Aging hardware

No, not me, my PC.
I've just realised that my current PC has 5 years on it. That's ridiculous. I just had to purchase a $20 network card that has a hope of being identified by Windows 7. My current card is identified by Vista, but I can understand if Windows 7 couldn't be bothered since it's on-board a 5 year old motherboard. I intend to do a major upgrade as soon as I have signed with an employer for this year, and the current employer's redundancy can pay for it. That should get the cost past my personal CFO.