Is it really not possible to partition the hard drive?

If Dell is still doing things the way they did on my Inspiron 9300 (now a little over a year old), they will have a small partition with a "FAT32" format which holds their "System Recovery" files. This allows the user to run the recovery from either the BIOS, or from the Windows interface to restore the computer to the factory installation and configuration of software.

The main partition will be in NTFS format and have the OS, pre-installed drivers and software.

You can create your own partions if you wish, but this would probably wreak havoc with the Dell recovery process (even if you leave it intact), as it may only operate with one larger partition and would most certainly overwrite the disc to the original configuration (1 large partition with OS, drivers and software, 1 small partion in FAT32 with the recovery section).

Another possible option, but a bit of work, would be to use a program like "TrueImage 9.0" that allows you to partition a drive and also allows you to create a "recovery partition" that holds the OS, drivers and software in an image and can be accessed via both a bootable CD to run the recovery manager, and via the TrueImage program itself running under Windows.

Note - this program is much slower than Ghost at recovering the system, but does allow you to set-up your own recovery partition on the hard disk.  

hey, electronic frys is having a sale on this COMPAQ laptop. its only 500.00 and its great. my friend bought one today and its awsome. i would buy one too except i alreay havve a new hp notebook dv8233cl.

here's the link for the notebook on sale a FRY's.

http://shop4.outpost.com/%7BAaEx5WZquXn0OlwTSjAr8w**.node3%7D/product/4880360

Hehe! And you thought you had a headache BEFORE you asked us for help?

 

I sincerely wish you the best of luck in whatever laptop you choose, werewolf. I have a feeling that someone who's done as much homework as you have, regardless of how confusing it may seem, will ultimately make the right decision for their child.

try dell's site.. they have some good laptops there. you should get the e1405... its best for what your daughter will need it for.

I ended up getting the Dell E1505 WinXP sp2.  Don't really know when it will be here yet, but it looks like a great system, on paper anyway .  Has everything I think she will need.

I'm curious--
What I always heard was to avoid Dell because the important stuff to upgrade is proprietary so you pay through the nose to add memory or upgrade HW. Yet most peeps here are recommending Dell. Did the situation change or is Dell better with laptops than with desktops?

Around 5 years ago, I had a Sony VIAO that I liked alot. Any comments on the VIAO?

I'm not sold on a particular brand, but was surprised by the results of this thread...

What I always heard was to avoid Dell because the important stuff to upgrade is proprietary so you pay through the nose to add memory or upgrade HW.

I have the Inspiron 9300, which was built in March 2005.

I have replaced the stock Pentium M 1.6 Ghz processor with a Pentium M 2.0 Ghz processor with no issues.

I have also replaced the hard drive (originally a 40 GB Hitachi 5400 RPM) with a Seagate 80 GB 7200 RPM, and replaced (2) 256 MB sticks of RAM with (2) 1 GB sticks of RAM (Kingston). I also replaced the stock Toshiba DVD-ROM drive with a Sony DVD/RW drive.

All replacement parts were purchased through NewEgg.com except the RAM which I got through Amazon.com. The only issue was with the Sony optical drive which is not quite flush with the side of the case - otherwise all parts work flawlessly.

Therefore to answer your question; the Inspiron series - at least - has a proprietary motherboard, case, keyboard, touchpad, and monitor.

The hard drive, optical drive, memory, and processor can be upgraded within the motherboard restrictions/specifications. All of these can be purchased from an online vendor if you wish (the cost is much lower).

As for the graphics card, Dell offered upgrades (at that time) to either a Radeon X300 (128 MB) mobility PCI express card, or a nVidia GForce 6800 (256 MB) AGP card. I opted for the PCI express card due to my knowledge of the lower heat build up of this architecture. Due to the lack of availability of the newer mobile video cards through online vendors, it is better to purchase the unit with the video option you plan to use for a few years.

If you purchase a Dell, make sure to note the higher end options specific to the unit you are purchasing for future reference. This will allow you to upgrade with confidence, as Dell is not eager to offer the deeper technical knowledge of their equipment - at least in my experience.

It should also be noted that Dell offers a "Build Your Own" feature in their XPS 700 series where you can purchase the basic parts for a machine and actually build your own by purchasing a basic foundation (case, power supply, Dell BTX MoBo, Processor, and heat-sink/fan). The heat-sink fan that comes with the newer Core2 Duo processors in a heat-pipe style with multiple fins and two aluminum fans - really nice, IMO. The cost is about 30% more than you could purchase and build one with similar components for, but Dell will apparently assemble the basic foundation listed above, which ships with "Free-DOS" only.

The new owner can then install memory, video card(s), hard drive(s), optical drive(s), and purchase their own custom monitor and input devices. A nice option for someone who feels confident with the easier hardware assembly and wants to build a custom rig.

Note - you can also select all needed hardware parts so that you can build the complete PC tower with no operating system installed if you wish.

For all the bad press and fall in profit margins, they are providing some nice options on purchases.

I thought if the WGA thing said your install was invalid it gave options to validate or purchase.

That's the problem I've been reading about. I paid a bit extra to get Windows XP on my daughters machine. If she installs the WGA and it says it's an invalid install and suggests that I buy WinXP again I would be upset.

From what I've read, validating only costs a few dollars less that the full install disk set, so that would again be bad.

However, all this is kind of moot at this point because that auto patcher thing works really well.

What I always heard was to avoid Dell because the important stuff to upgrade is proprietary so you pay through the nose to add memory or upgrade HW. Yet most peeps here are recommending Dell. Did the situation change or is Dell better with laptops than with desktops?

When I was investigating all this I decided from the get-go to get the most they had to offer in the deal (as long as it didn't go waaaaay outside my price range) so as to avoid having to upgrade anytime in the future.

After seeing what her machine can do, I'm not sorry I did.