30 Days with Windows Vista @ [H] Enthusiast

Vikingod · Apr 4, 2007, 12:01 PM

Source: [H] Enthusiast
___________
When trying to decide whether to upgrade from Windows XP or 2000 to Windows Vista, it is all too tempting for many people - myself included - to come into it with prejudices and presumptions, and the rumor mill is rife with what Vista can and cannot let you do. Many forum posters say that Vista is nothing but trouble - others say that everything works flawlessly. The differences are so stark that it often seems like two different operating systems are being discussed.

It’s also easy to associate Windows Vista with "Microsoft" the company. Microsoft has done more than perhaps any other software company to bring computing to the masses - and yes, that includes Apple. A great part of our culture was advanced - for good - by the development of Windows. It’s a family of operating systems that run on just about any hardware, making computing affordable for almost everyone. A computer in every home - much like Ford putting a model-T in every garage.

GutterPunk · Apr 4, 2007, 12:28 PM

That was an impressive article. A pretty good read, even if you dont agree with em.

~~DudeBoyz~~ · Apr 4, 2007, 12:36 PM

Check this:

Quote:

I ran into a few problems with peripherals. Specifically, my iPod, scanner, and printer flat-out wouldn't work. My DVD burner technically worked in 32-bit Vista, but Vista uses a new file system on burned CDs and DVD which prevents them from being used in even Windows XP computers. There's a mode that is supposed to make these discs compatible, but it didn’t work for us. We find this to be a severe limitation, as moving data around on optical discs between different operating systems now becomes virtually impossible.

Plus all the other stuff. I have been testing Vista that shipped on a laptop and I'm having a MUCH better experience with it than he did. Then again, it actually came installed on the computer and I turned off a whole bunch of crap and went to CLASSIC MODE in theme, menus, etc. When I did that and turned off almost all of the special effects interface stuff (you can tell Vista to configure for performance and not looks) most of the issues went away on the thing.

I did not know about the CD/DVD thing. If this thing is true, it could certainly be a show stopper. Anyone tested that yet?

I need to look into that more.

I did find this on a Google search:

http://windowshelp.microsoft.com/Win...06cbe1033.mspx

I need to read it more - I'm gonna take a break though. I'm burned out.

Zelig · Apr 4, 2007, 01:02 PM

CD/DVD file system isn't a problem when using any burning program other than the built-in Windows burner.

~~DudeBoyz~~ · Apr 4, 2007, 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zelig

CD/DVD file system isn't a problem when using any burning program other than the built-in Windows burner.

Really? Geesh - I sure wish he had mentioned that.

Dude sounds pretty biased against it.

I pretty much hate Microsoft's corporate practices, but even I have to admit, Vista is not total crap. It's just not worth upgrading from XP, imo.

Zardon · Apr 4, 2007, 01:24 PM

yes who on earth uses windows OS for burning CD/DVD's - even most savvy XP users use something like nero. Its a well written article but I don't agree with many parts of it.

~~DudeBoyz~~ · Apr 4, 2007, 01:25 PM

He had an agenda, it would seem.

BTW, what was that crack about OS X being crippled? I don't get that either.

Vikingod · Apr 4, 2007, 01:36 PM

Doubt there was an agenda. The guys at [H]ard|OCP are pretty straight shooters. I agree to disagree with some of the article, but I'm certain there wasn't some agenda.

studbagel9 · Apr 4, 2007, 02:13 PM

Quote:

I'm just going to cut to the chase: On both Pugetina and Whakataruna, the computer would suddenly, and without warning, reboot. This was not to say that the computer crashed with something like a blue screen of death (BSOD) - the computer went into shutdown mode without being prompted or giving me a chance to save the data that I was working on. As a result, I lost some of my work.

This happened to me on an XP-based computer I made for a family friend once. It was the most bizarre thing, and I never figured out why it happened.

~~DudeBoyz~~ · Apr 4, 2007, 06:06 PM

I dunno, I have never trusted anything Kyle has ever done really.

Vikingod · Apr 4, 2007, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DudeBoyz

I dunno, I have never trusted anything Kyle has ever done really.

Why?

Zeph · Apr 4, 2007, 06:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DudeBoyz

He had an agenda, it would seem.

BTW, what was that crack about OS X being crippled? I don't get that either.

Apple OS's can be considered crippled since they're limited to specific hardware. Windows/Linux/etc can run on pretty much anything.

I read the article and agreed with most of his experiences. I dont have that many games, so I can only say most problems can be solved with updated drivers and running in administrator mode. I've been running Vista since it was called Longhorn. Ever since Beta 2 and RC1, it has been more stable than XP. The only problems I've ever had with Vista is driver related. Aside from that, the editor's note picks it up perfectly; his review is based on his individual experiences.

Also, I never had the problem with CDs and DVDs between Vista and XP. I installed an XP OEM only to learn it didn't have ethernet drivers that worked with my machine. I installed my copy of Vista RC 2 over it and burned a CD full of drivers and software then used it after getting XP installed again to get it functional..

~~DudeBoyz~~ · Apr 4, 2007, 06:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vikingod

Why?

Lots of reasons, including the Nvidia / Futuremark / Benchmark scandal sometimes back. Plus, I've dealt with him before from back in the day. Personal experience has shown him to be a stubbornly ego-centric opportunistic bully who has no trouble changing direction depending on which way the wind is blowing or tide is turning.

Not worth getting into. I just think he is less than objective and can be influenced into a bias of one type or another, depending on the special interests involved - be it his or others he knows.

Why do you think he no longer writes for that CPU magazine, after all...

OmegaRED · Apr 4, 2007, 06:54 PM

He said he didn't even notice any performance boost due to Readyboost I find that hard to believe.

~~DudeBoyz~~ · Apr 4, 2007, 07:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OmegaRED

He said he didn't even notice any performance boost due to Readyboost I find that hard to believe.

Have you had a chance to try it yet? I have not. I'm curious though.

But if you have 2 gig of memory and a fast hard drive, why would Readyboost even be needed?

Vikingod · Apr 4, 2007, 07:19 PM

Honestly, I ran ready boost for a bit and it didn't do anything at all. I'm not totally sure the point of it, but the computer didn't start any faster and programs weren't any more responsive. Maybe its because my desktop runs vista just fine (except gaming) i don't notice the difference.

it would be interesting if someone could post some benchies in the forums.

OmegaRED · Apr 4, 2007, 07:24 PM

I got confused, I thought Readyboost was the way Vista handles prefetching, it's a noticable improvement. I haven't tried the flash drive thing.

~~DudeBoyz~~ · Apr 4, 2007, 07:38 PM

There is a companion function to ReadyBoost I believe - called ReadyBoot.

Even with all that crap, Vista is still slower than XP.

Vikingod · Apr 4, 2007, 08:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OmegaRED

I got confused, I thought Readyboost was the way Vista handles prefetching, it's a noticable improvement. I haven't tried the flash drive thing.

SuperFectch is what I think you are refering to.

Readyboost uses flash based memory devices (SD card/USB drives) to make your computer more responsive. ReadyBoot performs analysis of boot-time disk usage patterns and creates caches to speed up system boots. ReadyBoot is actually an updated version of the XP prefetcher. ReadyBoost may treat the USB cards as a prefetch, I don't know all the details.

Judas · Apr 4, 2007, 09:33 PM

hmmm

I've never had a problem writing a CD/DVD within xp or vista and using it on each other.. read fine.

maybe it's the type of UDF system or ones where a CD-RW or DVD-RW is used as a removeable rewriteable disc (click and drag back and forth, similare to that of InCD) Then i could see this being an issue. Which is already a problem if you have a XP machine without InCD and another without, so i don't get the point of that arguement.

i'm still seeing a noticeable amount more stability in vista then xp..

I'm still playing with vista x64 though.

Zelig · Apr 4, 2007, 10:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Judas

i'm still seeing a noticeable amount more stability in vista then xp..

How do most people measure this? By the frequenct of crashes, or by handling of crashes by the OS, or what?

I'm just wondering, because in my eperience, both XP and Vista are very stable for everyday use, when properly setup with stable software. XP tended to get iffy after a few weeks of uptime, but monthly reboot isn't that much of a hassle. I haven't been using Vista long enough to see how it compares in that respect though...

Judas · Apr 4, 2007, 10:41 PM

Just generally less errors within windows or oddities overall.

Within windows Vista, i've yet to encounter a single problem (other then those caused by the obvious driver/maturity parts, such as the know BSOD caused by the 7.3 drivers)

One thing i can seriously state, Crossfire overall stability/performance under Vista is vastly better then XP.

Zardon · Apr 4, 2007, 11:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zelig

I'm just wondering, because in my eperience, both XP and Vista are very stable for everyday use, when properly setup with stable software.

No, you are right.

Apr 4, 2007, 12:01 PM	#1
Vikingod Int'l Fish Liaison Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: By the light of lamp I sit and type... Posts: 16,197 Rep Power: 111 System Specs	30 Days with Windows Vista @ [H] Enthusiast Source: [H] Enthusiast ___________ When trying to decide whether to upgrade from Windows XP or 2000 to Windows Vista, it is all too tempting for many people - myself included - to come into it with prejudices and presumptions, and the rumor mill is rife with what Vista can and cannot let you do. Many forum posters say that Vista is nothing but trouble - others say that everything works flawlessly. The differences are so stark that it often seems like two different operating systems are being discussed. It’s also easy to associate Windows Vista with "Microsoft" the company. Microsoft has done more than perhaps any other software company to bring computing to the masses - and yes, that includes Apple. A great part of our culture was advanced - for good - by the development of Windows. It’s a family of operating systems that run on just about any hardware, making computing affordable for almost everyone. A computer in every home - much like Ford putting a model-T in every garage.

Apr 4, 2007, 12:28 PM	#2
GutterPunk I = Greatest Dood Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Nebraska Posts: 5,949 Rep Power: 71	That was an impressive article. A pretty good read, even if you dont agree with em. __________________ Rock On \m/ Thank you Mousey for the Sig! --------------- Intel Core2Duo E6660 (3.4GHZ) ~ Tuniq Tower 120 ~ Enermax Galaxy 1000W ~ Corsair Dominator @ 1090MHZ 5-5-5-15 (OCZ XTC Modded Cooler)~ EVGA 8800GTX W/ HR-03 Plus 120MM ~ Asus DVD-RW LiteScribe ~ LG DVD-RW ~ Corsair Voyager 2GB ReadyBoost Drive ~ Vantec Nexus Fan Controller ~ ThermalTake Armor 25CM fan ~ Personal Finance Blog: Dent Your Debt

Apr 4, 2007, 01:02 PM	#4
Zelig HardwareHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Canada Posts: 3,187 Rep Power: 71 System Specs	CD/DVD file system isn't a problem when using any burning program other than the built-in Windows burner. __________________ --

Apr 4, 2007, 06:54 PM	#14
OmegaRED Relapsed Gamer Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Ottawa , Canada Posts: 5,684 Rep Power: 173 System Specs	He said he didn't even notice any performance boost due to Readyboost I find that hard to believe. __________________ E Penis Specs: <------------- See System Specs

Apr 4, 2007, 07:24 PM	#17
OmegaRED Relapsed Gamer Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Ottawa , Canada Posts: 5,684 Rep Power: 173 System Specs	I got confused, I thought Readyboost was the way Vista handles prefetching, it's a noticable improvement. I haven't tried the flash drive thing. __________________ E Penis Specs: <------------- See System Specs

Apr 4, 2007, 01:24 PM	#6
Zardon DriverHeaven Founder Join Date: May 2002 Posts: 32,480 Rep Power: 179	yes who on earth uses windows OS for burning CD/DVD's - even most savvy XP users use something like nero. Its a well written article but I don't agree with many parts of it.

Apr 4, 2007, 01:25 PM	#7
~~DudeBoyz~~ banned Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: USA Posts: 1,677 Rep Power: 0	He had an agenda, it would seem. BTW, what was that crack about OS X being crippled? I don't get that either.

Apr 4, 2007, 01:36 PM	Thread Starter #8
Vikingod Int'l Fish Liaison Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: By the light of lamp I sit and type... Posts: 16,197 Rep Power: 111 System Specs	Doubt there was an agenda. The guys at [H]ard\|OCP are pretty straight shooters. I agree to disagree with some of the article, but I'm certain there wasn't some agenda.

Apr 4, 2007, 06:06 PM	#10
~~DudeBoyz~~ banned Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: USA Posts: 1,677 Rep Power: 0	I dunno, I have never trusted anything Kyle has ever done really.

Apr 4, 2007, 07:19 PM	Thread Starter #16
Vikingod Int'l Fish Liaison Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: By the light of lamp I sit and type... Posts: 16,197 Rep Power: 111 System Specs	Honestly, I ran ready boost for a bit and it didn't do anything at all. I'm not totally sure the point of it, but the computer didn't start any faster and programs weren't any more responsive. Maybe its because my desktop runs vista just fine (except gaming) i don't notice the difference. it would be interesting if someone could post some benchies in the forums.

Apr 4, 2007, 07:38 PM	#18
~~DudeBoyz~~ banned Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: USA Posts: 1,677 Rep Power: 0	There is a companion function to ReadyBoost I believe - called ReadyBoot. Even with all that crap, Vista is still slower than XP.