reformating

[taper]

I'm wanting to clean up the family pc, and I've got a few questions about reformatting. Our computer is an Aptive E500, Win98. Only 8GB drive, and I have all the reinstallation discs.

I have another computer with enough free space to store any files I want to keep, but what's the easiet way to transfer? The one I want to reformat has modem internet, USB, and 3.5 floppy. I'd hate to go the floppy way. Storage computer is much newer, running XP, has modem, ethernet, USB. Not connected to the internet right now though.

I don't need a full-fledged network, but I would like a cheap easy way to connect the two temporarily to transfer files.

I also had a problem with my storage computer. It's the one I use while at college, and my hard drive went bad the first week I had it. It was replaced no problem, but after I reinstalled everything, I get a screen at start up everytime asking what OS I want to use. Windows and Windows XP are my choices, and it gives a timer until one starts automatically. Is there anyway to get rid of this?

 

[Jeratain]

The easiest way to backup and transfer files is over a network really. If your computers are connected through a basic home LAN, through a hub or router, then you can easily transfer all the files to the other.

Another way is to use a burner and just copy the files to a CD-R or CD-RW.

There IS a way you can connect both computers through a parallel or USB cable and connect them - however it's easy to run into problems using this route.

If you want to do it the hard way you can try through floppy disks.

Regarding your PC that gives you the timer option: This is most likely because you have two OSes installed on your hard drive and you are being given a choice to choose between the two. One way to rid yoruself of this is to reformat the computer and wipe the hard drive clean and just install one OS. However if you don't want to take the route you can try this: Load Windows XP - Right click on "My Computer" and click properties. Next click the "Advanced Tab" and click on "Startup and Recovery Settings." There should be a System Startup area which allows yyou to edit the amount of time the OSes are chosen, your default OS, etc. That should do the trick.

 

[nihilistic]

As Jeratain said, the easiest way is through LAN. However, Jeratain missed one way:

You can take the hard drive out of your old computer and attach it to your new computer temporarily, copy the data from the old hd to the new hd, then put the hd back and commence with formatting.

 

[taper]

I like that hard drive swap idea. I won't be doing this until sometime in August probably, but I'll let you guys know if I run into anymore problems. I would have done the CD way, but the computer I want to take stuff off of doesn't have a burner. Oh well.

 

[funxus]

Maybe you could borrow/rent an external cd-writer if you decide to try it that way. A LAN is also a good idea, especially if you use internet a lot and never can decide who should have the computer. I think it's pretty easy to share an internet connection in XP without using a hub/router.

Swapping disks seems to be a very neat idea, I've never thought of that before.

 

[Zwelgje]

Originally posted by funxus
Swapping disks seems to be a very neat idea, I've never thought of that before.

You don't swap the disk, you attach both discs to the computer and copy everything from one to the other. It's bloody fast too!
I wouldn't know how to do it though, I'm not such a computer-whizzard but I have friends who are.

 

[Jeratain]

Yeah, I never really like to use the hard drive removal method because you can always run into problems like that. To avoid any problems make sure that you attach the hard drive as a slave to your master hard drive, that way one doesn't try to override the other and give you that horrible blue screen of death that will mess everything up. There are ways that when you have XP or 2000 or some other OS installed on a hard drive and you plug it into a machine with different hardware and drivers than were on your original machine, it will freeze and never boot up. But that's if you swap hard drives, not if you add the second one.

So be careful when you do that not to take the other one out.