Congratulations! Computer prices are at an all-time low and now you are the proud owner of a new computer. It’s faster than your old one, has a larger hard drive and maybe gives you your first go at Microsoft Windows XP.
There is only one thing missing, all of your old data! This not only includes all of your treasured photographs and music but all of your Word and Excel documents as well as all of your internet browser favorites and your e-mail address book.
Transferring data from one computer to another is an unbelievable hassle, unless you know what you are doing. Although time consuming and a little cumbersome, there are steps you can take that will help the process be a bit more manageable.
The first thing that needs to be done is the new computer needs to be setup following the instructions that came with your new purchase.
Once that is up and running the amount of data that is to be transferred needs to be determined.
If there are limited files that need to be moved, the easiest method would be to burn the files on the old computer to a CD-ROM. Once the CD is burned the files can be downloaded to the hard drive of the new computer.
If the data transfer is greater than what can be held on a CD-ROM there are a few methods that will handle larger data migrations. The below mentioned methods will prevent the need to purchase pricey migration software.
- Via Network: This requires an in home network. If one is setup in the household or business, both computers need to be on the network. Once this is established both of the computer’s hard drives will be shared and files can easily be copied back and forth.
- Files and Settings Transfer Window: This is a tool that transfers data and Window Settings (mail and contacts for Outlook and Internet bookmarks) and is found in Windows XP. To find the tool, click Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools and then Files and Settings Transfer Wizard. Once activated the Wizard will walk through the data transfer process step by step.
By: Cari Diaz
Posts Tagged ‘Hard Drives’
Computer Help – New Computer? Now What?
March 3rd, 2010How to Setup a Home Network – Choosing Your Network Equipment
February 4th, 2010
If you want to build a personal network, planning ahead can save both money and time especially if you ever know you will grow your local area network in the distant future.
The whole point of coming up with a plan is to realize what you actually need to put in your network, after all there are many more things available than just having computers that connect to the internet.
This includes WiFi, cables, or even both
Although you might be only using wired connections, will you be able to use WiFi in the future?
Almost everyone at some point, and the difference in prices between a wired router and wireless router is small, and just about every wireless router still have a wired ethernet hub built into them meaning we can still connect both wired and wireless devices.
The whole point most people want a home network setup is to share an internet connection, in this case it’s imperative the security and the router has the latest firmware, this includes Wireless Security, Router Security & each computer must have a firewall, anti-spyware and a firewall.
Long gone are the days of having to share your hard drive or have a special computer, network attached hard drives are easy to setup and they typically have space from 500gb to 2tb. Some even have a wireless option.
The speed of a network can be a major factor if you send big files, truth be told a cabled network will always be faster than wireless, as a rule of thumb use cabled where possible and wifi where you have to, i.e laptops.
One of the big mistakes made when many of us are setting up a home network in the house is thinking about future expansions to the network, spending a little less today will only mean you spend more down the road, work within your budget but be realistic, setup the network that suits your needs and and budget.
By: Alex D Smith
