I think I messed up my netbook

[Queen of Dulwich]

I bought the netbook first and then signed the contract for internet...

I bought an asus pc eee netbook with the operating system Linux approx 18 months ago. I wanted to use it for my docs as well and so thought that it should have windows = asking a colleague to install windows XP...the result of course is that the netbook is very very slow, hard disk is not overly large.

Who can help me to speed up my netbook - it doesn't need to have windows XP, it needs to have windows - because my mobile broadband is for windows (I was told that the operating system mattered...). Some windows home edition will do, but since I am not a techie I just feel overwhelmed with all this and am thinking whether I should buy a new laptop...

Please don't ask too many questions - just say YES i can help :))

[tog_in_sox]

Hey QoD,

Hope some wiz can prove me wrong but I'm pretty sure that an 18 month old eee PC isn't going to be fit to run any other current Windows faster than it can XP. An expert may be able to tweak XP to run faster but you have to accept that the netbook was built to run best with Linux.

There are a few computer specialists on the forum who have Linux expertise so they may be able to propose a way to get your mobile broadband running. Depending on the sophistication of the documents you're trying to create/use you may well be able to use Open Office in MS Office compatible mode instead of what I presume you're trying to use which is MS Office 2xxx.

A new Windows netbook can probably be had for under a couple of hundred pounds. You may well be able to find them on offer "free" with phone contracts etc so if you can afford to it will likely be worth considering an upgrade. Just do some sleuthing around the Web for offers to make your pounds go furthest.

Best of luck

[stevebailey]

Hi QOD.

I may be wrong, but i think the netbooks 18 months ago, when they first started getting popular had different hardware specs for Windows or Linux, based on Linux not requiring as much Disk Space.

Do you know the Hardware specs for it? HD space, memory etc....

[Loz]

Memory is usually the thing. Windows lurrrves it's memory.

As stevebailey said, post the details - model number would be good, too (700? 900? 1000?). You night be able to pick up some cheap memory which will help immensely.

[Queen of Dulwich]

Ok, I shall check what it is that I originally bought.

Thanks for all your help!