Learning Something New

It is Sunday evening and I have just found some inspiration. Tomorrow is our WriterPals meeting at ComputerPals, Carmel set our November challenge a month ago. Write about HAIR or LEARNING SOMETHING NEW she said.

Pooha, humbug those subjects do not inspire me at all. I will go to the meeting without a story this month.

As I said it is Sunday evening. What has happened over the weekend? I am LEARNING SOMETHING NEW!

I have a brand new computer, well not brand new but Windows 8 is. I decided to upgrade my little Netbook, "the toy" it is only little, a 1.4 GHz processor, and only single core at that.

Windows 8, Microsoft released it only 2 weeks ago, they are encouraging people to upgrade, $40.00 to upgrade to Windows 8 Pro, that has got to be a bargain. What to do, is the toy up to it? Well run the Upgrade Advisor. Hey that not bad, there are a few things to review, well 15 but only one that looks like there is no solution, "Secure Boot is not compatible with your computer". What does that mean.

A quick search on Google, no problem, no existing computers have. I am going to do this, afterall the toy is the toy. I wonder if I will be able to add Windows 8 as a dual boot? More Googling, no definitive answer. What the heck the toy is the toy, $40.00 got to be a bargain.

Well here goes, read a bit more Lindsay, don't be in a rush. Go and get the credit card, this is going to interesting, it's 10.00 Saturday morning, Tanya has gone out, there is really nothing that I have to do, except that I need to visit Karen, she only got home from hospital yesterday.

Google the Windows 8, buy now, yes and the Upgrade Assistant opens, now that is different to the Upgrade Advisor, I have never seen anything like this before. Downloading Windows 8, 4 hours 53 minutes to go. I am going to upgrade my Internet Service, I am not living in a third world country. Well, I will go and visit Karen, I can go the Fishmarket and get those other couple of things. Back home, was that download time real.

Downloading Windows 8, 2 hours 13 minutes to go! Well I wonder if I could have done it faster on the "Real Computer" with a wire rather than that WiFi. I know I will need a Flash Drive of at least 4 GB with nothing on it, I had better clean one up. I hope I can dual boot, I would really like to retain the Windows 7. It says "You can continue to use your computer".

Better check that I have everything that I might want backed up, plenty of time. Ah, I was smart I had put all my Data on another Partition, that was smart.

Finally, Download finished, three choices, Install from the computer, Burn to a DVD, Make a bootable Flash Drive. At least that is easy, I know and am prepared, I want a bootable Flash Drive. I am just not sure how I am going to get the toy to boot from it. I think I have to go into the BIOS and alter the Boot order, I have looked in the BIOS but could not see how to do that.

I insert the Flash Drive and am warned that everything will be erased, yes I knew that. Making Bootable media, 1 hour 14 minutes to go!

It is now Sunday evening, I have a brand new computer, or at least brand new Windows 8 operating system. Yes I was able to install it on the Partition that I had made, it is a dual boot arrangement.

Confounded Windows 8, nothing else got done all weekend. I have played, added apps, a desktop, found out how apps to shut down, how to close apps. I have even put some software on, downloaded some free apps and learnt how to put a single click ShutDown button on the Start and Taskbar.

Gee it boots fast, I love it, it is so easy to get around. I wonder if I can ........

Forget it Lindsay, it is getting late.

Lindsay Threadgate

November 2012