One of the difficulties with getting a new PC is deciding whether to go with the new PC’s flow, or to try to keep your old style. The change is a good way of forcing a bit of housekeeping, springcleaning and archiving - which is why it takes so long.
The journey has been:
- Run all the anti-virus updates and windows updates on the new Vista PC
- Get the Adobe Premiere Pro CCS3 Upgrade running. The PC upgrade was forced by this software - it needs high spec!
- MsMoney - we are running 2005 (version 14) and it still meets our needs - no need to upgrade. However in reinstalling money and moving the file over to Vista, some trickery was required. It seems there is an update that needs to be applied before MsMoney on Vista can deal with the file. Initially I was getting an error about being unable to convert the file - strange I thought, the money application version should be unchanged - what gives?? Again a quick google revealed a number of suggestions to do with getting the update to happen before dealing with the file. Some suggest disabling UAC, however I find that the suggestion to run MsMoney as the administrator, but without logging in as one (right click on MsMoney in the start menu), was the way to go. I may also have opened a new “test” file before it picked up on the update. Once the update had run, one could then open the original money file without a problem. I also did my conversion reconciliation due diligence - I ran what we call our P&L and Balance Sheets for all accounts and checked that the numbers tied up.
- I’ve hit a problem with outlook. All our software is either 100% legitimate or free open source. Now somehow the Outlook 2002 that I have will not export my contacts etc and wants to install the feature that does it - but can I find the necessary files or disks?? I can find 2003, NT, 2000 etc versions but not the one I need. What to do…… Messages are a problem too - firstbatch of googling says that one has to load a trial edition of office for vista (!) just to get the mapi client so that one can import into Outllo, export and then into windows mail and then cleanup ….. some more browsing and it seems that all one needs to do actually is on your old XP pc, import everything into outllok express, copy the message store over to the new PC and voila one can then import into windows mail. Now to go clean up all that unwanted Office trial version.
- Start loading the various browser add-on’s to get back to the level of functionality one had before:
- java update
- flash update
- del.icio.us bookmarklets
- change live search to gogle search, ignore the yahoo and google toolbars for now
- Load firefox and the add-ons
- Load the web developer toolbar
- Hmm the office question. I had Office 2002 on the Pc being replaced, but was pretty much using Open Office on the Kid’s PC, so may very well stick with that.
- Printing to PDF. I had bough PDF995 for the XP PC, but thought that I would check out the open source market for a PDF writer. I tried both CutePDF and PrimoPDF and decided I like CutePDF as a writer - from a usablity view.
- The MFP printer/scanner/fax. I can print, I can scan but only with more than ten mouse clicks and “importing into windows photo gallery first”. Forget about scanning to PDF the way that I used to. The Canon websites say that it should all work and provide “vista” downloads. I tried everything including disabling all antivirus, UAC etc, but the MP toolbox just kept saying that the scanner was not an “MP scanner”. I decided to try the evaluation version of CutePDF Pro since it said that it allows one to scan straight to PDF - and YES it works. Costs about US$50 I think, so I decided to leave it awhile and try calling canon - I have been on hold on the phone for over an hour so far.
- MyNokia 6610i mobile - arrgh - I have a DKU-5 data cable, no infrared, no bluetooth - I had just got a new cable becuase the last one broke (maybe someone stood on it!) and would you believe that for some reason the DKU-5 is not supported on Vista. All kinds of other cables are, but not this one. What is it with this world that we have to have so many different versions of things - why can we not have some good clean design and re-usability!! The retailers may think that more versions means more money but I bet if some one came up with a brand where all the accessories worked with all the models and the models had some good clean usability, I’d lay odds that it would be a success. I have given up trying to connect the phone - I will just have to maintain the contacts separately. I am resisting being forced to upgrade the phone