Transferring data...

Puppyraiser

PFG, Picture Framing God
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We are buying Roger's dad a new computer. Is there a way to attach a cable or something from the old one to the new one and transfer the data? He has a bunch of stuff that folks have given him and of course he doesn't have (or can't find) the discs. Sure am glad I have you Techies at my fingertips! Thanks!
 
Ellen:

There is a way to network (connect) 2 computers together and transfer the data, real fast. But is a bit complicated.

If the older PC has a DVD or CD burner, you could burn the data into a couple of those babies and then insert those discs in the new PC.
 
Moving to a new computer can be a frustrating, yet ultimately rewarding, experience.

Unfortunately, most programs will have to be installed from their original CDs. When an installation program installs something, it copies the files to various places on the pc and makes other changes as well. (registry settings, file associations, shortcut icons, system support files, data in user profile folders, program folders, patches, etc) This makes it too great of a challenge, in most cases, to try.

Data, however, can easily be copied. In most cases, data (documents, spreadsheets, presentations, etc) lives in the MY DOCUMENTS folder structure - which will be easily identified.

Quicken/Quickbooks can also be backed up to an external or networked drive, and can be RESTORED once the original cd has been used to install it on the new machine.

Emails, bookmarks, and contacts can be FILE -> EXPORTed to an external or networked drive, and can be FILE -> IMPORTed to the new machine.

Good luck with the new pc!
Mike
 
Programs don't transfer well and might be in too many parts or too large for email. It's best to find the original CDs and re-install them in that way.

If you're just transferring documents and emails, an inexpensive USB MEMORY CHIP might be a solution. Many shops use these to back up their POS systems. If his old pc has a CD BURNER, this is also a great way to back up the documents. Blanks only cost about 5-15 cents each, in spindle quantity.

Mike
 
I recently used a PC Relocator to transfer data from my desktop to a laptop. It comes with a special USB cable for a direct transfer or you can use any removable media, like CD or DVD or a USB memory chip.

I ended up using a 40-gig external hard drive I already had. The cable connection was too quirky. The program claims to be able to clone or move quite a few applications and I tried it with a couple and found that to be unreliable. Fortunately, I have the original install disks, but I had to us XP's system restore to undo some of the mess that PC Relocator made try to clone applications.
 
Best way to move documents and data is by copying them to a CD or USB drive.

As for the programs themselves, It is more reliable, easier and faster to re-install from scratch.

Copying them is bad idea, as when they install, they are installed to multiple locations that only Windows knows where they are exactly located.
 
Accessories/System Tools/File and Settings Transfer Wizard - if transferring to XP. You can create files on your new XP computer to use when transferring from a previous version of Windows. This tool is also an excellent backup tool for possible drive failures.

Pat :D
 
The real quite was if you are not afraid to open up the system is to take the old drive and set the jumper to be a slave drive. This will then show you have another drive (D depending on what else is in the computer such as DVD DRive, etc). Information can be transfer quickly and easily with windows explorer but the programs will still have to be installed. This is how they do it alot in a computer shop. I use to dump th ewhole contents of the drive into a file called "OLD DRIVE" and move information from there. When I was sure that I had what I wanted, I deleted the folder.
 
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