Is there any reason why you don’t want to use Open Office or Scribus?

1)
You might be able to download the Windows 7 Enterprise 90-day Trial from Microsoft.
Link – microsoft.com

2)
If you are ready to buy Windows, look for “System Builder” or “OEM” versions of Windows for the best price. However these versions are tied to one machine. Once you install and validate it, it will not validate on another machine.

If you want to be able to move to a new machine, buy the full retail version.

3)
The Home Premium version of Windows 7 is the cost-effective choice for most people, OEM is $99 US, full retail version is $189.99 US at Newegg.com (which is one of the best US sites for computer products).

The Home Premium download from Microsoft is $199 US

4)
Don’t buy a download (except directly from Microsoft). Don’t buy from someplace with a ridiculously low price. Don’t buy from eBay. There are lots of pirated versions out there, and it’s not fun when your copy of Windows says “This is not a valid copy, I will no longer work” and you can’t boot your machine. (Yes, it happened to me).

5)
If you need or want a new computer, then buying a new laptop with Win 7 installed makes sense.

@HungryGuy Yes – I collaborate with someone else on a newsletter and they use Publisher so I’m afraid that if I use an open source alternative that things might not translate properly, which is maybe not that critical for text but is very important in publication layout.

@jaytkay Thank you! I am d/l ing the 90day Enterprise trial right now. I’ve used Windows 7 before, and honestly still prefer XP, but the trial will at least buy me some time to maybe shop around for a laptop as I am in the middle of moving to a different country! Thanks for the tip. Couldn’t find this on microsoft.com, but it popped right up when I Googel searched for it.

There is a chance that public computer’s near you (library, net cafe, etc.) will have it. That may be cheaper and easier? Don’t know if it would be suitable for your needs though. I personally haven’t done this on Linux, but you may be able to virtualize windows. As far as getting a copy of Windows, it’s hard to help you there. Resist the urge to download it from some torrent site, that’s stealing!