[Baynative]

Please understand I am asking for serious advice so I'd appreciate not bothering me with snippy remarks and silly comments. - Thanks.

[sjm_888]

To what another poster stated earlier, an I5 or I7 processor with a minimum 256gb or larger SSD drive, 16g of RAM with Windows 10 installed will take you 5, 7 possibility 10 years down the road. Dell makes a good box.

[snippy_about_it]

I know you didn’t want any snippy remarks however... after getting an iPad and switching to an iPhone, if I had to buy a PC, I would go with a Mac.

[Robert DeLong]

Windows 10 isn’t that bad actually.

[Clay Moore]

Newegg (first choice) or Tigerdirect both sell refurbished units for a good price. I have also bought from local refurb dealers. I have had good luck with Dell.

[plain talk]

Go with Windows 10 not Windows 7. You can adapt to it quite easily and you won’t have to deal with the eventual hassle to upgrade later.

I like Bestbuy myself. You can go into the store and often see what you are going to buy. Go with a mainstream computer that lots of people are buying. I like HP. Get as much RAM as you can, e.g. 16GB or more.

[adorno]

Go with the “Computers For Dummies” option.

Get a Chromebook. Cheap and virtually maintenance free.

BTW, Windows 10 has a simple option too. It’s called Windows 10 S. It works kinda like Chrome OS, which is the OS behind Chromebooks. So, you could also get a PC with Windows 10 S installed and leave your worries behind.

[ktw]

Here is a complete refurbished system. (I have purchased several computers from this company). I have never had a problem with them.
Complete Windows 7.
Dell 19” Core 2 Duo 8GB 1TB Win7 Pro(64-bit) OptiPlex 745 755 760

https://www.rakuten.com/shop/godwincorp/product/7ffsff1tb8gb/

[MayflowerMadam]

Both HP and Dell sell new systems running Windows 7. They’re in their “business” sections. I’m planning to get a desktop system for Christmas. We’ve had good luck with Dell for 20 years.

Each of us got a high-end HP laptop with Windows 10 last year, and I’m turning mine to a doorstop ASAP. I hate Windows with the heat of 1,000 burning suns.

[Enlightened1]

I was on a PC from the beginning early 1990s until about 2016.

In 2009 I purchased the iPhone 3GS and then in 2011 the iPad II. Since then I have upgraded to an iPhone 6 and iPad Air a few years ago, and both work fantastic to this day.

I finally decided to get Apple. I purchased an iMac. This is because you get more power with your desk top than laptop computer. Moreover, I rather bring my iPad and iPhone when I travel. It’s lighter and does what I need it to do.

Anyhow, I purchased an iMac 21.5” 4K with Intel i7 chip 6 Generation and 16GB of DDR3 Ram. I have 2TB Fusion Drive too.

The setup was very easy to do. Anyone with an education of a 10 year old child do it. Bringing over my information from my PC to my new iMac important files, email, etc... from Windows worked very smoothly and was quick. All I had to to copy my the files I wanted to bring over onto a portable flash drive (that works with both PC and Apple) with a USB. I copied everything I wanted on to it, and then pasted it into my new machine drive. That was it.

Now I had Microsoft Office and used Outlook, Word and Power Point. I went over to the Microsoft web site and purchased the latest office for Apple on their web site. That way I could look at my files.

BTW, the Apple comes with it’s own version of Office and it’s very good too.

Apple is very simple to operate and the best part is you never have scan for viruses, spyware, etc... It just works as a computer should. Everything is point, click, on or off.

I finally got the Apple TV too. Thus, I am in the Apple ecosystem. It’s nice because all my devices talk to each other. If I do work on my iPhone or iPad it will show up on my iMac and vice versa.

Anyway, I don’t regret it and it’s been a great experience.

[papertyger]

“Starting over” to learn the “Mac system” is like starting over to learn to make mac’n cheese in the microwave instead of the stovetop.

[IamConservative]

I’d give a look at a Chromebook. Much simpler and cheaper than a Windows machine. The newest version of ChromeOS can run android apps.

[dayglored]

FReeper computer help ... PING!

You can find all the Windows Ping list threads with FR search: just search on keyword "windowspinglist".

A little late to the party, but better late than never...

[ptsal]

SEARCH AMAZON

WINTEL — $100

[Dalberg-Acton]

You might try downloading Linux Mint Cinnamon 18.2 and burning it to a DVD. Then boot with the DVD and have it install (replace) Windows.

I dumped Windows and installed Linux Mint. The operating system is just as easy to use as Windows. Big plus, I don’t ever have an update take control of my computer.

[TChad]

Windows 10 with Classic Shell using "Classic settings" will be immediately usable by someone who has never seen a version of Windows after XP. Classic Shell puts everything back where it belongs.

Don't waste your money on soon-to-be-orphaned Windows 7. Win 10 is quite stable, and Microsoft stands behind it.

DO install Windows updates. They are a PITA but they are there for a reason.

If you don't want Windows, you can install Linux Mint to a hard drive and go with that. There is a learning curve, but it won't be too bad. Mint is designed to look and work like Windows XP. Ask for help setting Mint up here. About two years ago I recommended Mint to a non-tech-savvy guy who was considering replacing his Windows laptop. I helped him set it up, and he has been using Mint ever since without serious problems.

Either way, you can use the Libre Office suite (word processor, spreadsheet, etc.) instead of Microsoft Office.

Classic Shell, Linux Mint, and Libre Office are high quality free programs. Just download and install.

[Varmint Al]

I have a dozen friends using Linux Mint KDE 64 Bit. They are very happy with it. The updates are easy and the system is solid. All were ex-Windows users and it was easy for them to convert over to Linux.

It was easy for them because I installed the OS for them. It is an easy install and much easier than any Windows install I have done. Only a personal password is required and NO authentication is required.

The beauty of Linux Mint is that I can instal the complete OS with all the important applications on one hard drive and then duplicate that hard drive for other computers. All of the necessary drivers are built in. Linux Mint finds the wireless hardware almost automatically and is a snap to setup. (Try that with Windows and the included wireless setup CD)

Also going from Linux Mint KDE 17 to 17.3 is as easy as one click of the Update Manager. The Update Manager automatically checks for updates and does NOT bug you with Pop Ups. The manager icon merely puts a blue dot in its icon's center when an update is avaliable.

I am sure happy I cut the ties with Microsoft 2 years ago.

Here is a link if you are interested in trying Linux Mint 17.3 "Rosa" KDE version.

You can download the .iso file and burn the image to a DVD and run Linux Mint right off the CD to see how easy it is to use. If you like it, you can install it alongside Windows and make a duel boot system.

It does take a little learning and most of the icons on the desktop bring up text to identify them with the mouse over.

One of the beauties of Linux is that all of the drivers and included in the Linux kernel so when you boot up it identifies the hardware and uses the correct drivers while it is loading.

PS I have installed Linux Mint on about 10 different laptops including 4 Dell 620 Latitudes and it works great.

Update: Linux Mint 17.3 "Rosa" KDE version has all the bells and whistles and is completely customizable. The newer 18.0 version is lacking in many of the neat features, in my view.

Good Hunting... from Varmint Al