PC question, XP or Vista . . .?
Thread Starter
Confused
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 4,006
Likes: 236
From: SoCal
PC question, XP or Vista . . .?
Five year old dell is starting to occasionally forget that it has hard drives in it. 
Looking at a new one with 2.4GHz, 4MB L2 Cache, 1066FSB & 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHZ. So, do I become a early adopter of Vista or play safe and stick with th OS that I have used for five years?
Looking at a new one with 2.4GHz, 4MB L2 Cache, 1066FSB & 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHZ. So, do I become a early adopter of Vista or play safe and stick with th OS that I have used for five years?
Senior Moderator
Joined: Jun 2005
Posts: 14,667
Likes: 13
From: NY
Tough call. I just bought a new PC for the office, and stuck with XP. Luckily I did, because I got an email from Quickbooks shortly after I ordered the PC, saying that our version won't be compatible with Vista. I think you may find that some programs are not compatible right off the bat with Vista. Not to mention I don't think I'd want to be a guinea pig for a new OS anyway. It does look kinda cool, though.
It will really depend on the graphics card you are getting in the new one. I belive the minimum is a 128meg card. But to take full affect of the vista aero desktop you will need a DX10 compatible card with at least 256meg of memory. Also as stated above most apps are not compatible, i know all of symantecs products will not work in vista as of yet.
Moderator Alumnus
Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 9,263
Likes: 2
From: Lenexa, KS
XP > Vista at the moment. Vista is too new... it runs games slower and it doesn't have the support XP does.
I dunno WTF you guys are talking about...
Here's one of many articles...
http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid...e=expert&pid=2
I'll hit the highlights for ya...
I suppose owning a copy of Vista would be good, as everyone should upgrade at some point. But I wouldn't do it now...
I dunno WTF you guys are talking about...
Here's one of many articles...
http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid...e=expert&pid=2
I'll hit the highlights for ya...
I think we all expected there to be some initial growing pains with the Vista operating system and PC gaming simply because of the dramatic shift in driver technology that had to take place; I just don't think we expected it to be this bad.
...
For now, gamers that were interested in running off to get a copy of Windows Vista, I'd caution you to take a minute and contemplate. Gaming under Vista is definitely possible and if you're comfortable with some slight performance drops for now while taking advantage of Vista's other new features, then a move to Vista sooner rather than later should be considered.
...
For now, gamers that were interested in running off to get a copy of Windows Vista, I'd caution you to take a minute and contemplate. Gaming under Vista is definitely possible and if you're comfortable with some slight performance drops for now while taking advantage of Vista's other new features, then a move to Vista sooner rather than later should be considered.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 1,010
Likes: 1
From: Portland, OR
Originally Posted by c0v3rr1d3
It will really depend on the graphics card you are getting in the new one. I belive the minimum is a 128meg card. But to take full affect of the vista aero desktop you will need a DX10 compatible card with at least 256meg of memory. Also as stated above most apps are not compatible, i know all of symantecs products will not work in vista as of yet.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 1,010
Likes: 1
From: Portland, OR
Originally Posted by Dan
Five year old dell is starting to occasionally forget that it has hard drives in it. Looking at a new one with 2.4GHz, 4MB L2 Cache, 1066FSB & 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHZ. So, do I become a early adopter of Vista or play safe and stick with th OS that I have used for five years?
Looking at a new one with 2.4GHz, 4MB L2 Cache, 1066FSB & 2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHZ. So, do I become a early adopter of Vista or play safe and stick with th OS that I have used for five years?It does really depend on the apps you're going to run. If they're not compatible with Vista than get XP. You'll get an upgrade coupon for a nearly free copy of Vista anyway.
If you don't have any apps that you depend on that aren't Vista compatible I'd get Vista. Sure there will be growing pains and it's not perfect, but it won't take long for the industry to catch up.
Trending Topics
Big Block go VROOOM!
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 8,578
Likes: 1
From: Chicago Burbs
Originally Posted by c0v3rr1d3
But to take full affect of the vista aero desktop you will need a DX10 compatible card with at least 256meg of memory.
Moderator Alumnus
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 64,042
Likes: 14,206
if you want an efficient PC that helps you get what you want done, XP
if you want 3D application-switching, an analog clock with adjustable transparency, and cooler looking icons, Vista.
btw if you get Vista be sure to get 2GB of RAM, at the minimum. 4GB is recommend if you want to open any apps. ;p
i may consider Vista... after 2010, when everyone has realized what a bloated sac of protoplasm it is and Microsoft has released new "skimmer" versions for people that want to get some work done.
if you want 3D application-switching, an analog clock with adjustable transparency, and cooler looking icons, Vista.
btw if you get Vista be sure to get 2GB of RAM, at the minimum. 4GB is recommend if you want to open any apps. ;p
i may consider Vista... after 2010, when everyone has realized what a bloated sac of protoplasm it is and Microsoft has released new "skimmer" versions for people that want to get some work done.
Senior Moderator
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 16,424
Likes: 720
From: Chicago, IL
I just ordered a new HP, I wasn't really sure if I wanted vista... but it was the only OS that was offered... the same thing went for dell when I was pricing one out... didn't see xp as an option. Hopefully this runs pretty smooth for me....I don't do any gaming. Specs of my HP:
Moderator Alumnus
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 64,042
Likes: 14,206
Originally Posted by srika
i may consider Vista... after 2010, when everyone has realized what a bloated sac of protoplasm it is and Microsoft has released new "skimmer" versions for people that want to get some work done.
X spots the mark
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 1,519
Likes: 0
From: Concrete jungles
Originally Posted by srika
if you want an efficient PC that helps you get what you want done, XP
if you want 3D application-switching, an analog clock with adjustable transparency, and cooler looking icons, Vista.
btw if you get Vista be sure to get 2GB of RAM, at the minimum. 4GB is recommend if you want to open any apps. ;p
i may consider Vista... after 2010, when everyone has realized what a bloated sac of protoplasm it is and Microsoft has released new "skimmer" versions for people that want to get some work done.
if you want 3D application-switching, an analog clock with adjustable transparency, and cooler looking icons, Vista.
btw if you get Vista be sure to get 2GB of RAM, at the minimum. 4GB is recommend if you want to open any apps. ;p
i may consider Vista... after 2010, when everyone has realized what a bloated sac of protoplasm it is and Microsoft has released new "skimmer" versions for people that want to get some work done.
A friend of mine is running Vista on an older AMD laptop with 1 gig or RAM without any problems at all.
...
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 14,398
Likes: 0
Originally Posted by synth19
anyone here actually have vista here on their home or work computer? thoughts and specs? I would love to hear some real world experiences...
personally i'd stick with xp pro...dont wanna be the guinea pig and would rather have any application 'bugs' and whatever else fixed before i chomp into the new OS. plus i just got a new laptop, so no need right now.
The Creator
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 37,950
Likes: 8
From: Albany, NY
Originally Posted by SiGGy
XP > Vista at the moment. Vista is too new... it runs games slower and it doesn't have the support XP does.
I dunno WTF you guys are talking about...
Here's one of many articles...
http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid...e=expert&pid=2
I'll hit the highlights for ya...
I suppose owning a copy of Vista would be good, as everyone should upgrade at some point. But I wouldn't do it now...
I dunno WTF you guys are talking about...
Here's one of many articles...
http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid...e=expert&pid=2
I'll hit the highlights for ya...
I suppose owning a copy of Vista would be good, as everyone should upgrade at some point. But I wouldn't do it now...
X spots the mark
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 1,519
Likes: 0
From: Concrete jungles
Originally Posted by synth19
anyone here actually have vista here on their home or work computer? thoughts and specs? I would love to hear some real world experiences...
X spots the mark
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 1,519
Likes: 0
From: Concrete jungles
Originally Posted by Whiskers
I personally would go Vista to learn and play with it...Plus I don't play games.
The Creator
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 37,950
Likes: 8
From: Albany, NY
Originally Posted by soopa
Microsoft is spending $500 MILLION dollars on marketing for the LAUNCH of Vista. So it should be no surprise that the reality distortion field is in full effect.
"No, no, no... We're ahead on a lot... There's whole areas where we've innovated like Media Center and tablet..."
So apparently even Billy himself is confused. Can't say I blame him.
<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/NQmOmdYPKJQ"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/NQmOmdYPKJQ" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>
Senior Moderator
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 16,424
Likes: 720
From: Chicago, IL
Agreed. they are marketing it heavily, but as we all know.... the vast majority of PC's will be equipped I think I read that 90% or more of PC's in 2007 will be running vista. So hopefully they got it right. with vista. 
Go Giants
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 70,003
Likes: 1,260
From: PA
Originally Posted by whynot
You might wanna rethink that, I hear Vista censors all your pron clips by blocking all the X-rated material with the Windows logo... all part of DX10...
Senior Moderator
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 45,641
Likes: 2,335
From: Better Neighborhood, Arizona
Originally Posted by synth19
anyone here actually have vista here on their home or work computer? thoughts and specs? I would love to hear some real world experiences...
I have it. I like it, it was free courtesy of MSDN. I wouldnt buy it though until I had to. It runs just as fast as XP in most cases. Networking seems to be better than XP's. Gaming? No difference that I can see. I DID have to tweak with Vista a lot, though. I basically had to shut off a lot of WORTHLESS services that are on by default. It feels unfinished and quite frankly, should have been XP's Service Pack 3.
Stick with XP Pro
The Creator
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 37,950
Likes: 8
From: Albany, NY
Originally Posted by synth19
Agreed. they are marketing it heavily, but as we all know.... the vast majority of PC's will be equipped I think I read that 90% or more of PC's in 2007 will be running vista. So hopefully they got it right. with vista.
Senior Moderator
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 16,424
Likes: 720
From: Chicago, IL
How's the learning curve? Pretty easy transition from XP to vista?
Originally Posted by Ken1997TL
I have it. I like it, it was free courtesy of MSDN. I wouldnt buy it though until I had to. It runs just as fast as XP in most cases. Networking seems to be better than XP's. Gaming? No difference that I can see. I DID have to tweak with Vista a lot, though. I basically had to shut off a lot of WORTHLESS services that are on by default. It feels unfinished and quite frankly, should have been XP's Service Pack 3.
Stick with XP Pro
Moderator Alumnus
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 64,042
Likes: 14,206
Originally Posted by soopa
To quote Bill Gates when asked in regards to Vista "Were you going after a specific look there, the Mac look?"
"No, no, no... We're ahead on a lot... There's whole areas where we've innovated like Media Center and tablet..."
So apparently even Billy himself is confused. Can't say I blame him.
"No, no, no... We're ahead on a lot... There's whole areas where we've innovated like Media Center and tablet..."
So apparently even Billy himself is confused. Can't say I blame him.
good sheit...editing HD movies on Vista... yeah.. hope you have a quad-core with 8GB of ram (at the very least) along with around 1GB of video ram... yeah thats the ticket.
now, understand, this is what mainstream PC's will be, in 2010.
Moderator Alumnus
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 64,042
Likes: 14,206
Big Block go VROOOM!
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 8,578
Likes: 1
From: Chicago Burbs
Originally Posted by synth19
anyone here actually have vista here on their home or work computer? thoughts and specs? I would love to hear some real world experiences...
The negative feelings I personally have for Vista stem from the fact that most all of the changes seem completely pointless to me. Overall, here are the notable things that occurred to me as I've been playing with it.
Some Pluses for Joe Idiot user
--------------------------------
UAC + IE 7 protected mode are annoying but will probably work in protecting idiots from themselves
Included help content vastly improved over previous versions of Windows
Desktop search finally gives Windows users the rough equivalent of Spotlight on OS X
Some Pluses for the corporate world
---------------------------------------
Fewer policy customizations and/or 3rd party stuff required to protect users from themselves
Built in disk imaging for deployment (anyone try this yet?)
(Supposedly) much better/flexible drive encryption for machines that need it
Some Minuses for the corporate world
-------------------------------------
OS activation is a major PIA
Active Directory management tools (adminpak.msi) have certain issues. No Exchange management tools work at all.
Desktop search only indexes Exchange mail if running Outlook in cached Exchange mode
Small but extremely irritating hoops you need to jump through to change between domain & local logins
Last edited by Billiam; Feb 1, 2007 at 01:26 PM.
Moderator Alumnus
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 64,042
Likes: 14,206
Originally Posted by Billiam
The negative feelings I personally have for Vista stem from the fact that most all of the changes seem completely pointless to me.
The Creator
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 37,950
Likes: 8
From: Albany, NY
Originally Posted by srika
Senior Moderator
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 45,641
Likes: 2,335
From: Better Neighborhood, Arizona
Originally Posted by srika
And on topic, Vista seems just as stable as XP pro, and in my experience that means reliable.
Moderator Alumnus
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 64,042
Likes: 14,206
Originally Posted by Billiam
I've been running Enterpris edition in the office for a little over two weeks now. The machine is an E6300 dual core, 2GB RAM, and a 256MB Radeon 1300. My overall user experience in doing run of the mill stuff surfing & document shuffling in Office 2007 feels slightly slower than using XP and Office 2003 on my four year old P4 machine with 1 GB or ram and a 128 MB Quadro card.
Senior Moderator
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 16,424
Likes: 720
From: Chicago, IL
lol... it was also pretty funny when they tried to get Bill's password by asking what his pet name was.
Originally Posted by srika
Senior Moderator
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 45,641
Likes: 2,335
From: Better Neighborhood, Arizona
For the record:
On my Vista machine, I do everything from burning DVD's to playing games like WoW, Medieval Total War 2. I browse online, do Bittorrents, play movies and do a lot of Office applications. It runs just as fast as XP in almost every case. Bittorrents DO run better on Vista IMO
On my Vista machine, I do everything from burning DVD's to playing games like WoW, Medieval Total War 2. I browse online, do Bittorrents, play movies and do a lot of Office applications. It runs just as fast as XP in almost every case. Bittorrents DO run better on Vista IMO