What is the recommendation concerning the discontinuation of Windows support for Windows 7?

Should I stop using the internet on my W7 machine? I have the Avast anti-virus programme on it, but I don't suppose that will be much use once Windows support disappears.

petert

This question has been asked about all of the discontinued versions of Windows. I still use Win98SE and WinXP SP3, the latter being what I use when going on the Internet. I also use Avast and it is one of the older versions as my CPU does not support the code needed for the current Avast version.

In short, there is no reason to update your version of Windows until there are programs you want to use that won't run with Win7. Avast will serve you very well, but your main protection against viruses is yourself. Be careful with the email you get and don't open anything that seems suspicious. Don't go to any Internet site that you know nothing about or at least be very careful.
Your email provider, ex. Yahoo, may screen your incoming email and quarantine that which others have reported as "bad". Make use of that and report obvious scams and dangerous emails to your provider.

I feel quite confident in saying that both Jenny100 and Draclvr will tell you that you should take your Windows 7 machine offline when Microsoft drops its support for it, but let's wait to hear what they both have to say.

Since you will no longer be receiving security updates and any security holes will no longer be patched, your Windows 7 computer is going to be vulnerable on the internet. Anti-virus is not going to protect you from those kinds of threats - especially an old version. If you don't have anything of value on the computer and wouldn't mind if your data was compromised, stolen or lost, then go ahead and use it on-line. But if you use it for anything else, any time you take XP, Windows 7 or any of the other unsupported operating systems on line, you are taking a chance. There are tons of articles out there about how XP and now Windows 7 are specifically targeted by hackers because the security holes are huge and now unpatched. If you still use Internet Explorer to access the internet, you are really increasing the danger. It has been considered insecure for years.

All the things Robert Gault mentions are good suggestions, but they are things you should be doing on any computer whether it's supported with security patches or not. In my years of experience working on computers, I've probably had to rescue more computers from Yahoo Mail than any other single source. They are the worst - well maybe Charter is up there too - for screening email. Gmail and Outlook.com are MUCH better options for web mail. Thunderbird is a great choice for an email client on your computer.

I guess it all depends on how much of a chance you want to take with your information out there on an unsecured system. That would not be me as I use my computer for on-line shopping and banking in addition to gaming.

If you have to ask, you should probably plan to use a computer with a newer operating system as your Internet computer.

Here are some options:

1. Cheapie computer just for Internet
Is your computer doing everything you need it to? Is it playing all the games you want to play and running all the other software you want to run? If it's doing everything you want, maybe you should keep it as is and buy a new, but inexpensive computer just for going online with. Maybe something you find in Best Buy on a Black Friday sale (day after Thanksgiving).

2. New gaming computer
If your computer is not doing everything you need it to or not doing it well (for example if some games are "chuggy"), maybe it's time to get a new game computer -- a computer that can handle everything you do. If you play any online games with high system requirements, this is your best option. Don't assume every new computer is appropriate for gaming, even if it is expensive.

3. Replacing Windows 7 with Windows 10
Putting Windows 10 on your Windows 7 computer is something Draclvr could help you with, but some games that worked with Windows 7 may not work with Windows 10. Also the interface is different, is hard to get used to for some people, and may take some time to clean up because Microsoft puts ads on Windows 10 by default. If you have trouble adapting to new interfaces, getting a 2nd computer with Windows 10 and keeping the Windows 7 as is might be preferable because it gives you some time to adapt to Windows 10 while you can still go back to the Windows 7 computer if you get fed up with trying to learn Windows 10. And of course if games are "chuggy" in Windows 7, they will also be "chuggy" in Windows 10.

4. Dual boot
Sticking a 2nd hard drive in the computer and installing Windows 10 on that 2nd hard drive. Windows 10 should install a boot menu for you, or you can choose which hard drive to boot from in the BIOS/UEFI/Setup. You have to reboot to switch between Windows 7 and Windows 10. Just as with option #3, a dual boot won't fix "chuggy" games if you're using the same computer hardware.

You might ask a couple of people who have dreaded moving to Windows 10 and have recently done so. Oldbroad and GreyFuss come to mind. Get some input and their opinions of getting used to Windows 10.

If you end up getting a new cheapie Windows 10 just for internet use, no matter what brand you get is going to be full of what we call bloatware - 30 day trial programs and things like Gamezone etc. Every new branded computer I set up takes about a half an hour to get rid of it all. Most come with a trial of McAfee antivirus which can require you using the uninstaller from the McAfee website. I assume things are the same in the UK.

I might be thinking of someone else, but I seem to remember your Windows 7 computer is fairly old? If that's the case, I really wouldn't recommend upgrading it to Windows 10 or doing a dual boot. Now if you have one that has really good hardware, then it might be worth it. That's what GreyFuss did... His Windows 7 computer had really good gaming hardware, so when his hard drive died, he just mounted a new 1 TB SSD, installed a new copy of Windows 10 and was off and running. Luckily, the new Windows 10 installation could "see" most of his files on the failed drive and he was able to retrieve important files.

I'm not techie at all but wanted to say something, but not confuse things further, so I wasn't going to but since Draclvr brought my name up...

One thing about Jennie's #1 point in getting a "cheapie computer just for Internet", I would assume that she means for web browsing, visiting GameBoomers, etc., but these days if you are buying games (at least here in the US) they are mostly only available for downloading. I don't believe a "cheapie" computer can be used for downloading your games.

The only real problem I had with changing to Windows 10 is the Microsoft ads. I had trouble knowing that they were just ads and not programs on my computer. Finding information in the computer is pretty much the same for me. I have trouble finding things in Windows 10 but I have the same trouble finding them in Windows 7.

If I am understanding you correctly, I would reply by saying that a cheapie computer would certainly download games providing you had a decent internet connection, but whether or not the games would run well or at all would depend on the system specs of the cheapie computer. A cheapie computer would probably not have a good graphics card, for instance, and not all that much RAM.

That is exactly what I mean Marian. I am just not good with the wording which is why I hesitate to write stuff sometimes!

So many times I see people posting that their games don't play and it is due to the graphics card. It makes me feel bad.

So, the "cheapie" computer is good for internet browsing but may not play your games and your gaming computer might not be usable on the internet to download games.

That's a good point, but it does depend on where you're getting your games.

If you're talking about DRM-free websites like GOG, Fireflower, or itch.io, you can certainly download the game installers on the cheapie and then transfer the installers to the Windows 7 computer via USB drive (or burn the installers to DVD).

If you're talking about Big Fish, the games will probably work on the cheapie, even if it only has Intel graphics, because most Big Fish games have low requirements and have been tested with Intel graphics. Even if there's a Big Fish game that doesn't run on the cheapie, you can temporarily attach the Windows 7 computer to the Internet long enough to install and activate the game, and then immediately take it off Internet. The danger of connecting only to Big Fish to install/activate is much less than browsing the Internet visiting random websites with Windows 7. Even legitimate websites can have infected ads.

If you're talking about a web store that forces a client/launcher like Steam, U-Play, Epic, etc., which requires an always-online connection for DRM, then you'll run into problems trying to play on or transfer installers from the cheapie. Remember that even the "offline" mode in Steam only lasts 11 days before you have to re-activate it.

And if the "ads" you're referring to are the game tiles in the Start menu, a simple right click and uninstall will get rid of them.

If you want to buy a new gaming computer, let us know your budget and the most demanding games you are going to want to play on it.

Thanks Jennie for all that additional info regarding downloading the games!

Thanks to all who replied.
Draclvr you are right - some months ago I tried to run Syberia 3 but was unsuccessful and when I posted the specs on line, you told me that the video 'card' was not man enough for the job at 2 Gb.
As far as future requirements for a new machine are concerned, I don't imagine that I shall need any more capability for the video system than Syberia 3 requires. Would 3 Gb be OK or do I need more?

I guess my budget runs to about £500.

petert

If you're interested in Syberia 3, I assume you'll be interested in the upcoming Syberia 4 since Syberia 3 ended on a cliffhanger. We don't know requirements for Syberia 4 yet, but they may be higher than requirements for Syberia 3.

I think this is the thread where you posted your specs
https://www.gameboomers.com/forum/u...77/Words/%2Bpetert/Search/true/syberia-3


That appears to be a laptop.
Are you looking for another laptop?

Yes - another laptop is what I had in mind.
(I thought it had 2 Gb video - obviously I had a Bush 'misrembering' moment.)

Guess we'll have wait and see what the requirements are for Syberia 4.
What is the video requirement for Lost Horizon 2?

Thanks again.

petert

System Requirements
OS: Windows® Vista™, Windows 7™, Windows 8™, Windows 10™ Processor: Intel® Core™ i5 or 100 % compatible processor. Memory: 2 GB RAM. Graphics: DirectX® 9 compatible graphics card with at least 2 GB dedicated memory.Oct 1, 2015

and from another site:

PC System Analysis For Lost Horizon 2 Requirements
To run Lost Horizon 2 on high graphics settings your PC will require at least a 2GB GeForce GTX 750 Ti / Radeon R7 260X with a Core i5-3340 3.1GHz or Phenom II X6 1100T CPU. Lost Horizon 2 needs a Radeon HD 7570 v2 graphics card to play on low settings, with a Core i5-650 3.2GHz or Phenom II X4 905e processor to reach the minimum specs, achieving 30FPS on 1080p monitor res. To be able to run at all you will need at least 2 GB system memory. Another thing to consider is the DirectX capability of your GPU. Lost Horizon 2 needs a GPU capable of running DirectX 9.

My friend who lives in the UK had a company build both a laptop and a desktop for her. She has been very satisfied with both the computers and the customer service in the years since she purchased them. In their custom laptop section the lowest priced one is 620 VAT. It has a core I5 and a GTX 1050 with 2 GB of RAM, but only 4 GB of memory and a very small 128 GB solid state drive. I would say that is probably representative of what you will be able to get that is even close to your price range. $500 is going to get you a low end general use laptop, not one capable of gaming.


PC Specialists UK

Thanks for this.

I shall have to have a good look around to see what I can find.

petert

Good luck! Maybe you will find some good holiday sales.

The closest I was able to find to £500 was £549.97 for a Medion Erazer P6689 at
https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/med...50-4gb-15.6-inch-wi-30023991/version.asp

That is a "Black Friday Deal" (£185.57 off)

It has 8 GB system RAM
Geforce GTX 1050 graphics card with 4 GB video memory
128 GB SSD plus a 1 TB hard drive

It doesn't have the best rating at Notebook Check
https://www.notebookcheck.net/Medion-Erazer-P6689-MD60911.288030.0.html
and according to Notebook Check, the Medion company was recently purchased by Lenovo, which may or may not affect the warranty.

I found this site, which has reviews of some gaming laptops
https://uk.pcmag.com/laptops/117124/the-best-cheap-gaming-laptops