Hi ppl, does anyone know if you need to have a previous version of windows installed to install Windows XP Upgrade, and if the upgrade uses components from previous versions? Or if you only have to prove that you have a older version... Thanx
You only have to prove you have a previous version, basically when you do a clean install (best to do anyway).
If I uninstall Windows ME and install Xp will I lose all previous downloaded programs, or is it easier to just upgrade to xp. I just reinstalled all my programs on a new 80gig drive and don't feel like going through all that again.
In the long run, yes, it's best to backup, format the drive, and then install your OS. You can upgrade from Windows ME to XP, but going from ME to 2k had serious issues when I tried it. I'd expect to have the same issue going from ME to XP without a reformat. Personally, I like to have my drives partitioned off so that I don't have to go through this crap of copying everything back to the hard drive. It saves me alot of time when I've got stuff already there. You will have to reinstall the programs, but you won't have to copy back every single bit of data.
Don't think of it as having to start over; instead, think of it as a fresh start. Don't worry about backing up your software, especially if it's stuff you can freely download. Concentrate on backing up your data. Ask yourself, "What data would make me cry if I was to lose it?" Then take special care to back up that data! Note: You should have 256mb of RAM or more before installing Windows XP. It claims to only require 128, but actually uses much more. You will slowly destroy your hard-drive over time if you run XP will less than 256mb, not to mention the frustratingly slow performance you'll get.
I agree aboutthe RAM. When I boot, XP takes 100mb of RAM right off the bat, so if I had only 128, that wouldn't leave much for apps. I would say 512mb is a must if you're gonna play games.
'RAM free' type programs only force the operating system to quickly dump data from RAM into the swap file. This does free up RAM, but it is actually counter-productive. In the end, you end up running like you have 1/2 the RAM you actually do, because the system isn't using it properly. Instead, it's using the HDD more extensively, which hurts performance (and your HDD).
