Want to buy a second hand computer advice needed.

demented_2

Hi, At the moment i have got windows ME, i don't really know what that means my son has explained it to me but i have forgotten what he meant, The computer is playing up and i can't use it for sending reports etc to my computer at work as we use windows XP there. I cannot afford to buy a new computer so have decided to get a second hand one. I have seen one advertised in the local paper and have spoken to the seller, we have fixed up a time for me to go and see it set up, apparently he repairs computers and sells them on. I thought that i would ask you guys what your thoughts were on this computer... this is the discription. Intel pentium 3 Broadband and internet ready with windows xp Word 2000 monitor keyboard and mouse excellent working pc only £80. I asked the chap if it had cd writer he said that it didn't but he could put one in for an extra £20. It has 2.56 memory and 10 g hard drive what ever that means. I don't need the computer to do games on just for surfing the net and writing reports etc to send to work.
what do you reckon do you think that it seems ok? I would appreciate any advice. Oh nearly forgot i would like to download some music and also store my photo's with out all the hassle that i have at the moment.
Thanks for your patience. demented ps i am not an IT animal.

MonkeySaving?

Whats your budget? £80 for a PIII sounds ok for a machine that will generally be surfing the web but the hard disk space is seriously lacking if you are going to be downloading music.

jghal

You having Windows ME should not prevent you sending reports to a computer that uses Windows XP - these are only the operating systems and not the programmes such as word processors/spreadsheets etc

It might be worth getting your son (if he knows what he is doing) to simply give your current computer a spring clean

However, in answer to your question it sounds like a good deal but as monkeysaving says - upgrade the hard drive and the ram if you want it to last a while. Also make sure you are getting Windows XP on this 'new' computer or else you will somply be back where you started with Win ME - oops can see that you are, disregard this last bit

bat999

Hi demented
What you've described seems reasonable for £80.
Something to check for is that the Windows XP that's installed is genuine.
If he has the pc set up and connected to the www then go to the microsoft website to run the "Windows Validation Assistant" program. This will tell you if it's pukka.
The link is:-
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/howtotell/ww/windows/default.mspx

demented_2

Hi Both of you. The most i can afford is £125 and really that would be at the top end of my budget. I never thought about the memory and downloading music, you have a good point there, how much memory do you think i should need although saying that i suppose its like saying how long is a piece of string. My son isn't too bad with computers, but never has time to sort mine out.... never mind. What other things should i ask the chap, bearing in mind i know nothing about computers. Thanks for you help so far. demented. :T

albertross_2

If he has put a pirate copy of XP and office on it, it could cause you problems with windowsupdate, make sure it has a sticker with the license no on attached to the case.

You could get a DVD writer for about £20.

If your existing PC problem is related to lack of office, you could download openoffice for free.

albertross_2

If he has put a pirate copy of XP and office on it, it could cause you problems with windowsupdate, make sure it has a sticker with the license no on attached to the case.

You could get a DVD writer for about £20.

If your existing PC problem is related to lack of office, you could download openoffice for free.

MonkeySaving?

Hi, can you expand on the current issue you're having sending reports? What application i.e MS Word etc are you composing the reports in? No need to buy a new machine if it's something we can help fix here

demented_2

MonkeySaving? wrote:

Hi, can you expand on the current issue you're having sending reports? What application i.e MS Word etc are you composing the reports in? No need to buy a new machine if it's something we can help fix here

Hi, apparently i am using Lotus word pro 97. Thats all i seem to have. If i write or try to save anything it all comes out gobbldygook.

MonkeySaving?

demented wrote:

Hi, apparently i am using Lotus word pro 97. Thats all i seem to have. If i write or try to save anything it all comes out gobbldygook.

What application do you use at work? If it's Office 2k/2003 etc then you will struggle to open it.

mfboss

If you use ebay, I would buy from there (no bidding,buy-it-now). You can get a pc like the one you listed for almost half the price including p&p. £20 for a cd-rewriter is a bit of a con.
You can also just reuse your old monitor with your new pc to save some money.