Dell 600m (or other) Day 1: Reinstall OS?

Hiya, I just ordered a Dell 600m laptop (exact config below).

Do I get an XP Pro CD so that I can reinstall the OS from scratch?
I have a feeling that it will be LOADED with junk (AOL/Earthlink, lots of trialware for stuff I don't want, probably advertisements, yadda yadda yadda.. JUNK IT!).

Does anyone have any experience with reinstalling XP on a Dell Laptop, like the 600m?
The Dell Media Experience w/ remote control, I'd like to have installed again..
I guess I want to know if I get everything I need to do that.
For example, drivers for the Wireless networking, and the graphics/monitor..

I've got my digital camera ready - I'll submit a review a few days after I get it. I'll document it from the time I get it, open the box, start it up, use it, and finally reinstall XP Pro to get rid of all the junk and put on just what I need.

I'll be using this as a portable development machine w/ Visual Studio .NET, and SQL Server 2000 (hence the 1GB RAM!)

Thanks,
// CHRIS



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Inspiron 600m
Pentium®M Processor 755(2GHz/400MHz FSB)
14.1-in SXGA+ w/64MB Video
Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional
Memory 1GB DDR SDRAM 2 Dimms
Hard Drive 80GB Hard Drive
Operating System Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional
Integrated Modem and NIC Internal 56K Modem and Integrated Network
Document Management Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 6.0
Optical 8X Max DVD ROM Drive
Wireless Networking Cards Intel® PRO/Wireless 2200 Internal Wireless
Bundled Software Productivity Pack including WordPerfect®
Security Software No Security Subscription
Digital Music Dell Jukebox - easy-to-use music player and CD burning software
Primary Battery 6-Cell Lithium Ion Battery (53Whr)
Limited Warranty, Services and Support 1 Year Limited Warranty plus 1 Year Mail-In Service
Dial-Up Internet Access 6 Months EarthLink Internet Access Included
Digital Imaging or Digital Photography Paint Shop(tm) Pro® Studio trial, Photo Album(tm) Starter Edition
Operating System Enhancements Combo: Microsoft® Plus! for Windows XP and Digital Media Edition
Additional Battery 48WHr Additional Modular Battery for Dual Battery Support
Financial Software QuickBooks® Simple Start Special Edition (limted to 50 contacts)
Floppy Drive and Other Home Setup Accessories Modular Floppy Drive
Performance USB Keyboard with 8 Hot Keys
Dell 2-Button Scroll Optical USB Mouse
Dell Media Experience Dell Media Experience(tm) Deluxe with Remote Control
Docking Solutions Notebook Expansion Dock w/ Stand

CaseLogic Rolling Laptop Case Qty: 1 Unit Price: $53.00

Wireless Frequency Finder Plus Qty: 1 Unit Price: $35.00
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Dell Inspirion 600M / 1GB RAM / 80GB HD / 64MB SXGA+

 

hey Chris, welcome to the forums. Having you review the 600m would be great.

As far as getting a copy of XP Pro with the Dell, unfortunately you do not [V] Just a restore CD version of the OS that would bring things back to what they were originally.

DigitalCameraReview.com | BargainPDA.com | TabletPCReviewSpot.com

 

Well, that plain SUCKS. I don't care if it's an EOM copy that's tied to Dell machines (as I've read on the forums, might be the case.) But I should be able to reinstall to get rid of the JUNK that comes pre-loaded on it. I don't want Earthlink/AOL, Paint Shop, Wordperfect, QuickBooks, and Photo Album starter and god knows what else.

I'll let you know what I find out later. After purchasing the 600M with XP Pro, I should CERTAINLY have the option to rebuild the machine the way I want to - a clean XP install and then install the add-ons that I purchased with the machine [eg, Dell Media Experience w/ remote control, XP Plus and XP Plus Media Edition, etc].

I'm not going to be "stuck" with all their pre-loaded junk and I'm not going to settle for spending hours AFTER a re-install/restore trying to figure out how to CLEANLY remove all the junk. Sorry if I sound annoyed, but I am - I think it's a RIGHT I have. I paid for the machine and XP Pro, I shouldn't be limited and forced to accept their trialware/shareware/adware "bundles".

I'll figure a way and I'll include it with my review. Even if it means hassling Dell support to get the info/CDs I need.

Thanks for the heads-up..

// CHRIS



Dell Inspirion 600M / 1GB RAM / 80GB HD / 64MB SXGA+

 

By the way, as a side note.. Several years ago my brother handed me down a Dell Latitude LM P133-ST laptop. It was purchased in 1995 and is still working good for me. Sort of..

It's a Pentium 133, with MMX. Screen goes to 800x600 at 8bpp max.
I upgraded the memory to 72MB (Max it will allow) and upgraded the hard drive from the stock 2.1GB to a 6GB. Also added a Wired LinkSys 10/100 PC Card and a Belkin Wireless 10/100 PC Card.

Considering its age, it's done pretty well. For a while, I used it on top of my stereo as an MP3 jukebox, connecting the headphone jack to my stereo receiver (with a mini headphone to L/R RCA adapter cable).

The computer came with Windows 95 originally. I was able to install Win98SE on it, and get all the drivers I needed from the Dell support download site (drivers for the Audio, Video, and Dell 56k PC Card Modem).

Strangely, when running Windows 98SE, the computer would eventually freeze up - after a few hours of being on. I wasn't sure what to make of that - hardware problem? Windows 98SE problem? I never really used 95/98 that much - all my desktops were Windows NT 3.51 then NT 4.0 then Windows 2000, now XP Pro. I avoided 95/98 if at all possible - which it was, except for this old Laptop. Though I never did try installing NT 4 on it..

Anyhow- The freezing up and speed of the computer made it useless as a development machine .. so I decided to wipe Windows 98 off it and install the latest version of FreeBSD (5.3-RELEASE). Now I can keep the computer up and running for DAYS and it doesn't freeze up. Amazing! Guess it was Windows 98SE causing the problems after all.. Now I just have to figure out how to get X-Windows working on it, and I'm all set. I got the LinkSys wireless card working w/ FreeBSD so I can telnet and such, but would like to try and get some graphical UI going..

OK, I'm done.. Congrats if you read all that.. Cheers!
// CHRIS


Dell Inspirion 600M / 1GB RAM / 80GB HD / 64MB SXGA+

 

Thats interesting since I got a clean version of XP when I got my 600m over a year ago. They must have gotten wise to people wanting to clean their fluff off.

In replacement, I would suggest a normal uninstall of the things you dont want and then use a program that will go through and clean the registry of any junk left behind. I use a freeware program called CCleaner and it does a great job of catching things I miss when I go in manually.

Dell Inspiron 600m + PalmOne Zire71 + Sony-Ericsson T616 = Mobile Computer Consultant and Website Designer