I bought a laptop during the Win 8 to Win 8.1 era and then Upgraded to Win10. I would like to Uninstall both 8, 8.1 and 10 and do a fresh install of Win7. I understand that some HP computers will not allow this, how do I check to see if it's possible?My laptop is a HP model 15-F039VVM, and I cannot find the paperwork that came with it. It is in a box somewhere in our garage along with tons of stuff we accumulated in the last 40+ years that was put out there when we remodeled.You have to understand this is not a "Go back to Win7", this would be an install. There is tons of "Go Back" information, but nothing to explain uninstall-Install of a different OS.I have become accustom to Win 10 making changes on it's own, I have not become comfortable with the changes. I run it in the Win7 mode but it wants me to use strictly 10. My wife HATES it but will check email if her netbook isn't available or if the WiFi is really slow.Our grandson had 8 and didn't like it, so I took it to the Geek Squad and bought a fresh copy of Win7 and had it installed. At first the Tech(?) told me it couldn't be installed on his laptop. HP evidently had an agreement with MS to include a lock on some of their Win8 computers to prohibit changing to Win7. I checked around and found out he was wrong. I am concerned that make be the case here. Any help would be appreciated before I take it to the Geek Squad for upgrading to Win 7.

Depending on how heavy a user you are, you might simply find it better to give the computer away and buy a tablet. I find that I can easily do 99% of my stuff on my tablet.

You would need to clean the hard drive completely if you deleted the original files.HP computers needed some HP system downloads before Win 10 install. Did you do them? Win 10 is much better for us then Win 7. We never had any Win 8 operating systems.Go HP website and have the machine look for the updates. Install the required ones.

I'd say "Go for it" with the old laptop and Win 7.You have little or nothing to lose.....as new laptops are dirt cheap now.But I have a question:I haven't been paying much attention to the information about Win 10 because I didn't care BUT.......My wife got a new tablet that said it has Win 10 on the box. LO and behold, when turned on, it looks and acts pretty much exactly like the OPSYS on my Android cell phone. Is Win 10 really just an "enhanced" version of the system on my phone ????

I don't consider the laptop as old. If I remember it was last Christmas that I got it. Neither the DW or myself like tablets. I gave away my smart phone after about 6 months because I kept screwing everything up with the dumb touch screen and four hundred million ways to do the same operation. I am severely dyslexic and get confused easily with some of the new technology.

Windows 10 is Microsofts latest attempt to have all their platforms look and work alike and share code where possible. If you have a new touch enabled laptop or tablet then it can work a lot like windows based smart phone. After working with Windows 8, 8.1, and now 10 I like 10 much better than 7, but appreciate that many don't. Installing an old operating system on new hardware can be problematic due to lack of driver software.

Had Win 8, Ugraded to 10 hate both, Want to install Win 7

CloudDriver
Explorer
Dec 29, 2015
Trackrig wrote:
During early Dec you could install third party software on your PC that stopped 10 from loading. MS has blocked it. Once a day I now get a pop-up from MS asking me if I want to install 10 now, or just download it now and install later. The only way you can get rid of the pop-up is click the white X in the upper right corner. There is no way to tell it not to bother you again. Because it doesn't come in as mail, you can't use Google spam filters on it. If anyone knows how to permanently stop 10 from loading, I'd like to hear about it.

Bill

I know of two Windows updates that are related to the "offer" to update to Windows 10. I uninstalled these updates on my Win 7 desktop and no longer have the Win 10 upgrade icon on the right side of the task bar. I get no popups from Microsoft regarding Win 10.

The offending Windows updates are KB3035583 and KB3021917.

Here's how I uninstalled them.

Go to Control Panel and click on Windows Update.

Click on Change Settings and make sure that you have selected "Check for updates but let me choose whether to download and install them". Do not check "Install updates automatically" as this setting will just reinstall the two updates you want to get rid of.

Click OK to go back to the previous page and click on View Update History.

Near the top of the page, click on Installed Updates.

In the long list of installed updates, scroll down and find each of the two update numbers. Right click on each and uninstall them.

The next time you restart, the Win 10 icon should no longer be in the task bar and (hopefully) the Win 10 popups will disappear as well.

One final necessary step.

Run Windows update again. Microsoft really, really wants you to update to Win 10, so the offending updates you just uninstalled will again appear in the list of Important updates. To keep from accidentally installing them again, right click on each of them and select "Hide Update". This removes the offending updates from the list of updates to be installed.

Be advised - Microsoft really, really wants you to upgrade to Win 10. When preparing this post, I found that KB3035583 was again in my list of updates to be installed, even though I had hidden it weeks ago. I hid it again.
sherlock62
Explorer
Dec 28, 2015
vic46 wrote:
sherlock62 wrote:
I'm pretty sure this thread will be closed soon. 8-) To Gdetrailer, I am not pro, any particular operating system. Actually, I truly liked Win 7 for example. The point I was trying to make was/is, IF you do not lets call it keep up with technology, whatever the technology (not just operating systems) is, you will be left holding the bag so to speak. You'll be left standing there with your Princess phone so to speak while others your age are enjoying/understanding a smart phone. Sure if you don't plan on being alive in 4,5 years then yes, my point is mute. If a person doesn't want to be a technically crippled ole fruck, then you need to keep up...move ahead with technology, versus digging in thy ole heels and saying "I don't wanna.".............. "I can't", etc..

ARROGANCE PERSONIFIED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yup, so arrogant...
Delphi
Explorer
Dec 28, 2015
sch911 wrote:
Delphi wrote:
There is a free Windows program called Classic Shell which is designed to make Windows 8 and 10 look like Windows 7.

I've been using it for years with great success.

It's available at www.classicshell.net

So much mis-information!

So much condescending judgement!

Is there NOT a program called Classic Shell that does what I said it does?

Have I NOT been using it for years?

Is it NOT available at that web site?

Everything I wrote is 100 percent true. If you choose to not use Classic Shell, that's your business, but everything I wrote is a fact. None of it is misinformation.
Sam_Spade
Explorer
Dec 28, 2015
RoyB wrote:
I thought WIN 7 was going away soon just like WIN XP has done. How will you deal with non-support from Microsoft.

XP has not "gone away". MS has just stopped providing patches for it. IF you have XP patched up the the last ones they issued, there is a very good chance that it will continue to work forever......and a small chance that you will encounter a problem that is not fixable.
You can "upgrade" then. Same applies to 7. I think it will be supported for two more years.....minimum.
enblethen
Nomad
Dec 28, 2015
I had to remove many of the Win 10 start up apps. Some show when you click on the start icon lower left corner.
wgriswold
Explorer
Dec 28, 2015
wildtoad wrote:

After working with Windows 8, 8.1, and now 10 I like 10 much better than 7, but appreciate that many don't. Installing an old operating system on new hardware can be problematic due to lack of driver software.

I have a four year old HP laptop with Win 7. I upgraded to Win 10 and it was OK except the boot up time was much longer. Is that true for every upgrade and also new laptops? Is there a solution? Maybe Microsoft is working on some fix.
vic46
Explorer
Dec 28, 2015
sherlock62 wrote:
I'm pretty sure this thread will be closed soon. 8-) To Gdetrailer, I am not pro, any particular operating system. Actually, I truly liked Win 7 for example. The point I was trying to make was/is, IF you do not lets call it keep up with technology, whatever the technology (not just operating systems) is, you will be left holding the bag so to speak. You'll be left standing there with your Princess phone so to speak while others your age are enjoying/understanding a smart phone. Sure if you don't plan on being alive in 4,5 years then yes, my point is mute. If a person doesn't want to be a technically crippled ole fruck, then you need to keep up...move ahead with technology, versus digging in thy ole heels and saying "I don't wanna.".............. "I can't", etc..

ARROGANCE PERSONIFIED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
1492
Moderator
Dec 28, 2015
MS WIN 7 extended support is scheduled through January 14, 2020. I think by that time, the OP will be looking for a replacement laptop.
eichacsj
Explorer
Dec 28, 2015
Most people when they install SW including windows 10 just click setup, next, next, next. Yes if you did that you will hate windows 10. Defaults makes you use the cloud and share everything and let MS do whatever they need to keep it right for you.

You have to look very close for the overrides and do things like; only create a local account (not a account tied to your MS account), look for advanced/customize in all screens (and some are purple over blue very hard to see but look for it) and turn off all sharing, and cloud benefits. Then it will quit making changes for you.

If you do this you can set windows 10 to look like windows 7 or windows 8.
donn0128
Explorer II
Dec 28, 2015
sherlock62 wrote:
I'm pretty sure this thread will be closed soon. 8-) To Gdetrailer, I am not pro, any particular operating system. Actually, I truly liked Win 7 for example. The point I was trying to make was/is, IF you do not lets call it keep up with technology, whatever the technology (not just operating systems) is, you will be left holding the bag so to speak. You'll be left standing there with your Princess phone so to speak while others your age are enjoying/understanding a smart phone. Sure if you don't plan on being alive in 4,5 years then yes, my point is mute. If a person doesn't want to be a technically crippled ole fruck, then you need to keep up...move ahead with technology, versus digging in thy ole heels and saying "I don't wanna.".............. "I can't", etc..

Well, some of us are perfectly satisfied using older technology. It suits our needs just fine. Besides why should we subscribe to the current mentality in this country of when its a year old throw it away and buy more new Chinese junk! Just does not make a lot of sense to many of us with no extra disposable income.
Like I said, for 99% of my needs a tablet does just fine. So why should I give bill gates more of what I have?