Why am I posting this on a home repair site? Because I have followed the group for years and you guys have never failed to give good advice.... well, mostly.... well, sometimes.... LOL.

I've had it up to here (picture a chubby feller holding his hand up to his head) with Micros**t endless patching, "up" grades, etc., etc. I got a tablet recently with Silk browser - completely unknown to me - and I have started using it and have had zero trouble in over a year now. Granted, it's not a "computer" and limited. But, for crying out loud, Micros**t has been trying to get it right for 30 years. A "simple" OS with simple basic programs.... don't need 3-d virtual realititty, etc. etc etc. enough rant about micros**t

Anyway.... I have heard nothing negative about Linux for many years. So now I'm finally at the point of trying it out.

Here's the question....

I'm looking for the super easy way for a feller with basic computer skills to (a) acquire the software, (b) install it and (c) install the basic applications. I would like to stay with MS Word & Excel, just because they do fine for me and I don't need to learn anything else new dammit. LOL.

Anyway.... fire away. All comments and funny stories appreciated!

If you prefer to email me, use this....


Many thanks!

Newgene, formerly known as Snuffy

On 05 Feb 2018, "Newgene McMensa"
newgene.mcmensaREMOVEREMOVEgmail.com wrote in alt.home.repair:

I'm looking for the super easy way for a feller with basic
computer skills to (a) acquire the software, (b) install it and
(c) install the basic applications. I would like to stay with MS
Word & Excel, just because they do fine for me and I don't need to
learn anything else new dammit. LOL.

While Linux can run some Windows programs, it doesn't necessarily run
them well. I suspect MS Word and Excel are among those that don't work
well or at all, especially recent versions. Not to mention that you
have to buy a license for MS Office. There is a free open source native
Linux (and Windows) alternative called LibreOffice that handles Word
and Excel formats reasonably well.

If all you want to do is write a word processing document, do email and
web browsing, and play solitaire you will probably be OK. Unless you
have a touch of computer geek about you will need help for much beyond
that.

Good luck.

In article , "Newgene
McMensa" says...

Why am I posting this on a home repair site? Because I have followed the group for years and you guys have never failed to give good advice.... well, mostly.... well, sometimes.... LOL.

I've had it up to here (picture a chubby feller holding his hand up to his head) with Micros**t endless patching, "up" grades, etc., etc. I got a tablet recently with Silk browser - completely unknown to me - and I have started using it and have had zero trouble in over a year now. Granted, it's not a "computer" and limited.
But, for crying out loud, Micros**t has been trying to get it right for 30 years. A "simple" OS with simple basic programs.... don't need 3-d virtual realititty, etc. etc etc. enough rant about micros**t

Anyway.... I have heard nothing negative about Linux for many years. So now I'm finally at the point of trying it out.

Here's the question....

I'm looking for the super easy way for a feller with basic computer skills to (a) acquire the software, (b) install it and (c) install the basic applications. I would like to stay with MS Word & Excel, just because they do fine for me and I don't need to learn anything else new dammit. LOL.

Anyway.... fire away. All comments and funny stories appreciated!

If you prefer to email me, use this....


Many thanks!

Newgene, formerly known as Snuffy

If you want to try it, look here and down the free system. It is made
so yo boot off a CD and there are many programs on the CD that will run.
It has a version of Open Office which is similar to the Microsoft
Office.

http://knoppix.net/

On 2/5/2018 6:59 PM, Ralph Mowery wrote:
In article , "Newgene
McMensa" says...
Why am I posting this on a home repair site? Because I have followed the group for years and you guys have never failed to give good advice.... well, mostly.... well, sometimes.... LOL.

I've had it up to here (picture a chubby feller holding his hand up to his head) with Micros**t endless patching, "up" grades, etc., etc. I got a tablet recently with Silk browser - completely unknown to me - and I have started using it and have had zero trouble in over a year now. Granted, it's not a "computer" and limited.
But, for crying out loud, Micros**t has been trying to get it right for 30 years. A "simple" OS with simple basic programs.... don't need 3-d virtual realititty, etc. etc etc. enough rant about micros**t
Anyway.... I have heard nothing negative about Linux for many years. So now I'm finally at the point of trying it out.

Here's the question....

I'm looking for the super easy way for a feller with basic computer skills to (a) acquire the software, (b) install it and (c) install the basic applications. I would like to stay with MS Word & Excel, just because they do fine for me and I don't need to learn anything else new dammit. LOL.

Anyway.... fire away. All comments and funny stories appreciated!

If you prefer to email me, use this....


Many thanks!

Newgene, formerly known as Snuffy
If you want to try it, look here and down the free system. It is made
so yo boot off a CD and there are many programs on the CD that will run.
It has a version of Open Office which is similar to the Microsoft
Office.

http://knoppix.net/


Â* He might also check out Ubuntu , it's user interface is very similar
to Windows .

--
Snag
Ain't no dollar sign on
peace of mind - Zac Brown

On 02/05/2018 05:19 PM, Newgene McMensa wrote:
I'm looking for the super easy way for a feller with basic computer skills to (a) acquire the software, (b) install it and (c) install the basic applications. I would like to stay with MS Word & Excel, just because they do fine for me and I don't need to learn anything else new dammit. LOL.


People will chime in with their favorite distros but I would start he

https://www.ubuntu.com/download

The tutorial will get you started but the basics are download the iso,
burn it to a DVD, and boot from the DVD. There are a few questions but
the install basically takes care of itself. I'm a software developer so
I have to load other tools and packages as well as set up services but
for the home user it pretty much provides most of what you'll want.

LibreOffice can load Word and Excel documents. I don't use Word or Excel
but you can determine if the LibreOffice versions will work for you.

My mail/newsgroup client is Thunderbird and my preferred browser is
Firefox both of which I run on Linux and Windows so there is no
difference for me.

I've been using Linux for around 20 years and I've got to say the modern
distros are fantastic. Unless you've got some really strange hardware
they will recognize the display, wireless, nic, and so forth and go on
about their business. In fact, early in the install it will configure
your network connection and download most of the packages from the net.
That way you get the freshest versions rather than stuff that was shrink
wrapped last year.

"Newgene McMensa" newgene.mcmensaREMOVEREMOVEgmail.com writes:

Newgene, formerly known as Snuffy

So I wondered, why 2 names?

Then I find that you are Bob Wilston also known as
Gov or Ardus, so 4 names at least besides your given name.

Not really interested in Linux are you?

--
Dan Espen

On Mon, 5 Feb 2018 19:11:55 -0600, Terry Coombs
wrote:


* He might also check out Ubuntu , it's user interface is very similar
to Windows .


I'm gonna be honest and to the point. I am no fan of Microsoft and I
wont use any version of Windows newer that XP, because I hate bloatware.
However, I would not recommend Linux to my worst enemy. I tried at least
15 different versions (distros) of Linux. It was probably the most
frustrating thing I have ever done, and nothing really worked properly.
Some would not even install. And you wont be using Ms Word or other MS
software under Linux. You are stuck with linux softaware which is
limited and not compatible with the rest of the world.

You could not pay me enough to ever touch Linux again.

If you're using Windows 10, I symphatise with you. Unless you need the
latest features and want to fight with bloat, just install an older
version of Windows, or buy a Macintosh computer.

On Mon, 5 Feb 2018 16:19:27 -0800, "Newgene McMensa"
newgene.mcmensaREMOVEREMOVEgmail.com wrote in


I'm looking for the super easy way for a feller with basic computer skills to
(a) acquire the software, (b) install it and (c) install the basic applications.
I would like to stay with MS Word & Excel, just because they do fine for
me and I don't need to learn anything else new dammit. LOL.

Can't be done with Linux.
--
Web based forums are like subscribing to 10 different newspapers
and having to visit 10 different news stands to pickup each one.
Email list-server groups and USENET are like having all of those
newspapers delivered to your door every morning.

On Tuesday, February 6, 2018 at 9:13:42 AM UTC-5, CRNG wrote:
On Mon, 5 Feb 2018 16:19:27 -0800, "Newgene McMensa"
newgene.mcmensaREMOVEREMOVEgmail.com wrote in


I'm looking for the super easy way for a feller with basic computer skills to
(a) acquire the software, (b) install it and (c) install the basic applications.
I would like to stay with MS Word & Excel, just because they do fine for
me and I don't need to learn anything else new dammit. LOL.


get an android or other tablet or small PC for surfing and email only.
You will like the portability.

Take your main PC off line.

Use whatever OS you like on your main PC but keep that main PC offline.
No more updates.

Use this PC for all your pics music etc.

Hackers are so sophisticated now, I would not trust all my data to anything other than an actual air gap...ie the PC is not connected to the internet.

and of course have good OFFSITE backups.

mark

On 02/06/2018 02:36 AM, wrote:
You could not pay me enough to ever touch Linux again.

Thanks the Gods.

On Tue, 6 Feb 2018 06:41:30 -0800 (PST), wrote:

On Tuesday, February 6, 2018 at 9:13:42 AM UTC-5, CRNG wrote:
On Mon, 5 Feb 2018 16:19:27 -0800, "Newgene McMensa"
newgene.mcmensaREMOVEREMOVEgmail.com wrote in


I'm looking for the super easy way for a feller with basic computer skills to
(a) acquire the software, (b) install it and (c) install the basic applications.
I would like to stay with MS Word & Excel, just because they do fine for
me and I don't need to learn anything else new dammit. LOL.


get an android or other tablet or small PC for surfing and email only.
You will like the portability.

Take your main PC off line.

Use whatever OS you like on your main PC but keep that main PC offline.
No more updates.

Use this PC for all your pics music etc.

Hackers are so sophisticated now, I would not trust all my data to anything other than an actual air gap...ie the PC is not connected to the internet.

and of course have good OFFSITE backups.

mark


It is really just as easy to avoid keeping anything you are worried
about off of your "browsing" PC and keep it well backed up. Do things
like your taxes on your air gapped machine. Most "hacks" are usually
things you clicked on and opened that you should not have.

On 02/05/2018 06:51 PM, Nil wrote:

[snip]

If all you want to do is write a word processing document, do email and
web browsing, and play solitaire you will probably be OK.

Windows solitaire will work on Linux (I tries it with the XP versionm
and don't know about the advertising-laden junk on later windows).
However, I found that I preferred the version than came with Linux (Ubuntu).

Unless you
have a touch of computer geek about you will need help for much beyond
that.

For most things, you can find help by searching the web.

Good luck.


--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Despite the high cost of living, it remains a popular item."

On 02/05/2018 06:59 PM, Ralph Mowery wrote:

[snip]

If you want to try it, look here and down the free system. It is made
so yo boot off a CD and there are many programs on the CD that will run.
It has a version of Open Office which is similar to the Microsoft
Office.

http://knoppix.net/

It's nice to be able to try an OS before installing it (which is what I
did at first). It will be slower.

--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Despite the high cost of living, it remains a popular item."

In article ,
says...



It is really just as easy to avoid keeping anything you are worried
about off of your "browsing" PC and keep it well backed up. Do things
like your taxes on your air gapped machine. Most "hacks" are usually
things you clicked on and opened that you should not have.


Sort of hard to do taxes on an air gapped machine as the tax program
needs many updates. I use a computer to pay many bills, so hard to keep
that off the internet. I do use some external hard dirves for storage of
pix and other things I do not want to use. Thinking of switching to a
usb drive as the price keep comming down. Often burn them to a DVD.
Hard for a hack to mess that up.

On Tue, 6 Feb 2018 16:32:25 -0500, Ralph Mowery
wrote:

In article ,
says...



It is really just as easy to avoid keeping anything you are worried
about off of your "browsing" PC and keep it well backed up. Do things
like your taxes on your air gapped machine. Most "hacks" are usually
things you clicked on and opened that you should not have.


Sort of hard to do taxes on an air gapped machine as the tax program
needs many updates. I use a computer to pay many bills, so hard to keep
that off the internet. I do use some external hard dirves for storage of
pix and other things I do not want to use. Thinking of switching to a
usb drive as the price keep comming down. Often burn them to a DVD.
Hard for a hack to mess that up.

You can't update the program on your connected machine and then move
it to the air gapped one?
I am surprised the tax folks don't give you the updates as a flat file
you can install anywhere. I haven't used a program for a while. I just
use the PC to fill in the PDFs I download from IRS. I put them on a
thumb drive, open that on a laptop that never sees the net and fill
them out. Print them and mail them.
I don't do any banking or bills online. I let my bank and credit card
company deal with that. I have recourse if they get hacked.
Things like pictures videos and music are really the disk drive hogs
but I have them on a few different machines and a lot of the stuff is
also on my web site, some you can navigate to, some you need the URL
and some is behind a password.
I also have several offline backup drives that I alternate using with
images of my C: (pretty much only installed software) and copies of my
data drives.

In article ,
says...

Hard for a hack to mess that up.

You can't update the program on your connected machine and then move
it to the air gapped one?
I am surprised the tax folks don't give you the updates as a flat file
you can install anywhere. I haven't used a program for a while. I just
use the PC to fill in the PDFs I download from IRS. I put them on a
thumb drive, open that on a laptop that never sees the net and fill
them out. Print them and mail them.


Once th ecomputer is plugged into the internet for the tax files update,
it is no longer air gapped.

There should be a law the tax code should be written by the end of
December for then ext year. That would give the tax programs and the
ones doing the taxes about a year to learn the rules .

I have not checked it out, but heard that the forms for the tax have not
even been made final by the feds.

Having been a computer user from the days of magnetic cassett tapes and
the old 5 inch disk drives, I really like to make backups of things.
That is one reason I have 2 computers I got off ebay for about $ 150
each for win 10 and a couple that still have XP on it. Not being a gamer
or doing anything that needs lots of computing powr, just about any
computer that is good enough for the operating system is fine for me.

On Tuesday, February 6, 2018 at 4:37:31 AM UTC-5, wrote:
On Mon, 5 Feb 2018 19:11:55 -0600, Terry Coombs
wrote:


Â* He might also check out Ubuntu , it's user interface is very similar
to Windows .


I'm gonna be honest and to the point. I am no fan of Microsoft and I
wont use any version of Windows newer that XP, because I hate bloatware.
However, I would not recommend Linux to my worst enemy. I tried at least
15 different versions (distros) of Linux. It was probably the most
frustrating thing I have ever done, and nothing really worked properly.
Some would not even install. And you wont be using Ms Word or other MS
software under Linux. You are stuck with linux softaware which is
limited and not compatible with the rest of the world.

You could not pay me enough to ever touch Linux again.

If you're using Windows 10, I symphatise with you. Unless you need the
latest features and want to fight with bloat, just install an older
version of Windows, or buy a Macintosh computer.

I'm running windows 10 and don't need any sympathy. It works great, it's the fastest, most stable version yet. And I don't know what alleged bloatwAre you're taking about. If you want to run Word and Excel, it's ideal,I don't see the problem, but to each his own.

On Tuesday, February 6, 2018 at 5:14:17 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Tue, 6 Feb 2018 16:32:25 -0500, Ralph Mowery
wrote:

In article ,
says...



It is really just as easy to avoid keeping anything you are worried
about off of your "browsing" PC and keep it well backed up. Do things
like your taxes on your air gapped machine. Most "hacks" are usually
things you clicked on and opened that you should not have.


Sort of hard to do taxes on an air gapped machine as the tax program
needs many updates. I use a computer to pay many bills, so hard to keep
that off the internet. I do use some external hard dirves for storage of
pix and other things I do not want to use. Thinking of switching to a
usb drive as the price keep comming down. Often burn them to a DVD.
Hard for a hack to mess that up.

You can't update the program on your connected machine and then move
it to the air gapped one?

It's been decades, if ever that you could do that with most programs.



I am surprised the tax folks don't give you the updates as a flat file
you can install anywhere.

I guess you haven't installed many programs.
They run an install process that installs it, checks for updates as part of that. When it's done I can't begin to imagine how you'd then move that to another system. That pretty much went away with MSDOS.

trader_4 wrote:

I guess you haven't installed many programs.
They run an install process that installs it, checks for updates as
part of that. When it's done I can't begin to imagine how you'd then
move that to another system. That pretty much went away with MSDOS.


Actually, there are thousands of free, portable apps which do not
require a typical "installation".

https://portableapps.com/

Whether there is a capable tax filing app, I don't know.


--
"In matters of conscience, the law of the majority has no place."

"Truth Sounds Like Hate To Those Who Hate The Truth"

On 02/05/2018 06:19 PM, Newgene McMensa wrote:
Why am I posting this on a home repair site? Because I have followed the group for years and you guys have never failed to give good advice.... well, mostly.... well, sometimes.... LOL.

I've had it up to here (picture a chubby feller holding his hand up to his head) with Micros**t endless patching, "up" grades, etc., etc. I got a tablet recently with Silk browser - completely unknown to me - and I have started using it and have had zero trouble in over a year now. Granted, it's not a "computer" and limited. But, for crying out loud, Micros**t has been trying to get it right for 30 years. A "simple" OS with simple basic programs.... don't need 3-d virtual realititty, etc. etc etc. enough rant about micros**t

Anyway.... I have heard nothing negative about Linux for many years. So now I'm finally at the point of trying it out.

Here's the question....

I'm looking for the super easy way for a feller with basic computer skills to (a) acquire the software, (b) install it and (c) install the basic applications. I would like to stay with MS Word & Excel, just because they do fine for me and I don't need to learn anything else new dammit. LOL.

Anyway.... fire away. All comments and funny stories appreciated!

If you prefer to email me, use this....


Many thanks!

Newgene, formerly known as Snuffy







I've been using Linux since the year 2000 but only some MS applications
will run under WINE. No version of MS Office past 2000 will run on Linux
under WINE. Libre Office is a good alternative though.


I find that though Linux is now my main OS, there is almost no way to
100% give up Windows.

On Tuesday, February 6, 2018 at 7:40:38 PM UTC-5, Dove Tail wrote:
trader_4 wrote:

I guess you haven't installed many programs.
They run an install process that installs it, checks for updates as
part of that. When it's done I can't begin to imagine how you'd then
move that to another system. That pretty much went away with MSDOS.


Actually, there are thousands of free, portable apps which do not
require a typical "installation".

https://portableapps.com/

Whether there is a capable tax filing app, I don't know.


--
"In matters of conscience, the law of the majority has no place."

"Truth Sounds Like Hate To Those Who Hate The Truth"

Sure sounds like it works similar to other apps:




"The PortableApps.com Platform
installs and automatically updates
your apps and let's you view by
category, title, new, or recent updates"


PortableApps.com Updater - Your Apps Are Up To Date

With PortableApps.com, you don't need to worry about making sure your software is up to date. When a new security fix for your browser is released or a new feature in your favorite game is available, the PortableApps.com Updater will automatically let you know. Just click a button and the updates are downloaded and installed without messing up your settings and saved files.. And if you're in a hurry or using a computer on a slow connection, you can wait until later with just a click.



It doesn't say anything about installing it on PC A, updating it there,
then moving the files over to PC B.

On 02/06/2018 06:22 PM, trader_4 wrote:

[snip]

It's been decades, if ever that you could do that with most programs.

And when you can there's still an executable binary blob and you don't
know what malware is coming along.

[snip]

On 02/06/2018 07:07 PM, philo wrote:

[snip]

I've been using Linux since the year 2000 but only some MS applications
will run under WINE. No version of MS Office past 2000 will run on Linux
under WINE. Libre Office is a good alternative though.


I find that though Linux is now my main OS, there is almost no way to
100% give up Windows.

I have one program (plus a tax program at that time of year) that
requires Windows and will not run under WINE. I use a virtual machine
running Win 7 on a Linux host.

One advantage of that is that making a backup is easy. All the windows
stuff is on one file. One time I was doing this, the computer died and I
just copied the file to another one (no need to redo any Windows
installations).

--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Despite the high cost of living, it remains a popular item."

On Tue, 6 Feb 2018 18:08:38 -0500, Ralph Mowery
wrote:

Once th ecomputer is plugged into the internet for the tax files update,
it is no longer air gapped.

Can't you just get the updates as flat files, sneaker net them over
and install them yourself on the air gapped computer? Even Microsoft
does that.

In article ,
says...

On Tue, 6 Feb 2018 18:08:38 -0500, Ralph Mowery
wrote:

Once th ecomputer is plugged into the internet for the tax files update,
it is no longer air gapped.

Can't you just get the updates as flat files, sneaker net them over
and install them yourself on the air gapped computer? Even Microsoft
does that.

Someone might be able to, but I doubt it is easy to just load files from
Turbotax. They probably have to be installed and write over some that
are already on the computer from the origional install.

On Tue, 6 Feb 2018 20:06:56 -0600, Mark Lloyd
wrote:

One advantage of that is that making a backup is easy. All the windows
stuff is on one file. One time I was doing this, the computer died and I
just copied the file to another one (no need to redo any Windows
installations).

I just keep rolling images of my C: with Achronis. stored in an
external backup drive. I can restore an old image and be a virgin
again in 10 minutes. It is a whole lot better than System Restore that
has always been hit and miss with me anyway.

trader_4 wrote:

It doesn't say anything about installing it on PC A, updating it
there, then moving the files over to PC B.


We make extensive use of portable apps. Install them to a flash drive
and easily use them on multiple machines without needing to integrate
them with the OS on each machine.



--
"In matters of conscience, the law of the majority has no place."

"Truth Sounds Like Hate To Those Who Hate The Truth"

On Wednesday, February 7, 2018 at 7:15:11 AM UTC-6, Dove Tail wrote:
trader_4 wrote:

It doesn't say anything about installing it on PC A, updating it
there, then moving the files over to PC B.


We make extensive use of portable apps. Install them to a flash drive
and easily use them on multiple machines without needing to integrate
them with the OS on each machine.
--


So says Dove Anus the psychotic North Korean troll. ^_^

[8~{} Uncle Observant Monster

Welp! I reckon the old newsgrope has changed. Will check back....

"Newgene McMensa" newgene.mcmensaREMOVEREMOVEgmail.com wrote in message ...
Why am I posting this on a home repair site? Because I have followed the group for years and you guys have never failed to give good advice.... well, mostly.... well, sometimes.... LOL.

I've had it up to here (picture a chubby feller holding his hand up to his head) with Micros**t endless patching, "up" grades, etc., etc. I got a tablet recently with Silk browser - completely unknown to me - and I have started using it and have had zero trouble in over a year now. Granted, it's not a "computer" and limited. But, for crying out loud, Micros**t has been trying to get it right for 30 years. A "simple" OS with simple basic programs.... don't need 3-d virtual realititty, etc. etc etc. enough rant about micros**t

Anyway.... I have heard nothing negative about Linux for many years. So now I'm finally at the point of trying it out.

Here's the question....

I'm looking for the super easy way for a feller with basic computer skills to (a) acquire the software, (b) install it and (c) install the basic applications. I would like to stay with MS Word & Excel, just because they do fine for me and I don't need to learn anything else new dammit. LOL.

Anyway.... fire away. All comments and funny stories appreciated!

If you prefer to email me, use this....


Many thanks!

Newgene, formerly known as Snuffy

On 02/05/2018 07:19 PM, Newgene McMensa wrote:
I've had it up to here (picture a chubby feller holding his hand up to his head) with Micros**t endless patching, "up" grades, etc., etc.

Yah, every time software authors roll out a major new version they play hide-the-icon and sometimes actually hide stuff so well no one knows where it's at.

For example, in previous versions of Windows I had a little vbscript that would open up a half dozen plain minimalist no-bling explorer windows and position and size them at predefined locations on my monitors.Â* I still have not been able to find/recreate
that functionality in Win 10.