Hi all, I've looked for a thread with this content, but couldn't find one. My new PC has Vista pre-installed, and it works fine. However a couple of programs such as Office 2000 will not load on it for some reason. Can I take my 150gg HD from my old PC (which I intended to do anyway to increase capacity) still with the XP, Office 2000 and other program files on it? Will everything still work? How do I go about it?

No that is not possible...windows XP, because of the validity checking is designed for a single computer's harware configuration. Changing the hardware will cause a failed fault check and the operating system will not start. Besides that it is against the EULA agreement that the operating system must remain with the original computer it was installed on.

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You can use that reformatted drive on the Vista computer and install XP on it then the office 2000 program as in a dual boot configuration.....I personally would use a third party boot manager such as GAG or BootIt NG (google is your friend) as it makes the installation much easier.

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Is it that office 2000 just will not install or will not run once it was installed...
Windows Vista has a compatability program that allows th running of installed programs in a virtual setting of the desired OS.....

1)Right click the executable and click the Properties option.
2)Select the Compatibility tab.
3)Select the Run This Program in Compatibility Mode option.
4)From the drop-down list, choose the operating system you ran before upgrading to Vista.
5)If necessary, select the option to run the program as an administration.
Click OK.

If there is a problem with a driver file not running in Vista then it won't work...but worth a try

OP'd by lurkswithin:

Doesn't that depend on whether it was pre-installed or puchased separately? If I buy an XP licence at the strore, I own it for one computer, no matter if I change said computer twice a week, AFAIK.

Thanks for your various replies. The situation with Office 2000 is that it begins to download onto Vista quite happily. Then everything stops, and the following message appears:

Error 1309. Error reading from file: D:\windows\msagent\intl\AGT0409.dll.
Verify that file exists and that you can access it.

I am given two options: retry (no good); or cancel (back to the beginning).

I have tried the method of installing it in the compatibility mode of XP as suggested, but to no avail.

Also my new Packard Bell Intel Quad core PC has now developed a problem in that whenever it is left unattended for an hour or two, it goes into a coma mode rather than sleep mode and cannot be woken up. The HD surges, and I have to disconnect at the mains to get the machine working again.

I realise that these are two separate problems, but I should appreciate any help that can be given on either.

I am in complete disarray!!

Sounds like the error is a disc read error. If you have another CD/DVD drive, you can try that. It may be less sensitive to read errors.

Or if you have a friend with an Office 2000 disc, borrow it and use your key.
Should work if other copy is the same version (e.g. OEM and OEM / Retail and Retail)

I have installed Office 2000 on an HP laptop running Vista Home Premium without any trouble. Other than I had to manually download and install updates as it's not supported by Office update any longer.

You other option would be OpenOffice.
download: OpenOffice.org Downloads

The second issue:
Next time start another thread, as it can get very confusing later down the thread on which topic someone is referring to.

It's called hibernation, and I recommend you disable it. It's been known for several versions of Windows not to play nice. Do a search here for hibernation or Google, how to change hibernation to standby.

No.
In the first place you do not own or ever will own the rights to the software. You are given specific rights to SINGLE USE ONLY That in itself is very evident in the EULA as well. Simply put...if you don't like the End User's License Agreement then return it to where you got it and either they or microsoft will refund your money...(only for the cost of the software).

You cannot get a single license for windows operating system as there are very specific rules concerning this. The license or COA must come with the software for installation. You can get a Retail version that allows the use on 3 different computers(and costs 3 times as much)....or an Upgrade version that needs qualifying software to be used for a single computer.

OEM versions are restricted to manufacturers and builders and are permanately attached to the motherboard of the computer that it was initially installed on...regardless of what hardware was used to accompany the purchase...

Academic is the same as the upgrade version except at discounted pricing for proven students and teacher and educational institutions.

Volume or Corporate versions are specific to the original agreement between the end user and Microsoft.

All of which include a EULA that dictates the legal agreement of use..