Windows 7 Archives - Rick's Daily Tips

Q&A: If I replace Windows with Linux will I need to replace the hard drive too?

Posted on July 27, 2026

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Question from Marla: I have an older HP desktop PC that got really slow over the years so I bought a new laptop and put the old desktop in a closet. Well, the laptop’s screen just went bad and I don’t have the money to buy a new computer right now.

I took the old desktop out of the closet and hooked it up, and to my great surprise it still works. The problem is it has Windows 7 on it and I know it’s unsafe to use now. [Read more…]

Q&A: Is it really dangerous to keep using Windows 7?

Posted on April 28, 2024

Question from Luisa: I’m hoping you can clear something up for me.

I’ve heard some people say we need to stop using Windows 7 now that Microsoft has stopped updating it because it’s no longer safe.

Others are saying it’s perfectly fine to keep using it as long as the computer has an antivirus on it.

This is really confusing to me.

My HP laptop is old but it still works fine even though it has Windows 7 on it. I really hate the thought of having to replace it, but I will if it’s really unsafe to use.

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

Q&A: Which version of Linux should I replace Windows with?

Posted on October 14, 2023

Question from Ed: I have a Lenovo laptop that came with Windows 8.1 preinstalled.

The hard drive died and I have to replace it and my co-worker recommended that I install Linux on it.

The thing is, there are so many Linux versions to choose from that trying to pick one is about to make my head explode.

Which version of Linux do you recommend for a system that was running Windows 8.1 previously? [Read more…]

Q&A: Why won’t my PC boot from a hard drive from another PC?

Posted on August 19, 2023

Question from Travis: I have an HP desktop computer that got fried by lightning.

I also have an old Dell desktop that had a bad hard drive. Both PCs ran Windows 10.

My cousin connected the hard drive from the HP to his computer and it seemed to work fine, so I replaced the bad hard drive in my Dell with the one from the dead HP.

But now after switching the drives, when I turn the computer on Windows won’t boot up. All it does is display a blue screen with an error message on it.

What do I need to do to fix this? [Read more…]

Speed up your Windows PC by disabling ‘Low Disk Checking’

Posted on April 8, 2022

By default, Windows constantly checks to see if your hard drive is running low on unused storage space. If it determines that your drive is almost full, it’ll let you know by popping up a warning message.

While all of this checking for low disk space can be beneficial if your PC has a small hard drive/SSD or you tend to use up all available storage space.

The problem is, it comes at a cost in the form of a performance hit.

The fact is lots of modern Windows PCs have large hard drives and/or spacious SSDs and there’s a good chance that all of that vast storage space will never be used.

If you think you’ll likely never run low on storage space you can speed your PC up a bit by disabling ‘Low Disk Checking’ with a simple Registry tweak. [Read more…]