[TenTec] OT Computer Assistance

[Jim Brown]

On Sat,11/22/2014 9:12 AM, Ron Notarius W3WN wrote:
> First and foremost:  Avoid Windows 8.1 machines for now.  No, it won't be
> easy.  However, you will find that many older 32 bit software applications,
> and just about all older 16 bit software apps, will not work on Win 8, by
> design.

Two VERY important reasons to avoid Win 8.1. First, the user interface 
is AWFUL, and it makes if VERY difficult to set up and use.

Second, Win 8 will not load unsigned drivers or software, so it won't 
run specialty software from smaller players, and it won't run old stuff.

> Second, remember that there are two "forks" for Windows 7:  32 bit and 64
> bit.  I strongly recommend that you find a machine with 32 bit Win 7, again,
> to maintain maximum possible compatibility with your older software.

I've received the same advice from IT professionals.

I strongly agree with Rick's advice to consider off-lease computers from 
major manufacturers. I've bought five or six Thinkpads of the T4x 
vintage this way, and been generally happy with the result. I've had a 
few failures, but having several of the same thing makes it possible to 
rob parts to keep things running, and to buy common accessories. Lenovo 
has been very good for accessories like docking stations -- and they're 
cheap on EBay.

As to software -- I've got a problem like yours with an ancient version 
of Quattro Pro that I still use for all of my slide shows and 
publication work because its graphics capabilities are so far superior 
to any of the mainstream programs. I recently transitioned to a Win 7 
machine, and I can't get an old enough version of Windoze to load into a 
virtual machine to run it. :)  I have it on two computers, one of which 
is dying, so it's a major priority.

That said, there is plenty of excellent freeware both for mainstream 
applications and for the ham shack that runs in Win 7 and 8. Open Office 
and Libre Office are both good enough that I no longer need Microsoft 
Office for anything. The DXLab suite of ham software is excellent, free, 
and well supported. I've been using its logger, DXKeeper, since 2003. It 
imports ADIF files from other loggers, deals with LOTW and eQSL nearly 
automatically, keeps track of awards, etc. When you put a call in the 
entry window, it will bring up previous QSOs with that station, 
including name, QTH, band, etc. The DXLab suite includes a nice digital 
program, rig control that will read frequency for DXKeeper, DXView that 
gives azimuth and distance. And there's Spot Collector, that filters 
spots to those DX countries that you need for awards.

As to processor -- if you're going to do demanding things in the shack 
like multiple digital decoding or serious contesting, I suggest a 
computer with more than the minimum horsepower. That's because newer 
software is being written to do more things and use more horsepower. 
It's worth going for 4 GB of RAM and an i7 processor. Yes, my older 
T4x-series Thinkpads ran everything I could throw at them, including 
some very demanding engineering modeling applications, but they bogged 
down when running both a logging program and Skimmer, or a spectral 
display like NaP3.

My rule for EBay is to stick with vendors having very high ratings -- 
nothing less than 99%.

73, Jim K9YC