Seeking Advice: xfer files and pgms from old PC to new rig....

[stedyone]

I'm building a new rig with a WD 320Gb Sata HDD. I plan on running Vista Ultimate on the new rig. My current rig is a Win XP SP3 machine with a WD 120Gb HDD that's is full of programs and games. I would like to avoid loading all of these programs and games on the new HDD on the new rig if I can.

Do any of you recommend that I copy the old HDD files over to the new HDD? I'm thinking that I will get all kinds of problems with different hardware between the two rigs if I simply copy the image over to the new HDD.

I appreciate any advice here.

[guns1inger]

If you were going from XP to XP, maybe (a very qualified maybe at that), but from XP to Vista - no. Some of your software will have to be updated to run under Vista, some of it may not run at all, registry entries may be stored in different places in Vista.

I know Paragon (makers of Partition Magic) used to have a utility to move programs from one system to another, but I don't know if they still exist, or if they still have software that does this.

From a personal perspective, while I know it can be quite a bit of work to install all the little utilities and tricks we have collected over a period of time, I do like the way a new system performs before it gets clogged up with crap and detritus. Why would you want to deprive yourself of that (often short lived) feeling.

[stedyone]

If you were going from XP to XP, maybe (a very qualified maybe at that), but from XP to Vista - no. Some of your software will have to be updated to run under Vista, some of it may not run at all, registry entries may be stored in different places in Vista.

I know Paragon (makers of Partition Magic) used to have a utility to move programs from one system to another, but I don't know if they still exist, or if they still have software that does this.

From a personal perspective, while I know it can be quite a bit of work to install all the little utilities and tricks we have collected over a period of time, I do like the way a new system performs before it gets clogged up with crap and detritus. Why would you want to deprive yourself of that (often short lived) feeling.

Great reply guns1inger. I will more than likely start the new rig from scratch as you stated. I do have more crap than I can bare to admit on my current XP rig. Thanks again.

[redwudz]

You could try cloning the new drive from your existing one, then updating the OS to Vista. Not really the best way, though.

I think I would do a clean install and you will have better results. Vista does do some operations differently, and some of the registry and driver locations may be different enough to cause problems. The main thing is to make a list of your present software and begin gathering the latest versions so you are ready to go when you install Vista. Much more painless that way. You can check here for compatibility problems with your software: http://iexbeta.com/wiki/index.php/Windows_Vista_Software_Compatibility_List

There are just a very few older programs that gave me problems, but I found replacements easily enough.

Make sure you export your IE or other browser links so you can re-install them. Same for E-mail.

Since you mention Vista Ultimate, you might try out some of the animated dreamscape backgrounds. They look really nice.

[stedyone]

I've got an old PCI firewire card that I bought from Sony like 5 yrs ago. I still use it to xfer miniDV tapes to make DVDs out of my home movies. I'm going to have to find the vista drivers for that. I use Nero 6 and I wonder if that version will be compatible with Vista?

[redwudz]

No. Nero 6 is not compatible, if I recall correctly. I believe you would need Nero 7 or higher. But parts of the Nero suite may work. I quit using Nero a couple of years ago and use ImgBurn for burning DVD/CDs. Most of the other functions of Nero can be easily replaced by other programs, many freeware. Nero has became a incredibly bloated piece of software. They seemed to have reached their pinnacle with Nero 5/6 and went downhill from there. IMO

For your FireWire card, just plug it in and try it. Vista has quite a few built in drivers and it may configure the card by itself.

[stedyone]

redwudz, do you recommend a good free program to convert miniDV to dvd in Vista using my PCI firewire card as mentioned above?

Thx