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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
I keep hearing people saying to upgrade to Windows7 rather than keep
using XP. Supposedly W7 was the last decent version of Windows. I thought about giving it a try. I have never used anything newer than XP, and there is no way in hell that I'd want Win10 or even 8.x. But I am finding that original CDs for Win7 cost more than a new installer for Win10. I looked on Ebay and was shocked at the prices. I think it costs more than it did when it was sold in trhe stores. I can buy a used working computer on ebay (that will run W7) for as little as $25 or in the $40 to $60 range is more common, but a Win7 CD costs $125 and up. (And then they wonder why people pirate software). I refuse to pay that much for "obsolete" software. And yea, I know I could buy a computer with W7 pre installed on ebay, and that is just not something I am willing to risk. I have never gotten a virus online, but years ago, I bought a computer from ebay with XP pre installed and found it to contain one of the most destructive viruses ever made. Yea, I took action against the seller, got a refund and did not have to return the computer, but that was AFTER that virus had gotten into my own computer and done considerable damage. So, any computers I buy on ebay get their drives wiped clean now, as soon as they are in my hands. Anyhow, is there any place to buy a LEGAL copy of W7 that is reasonably priced? (Which to me means around $35 or less). And that of course would include the registration number. |
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
wrote
| Anyhow, is there any place to buy a LEGAL copy of W7 that is reasonably | priced? (Which to me means around $35 or less). And that of course would | include the registration number. | Not likely. $100+ is typical for OEM. Win7 is also a hot commodity because, as you said, it's widely regarded as the last salveageable version. There are two basic options: * Build a computer and pay for the OEM disk. Drawback: Your license will be rejected on different hardware. you might want to buy an extra motherboard and CPU if they're not too expensive because otherwise, if you lose either, you lose Windows. * Buy the used computer and consider getting backup motherboard of the same model, becausde that will also be OEM. Microsoft mainly does their licensing limitation based on motherboard. So whatever computer you have should activate as long as you keep the same motherboard. Drawback: In most cases with OEM the activation key is embedded in the motherboard. so if the computer hardware goes then you chance of keeping Windows would depend on being able to get replacement parts from the OEM. Either way, it's a risk to use OEM. But the other option is to spend about $100 more for a full license, and with that there's no guarantee you'll be able to get compatible hardware down the road when your current computer goes. |
#3
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
On Saturday, September 8, 2018 at 4:19:59 PM UTC-5, wrote:
I keep hearing people saying to upgrade to Windows7 rather than keep using XP. Supposedly W7 was the last decent version of Windows. I thought about giving it a try. I have never used anything newer than XP, and there is no way in hell that I'd want Win10 or even 8.x. But I am finding that original CDs for Win7 cost more than a new installer for Win10. I looked on Ebay and was shocked at the prices. I think it costs more than it did when it was sold in trhe stores. I can buy a used working computer on ebay (that will run W7) for as little as $25 or in the $40 to $60 range is more common, but a Win7 CD costs $125 and up. (And then they wonder why people pirate software). I refuse to pay that much for "obsolete" software. And yea, I know I could buy a computer with W7 pre installed on ebay, and that is just not something I am willing to risk. I have never gotten a virus online, but years ago, I bought a computer from ebay with XP pre installed and found it to contain one of the most destructive viruses ever made. Yea, I took action against the seller, got a refund and did not have to return the computer, but that was AFTER that virus had gotten into my own computer and done considerable damage. So, any computers I buy on ebay get their drives wiped clean now, as soon as they are in my hands. Anyhow, is there any place to buy a LEGAL copy of W7 that is reasonably priced? (Which to me means around $35 or less). And that of course would include the registration number. I saw Win 7 Pro on Ebay for less than $20. |
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
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#6
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
On 9/8/2018 5:14 PM, wrote:
I keep hearing people saying to upgrade to Windows7 rather than keep using XP. Supposedly W7 was the last decent version of Windows. I thought about giving it a try. I have never used anything newer than XP, and there is no way in hell that I'd want Win10 or even 8.x. But I am finding that original CDs for Win7 cost more than a new installer for Win10. I looked on Ebay and was shocked at the prices. I think it costs more than it did when it was sold in trhe stores. I can buy a used working computer on ebay (that will run W7) for as little as $25 or in the $40 to $60 range is more common, but a Win7 CD costs $125 and up. (And then they wonder why people pirate software). I refuse to pay that much for "obsolete" software. And yea, I know I could buy a computer with W7 pre installed on ebay, and that is just not something I am willing to risk. I have never gotten a virus online, but years ago, I bought a computer from ebay with XP pre installed and found it to contain one of the most destructive viruses ever made. Yea, I took action against the seller, got a refund and did not have to return the computer, but that was AFTER that virus had gotten into my own computer and done considerable damage. So, any computers I buy on ebay get their drives wiped clean now, as soon as they are in my hands. Anyhow, is there any place to buy a LEGAL copy of W7 that is reasonably priced? (Which to me means around $35 or less). And that of course would include the registration number. just-me: You must not be looking very hard on ebay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Microsoft-W...item33ea4a5296 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-P...o/163221974514 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-D...D/322482378735 -- |
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
On 09/09/2018 17:14, John Dulak wrote:
You must not be looking very hard on ebay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Microsoft-W...item33ea4a5296 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-P...o/163221974514 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-D...D/322482378735 Fine as installation media, but I wouldn't expect the product keys to authenticate. |
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
On 09/09/2018 12:28 PM, Java Jive wrote:
On 09/09/2018 17:14, John Dulak wrote: You must not be looking very hard on ebay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Microsoft-W...item33ea4a5296 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-P...o/163221974514 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-D...D/322482378735 Fine as installation media, but I wouldn't expect the product keys to authenticate. Since you can download the media for free from Microsoft, legit, the media is of no value, it's a license you need to make it work. The last one states "licenseless" if that's a valid word. I don't like the somewhat vague wording on the first, it talks about OEM with a drive (if you pay extra and want it). Sounds like it was a working Win 7 installed on some PC. Might be licensed then but is it now? I've seen these, and remember the saying, "if it's too good to be true, it probably isn't true". But then you might luck out. Hell I've tossed $17 at worst things, so it might be worth the try. |
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
On Sun, 9 Sep 2018 08:56:25 +0100, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
wrote: In message , writes: [] And yea, I know I could buy a computer with W7 pre installed on ebay, and that is just not something I am willing to risk. I have never gotten a virus online, but years ago, I bought a computer from ebay with XP pre installed and found it to contain one of the most destructive viruses ever made. Yea, I took action against the seller, got a refund and did not have to return the computer, but that was AFTER that virus had gotten into my own computer and done considerable damage. So, any computers I buy on ebay get their drives wiped clean now, as soon as they are in my hands. Sorry to hear about your bad luck in that respect. I've been fortunate in the computers I've bought with 7 preinstalled - five or six, I think, so far. (Not all for me!) I've always bought from a dealer or refurbisher, never a private individual; I don't know if that makes any difference, though I think it's always been a "clean" or "cleaned" Windows, so I think reinstalled, whereas if from a private seller it might not be. Some have died, but none have had any malware that I know of; the Windows occasionally has not been set up correctly, but only in the respect of not having the screen resolution set to the native resolution (all have been laptops, of various sizes), or not having the drivers for some of the more obscure hardware in them, which I've always been able to get from the manufacturer's website. You could get such a machine, and then boot it from one of the standalone malware-scanners that can be put on a bootable disc (Kaspersky used I think to be the one most often mentioned here), before ever booting it in its own right. (Finding out from the web/YouTube what key[s] to press to make it boot from CD/DVD.) I would agree that 7 seems to be the last rescuable version. (Make sure it's SP1, of course.) Or possibly 8.1, but I see no advantage in going for that, and I dislike its default user interface - sure, Classic Shell or the other one will put it back, but if you're going to do that why bother (unless it's all you can find, which I don't think is the case currently). Anyhow, is there any place to buy a LEGAL copy of W7 that is reasonably priced? (Which to me means around $35 or less). And that of course would include the registration number. (From what others have said, it appears not. I think valid _discs_ can be downloaded - even from Microsoft, via the Heidoc - or obtained fairly easily; but it's the key that you'd pay for.) If you have a used machine from a real company (Dell, HP/Compac, Lenovo etc) they usually have the disk set to put the factory load back on for $10 or so. If that was preloaded with 7, you get 7. Once you get that disk, the version may work on any similar machine but you will need a good COA number. Dell seems to be the one that is the most proprietary. Dell OS disks only seem to work on Dell machines. My HP disks seem to be more forgiving. The question is when MS is going to turn off the machine matching app on their authentification server for 7. It has been off for XP for many years, even before they officially dropped support. If you had a COA number that matched the version you were running, it sailed through, no matter what you were running it on. I have used the same number on different machines the same day. |
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
On Sun, 9 Sep 2018 17:28:45 +0100, Java Jive
wrote: On 09/09/2018 17:14, John Dulak wrote: You must not be looking very hard on ebay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Microsoft-W...item33ea4a5296 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-P...o/163221974514 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-D...D/322482378735 Fine as installation media, but I wouldn't expect the product keys to authenticate. I just bought one and they say these are new, uninstalled keys. I will let you (and Ebay) know if they aren't. I do know a guy in Maryland who has a stack of uninstalled W7 disks but he only bundles them with machines he refurbs and sells. They certainly exist in the file cabinets of IT departments all over. The same is true of most MS suites. I paid $20 for the enterprise version of Office 2007 that had the full boat of apps, still in the shrink wrap. |
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
On Sun, 9 Sep 2018 13:19:03 -0400, Big Al wrote:
On 09/09/2018 12:28 PM, Java Jive wrote: On 09/09/2018 17:14, John Dulak wrote: You must not be looking very hard on ebay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Microsoft-W...item33ea4a5296 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-P...o/163221974514 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-D...D/322482378735 Fine as installation media, but I wouldn't expect the product keys to authenticate. Since you can download the media for free from Microsoft, legit, the media is of no value, it's a license you need to make it work. The last one states "licenseless" if that's a valid word. I don't like the somewhat vague wording on the first, it talks about OEM with a drive (if you pay extra and want it). Sounds like it was a working Win 7 installed on some PC. Might be licensed then but is it now? I've seen these, and remember the saying, "if it's too good to be true, it probably isn't true". But then you might luck out. Hell I've tossed $17 at worst things, so it might be worth the try. The one I bought says Windows 7 Professional SP1 32 or 64 Bit full install DVD with license NEW pro https://www.ebay.com/itm/Windows-7-P...o/163221974514 |
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
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#14
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
On Sun, 9 Sep 2018 20:00:05 +0100, "J. P. Gilliver (John)"
wrote: In message , writes: [] I just bought one and they say these are new, uninstalled keys. I will let you (and Ebay) know if they aren't. That's OK if you're going to use them within ebay's time-out, not if you want to store them for future use. (In the case of this thread, I think the OP _is_ going to use them straight away, so should be OK.) I do know a guy in Maryland who has a stack of uninstalled W7 disks but he only bundles them with machines he refurbs and sells. They certainly exist in the file cabinets of IT departments all over. The same is true of most MS suites. I paid $20 for the enterprise version of Office 2007 that had the full boat of apps, still in the shrink wrap. Is the key readable through the shrink wrap, though? (If so, you don't know if it's been used, even if the wrap is unbroken.) I actually seem to remember the key being inside but it has been a while since I cut one open. If it was on the outside you could never trust a disk from the store. |
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Where to get a legal copy of Windows 7
Andy wrote:
.... I saw Win 7 Pro on Ebay for less than $20. And how do we know it is legit? -- Quote of the Week: "For example, the tiny ant, a creature of great industry, drags with its mouth whatever it can, and adds it to the heap which she is piling up, not unaware nor careless of the future." --Horace, Satires, Book I, I, 33. Note: A fixed width font (Courier, Monospace, etc.) is required to see this signature correctly. /\___/\Ant(Dude) @ http://antfarm.home.dhs.org / http://antfarm.ma.cx / /\ /\ \ Please nuke ANT if replying by e-mail privately. If credit- | |o o| | ing, then please kindly use Ant nickname and URL/link. \ _ / ( ) |
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