My Win8 ThinkPads finally arrived. I had them custom configured without bloatware and that's what took them so long to get here.

I downloaded Start Menu X to restore the easier function of the old start menu. It's free, but I'll buy the upgrade as soon as I get more essential programs installed. I like it better than the 8.1 start menu. There are others out there, this is the first one I tried, so I don't know if it's the best, but it's fine for what I do on the computer.

Couple of questions:

  1. Does Power Tracks Pro go in the Program Files folder or the Program Files (X86) folder? -- I'm guessing (X86)
  2. If I decide to install BiaB on the HD instead of running it from the external, does it go in C:\BB, C:\Program Files\BB or C:\Program Files (X86)\BB?
  3. New computers don't have a little LED that flashes when the hard drive is working. I find that to be useful visual feedback and I miss it. Does anybody know of an app that puts a little flashing "led" in the task bar when the HD is working. I googled it and found apps that do way more than that, and all I want is the flashing LED
  4. Anybody know of an open source app that reads Microsoft Publisher files (.pub)? - I know "Open Office" does everything but PUB and since that is the MS Office app I use the most, I'm thinking about downloading "Open Office" and either finding an app that runs .pub files, or purchasing "Publisher" - unfortunately my old 2003 "Publisher" is incompatible with Win 8.1.
  5. My purchased WinZip app that creates self-extracting zip files won't load in Win 8 - any good free substitutes?

I know some of that is OT, but I also know there are a lot of generous people who know a lot more about the nuts and bolts of the computer itself than I do.

I love new computers. The screen is so bright, it's so clear, it's so fast and even the keyboard is better --- but I hate the migration process. Fortunately it should be over in a week or so (depending on how much time I can devote to it).

Thanks for any help you can offer.

Notes


Bob "Notes" Norton smile Norton Music
https://www.nortonmusic.com

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