Just installed Windows 8.1 Pro on my T410

[Temetka]

I just installed 8.1 Pro (legal license) on my T410. Why? Well my Windows 7 setup ate itself. Office got corrupted, icons were all jacked up. No amount of combofix, malwarebytes (reporting clean) or sfc /scannow (showing corrupted files it couldn't fix) would repair the install I had running just fine for over a year.

So in my contemplation of committing hari kari and backing everything up to my NAS, I thought about what OS to load besides my eventual dual boot setup with linux. I actually had 7 installed to the point it was asking to verify my OEM key. I thought about it and remembered that I had received a free OEM copy of 8.1 and license from Dell. It's not tied to any machine or manufacturer. So I figured, worse come to worse I can always roll back to 7.

Well, I am extremely impressed and a convert. My system has always been fast thanks to the 8GB of RAM and SSD, but it is even snappier now. I had tested it on another machine and it kindly pulled in my settings such as theme, accounts and so on. Very cool.

So I figured I might as well burn that free OEM Office Pro 2013 license also. I am now rocking 8.1 Pro and Office 2013 Pro as opposed to 7 Pro and Office 2010 Pro Plus. Note that all my licenses are legit being either OEM or VLK. I love working in IT, I get so much free stuff. Laptops, software, flash drives. I got an iPad 3 from a client today also. It's technically for "testing" but I was told (nudge, nudge, wink, wink) that if they never see it again it won't be an issue. Wootness.

Back on point though. I thought I was going to have to install the Nvidia driver for my GPU. But after running Windows Update and a reboot later, my GPU was already setup for me. I have had to load zero drivers by hand. I did install Thinkvantage System Update 5 and the fingerprint logon. But I could have used the built in biometric framework. I still have a few more apps to install such as FileMaker Pro 11, Acrobat Pro, etc.

I never thought that I would like 8.1 after running 8 before. But, not only do I like it. I love it. It's faster than 7, I love the new task manager and info bar that's displayed during copy operations and so on. Now I get to dig around in the Microsoft store for goodies!

So happy right now. Just thought I would share a good user experience. Happy computing my fellow 'padders.

[Temetka]

Well it's been a bit since my last post.

Thought I would share an update: Everything is still working wonderfully. I am hoping that Windows 10 is this stable. If not I have zero issues staying with 8.1. I really, really like it. I'm even thinking about converting my conky into a rainmeter skin.

[Hans Gruber]

I have found little difference between 6gb and 8gb of ram. Windows 10 comes out at the end of July. Hope you enjoyed Windows 8.1 To my knowledge there is no dual channel memory in the T410 so matched ram makes little to no difference.

[pianowizard]

Everything is still working wonderfully. I am hoping that Windows 10 is this stable.

Congratulations on "discovering" Windows 8. 8 and Vista are the most stable versions of Windows ever, assuming one is using drivers written specifically for them, i.e. if someone tries to force 8 to use an XP driver, stability can't be guaranteed.

If not I have zero issues staying with 8.1. I really, really like it. I'm even thinking about converting my conky into a rainmeter skin.

I am so ready to move on from 7, so I have reserved the free 10 upgrade for most of my computers that currently use 7. For 8, I have reserved 10 for just one computer at this point. If 10 proves to be less stable than 8, I too would stay with 8.

[Saucey]

I have to agree, Windows 8.1 is a LOT better than regular 8.
Starting to get used to the key shortcuts.
Though its a bore to navigate through the start menu at times it can be an easy fix for those who get classic shell.
But the windows search button makes up for it.
Drivers would be my concern for older machines, but if you have something newer, you're good.

[ajkula66]

To my knowledge there is no dual channel memory in the T410 so matched ram makes little to no difference.

This is incorrect.

T410 - as well as all T-series ThinkPads starting with T43/p a decade ago - is perfectly capable of utilizing the dual-channel RAM setup.