[GMill]

I figure a lot of people on here have probably seen it but if you haven't, here it is.

Okay now for my question, if anyone knows, input would be greatly appreciated!
I am running WinXP currently and I'm going to build a new system late this year to accompany Win7 and the new Intel i5 chips.
Since I have WinXP currently, could I buy the upgrade and install it on my new system without prior WinXP installation? Or will I have to install WinXP on my new system, then upgrade it buy the "clean install" and such?

The only reason I ask is because the Professional version is 99$ and I dont want to wait and pay a retail of 299$ (Since I do currently have WinXP)

P.S. Sorry if this is awfully worded haha, feel free to ask questions to clarify anything

[Romans DeMalum]

Will this have some kind of Starforce/Windows Live junk that always runs and tracks your every move? I hate windows live and having to run with Grand THeft Auto.

[Amsra]

I would think that you would need to install XP first for an upgrade....even if it is going to do a clean install, the upgrade will want to see that you are in fact "upgrading" . Otherwise, nobody would buy the full installs

[Loopy]

Originally Posted by Amsra

I would think that you would need to install XP first for an upgrade....even if it is going to do a clean install, the upgrade will want to see that you are in fact "upgrading" . Otherwise, nobody would buy the full installs

With Windows 98 and XP you didn't need to install the old version first. Just had to have the old CD available to put in the drive when it asked for verification. Don't know why they would change that now.

[rabb1t]

I would recommend ignoring the upgrade version, as it will burn out your licence for XP. I'd say just go with the release candidate Win 7 if it's pre-launch, or go with an OEM version if it's post-launch.

(As example, OEM Vista Home Premium 64-bit was around $125 at launch compared to $250 of retail.)

(You may also know this, but the new motherboard architecture is now being refered to as socket 1156, as Core i7, Core i5, and Core i3 CPUs will all be available for it. Core i5 is likely the one 95%+ of the gamers will want though.)

[MagicNumbers]

Hey Rabbit, what do you mean it will burn out you license with XP? Aren't they dropping support for XP anyway?

[rabb1t]

Hum, I suppose that's true, though I don't think it will happen right away.

As far as I know though, once you upgrade and register the upgraded produce you can no longer register the product you upgraded from. Meaning you can use XP then bounce to Win 7 on a system, but if you later wanted to put XP on a different system it would eventually explode, as it would say that licence has been used for an upgrade.

I could be wrong, but I vaguly remember seeing such a warning when I got an upgrade version of ME. I could still install 98, but I couldn't register it anymore because it became bound to the ME upgrade.

[MagicNumbers]

Cool thanks for the info.