Hey guys, I have a notebook which came with Vista 64 Bit.

Unfortunately I will not be able to use it because one of the main programs that I use for work does not support it. Can you believe that S^#T?

Anyway, my question is this,.. I saw that Newegg.com has the VIsta 32 bit for just $99. Office depot has it for like $200.
Can I install this newegg version on my notebook without any problems??

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx...N82E16832116485

I would do a clean install, format my drive and everything.. (bye bye to my 4 gigs of ram :-( )

My other question is, I have the Vista 64 bit CD that came with the notebook, Once my ancient work software supports 64bit systems can I Re-install that orginal Vista 64 on it without having to pay anything again?

YOur help is greatly appreciated.

It'll be fine. however you should check that the program in question works at all under Vista otherwise you may as well just tip your money down the nearest drain so to speak.

As to reinstalling 64-bit, you can, though it will require wiping the system again.

The $99 is for "Home Pre " while the $200 is probably for the Ultimate version .

Thanks guys,

Yeah they said it works with Vista. I'm still considering going back to XP for a bit and then jumping to Vista next year with my 64 Bit.

Snooker, Office Depot is no joke.. that price was not for Ultimate. Check it out http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/3820...-With-SP1-Full/

Okay guys, thanks a lot!

Its that price because its a Retail version not OEM . If you're in the states , you should look at website below

http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCategory.as...erating-Systems

This post has been edited by snooker: Jun 19 2008, 07:36 PM

Some reading if you like....

Abydos

Well you've left me with doubts with my orginal question,

whats the difference between retail version and the OEM, will the OEM work with a clean install?

I dont like answers like "its should work"...


let me know thanks!

Abydos, [bleep] man, thats ALOT of reading.. I'll get to it soon... what does it practally say though? that I can get up to about 3.2 of RAM on vista?

Hi Kohkane,

OEM stands for "Original Equipment Manufacturer/Manufacturing" and means software that is "tied" to the computer. It's supposed to be tied to the hard drive and motherboard, not just one of them. However, to legally buy OEM software, you need to purchase one or the other of those components.

Retail is not tied to any hardware, and can be used on different machines. If you buy a Vista Upgrade and use it on one computer, then buy a new computer, you could theoretically use it on the new computer if you uninstall it from the old computer.

Hope this helps!

Regards,

Mirjel gave a good description between the 2 . Lots of people like OEM . I myself have always used retail versions , mostly the upgrade versions . You do need a previous full retail version for upgrade versions to work but with Vista upgrade there seem to be a loop pole were you can use it without a previous full version . I like the fact that I can transfer the operating system any time I like to another computer without any headaches . As for OEM maybe someone else can answer your other question as to how it is . Though I have heard good things about them .

This post has been edited by snooker: Jun 20 2008, 02:32 PM