Windows Vista Pro to Windows 7 with XP tool?

[Chrisingranada]

Hi, I am your basic home user who has a new Lenovo laptop with decent spec preloaded with Vista Pro - it is awful, I am keen to get a better version that is not so slow and does not hang so much. I also have some XP programs I would still like to run, I think W7 offers something to do that. So,any advice on which version and the cheapest downloadable route for me to get the upgrade (e.g. can I buy it online in dollars?).
Thanks
Chris.

 

[Bolbi]

The only place I know of where you can download it legally is at the Microsoft Online Store, where the Upgrade version is $200. I'm talking about Windows 7 Professional, as it offers the "XP Mode" you mentioned. XP Mode actually allows you to run a virtual XP machine inside Windows 7. The lower versions of Windows 7 (like Home Premium, $120) include XP Compatibility settings, and most programs will do just fine with that. The full-fledged XP Mode is targeted at businesses that have critical apps that only work on XP. What apps are you concerned about not working with Win7?

 

[Chrisingranada]

Hi, thanks for info. I think I understand better now ref WXP Mode. Basically I am abroad and have couple of backup apps from my XP Desktop with me, that I cannot load on to my Vista laptop I have with me. But, it sounds like I should consider a cheaper W7 option and at some point when my two PC's are in same room, I should use the easy transfer process to try and load the XP apps up to W7 environment. The XP apps are not business critical, I just understood that they won't run in native Vista without a costly upgrade to the apps which i won't do.

 

[Bolbi]

Easy Transfer will not help you, unfortunately. From its download page: "Windows Easy Transfer does not migrate installed applications." If the app cannot be installed in Win7, it won't run in it either.
If you don't want to buy the upgraded versions and the ones you have won't work, I don't think there's anything more I can suggest. To find out if it will run in Win7, you can: 1) Try it yourself, or 2) check the Windows 7 compatibility site. You can search there for software and hardware, and it can tell you if it is compatible.
Let me know how it goes, and if you decide to try it yourself I can tell you how to install in compatibility mode.