That reads as an excellent idea in theory, Galeck1947. However the relevant page on the HP website doesn't list Windows 7 as a compatible OS:
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareCategory?product=1842189&lc=en&cc=uk&dlc=en&lang=en&cc=uk
A link from that page gets you to this:
"If the operating system you are looking for is not listed on the software download site, HP does not have software or driver downloads available for your computer and operating system. HP provides software and driver updates for the operating system that originally came with your computer as it was designed and tested for the operating system purchased with the PC. Changing the operating system on your computer (upgrading or downgrading), puts the system into a configuration that might not work with the hardware design. If you you must change the operating system, get drivers from the manufacturer of the component you need. For example, if a computer has NVIDIA video hardware and was upgraded to a newer version of Windows, someone would go to NVIDIA's web site to download and install an updated driver"
If it's possible to determine exactly which video hardware the laptop has (which, based upon the drivers available on the HP website for Windows Vista, seems to an NVIDIA device), this might be the place to try:
http://www.nvidia.co.uk/Download/index.aspx?lang=en-uk