Plus one!!

A Chromebook IS secure by default. It can not get a virus, everything is backed up on the cloud, if it breaks all you need to do is get a new one, sign in and everything comes back. Updates happen in the background so you don't even know it happened most of the time.

Be careful of buying a Chromebook from a school. If the admin did not release it from lock down then it will be useless to you.

I have built computers from pahts, i have had all versions of windows, have bought off lease computers from Dell, have used and still use apple. If you are going to buy a new laptop, i try to buy for a 5 year life. So, if you are buying a windows laptop: minimum specs should be Windows 10 x64, Intel i5, 8 gigs ram, 250 gig solid state hard drive. what's the price, I don't know because there are so many different ways to buy that computer. But that configuration will last you 5 years, and will not be slow from a hardware standpoint.

If you want simplicity, yes, a chrome book is simpler, but google is tracking your every move. . . so there is a tradeoff of privacy, but most will accept the tradeoff for the price.

good luck,
sportsguy

If you read EUA (if you can) from Microsoft, they have the right to everything on your computer and the cloud.

Yes, Google tracks sites (to make the experience better) but I trust them far more than MS.

Of course if you want REAL security, use Linux. No one tracks you on Linux since there is no Linux corp. The code is open source, which means you can look at the code and decide if you want to use it or not (you can even modify it for yourself).

Linux is far safer than Windows as it (almost) never gets a virus. (Mostly big business are the targets).

Most web sites run on Linux, IBM paid $34 BILLION for a company that promotes Linux (Redhat).

I use a Chromebook 99% of the time, but I feel very safe using my Linux Mint PCs.

Agree! or Don't disagree with anything you typed!
 

when the computer has an issue, the question becomes how self reliant is the purchaser? Which is why its hard to tell to give a proper answer. Browsing, email, etc, may all be easy with Linux, don't know, but are there any configurations needed to be done which the user won't understand or will need help to set up? Same with MS. . . so that's why the simplicity question/answer may end up with a chrome book.

Now mating with Microsoft is like mating with a black widow spider, bu why one would trust google more than MS, not sure i would trust either. . . . both are corporations with profit motives, which means risk. . or you are the product!

sportsguy

You would not believe the data that is sent to MS. I've looked at the packets! Google not as bad.

I've built dozens of Linux PC's. Ubuntu, Mint, Red Hat, Easy Peasy, all varieties for special purposes. About configurations: Of course, each PC has specific components that might need customization. The beauty of Linux, besides having less hardware requirements, is because you can D/L a bootable CD/DVD or USB image and see for yourself if there if you have a component issue. Just boot off it and try it, it runs in RAM so it runs a little slow, but you can get the idea. I've only found IBM or laptops that use the Broadcom WiFi card and some higher-end NVidia video cards to be problematic. I like Linux Mint Cinnamon Mate that has a Windows interface look-alike. Less of a learning curve than getting a new phone.

You can try before you install it. Try that with Windows 10.

I have had few customers that I haven't been able to find a compatible free program for their needs. There are even some free Tax programs that you can import data tax files.

Are you saying you can't run Windows 10 from a live USB flash drive? That would be incorrect. I'm not referring to an installation USB drive. I'm talking about a fully-installed Windows 10 OS from a flash drive:

[Sorry, I should have been clearer. Of course, you can run (installed) Win 10 from an external storage device. In Linux, you can run it, try it out, without installing it. Plus it's FREE, and only takes a couple of minutes to boot up. I often boot to a Live Linux USB to retrieve personal data from a customer crashed Win 10 PC.

I might have a few of those MS programs with no compatibility but I would like to give it a try some time. And i love mint and cinnamon, never can get enough cinnamon in baked goods, but i digress. :icon_wink:

sports guy

I just got my new iMac today. Whoa! I know it's a lot of money but I don't have enough patience to constantly be fooling around with any brand Windows Equipment.

You deserve a Mac. Do it. You will never be sorry. Every once in a while you hit two buttons to update it and that's that. The last iMac lasted 9 plus years. I could run NASA with this new one. Imagine people who speak English if you need a pointer or technical assistance and they answer the phone in a flash. Customer service at its finest.

We did have a Chromebook that a poster named tomwed encouraged me to buy some years back. Other than being small it was trouble-free but alas it was glommed by some Fast Fingered Freddie when we moved down here. It happened on the N.J. side we think. It was also very inexpensive.

Yeah, I get all that. I've been using personal computers since the early 80's (IBM PC-XT...slooow). I have a couple of Linux live drives (usb/cd). I know how they work, and how you can either run them from the drive or choose to install from the drive to your PC, etc. And it's handy that it's an OS (kernel) that understands the NTFS file system that Windows uses.

That said, the "without installing it" is kind of a distinction without a difference to me. You're dealing with a Linux bootable USB or CD that has files that load into RAM. The Windows-on-a-stick loads into RAM from USB/CD, too. You're not "installing" Windows to your computer, in other words. It's just loading its required files from the USB (or SSD) drive and running from there, just like the Linux drive.

As far as "FREE" goes, you don't need to buy a license for Windows 10. In other words, it will run just fine without being activated. The limitations (which Microsoft can always change, of course) is that you can't personalize it, like change the desktop theme, etc. Note: I'm not encouraging people to run Windows without activating it. What I am saying is that if you just needed some kind of emergency boot device, this would work, and wouldn't require activation.

I am not anti-Linux at all. What I am "anti", though, is this notion that somehow Windows PCs are inherently unstable, or have some other kind of systemic nefarious malady associated with them. That's just silly. As I've mentioned, I've been using personal computers for many years now, including those with Linux, macOS (pre-OS X "classic" and current OS X), and the different varieties of Windows. And I've been through some nightmare Windows issues from yesteryear. But I can honestly say that I just don't have issues with Windows 10.

Yeah, I know that Microsoft has this nagging habit of shooting themselves in the foot when they do update releases... e.g. fix something while simultaneously breaking something new. But I haven't run into that. My 91-year-old Dad uses his Windows 10 PC. All I need to do is remind him how to do stuff that he hasn't done in a while, but he doesn't have issues with his computer or operating system, itself.

And my experiences with macOS - new and old - haven't been without issues, either. I've had my fair share of spinning beach balls-of-death or other freezes that require hard restarts. I've had Linux distros lock up my laptop, as well. The point is, there's no "perfect" OS/kernel. But there is a "perfect storm" of people claiming there's some kind of ubiquitous calamity with Windows PCs. That's just not accurate.

I completely agree with all that you have said, I also have a few excellent Win 10 PCs. Different strokes for different folks. I don't believe I have ever criticized Win PCs here on TOTV, besides some security or privacy issues that embody modern OS's, that mostly can be adjusted. They work quite well while they work as with any OS. Personal Computing support has provided me with a very nice income over the years. (I began in the 70's with CP/M Z80 and 8086's) I am only offering an alternative that anyone can easily try. Many people here are still running Vista, Win 7 or 8 and might be interested in other options. Based upon their needs, I have successfully converted them to a Chromebook, or Win 10, which was the original poster's query.