I and my kids have owned a few HP desk tops, but usually we just buy components and assemble our own PC. It really is not too tough to do.
HP has deservedly earned one of the most unenviable reputations for reliability in the industry. Dell is much less maligned.
Were I in the market for a new desk top, I would seriously consider Asus. They have been building some of the top computer main boards and graphics cards for many years.
If you like XP and do not want to spend a lot of time learning to navigate a different operating system, go with Win 7. It is a nearly seamless transition from XP.
My opinion; if I purchased a new computer today, and it came with Win 8.1 on it, I would nuke the hard drive. And I would spend $69 for an OEM copy of Win 7 and install it.
I spent about three hours one day trying to do a little bit of work on a laptop with Win 8 installed. That was three hours totally shot to hell. If I wanted a touch screen operating system, I would buy a cell phone with a touch screen.
