Right
about now, thousands of families all across
the country are staring at brand-new home
computers with two emotions: joy and dread.
The
thought of moving all your files, settings
and programs from an old PC to a new one
is even worse than assembling your kid's
new toy after losing the directions. But
it must be done. Thankfully, a few companies
have created software that makes this
task a bit less stressful.
My
assistant Katie Boehret and I tested three
of these software programs this week with
various results. We used Katie's Toshiba
laptop as the source computer, and set
it up to transfer its files, settings
and -- in one case -- even some programs,
to three different, new Windows computers.
All the computers were running Windows
XP.
For
Mac users, this is much simpler. No special
software is required. If both Macs have
FireWire ports, you just link them with
a common FireWire cable. Two weeks ago,
I transferred all the key files from one
iMac to another by connecting the two
with a FireWire cable from an old iPod
and holding down the "T" key
while rebooting the new iMac. This new
Mac then showed up on the old Mac's screen
as another hard drive. I simply dragged
the contents of my "Home" folder,
where the Mac consolidates everything
personal, onto the icon representing the
new Mac's Home folder. The process was
effortless.
Microsoft
does build into Windows XP a "wizard"
that supposedly transfers your settings
and files from an old PC, but I have never
been able to get this "File and Settings
Transfer Wizard" to work right. For
most people, third-party "migration
software," like the products we tested,
will be a better bet.
We
ran through the same initial process with
each of the three migration programs we
tested. First we installed the software
on the old, or source, PC. Then, while
the program took inventory of the source
computer's contents, we installed the
program on the new computer and then attached
the connecting cable.
Overall,
we found that the biggest problem with
migrating your stuff is getting the various
kinds of cables involved to work properly,
without a lot of techie configuration
work that is beyond most mainstream users.
We
started with Alohabob's PC Relocator Ultra
Control, a product from Eisenworld that
I've reviewed favorably in the past. This
is the only major consumer product that
moves whole programs and not just files
or settings. It costs $69.95, and offers
a variety of options for specifically
selecting exactly what you want to transfer.
Relocator Ultra comes with two transfer
cables -- a high-speed parallel cable
and a network crossover cable.
PC
Relocator's mediocre manual suggests first
trying to use the high-speed parallel
cable to connect the two PCs. However,
you can't use this cable unless you dig
into the computer's innards -- an area
called the BIOS -- and change a setting.
We were willing to try this, even though
it would intimidate most users, but we
were unable to start the BIOS setup program
on Katie's computer. So we gave up and
tried to use the network crossover cable
instead.
The
PC Relocator manual warns that using the
crossover cable is more complex and requires
familiarity with networking concepts,
a familiarity we possess. But, even though
we allowed the program to configure our
network cards, we could never get this
cable to work.
There
is a simpler, better kind of transfer
cable, a special type of USB cable with
a bulbous section in the middle that contains
some intelligence. We borrowed one of
these from the box containing a competing
program, and did finally get PC Relocator
to work.
But
PC Relocator's maker, Eisenworld, has
stopped offering this type of cable, saying
its customers had trouble using it. So,
I can't recommend PC Relocator. It only
comes with cables that require technical
skill to set up, and even then it didn't
work in our tests.
Our
next attempt was less complicated but
equally unsuccessful. Miramar Systems'
Desktop DNA Professional, which costs
$39, required the same basic set up as
the PC Relocator Ultra Control. Unfortunately,
DNA only comes with the hard-to-use network
crossover cable, and we were never able
to get both machines to recognize one
another. So I can't recommend Desktop
DNA either.
| Software |
Included
Cables |
For
more info |
Comments |
| Alohabob's
PC Relocator Ultra Control By Eisenworld |
High
speed parallel cable, crossover cable |
www.alohabob.com |
Only
software that moves programs, but
did not work in our tests with included
cables. |
| IntelliMover™
By Detto Technologies |
Parallel
cable, USB cable |
www.detto.com |
Simplest,
and it worked well in our tests with
the USB cable. |
| Desktop
DNA By Miramar Systems |
Crossover
cable |
www.miramar.com |
Did
not work in our tests with included
cable. |
Luckily, the third product we tested,
Detto Technologies' IntelliMover, worked
well, and was by far the easiest product
to use. This $49.95 software comes with
a simple manual with eight numbered instructional
steps that were a cinch to follow. It
is sold with the special USB connecting
cable, which is the fastest and easiest
kind to use, as well as a parallel cable.
IntelliMover
transferred various files and settings
from Katie's laptop to the new PC, including
pictures, e-mail, music, her My Documents
folder and Internet favorites. The process
was seamless, simple and very fast.
The
only downside to IntelliMover is that,
unlike PC Relocator Ultra Control, it
can't move programs, only files and settings.
But PC Relocator doesn't move every program
properly. In some cases, it won't even
attempt to move programs, and in other
cases, the transferred programs don't
work properly. For instance, when we finally
did get PC Relocator to work, using its
competitor's cable, it reported transferring
Apple's iTunes for Windows music program,
but the program didn't work properly on
the new PC.
I
recommend Detto's IntelliMover, without
hesitation. It just worked. And Detto
even makes a version, called Move2Mac,
that will transfer files from a Windows
PC to a Macintosh.
For
moving your programs, like Microsoft Office,
from an old PC to a new one, I suggest
you dig out the original CDs, or the downloaded
installation files, and reinstall them
on the new machine. This is a hassle,
and you may have to reinstall patches
and upgrades, which can be time-consuming.
But,
for moving over files and settings, try
IntelliMover.
--With
reporting by Katherine Boehret
Write
to Walter S. Mossberg at mossberg@wsj.com
