Hi everybody, I'm downloading the 64 bit Windows 7 RC right now, but I'm a bit nervous to install just yet, and want to clear a couple things up first.
First, my machine is a Toshiba Satellite A305 with Intel Core 2 Duo T750 2.0ghz with 4gb of ram. It's pretty new (Sept 2008), and runs 64 bit Vista very nicely. The upgrade adviser said everything would be fine, except there were 2 drivers that it said Windows Update would have to be run after the installation in order to fix compatibility. These are Ricoh SD/MMC Host Controller and Ricoh xD-Picture Card Controller. I really don't even know what these things mean, but will I have an issue here? And if something does go wrong, will I be able to restore my computer to how it currently is? I'm using the Backup and Restore Center to back my files onto an external hard drive right now. I also saved a restore point. However, I do not know how to reformat or partition or anything like that, so if I did install Windows 7 and it didn't work, what would happen to me? My biggest fear is messing my machine up and not knowing how to recover it without bringing it in. I read on other topics here that I should dual install Windows 7 with Vista. How does one specifically go about doing that? And how can I partition my hard drive or whatever so that it can be dual installed? And how do you select which OS you want it to run on startup? Lastly, my CD drive does not seem to read CD's correctly, so the recovery disc will be pretty useless, but can I still use the Backup Center if something goes wrong? And obviously I won't be able to install Windows 7 from a DVD since the reader doesn't work, so does the thumb nail drive trick work? Although I'd have to go get a new thumb drive big enough to hold this (My current holds 1gb) so if there's an alternate way to dual install I'd like to hear it, such as mounting the image or something. Otherwise, I would of course be willing to run out and get a flash drive to burn it from. I'm very excited to see Windows 7 but I really don't want to put my computer at risk, so hopefully with the support of this forum I will be able to make the change!
Thanks for any opinions,
Eric
First, my machine is a Toshiba Satellite A305 with Intel Core 2 Duo T750 2.0ghz with 4gb of ram. It's pretty new (Sept 2008), and runs 64 bit Vista very nicely. The upgrade adviser said everything would be fine, except there were 2 drivers that it said Windows Update would have to be run after the installation in order to fix compatibility. These are Ricoh SD/MMC Host Controller and Ricoh xD-Picture Card Controller. I really don't even know what these things mean, but will I have an issue here? And if something does go wrong, will I be able to restore my computer to how it currently is? I'm using the Backup and Restore Center to back my files onto an external hard drive right now. I also saved a restore point. However, I do not know how to reformat or partition or anything like that, so if I did install Windows 7 and it didn't work, what would happen to me? My biggest fear is messing my machine up and not knowing how to recover it without bringing it in. I read on other topics here that I should dual install Windows 7 with Vista. How does one specifically go about doing that? And how can I partition my hard drive or whatever so that it can be dual installed? And how do you select which OS you want it to run on startup? Lastly, my CD drive does not seem to read CD's correctly, so the recovery disc will be pretty useless, but can I still use the Backup Center if something goes wrong? And obviously I won't be able to install Windows 7 from a DVD since the reader doesn't work, so does the thumb nail drive trick work? Although I'd have to go get a new thumb drive big enough to hold this (My current holds 1gb) so if there's an alternate way to dual install I'd like to hear it, such as mounting the image or something. Otherwise, I would of course be willing to run out and get a flash drive to burn it from. I'm very excited to see Windows 7 but I really don't want to put my computer at risk, so hopefully with the support of this forum I will be able to make the change!
Thanks for any opinions,
Eric
My Computer
- Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
- Toshiba Satellite A305-S6858 Special Edition
- OS
- Windows 7 Ultimate
- CPU
- Intel 2 Core Duo T5750 @ 2.0Ghz x 2.0Ghz
- Memory
- 4GB
But ok I decided I will partition off 40gb, now I'm just waiting for the Windows Backup to finish moving my stuff to my external first (it's taking hours and isn't even half done!) because I feel like it's probably not a good idea to do the partition while it's trying to copy all my files over. I think I'm going to go ahead and install W7 once that is done though, so hopefully my computer doesnt freak out!