My family war over the Windows 8 computer no one wants

[callthatgirl]

STORYLINE: 2014

• I BEGGED my mom not to buy the pretty Windows 8 purple piece of crap from QVC. I told her I could not support it with her remotely (as she can't figure out anything on the computer but run iTunes and print)
• She bought it anyway.
• She buys a new printer everytime one runs out of ink (Just to give you an idea of how she is)
• My 94 year old grandma likes solitaire, so I have kept her with a laptop for years.
• She quit when the laptop made her eyes blurry.
• Addiction stepped in, so we scrubbed up an old Vista laptop for her
• The hard drive died
• My mom gave my grandma her Windows 8 crap from QVC (very expensive btw...)
• My aunt texts me...see image below
• There we go with the texting back and forth...

..

 

[callthatgirl]

So we close with this...

 

[FremontPC]

All right, Grandma.... you've graduated to the dual screen Solitaire Challenge. That's right, it's Duotaire!!!

 

[callthatgirl]

I know! lol

Luckily I have a spare monitor, but i love it....

Very old 19" Dell square. Works like a charm. Saving it for when my other dies.

 

[gikstar]

That laptop probably didn't come with Win 8 Pro so there's no downgrade rights to Win 7 Pro...
Speaking of monitors, I have a recycling company within 50 miles of me that I picked up 12 19" flat-screen monitors for less than $20 each, 4 Dell Optiplex 380 with Win 7 Pro (Intel Dualcore E5300 @2.6Ghz cpus) @ $35 each, K/B & Mice at $1 each... I had a project of providing 10 computers for a Foster Parent organization. I do a bit of business with this recycler so I do get decent prices but he does need to get rid of the stuff, so it goes out cheap or it ends up recycled.

On my personal desk I use a 30" Dell and a 32" Vizio TV as a dual monitor setup. System is on 24/7 and I always have the babycam up on screen in the background to keep an eye on the grandson.

By the way, if anyone of you techs here in the LA basin want to know who the recycling company is, PM me... he said he would be getting servers in this week.

 

[nlinecomputers]

Startisback. Gives you a Windows 7 start menu and disables that metro crap. $2, problem solved.

www.startisback.com

 

[gikstar]

Startisback. Gives you a Windows 7 start menu and disables that metro crap. $2, problem solved.

You can download 'Classic Start' under 'Utilities' at https://ninite.com/ for free

 

[nlinecomputers]

Yeah but classic start is ugly. Startisback perfectly emulates the Windows 7 start menu. Better to give mom or Grandma what they are used to. And it's two bucks.

 

[callthatgirl]

Thanks for the tips, now my aunt (pic #1) wants to buy it from my mom for her husband. ugh...

I'll talk about the start menu or let me reload Win 7 on it, safer choice no question with this crew.

 

[FremontPC]

Yeah, try Startisback. 30 days to love it or leave it. I have a small laptop I leave on stock Win 8.1. Even with the changes from 8 to 8.1, Modern UI is a PITA if you need to find something.

 

[Calx]

Maybe you could do that free upgrade to windows 10 later in the year

 

[sapphirescales]

I'd just load 7. With security updates until 2020, chances are the laptop will die before it becomes a security concern anyway.

 

[ArtemusComputerTechnology]

WINDOWS 8 SUCKS

 

[Metanis]

I also recommend and use Startisback for all my Windows 8 haters. I use it myself too!

 

[HCHTech]

Gotta love working with family members. Love those passive-aggressive comments that always sneak into the conversation!

 

[callthatgirl]

haha, thanks everyone for the replies.

So the drama ends with my aunt (pic #1 up top)..... I think I figured out my aunt's strategy about telling me about grandma getting the old green Dell lol--she said "Oh gosh, we will just have to buy that computer now from your mom"

WT!!! Sounds like they all fooled me. Of course my aunt wants a $1000 computer for dirt cheap lol

Uncle Bob might need that shortcut thingy, but he's pretty good on the computer, 30 years at IBM.

 

[ohio_grad_06]

Classic Shell. If the computer stayed with grandma, check this out.

http://www.123freesolitaire.com/

I started loading that on Windows 8 machines so folks could play their soltaire and not bug me about how to find it lol.

 

[callthatgirl]

well, Grandma's green computer is dead. I think I will give her my quadcore to use lol. Then she can have a huge monitor, that 19" Dell

@ohio_grad_06 Grandma has no internet

 

[ohio_grad_06]

Download it to usb and install there?

 

[Markverhyden]

LOL!!! Computer but no internet.....