I am trying to convert my father in law to a mini but need advice

[arkieboy72472]

So, my FIL is super old school and uses a 380 Optiplex with Windows 10. Since that is what he is used to, I am considering giving him my 2014 i5 mini with a 2TB hdd plus a ssd on an adapter inside of it. It has 8GB of ram. I was going to install W10 or 11 on it with bootcamp but I wanted to see if anyone else here ran 10 on it and see how it performs. I imagine it is faster than his C2D he has now.

Also, since he has a thing for game cameras, I am looking at a dock or something so he can plug in thumb drives and SD cards easier than via the back side. He already has a KB and mouse and a nice monitor.

I am trying to sell him on the desk space he would save removing a dell tower and swiping it for a mini. The hardest thing he does on a computer is check weather reports, some MS office, and game cameras. I imagine installing 10 won't be too terribly difficult.

 

[StoneJack]

If he uses and enjoys windows leave him with windows

 

[now i see it]

He’s not going to like switching to a Mac. What he’d be happiest with is another faster Windows computer running Windows 10

 

[Fozzybadfeet]

Sounds like he's set in his ways. I agree with @now i see it , a faster PC running Windows 10 would be just fine.

 

[Boyd01]

So you want to give him a Mini that he will always use with Bootcamp/Windows? Personally, I don't think that makes sense. Just adds another layer of possible issues and you'll be the guy he comes to with every problem. If he's satisfied with what he has now and "super old school", why not just leave well enough alone? Or maybe get him a small PC?

 

[MBAir2010]

did you ever try to upgrade a mini's hard drive?
i am doin this now and need a screwdriver allen wrench i can't find or have.
the fan wires slipped from the clip and the bluetooth on these are not accurate.
i just picked one up just today and realized these are beautiful but tough computers.

 

[StoneJack]

did you ever try to upgrade a mini's hard drive?
i am doin this now and need a screwdriver allen wrench i can't find or have.
the fan wires slipped from the clip and the bluetooth on these are not accurate.
i just picked one up just today and realized these are beautiful but tough computers.

mini's drive has nothing to do with this thread

 

[Eduardot]

Sell your mini and buy him an updated windows machine. The Mac has a learning curve, and he won't like it probably. Make him comfortable using what he knows.

 

[elvisimprsntr]

My elderly father was/is a Windows guy and always will be. Got him hooked on iPads many years ago. Now he only uses his iPad. Trades stock, emails, watches videos, iMessage, FaceTime, etc.

From my personal experience with my elderly father, don't push him into the Apple ecosystem or kit. Even buying a new Windows machine can be upsetting for him because of how difficult it is to get everything set up and re-installed. Offer to buy him a new Windows machine, but only if he is OK with it. Make an adventure out of it by taking him to the store (if able) to get him excited about a new computer, but let him make the decision. Don't get discouraged if he is initially reluctant. He may come around after thinking about it. Then introduce him to an iPad. Start with loaning one or a hand me down.

 

[Bodhitree]

Agreed that iPad is a good step for elderly people. My stepfather used to be an illustrator and had several macs, but after his last Mac died we bought him a base spec iPad and he now uses that for everything, which means mostly YouTube and a bit of surfing and using the bbc news app. But at least he still has his own email address where his friends can reach him.

 

[TechRunner]

My father-in-law, who is far from tech savvy, recently needed to buy a new device for casual news reading, watching videos and emailing. I tried to get him to consider an iPad (my mother-in-law has one, so he sees one used every day for those same tasks), and even tried talking him into a Chromebook. He refuses to use anything but a Windows laptop, as that was where he's most comfortable (he had a work-issued one for a few years), even though he knows absolutely nothing about Windows, and does everything in a browser. So, he got a new Windows laptop for Christmas, and I got another person to support when things go wrong.

Beyond a certain age, people hate change, and want to stay firmly in their comfort zone. Your dad will not be interested in anything else.

 

[pmiles]

It took me years to get my father to switch to a Mac and in the end, he bastardized it to become a Linux box. He did not embrace anything new he just converted it to what he was used to. So I say this from personal experience, unless he asks you about getting a Mac, don't even try to suggest one to him.

You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink. When it comes to computers, it's like talking politics and religion. So long as you are in the same camp, all is peachy... but if you aren't, the animosity that ensues is just not worth it.

Look at it this way, what you are doing is walking into his man cave and telling him that you would like to change everything so that it suits you better. Some people like clutter. Some people actually like trying to fix problems with their computers. What you see as suffering... he sees as bliss. Unless he approaches you about it, don't try to make a convert out of him. Millions of people do just fine on PCs and will continue to do so.

 

[MBAir2010]

mini's drive has nothing to do with this thread

i was just typing in genera since during the time i was rebooting a mac mini and ran into some problems.
all is good now, they are very shiny computers!

 

[Boyd01]

He’s not going to like switching to a Mac.

The Mac has a learning curve, and he won't like it probably.

So I say this from personal experience, unless he asks you about getting a Mac, don't even try to suggest one to him.

The way I read the OP, @arkieboy72472 does not want to convert his father in law to MacOS. I think he wants to install Windows on the Mini with Bootcamp and turn it into a Windows PC that is smaller/faster than his old desktop PC.

 

[TechRunner]

The way I read the OP, @arkieboy72472 does not want to convert his father in law to MacOS. I think he wants to install Windows on the Mini with Bootcamp and turn it into a Windows PC that is smaller/faster than his old desktop PC.

That's how I read it too. But putting Windows on a Mac seems like a compromised solution to a Windows purist. As least it did to my wife when I tried it with her

 

[StoneJack]

Without this convoluted solution, why just not buy him a nice small Windows pc (and sell mini or whatever). There are now zillions of small PCs which look like mini. Maybe a Windows notebook.

 

[arkieboy72472]

My idea was to do this: Downgrade my 2014 to a 2006 since it just "passes butter" and give him a 2014 i5 with a couple of hard drives in it. All the storage (2.25TB) he will ever need. 8GB of ram. 2.5 or so processor. I was going to install Windows 10 on it and maybe add a dongle or USB hub so he has easy access to ports. He already has a KB mouse and monitor. Yall, he is using a ****** 830 optiplex running 10 on a dying hard drive.

I am not so much trying to convert him to Mac as I am the form factor. I can do any and all repairs and upgrades. I was just curious about win 10 on a mini with ssd. How it performs etc.

 

[Neodym]

I was just curious about win 10 on a mini with ssd. How it performs etc

After all, the mini‘s hardware (pre-M1) is nothing different from any off-the-mill PC, so Windows will run the same as it would on a comparable PC. Look up reviews for a PC with the mini‘s specs and how Windows runs on it. If anything, the usual opinions I read do say that Windows on a mini runs quite well and sometimes even better than MacOS (due to better drivers etc.).

 

[pmiles]

I'm sorry I missed the part about running bootcamp. Bootcamp is fine as a stop gap, not as a replacement. People who run bootcamp do so out of a necessity to have access to both operating systems. If operating in a purely Windows environment, you are better off with a PC... no question about it.

Your not going to get equal driver support under bootcamp. You have to maintain a partition for the Mac OS as a means of recovery should something go wrong with the bootcamp install (and it likely will). Bootcamp support is essentially at EOL as well. Windows 10 is the outgoing OS at the moment too.

There are plenty of small form factor PCs out there that are using the latest hardware. A brand spanking new Windows 11 ready PC for pennies on the dollar. That thing will serve him for many years to come unlike your Mini unless he truly has zero interest in using anything new from this point forward.