help needed - new laptop! word and internet!!!

[snookhams]

We bought our son a new laptop for his 16th yesterday, with Windows vista - it doesnot have any microsoft office products on it, can I use the windows xp version that came with our home computer or do I need to purchase a different version!
It has WIFI - which is totally alien to me, do I need to contact my broadband supplier to get a wireless router or can I just visit somewhere like pc world and get!! sorry to be so dumb but not particularly technically minded!!!

 

[tennisfan]

You can go to PC world to get the router, the only thing you need to check is what type of internet/phone you have i.e cable like Virgin or a BT line one like Orange as this will determine what type of router you need.

I'm not sure about the software though.

 

[Ware Bears]

We had to buy new software when we got our Vista laptop. Didn't mind as we needed to upgrade as our desktop didn't have Powerpoint which my DD needed. We bought Office Home and Student which covers up to 3 computers so we were able to install it on both the new laptop, the desktop and another laptop we were given for the DDs to use.

We've got a cable router ~ we just went online to price them all up and PC World came out the cheapest for the one we chose.

 

[DisneyJo]

I bought a new laptop with vista on but I still installed my old Windows and it works fine, just make sure you have the code

We have talktalk and bought our wireless router from their website it cost about £35!

 

[mikki.young]

If you are still planning to keep the software on your home computer you will not be able to activate it on another computer - unless like Ware Bares it is the Home and student 2007 version.

 

[DisneyJo]

If you are still planning to keep the software on your home computer you will not be able to activate it on another computer - unless like Ware Bares it is the Home and student 2007 version.

I did

 

[Queenie]

We have some professional version of Microsoft Office which Scott got cheaply through a deal at work (he works for the NHS.) I know we were able to activate it on several computers as we had to change a few times due to break downs. Not sure if that is standard though.

 

[mikki.young]

It's got a lot harder in the last year. We changed computers and went to put Microsoft Office on the new computer and it wouldn't activate until we rang microsft (in the UK) and explained why it had already been used and they gave us a code that let us install it.