new computer doens't have any office applications

[southeastastra]

only a free student trial version which isn't compatible with word/excel we use in office.

why!! argh

[dustystar]

Have you got a disc for your old computer? We had this when we got ours and I had to use the programs disc for the old computer to load up word on the new one. PITA.

[southeastastra]

i just found a microsoft works 8 disk and tried to run it, but it just isn't doing anything odd

[dustystar]

Well that was the extent of my knowledge I'm afraid

[southeastastra]

oh well, thanks didn't think to look for the disk so i may win yet

[OhWellNeverMind]

Open office - whcih can be downloaded free from openoffice.org is a good alternative which is compatible with MS Office.

I don't think Works 8 is compatible with Vista - which I assume is on your new PC. I could be wrong though.

[DrNortherner]

You need to buy the software I'm afraid.

[dustystar]

Our old disc is Works Suite2002 and that worked on our new computer with Vista.

[RustyBear]

If you have a new computer with Vista, it probably comes with a trial of Word etc 2007 - if you use Word 2003 or earlier at work, you can save anything you do in Word 2007 as a Word 2003 document - - Word 2007 gives you an option to do this when you choose save as from the menu (I'm at work at the moment where we use 2003 so I can't remember the exact sequence, but I can look it up when I get home)When your trial is up you would have to pay for the registered version, unless you go for the Open office program OhWellNeverMind mentioned.

[southeastastra]

ah that sounds good rusty, i couldn't open anything i'd done and home and sent to the office on this trial version.

never straightforward is it , will look at openoffice

[OhWellNeverMind]

Or as rusty says you could specfiy that you want to save teh stuff at home in word2003 or as appropriate.

You would have to do this for each document. There is a dropdown in teh "save as" window.

[southeastastra]

ah yes found the save as 2003 option. thank you.

will have to get open office when the trial runs out it seems. why didn't they just put it on as standard?

now i have to work out why my scanner doesn't scan .

[OhWellNeverMind]

Cos it costs £120 to put it on as standard

have you downloaded the Vista driver for your scanner?

[southeastastra]

no, do i just google it? it's a hp surprised it doesn't work as pc is hp too

[dustystar]

Neither our printer or scanner will work with vista and sadly as they are about 5 years old now it looks like the complanies have no interest in developing a Vista friendly driver for them. I have to save things that i do on this computer to a disc and then print it using the old computer. Eventaually we'll buy new ones

[southeastastra]

it prints and copies, had a google, seems like a massive problem with HP and vista that seems (to me) impossible to fix argh

[OhWellNeverMind]

what's your model number?

[southeastastra]

photosmart c4280, only a couple of years old. scanner says no usb connected but it prints ok.

[LazyLinePainterJane]

Why don't they put it on as standard? Because they can charge a fortune for it

[OhWellNeverMind]

hmmm..I think I have found the same thing via google.

this seems to be the official advice...but sadly doesn't seem straightforward.

[southeastastra]

good grief! i need a lie down just looking at that

[OhWellNeverMind]

So do I and I like to think of myself as reasonably computor literate.

But crap if that is all the MANUFACTURER can advise IMO.

[southeastastra]

i think i will have to come back to that when i'm feeling up to it, we use the scanner all the time. will have to haul it upstairs and use son's pc maybe.

it's a HP pc too, loopy. don't they just usually bung on a quick download to fix these sorts of things..

[RustyBear]

If you plug the printer's USB cable in to the computer & open Paint, can you see 'From scanner or camera' on the file menu? or is it greyed out?

[southeastastra]

yes, not greyed out

[southeastastra]

omg it scanned it through paint!!! thank you!!