Anyone still running Windows 7?

Matthew Ramos61 said:This might be a pretty silly question, but I figured I'd ask.
I have this laptop where all the function keys are hardwired by the manufacturer to perform these useless little tasks—things like toggling a projector, adjusting volume, and so on.
There is an Fn key meant to let you use the standard function keys, but besides being incredibly inconvenient, it doesn't even work for some reason.

Is there any way to set up the Keyboard so it ignores those primary functions and just gives me F10 or whatever else I actually need?
It would be logical to find a setting in the Control Panel under Keyboard, but apparently, that option doesn't exist. -.-

If you're running a laptop with the original factory software, you should have received a specific utility designed to handle those settings.

nimbleskipper5 said:The license terms don't say anything about prohibiting commercial use for Home Basic.

Found this on the Microsoft Community:

Both Windows 7 Home Basic and Windows 7 Home Premium can be used for personal and commercial purposes, just as long as it meets your needs and objectives.

And you can check the license terms right here:
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/legal...s/default.aspx

I'm aware of that, but I've seen comments suggesting that auditors here tend to get "allergic" to seeing Home versions being used in a corporate environment.

@Matthew Ramos61/">@@Matthew Ramos61

Try checking the BIOS—that setup menu you get when you restart the laptop before the OS starts booting. I know Dell has settings for function keys in there.

The regulators can cry about it all they want. Just shove the license terms right under their noses and tell them to go take a training course from Microsoft. If Microsoft says you're allowed to use it for business, why would they bother adding extra features? Did they change the license overnight? As far as I know, messing with those terms is basically illegal. Get in touch with Microsoft US and let them deal with it.

Matthew Ramos61 said:This might sound like a bit of a silly question, but I figured I’d ask.
I have this specific laptop model where all the function keys come pre-set by the manufacturer to perform these little nonsense tasks—you know, things like toggling a projector, cranking up the volume, and so on.
There is an Fn key that should allow you to use the standard function keys, but besides being incredibly inconvenient, it just doesn't seem to work for some reason.

Is there any way to configure the Keyboard so it ignores those primary functions and just gives me the actual F10 or whatever else I'm trying to press?
It would be perfectly logical to handle this through the Keyboard settings in the Control Panel, but unfortunately, that option isn't there. -.-

Typically, you can find an option within the BIOS to invert the Fn key behavior.

Just kill me now. This is a corporate-issued laptop, not mine, and I have absolutely zero desire to be poking around in the BIOS.
This is just ridiculous. -.-

You didn't specify which laptop model you're dealing with. If it happens to be an HP, check here.

So, I tried reinstalling Windows, right? But the second I started, it threw a massive error about a driver issue—you know, that whole "missing driver" headache. Then, get this: once I yanked the Windows DVD out and tried to reboot, my PC just stared back at me with this screen saying a disk read error occurred and BOOTMGR is missing. Total nightmare. Anyone got any tips on how I can dig myself out of this mess?😢

Look, you've gotta be specific here—tell me exactly what you were doing right before this happened and which specific device driver we're talking about. Also, do yourself a favor and double-check that the SATA cable is actually seated properly on both the motherboard and the drive. A "disk read error" is basically the computer's way of saying communication between the motherboard and the disk has completely broken down. Just swap out the SATA cable for a different one and try plugging the drive into a different SATA port on the board to see if that clears things up.

To be totally honest, I’m pretty clueless when it comes to this kind of stuff, even though I’ve managed to get Windows installed once or twice before. Here’s the deal... I pop in the Windows 7 DVD, and everything seems fine until I pick my language. Right after that, it just hits me with this error message: "A required CD.DVD drive device is missing. If you have a driver floppy disk, CD/DVD, or USB flash drive, please insert it now. Note: if the Windows installation media is the CD/DVD drive, you can safely remove it for this step." Then it gives me the option to either hit 'Browse' or 'Cancel.' Obviously, clicking cancel doesn't do squat, and if I hit browse, I have absolutely no idea what I'm supposed to be looking for. I'm typing this out on my phone, so sorry if this post looks a bit messy. If the DVD was burned incorrectly, how do I go back to how things were? I'm seriously stuck and don't have a clue what to do next.

It’s throwing an error saying there’s no optical drive detected—basically, your drive is probably dead. Still, you might want to take what Benjamin King2 said; it could just be a loose cable or something similar. P.S. I’m a little confused, though—why are you using the optical drive to install Windows and boot anyway? If you have a different version of Windows installed, maybe try checking if it throws the same error.

As far as the cabling goes, everything's hooked up just like it was before.
I think I totally blew it when I tried to transfer the DVD, so now I’m stuck hunting down some fresh windows. I really thought I could just roll back to how things were, but clearly, I wasn't that lucky. Once I get a chance to test out some other options, I'll give you guys an update on whether it actually worked. Thanks for keeping me in the loop, you two.🙂

If you’ve got a Windows 7 ISO file handy and a spare USB drive, just use Rufus to burn it over—it's much easier. Then, just head into your BIOS, set the USB as your primary boot device, and run the installation from there. Why bother wasting a perfectly good DVD? 🙂

So, I've got my USB drive ready and the ISO file is sitting right there on my D: drive, but honestly, what's even the point if I have zero clue how to actually burn it or get it onto the stick?

Check out this quick little tutorial—it’ll show you just how easy this actually is. Seriously though, just make sure you read through it carefully so you don't miss anything important.

http://reboot.pro/topic/17327-tutori...-a-simple-way/

The installation finally kicked off and it looks like we’re almost there🙂 Seriously, man, thanks a million for the hand. Now comes the fun part—getting all my games and software set up😁

Lately, I’ve been having this annoying issue where my Windows 7 just hangs right when I boot it up... everything just freezes, all the desktop icons get stuck, and the whole screen stays frozen for what feels like forever. I end up sitting there waiting for maybe 5 to 10 minutes just for things to finally stabilize and become usable again.

Anyway, I picked up a used PC from some guy on Craigslist about three weeks ago.

http://www.craigslist.org/re-post/example-link-9404229

This is the machine I’m talking about...

And yeah... I recently installed Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, and I noticed the game is stuttering in certain parts, which really shouldn't be happening given the specs.

Since I got this computer, I’ve downloaded something like 20 movies, a few series, and maybe 4 or 5 heavy games... could that be what's causing the slowdown?

I’d suggest grabbing CCleaner to clear out all those temporary files and other junk that builds up over time. You might also want to download Malwarebytes and run a quick scan—who knows, you could have some nasty malware hiding in there. It might be worth typing msconfig into your search bar right away, too; that way you can check the Startup tab to see which programs are launching when you boot up and disable anything you don't actually need. Also, if you've really filled up that 500 GB hard drive, that could definitely be part of the problem.

Quick question... can you actually get Windows 7 or maybe even 8 on a USB stick? Like, is there a way to buy it legally? And if so, where...
I'm rocking an old Windows XP laptop.

As far as I know, there isn't one. But you can definitely use free tools to burn Windows onto a USB drive instead. Basically, you just download the installation files from the internet, move that ISO file over to a USB stick, and then boot from the USB to install Windows. Another way to do it—if you happen to have a Windows 7/8 disc lying around—is to pop it into your computer, create an ISO file from the disc itself, and then transfer that to your USB. It’s actually pretty straightforward, and honestly, installing via USB is way faster than using an old-school CD.

Why don't you go ahead and list your PC specs? I'd love to see what kind of setup you're planning to run Windows 7 or 8 on.

Larry Ortiz5 said:As far as I know, there isn't one. But there are free tools that let you put Windows onto a USB drive. Basically, just download the installer from the web, burn the ISO to a USB, and install from there. Another way is if you have a Windows 7/8 disc, pop it in, make an ISO, and move that to a USB. It's pretty straightforward... plus, installing via USB is way faster than using a disc.

Just list your specs for whatever machine you're trying to run Windows 7 or 8 on.

Then I'm out of luck. If I download official Windows from the internet, I'd have to pay for it online with a credit card. And I don't have one.
I've got this old Acer Aspire laptop... can't use a disc, only USB. So, it would be great if I could just buy a legitimate Windows 7/8 USB stick. Something I could actually walk into a store and pay for with cash...