Best practices for setting up a new windows desktop?

[Jenny_11]

Hi, my new XPS Desktop 8950 comes tomorrow. I'm excited but know how daunting the task of setting up will be. I am not computer savvy. I also got a new monitor nand the spyder X Elite

My current desktop is running:

PS 20.06

Bridge 12.01.246

ACR 14.2.0

LR CC 2015 10.0.19043

Should I install all the latest versions of Adobe? (I pray the tools haven't changed too much)  And should I create all new workspace/preferences from scratch?

Any things that I should trash immediately that may have come preinstalled?

Is there a thread I can visit to read about the management of operating this new PC to keep her happy and moving fast? In one thread you mentioned where you store/download things to your D drive to keep your C drive from getting bogged down with crap. Do you have a list of such things that you have on your D drive? Or a list of things that are not necessary to put on your C drive?

 

Thank you!

 

[Brian]

18 hours ago, Jenny_11 said:

Should I install all the latest versions of Adobe?

Since it's coming with Windows 11, YES! YOU WANT THE LATEST AND GREATEST VERSIONS OF ADOBE'S PRODUCTS, PHOTOSHOP, BRIDGE, ETC.

18 hours ago, Jenny_11 said:

(I pray the tools haven't changed too much

Photoshop is still Photoshop. Going from 20.06 to PS CC 23.5.1 isn't a huge deal.

18 hours ago, Jenny_11 said:

should I create all new workspace/preferences from scratch?

I would. Now is a good time to start fresh. You can always save your PS Actions and throw them on a thumb-drive and copy them over. That's the easy part. Here are the instructions on how to setup Photoshop: Setting up Photoshop

18 hours ago, Jenny_11 said:

Any things that I should trash immediately that may have come preinstalled?

Many store-bought computers come with pre-loaded bloatware. One of the first things that I un-install when it comes to Dell's is the stupid McAfee Anti-Virus software. There are WAY better ones out there and believe it or not, the built in Windows Defender works really well. The only downside to it, is you need to stay on top of your Windows Updates, because that's how Windows Defender is updated...via Windows Updates. The other thing that you should disable is the "Newsfeeds" that appear near the clock. Often you will see "Cloudy - 78.° Or something along those lines. Then when you click on it, a bunch of pop up Windows will appear with News Blurbs, Stock Market Numbers, etc. ALL of these items are a drain of resources on your computer, because they are constantly pinging the servers for any updates. Now for the average single-computer household, this isn't THAT much of a deal, BUT! in a Corporate Environment with 100's of computers all pinging these Newsfeeds at once can really slow down a Network. Honestly, they really don't benefit a individual either. If I want to know the weather, I have a weather App on my phone and a fancy RADAR App. If I want the news, it's either chiming on my phone or I'm headed to a Web Page. I don't need something sitting in the System Tray eating resources. The other thing I turn off is the search box on the Taskbar, it just takes up too much room.

How you disable these things?

1. Right-Click on the Taskbar
2. Head to News and interests --> Click Turn Off
3. Head to Search
4. I personally select "Hidden" but you can put a check-mark next to "Show Search Icon." Just make sure "Show search box" is UN-CHECKED. If you select "Show Search Icon" it puts a little magnifying glass icon next to the Start Button. (Well, this is on Windows 10, I have no idea about Windows 11, but I'm guessing it will be similar. I'm holding off installing Windows 11 for now.)

19 hours ago, Jenny_11 said:

 

Is there a thread I can visit to read about the management of operating this new PC to keep her happy and moving fast? In one thread you mentioned where you store/download things to your D drive to keep your C drive from getting bogged down with crap. Do you have a list of such things that you have on your D drive? Or a list of things that are not necessary to put on your C drive?

Unfortunately, there really isn't a "One-size-fits-all" type of document. The Downloads folder is a folder you can keep an eye on. Not using your Windows Desktop as a "Dumping Ground" for all of your files is another. In reality, you really want to store your important stuff in a folder on your HD, and not on the Windows Desktop. Why? Because the Windows Desktop is "Profile Specific," which means the Profile you login with controls the Windows Desktop. So for example, there is a User1 Login, and a User2 Login. Each of those profiles has their own Windows Desktop. Sometimes, profiles get corrupted and you can't access them. In which case ANY file on the Desktop could get corrupted or lost/Go "Poof!" So what I recommend is creating specific folders on your  C:\ Drive or D:\ Drive and then create a shortcut pointing to those folders. Of course, old habits die hard and even I put things on the Windows Desktop, but important files/folders do not live permanently there.  Any file on my desktop I can lose without me freaking out.

The first thing you really should do when you setup your new computer is download these three things:

1. Chrome
2. Firefox
3. Adobe Reader DC (Please Note!! UN-CHECK BOTH MCAFEE "SECURITY" AND "SAFE CONTACT" ADD-ONS. Remember, we just got rid of McAfee. LOL!! You just want a single Adobe Reader DC and if it asks you for the Chrome Extension, you can add that.

After you install the two other browsers, make either Chrome or Firefox your default, then open Reader DC and follow the instructions to make it the Default Reader as well. Once that is accomplished, the very next thing you should do is run Windows updates. EVEN IF IT SAYS "YOU ARE UP TO DATE," CLICK THE "CHECK FOR UPDATES" BUTTON ANYWAY. I will bet you there will be additional updates that appear like Magic. I'm always clicking the "Check for updates" to make sure there isn't something missed and sometimes, there are updates for the updates.

Finally, after you get your Browsers situated, along with everything else, I want you to load the Dell Software and have it check for ANY Dell updates to Drivers and such. Install the latest and greatest; usually there is a software package that downloads and installs and then scans your computer. You might have to type in the Serial Number to help it out, other times it does everything on it's own. I'm thinking the later will be what you'll experience, just check the "Dell" Section in the Start Menu, you should see the program I'm talking about.

[Brian]

Give this page a read.

Here is the Glary Software Downloads Page, you'll want either the "Free" version to try out or just pony up the $20 and get the full version while it's on-sale.

[Brian]

Oh, one more thing, this may not affect you, but give Damien's Article a Read. You will want to turn off Premier Color if it's running.

[Jenny_11]

Thank you so much for all your advice and your time! I have had the computer for a week, and I'm still sorting windows 11 out along with photoshop. I don't think I have sorted it out yet, and I'll have to keep asking questions on this form. Thank you for all your patience.