet access. And I'm an internet junkie. So if my machine goes dark, my whole world goes dark. So as much as I dread having to go to Windows 10, I think I'd better bite the bullet.


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## Marie5656 (Nov 17, 2018)

I had a lot of trouble getting used to Win 10 and Edge. But now I like it. My other old laptop, which I am using in the meantime does not have 10, and I am not used to it. Cannot wait until Monday.


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## ClassicRockr (Nov 17, 2018)

Marie5656 said:


> My new computer is a Dell. 13565-A453BLK. DUAL CORE A 6 DVD driver.  I paid $258 on Amazon. It has a 15-6 inch screen



For $258, I doubt you will have much memory or whatever. The Dell my wife and I were looking at at Best Buy (for her) cost $1, 199, plus the cost of a repair program and $150 for a Word/Excel software. It has: Touch Screen, Intel Core i7 16gb of memory, 4K UHD, 512 SSD (solid state drive). 

No worries about set-up, if we got this one or a different one, I set up the Dell desktop we currently have. I'm really kind of "techy" when it comes to computers.


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## Marie5656 (Nov 17, 2018)

Classic, memory is not a priority for me at this point. Most of my files and pictures are on flash drives. I see your point, though. I was looking at the bigger ticket machines and they were more than I needed.
If I were still working it would be different as I used it for my job and memory was more important. But this is good advice for the others here.


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## Trade (Nov 18, 2018)

ClassicRockr said:


> For $258, I doubt you will have much memory or whatever. The Dell my wife and I were looking at at Best Buy (for her) cost $1, 199, plus the cost of a repair program and $150 for a Word/Excel software. It has: Touch Screen, Intel Core i7 16gb of memory, 4K UHD, 512 SSD (solid state drive).
> 
> No worries about set-up, if we got this one or a different one, I set up the Dell desktop we currently have. I'm really kind of "techy" when it comes to computers.





Marie5656 said:


> Classic, memory is not a priority for me at this point. Most of my files and pictures are on flash drives. I see your point, though. I was looking at the bigger ticket machines and they were more than I needed.
> If I were still working it would be different as I used it for my job and memory was more important. But this is good advice for the others here.



I'm looking for something in between what you two have. 

My current 6 year old Dell has an i5 processor, 8 gigs of ram and a 1 Terabyte hard drive. It's been a real workhorse and more that enough for my needs. I'm thinking I'm going to go with something that has the similar specs.  It looks like I can order something like that directly from Dell for about $500 plus tax. 

https://www.dell.com/en-us/shop/dell-laptops/inspiron-15-3000/spd/inspiron-15-3567-laptop/fncwck111h


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## RadishRose (Nov 18, 2018)

Windows 10 is no problem for me. I use Mozilla Firefox instead of Edge. It's like an old friend.


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## StarSong (Nov 18, 2018)

RadishRose said:


> Windows 10 is no problem for me. I use Mozilla Firefox instead of Edge. It's like an old friend.



Firefox is my go to browser, too.  

I have a tablet with Windows 8 and don't much care for that operating system.  That's probably why I'm not looking forward to the inevitable eventual shift from 7 to 10.  Or perhaps it will be 11 or 12 by then.


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## RadishRose (Nov 18, 2018)

SS, it seems like everyone hated Win 8. I went from 7 to 10, it was easy.


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## Marie5656 (Nov 18, 2018)

*It does not arrive until tomorrow, and I am pretty anxious.  Looking forward to the new toy. Today I am trying to get as much housework done as possible, as I am sure I will be spending tomorrow setting the thing up.  Of course, my mail does not arrive until later in the afternoon, so I will be like a kid watching for Santa to come.  I may even leave milk and cookies for the mail carrier. LOL*


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## C'est Moi (Nov 18, 2018)

Marie5656 said:


> *It does not arrive until tomorrow, and I am pretty anxious.  Looking forward to the new toy. Today I am trying to get as much housework done as possible, as I am sure I will be spending tomorrow setting the thing up.  Of course, my mail does not arrive until later in the afternoon, so I will be like a kid watching for Santa to come.  I may even leave milk and cookies for the mail carrier. LOL*



   Enjoy your new toy, Marie!


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## Chucktin (Nov 18, 2018)

I guess we're on our 4th or 5th Dell laptop. They're Ok. But have their limitations. One - you maybe stuck if you decide your config isn't ideal and you'd like to add more RAM, a second drive or a blueray optical drive. Or two - Windows decides to drop a feature that you've grown accustomed to [emoji54]. 
If your needs, tasks, etc are EMail and Facebook with occasional video chat and some basic MS Office thrown in you're golden.
Good luck!


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## StarSong (Nov 19, 2018)

Marie - I look forward to your review of your new laptop!  

I'm a pretty loyal buyer of Toshiba laptops and HP desktops.  Never had a Dell.  My first computer that wasn't MSDos, but the magical Windows 95 was a (dreadful, dreadful, dreadful) Gateway.  Talk about baptism by fire!  I spent waaayyy more time on the phone with tech support than I care to remember.  The only good parts of that experience were the adorable cow print boxes the computer came in, and the amount I learned by having to fix the damned thing, wipe the hard drive clean and start over.  Numerous times.  This was before the WWW was being used by most mere mortals and I bought only factory sealed software, so viruses were not the issue.          

p.s.  I still miss Windows 98 and XP - loved those operating systems.


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## Marie5656 (Nov 19, 2018)

*Well, it is here.  Cortana helped me set it up.  I am just getting signed in everywhere now.  So far, so OK.  I hate set up time.*


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## Capt Lightning (Nov 19, 2018)

I have two laptops, a Lenovo and a Dell.  I almost always use Linux (Ubuntu 16.04)  these days and the Dell supports this very well - the Lenovo, not so well.  I used to use Firefox, but I found that Firefox 56  (Quantum) didn't live up to its promise.   I now use Chromium (the base system for Chrome) which is much faster, but not as flexible.   In a similar way, I've just got a new HP printer and they are very good at supporting Linux systems. _ 

(For anyone not wanting to be a slave to Windows, try Linux.  It's free, much less prone to malware  and once you get used to it, you won't look back)


_


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## ClassicRockr (Nov 19, 2018)

Well, we decided not to get that laptop that I talked about in Post #11. We are going to see what's on sale for Black Friday and then still may continue to wait until we move next year.


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## Marie5656 (Nov 19, 2018)

**sigh** just went to print some paperwork I needed and forgot I had not yet installed my printer.  Senior moment  #536.  Downloading now.


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## RadishRose (Nov 19, 2018)

Congrats Marie. Happy computing!


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## Marie5656 (Nov 19, 2018)

*Well, so far I give the computer 8/10.  I think it will do what I need. Basically internet stuff, and the occasional print job.  I will also use the CD/DVD driver often. Still have music and movies on Disc.  Will be nice, especially, to be able to put in a movie my husband is not interested in watching for the 53rd time, slip on the headphones and watch away.*


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## Chucktin (Nov 19, 2018)

If it does for you that's all that counts.


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## StarSong (Nov 20, 2018)

Glad it's working out well for you, Marie!


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## Macfan (Nov 24, 2018)

Kudos to you Marie. I'm an Apple Mac fan but also believe in choice and whatever works for you. Hope your new computer provides years of reliable service for you . Don...


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## Marie5656 (Nov 24, 2018)

Macfan said:


> Kudos to you Marie. I'm an Apple Mac fan but also believe in choice and whatever works for you. Hope your new computer provides years of reliable service for you . Don...



We had Macs at the office where I worked.  I just could not get used to them and often would use my laptop for non confidential stuff.  But I know people swear by them.  I learned computers on Windows, so I guess change is hard for me


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## Tommy (Nov 24, 2018)

My wife and I both use desktops running Windows 7 and Office 10.  Hers will need to be replaced soon and I'm dreading it.  I don't think the switch to Windows 10 will be a big issue, but I really hate it that Microsoft now "rents" you MS Office for $100/yr.  I guess you _can_ buy the software, but they've said they won't support it if you do.  It isn't the cost so much that bothers me as the principle.  They know they have us over a barrel and they're taking advantage.

I tried Open Office a couple of years ago, but it didn't play very nicely with all of the Excel spreadsheets I use.


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## StarSong (Nov 25, 2018)

Tommy, what is Office 10?  I have Office 2007, which I was presuming would work with Windows 10.  Ugh.... I really hate having to repurchase software that I've already bought.  It's one of the reasons that I hate upgrading computers.


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## Marie5656 (Nov 25, 2018)

Wow. This computer comes with a free month of MS Office. After that $99 a year. Nope. Going to go download Open Office for free. I have had it on my last two computers and it works well enough for my personal use.


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## Macfan (Nov 25, 2018)

I saw a Black Friday deal on FB for Microsoft Office for Mac 2019 for $99, one time charge, no annual fee and it included Outlook, so I bought it. Since it isn't the subscription version, it won't have the support the other versions have but I'm fine with that as alternatives on the Mac are plentiful. So far though, it's working great. Don...


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## Trade (Dec 13, 2018)

My laptop has been acting up for months. This morning it threw me a new curve. When I typed in my password it kept telling me it was wrong. Since it was hidden I could not tell what I was typing but I could see that on two of the keys it would show 4 dots instead of one. So, no way I could log on to my computer. Then I had an idea and got out an old keyboard from an old desktop that I used to have and plugged it in and that worked. Once I got in I checked to see what the built in keyboard was doing. Just as I suspected it was generating four different characters when I typed certain keys. Other times, nothing happens when I hit a key. In other words my built in keyboard is FUBAR. 

So with that, and all the other crazy stuff it's been doing I finally broke down and ordered a new laptop from Dell. Hopefully I can limp by on this one until that one gets here and I get it set up. I just went with a basic one this time. It was less that $400 inducing tax. I3 2.3 gigahetz processor, 8 gigs of ram, 1 Terrabyte HD, web cam dvd player, etc. Basically the same computer as what I have now except for a slightly slower I3 processor instead of an I5. And it cost about $300 less than my current one.


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## Marie5656 (Dec 13, 2018)

*Trade, hope the new one works for you.  The other day I tried getting into my old one, to rescue a couple of documents I had not saved to my flash drive yet. No luck.  Glad the documents were not important, just a couple favorite recipes.*


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## Trade (Dec 13, 2018)

Marie5656 said:


> *Trade, hope the new one works for you.  The other day I tried getting into my old one, to rescue a couple of documents I had not saved to my flash drive yet. No luck.  Glad the documents were not important, just a couple favorite recipes.*



Sorry that happened to you. That reminds me, I need to back mine up to my eternal hard drive again. I'll do that before I turn it off again.


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## kburra (Dec 13, 2018)

StarSong said:


> Tommy, what is Office 10? I have Office 2007, which I was presuming would work with Windows 10. Ugh.... I really hate having to repurchase software that I've already bought. It's one of the reasons that I hate upgrading computers.



Office 2007 works just fine on Windows 10, guarantee it !!


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## Chucktin (Dec 14, 2018)

I have Office 2007 on a Win 10 desktop that I keep up to date. Works fine. Since I don't do any business work with the Office Suite 2007 is sufficient even if it's unsupported now.


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## StarSong (Dec 14, 2018)

Thanks for that info, guys.  One of my reasons for delaying a new computer is that I've got an awful lot of programs that I bought from XP - Windows 7 years.  Not interested in replacing it all - and certainly not moving to programs that I have to rent rather than purchase.  

When I think about all that music our generation first bought on records, then 4 and/or 8 track tapes, then cassettes, and finally on CD. Up pops iTunes and the digital world encouraging us to buy them yet again?  (No thanks.)  Not interested in revisiting that experience with software if I can possibly help it.  Office 2007 was already at least the third version of this software that I paid for.


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## Trade (Dec 16, 2018)

Got my laptop from Dell yesterday. It only took two days from when I ordered it. I've got it set up for most of what I use a computer for. It's obviously made of cheaper materials than the one I have now. But then it cost $300 less. Everything on it seems to work just fine. I have McAfee security through my ISP. I forget what they charge for it. A few extra bucks a month. I'm allowed 4 devices so this new computer is only my second one. I could still add two more. I was also able to install the Microsoft Office that I bought back in 2007 when I had Windows XP. It worked fine on my windows 7 computer and seems to be doing OK on this windows 10 one too. I also had a spare wireless mouse and mouse pad so I haven't had to spend anything else to get it up and running.    

I think I'll take my old one to a computer repair place and see if it's worth fixing.


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## Chucktin (Dec 16, 2018)

Hmm. We get an anti virus program free from our ISP (Spectrum) and since I've install our own router I hard-wired the house for 4 drops so that costs zip also.


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## Marie5656 (Dec 16, 2018)

*Trade, I just ordered a year of McAfee . It was $39 for a year. A promo offer.  Only problem, I went to put it on my husbands Amazon Fire tablet, and it was not supported!!  But it WILL go onto my ancient old Kindle (think maybe 2nd or 3rd generation) that I do not plan on keeping too much longer.  
While on the Fire tablet I asked Alexa to suggest some security programs for the tablet. Just have to take a closer look at what she suggested.

My only issue so far was a minor one, but I called Dell Tech Support for assistance.  I could not get anything to open when I clicked on my taskbar.  I got shuffled among 3 different support agents, and (no disrespect, but stating fact) each had more difficult to understand English.  By the time I got to the last one, her English was so poor I almost swore she was speaking in her OWN language.  I ended up hanging up, went to online support and figured out the problem.

A day or two later I got a survey from Dell asking for feedback on the support. I was brutally honest.
*


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## Trade (Dec 16, 2018)

Marie5656 said:


> *Trade, I just ordered a year of McAfee . It was $39 for a year. A promo offer.  Only problem, I went to put it on my husbands Amazon Fire tablet, and it was not supported!!  But it WILL go onto my ancient old Kindle (think maybe 2nd or 3rd generation) that I do not plan on keeping too much longer.
> While on the Fire tablet I asked Alexa to suggest some security programs for the tablet. Just have to take a closer look at what she suggested.
> 
> My only issue so far was a minor one, but I called Dell Tech Support for assistance.  I could not get anything to open when I clicked on my taskbar.  I got shuffled among 3 different support agents, and (no disrespect, but stating fact) each had more difficult to understand English.  By the time I got to the last one, her English was so poor I almost swore she was speaking in her OWN language.  I ended up hanging up, went to online support and figured out the problem.
> ...



Sorry you had so much trouble. So far I haven't had any with the computer. Other than having to learn how to use windows 10 which is a pain the the butt. I did have some issues downloading the McAfee from my ISP. Both dudes I talked to had heavy accents like you mentioned. Plus the first one didn't know anything about his job either and was no help whatsoever. But when I called back the second dude I talked to knew exactly what to do and was very helpful.


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## Trade (Dec 18, 2018)

Took my old computer to a place called Computer Hospital today. They had good reviews on the web. But then those can be faked, so it's a dice roll. I'm pretty sure it needs a new keyboard and a new screen cable. Plus a good cleaning. I was pretty paranoid about taking it in. I copied everything I would need to an external hard drive and then proceeded to scrub all of my personal stuff off of it. I didn't just delete it, I used the McAfee shredder. Plus I logged out of all my sites that I use, cleared all my history, and deleted all my bookmarks. I hope I got everything, but I probably missed something. It's still a leap of faith to hand your computer over to a stranger.


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## Chucktin (Dec 18, 2018)

Amen to that. Plus keystroke vampire programs and personal data loss!


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