Hi all......I have been looking at New Windows 11 Computers I know, I know, crazy me, huh thinking about giving up Windows 7. Anyway, in looking at the ports on the Windows 11 desktops, None that I have seen show the back of the computer to view the ports so can I assume that they have an ethernet port and an hdmi out port?

No, never assume anything when buying a computer, always check the specifications and if what you need isn't listed then don't buy it.

I agree. Try an Internet search on the computer model you are interested in. You should be able to get a 360 view which would show you the back of the computer. However, reading the specs is always a good idea.

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Let me rephrase my question. Do all Windows 11 computers connect to the internet in the same manner?

I saw an Acer Windows 11 computer on Amazon that displays the back ports on it and it connects via an ethernet cable and thats the same cable that comes from my Internet Service Provider and connects to my Windows 7 Computer.

A wired connection will use the same cable regardless of the Windows version. Some systems will also have wireless and Bluetooth but not all.

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Thanks Jay........got one more question for you. I have a working Dell Computer that has Windows 8 installed. Is it possible to downgrade that to Windows 7 and if so what would I need to do it?

You may be able to do so but MAY have issues finding device drivers. I would first search for Windows 7 Drivers on the maker's site. If available I would then download ALL Windows 7 drivers available to a flash drive. If you can't find Windows 7 drivers I would advise to not do this.

OK, assuming you now have device drivers for Windows 7 you would then boot to valid Windows 7 install media and choose custom install. Select the system drive and allow for a format and then just follow the prompts. Keep in mind that, if you do this, Windows 8 will be totally gone... actually not a bad thing.

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I do have the drivers for Windows 7 but I don't follow you on how to boot to a valid Windows 7 install media.......does that mean to put the Windows 7 Pro disk into the dvd drive and boot from that?

Yes, the Windows install DVD would be the install media.

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Just to be clear -- you can't "downgrade" from Windows 8 to 7 and keep programs, settings and files. You need to do a clean install of Windows 7, formatting the drive you are installing to. You will also need a valid license key for Windows 7 in order to activate after installing.

-steve

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stephen boots
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"Life's always an adventure with computers!"

I do have the Windows 7 Pro install disk and the key. Can I use that to install Windows 7 on more than one computer?

While it MAY work it would not be legal if currently installed on a system. If it is not currently installed on a system all should be cool.

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I did not try and install Windows 7 on my Windows 8 Computer and decided to just suffer along with Windows 8 but you will never never ever believe what happened. Normally I just start my computer and let it load but this time I was just sitting there watching Windows 8 load and two boxes popped up, one saying "Install Windows 8" and the other saying "Install Windows 7". I was quite shocked to see those two options but I clicked on Install Windows 7 just to see what would happen, (and the Lord said "let there be light and there was light") because Windows 7 opened all bright and shinny new without any files.....really, just like brand new. The IE browser was on the bottom tool bar but it did not work to take me to the microsoft site but it did allow me to search for a site and I was able to open a download for Mozilla Firefox and that put a Mozilla icon on my home page desktop as well as on the bottom tool bar and I was off to the races......everything working at lightning speed.

The only glitch to this is a small note on the bottom right corner of the desktop saying "Windows 7, build 760, this copy of windows is not genuine...I don't think that build 760 shows the full number as part of it is off screen. I have had this computer for over ten years and never bought it new with Windows 8 on it so it must have been 7 and was upgraded to 8 way back then when it was free to do so. I checked the dvd drive to see if there may have been something in there that might have caused all this but it was empty.

Have you ever heard of anything similar to this happening before?

To be honest... not a clue unless Windows 7 just wants to be activated or needs a product key. I have never seen this and don't know of an infection that would cause this.

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To add on to my above post I did a search for "Windows 7, build 760, this copy of windows is not genuine". Results say build 7600 but is probably the same. Looking through a few results it looks like corrupted system files.

If you have a copy of the Windows 7 install that is not in use I would boot to that and do a clean install. In the long run it will probably be quicker than trying to solve.

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The only copy I have of Windows 7 is in use on another computer. Just to see if it would work, I installed Office 97 Professional which gave me Microsoft Word along with all the other programs on that disk. Then I tried booting up again just to see what would happen and once more it showed the two boxes, "Windows 8" and Windows7" as options to boot to and I was able to get back into 7 with no problem so I will let it run for a while and see if it continues to work ok for me.

Hi Jay.......just an add on to the status of my Windows 8 and 7 computer. I was able to install Mozilla Firefox and Google browsers without a problem but when I tried to install Microsoft Edge I got a message that my computer was unable to connect to the internet. No idea why that happened because it is definitely connected. I tried it several times but no luck.

It is possible that it was actually Microsoft's servers refusing access due to your system being considered to not be valid. Keep in mind that it is just a guess as I really don't think Microsoft does that.

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I thought of that possibility myself Jay......the whole thing is a bit crazy. If I were to let it boot up to Windows 8, Microsoft edge is already installed there. Also I have been looking at the operation of new Windows 11 computers on YouTube and they look very much improved over Windows 8 and 10 with that start button and how everything displays on the screen. How is 11 working out for you?

I'm mainly Windows 10 but have 11 on a virtual machine and a Microsoft Surface. No problems with either. I've had 11 on my main system but it messes with some very old games I like.

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Have you ever tried one of these mini computers? It looks like it comes with windows 11 installed.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B12VPNKD?aaxitk=3adaebed041ddeb5ba52102e4a2bf3ce&pd_rd_plhdr=t&ref=dacx_dp_586892407358476575_584535506686968593&th=1

I've never tried one as they tend to just not have even close to the power I need.

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You have known me for quite a long time Jay so you must know that your answer does not even come close to me understanding what you mean by " the power you need". I thought "power" is that socket on the wall that you plug the computer into and not something within the computer itself. So, can you explain to me what item within all those specs they list as various computers having is the one that gives you more power?

Sorry... By power I mean what the system is able to do. Let's take the system you linked:

Uses an Intel 4-core Celeron CPU. Celeron is one of the weaker CPUs made. It is also slow.

When it says "Memory Storage Capacity 256 GB they are actually talking about hard drive size, not actual memory. Since you can't add extra drives to a 'mini system' you are stuck with very small storage unless you add external drives.

For some people this may be fine but not for my usage. I could not even fit my System, C:, drive on this system. I also do a lot of video conversions which would need to be done on an external drive with the mini system. It would take forever.

The mini system would probably be OK for a student to use just for school work and streaming some videos but, for me, it would be a useless toy.

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My main Windows 7 computer works quite fast.......specs for it are (Intel(R) Core(TM)i3-2100 CPU 3.10GHz 8 GB Ram 64bit OS) so would any windows 11 above that Intel i3-2100 be as fast or faster? Also noted that all Windows 11 computers that I have looked at do not connect to the monitor with a VGA cable so what outlet would a new monitor require? Also, none seem to have a windows 11 install disc so what do you do if your computer has a major problem?