Ask Slashdot: Buying a Laptop That Doesn't Have Windows 8

First time accepted submitter Sagan's Pie writes "I'm starting to look for a laptop for college, and the only thing I seem to find are laptops or tablets that have Windows 8. I have used Windows 7 for a long time now, and would not have a problem giving it up, but not for Windows 8. After visiting many major online retail sites, I've found that finding either a Windows 7 laptop, or even a laptop without an operating system is nearly impossible. So where should I go if looking for laptops sans os, or at the very least sans Windows 8?"

Comments

Re:Try NewEgg

[rudy_wayne]

Buy a computer that has the specs you want, then wipe the hard drive and install Windows 7. Problem solved.

Do you use the start menu often?

[Kelbear]

I never do.

Really, the biggest change in Windows 8, is that I have to press the windows key when I login. Nothing else really changed in the OS for me. I still just hit win+r for the "Run" prompt, or click a shortcut in the number of places I've aggregated them that make much more sense than Win 7's start menu layout. I got Windows 8 because it was just $15 for a valid windows license.

I'm in full agreement that there's no reason to upgrade from windows 7 to windows 8. But if you get windows 8, it's not the end of the world (unless you're really married to the start menu). Or hell, if you really need the start menu, just go download it and install it. If you're on slashdot you should know how to do this. This askslashdot is kind of a no-brainer.

Re:Just use windows 8...

[TimCook7314]

Actually, please don't do this. M$ needs to know what a hunk of crap they've released reflected by low sales.

Re:Try NewEgg

[Anonymous Coward]

Or check out this site: http://www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop .

Ubuntu..

[Paracelcus]

Problem Solved!

Re:Just use windows 8...

[steelfood]

reduced memory/disk footprint

Wait, what? Smaller disk footprint?

better explorer functions like e.g. "admin console here", and built in support for mounting iso's. With windows 7 you have to add these in on your own, with windows 8 they are already there.

With windows 8, you need to add the start button on your own. I'll take the start button over some little-used run cmd as admin anytime.

If you want to show your distaste with metro, enable the customer experience reporting setting and just don't use it. They actually do make design decisions based on that.

I have a better idea. Instead of we the end user put up with Microsoft's crap just so we can give them feedback, why not just give them feedback by not purchasing it at all.

Is that Stockholm syndrome I smell?