Microsoft Windows Xp Media Center Edition 2005 any good!?!??!?!?

arammid · May 18, 2005, 08:27 AM

I currently Have: Windows XP Professional Sp2
Im looking to get Windows Xp Media Center Edition 2005.

Is it worth it.
Im a home user, I love to play games, Listen to music, and work with ALOT Of software like Adobe stuff and Microsoft Office stuff. Also I do web designing, and Alot of other computer tasks.

Im just wondering if I should stay with XP Pro or go to Media Center Edition 2005.
Any benefits? I'm not going to be hooking up a tv to it....Im just wondering if theres any upgrades to the actual operating system.

Oh and another question, Ive googled all over the damn place, can someone straighten out this SO COMMON AND OLD question.
"Is MCE 2005 Based on Xp Home, or Xp Pro."

Im sure youve heard it a bazillion times, I hope it wont hurt to answer once more

Anyways thanks for any help.

**dj_stick** · May 18, 2005, 11:26 AM

from what i would imagine, MCE would be based on home

and if you don't feel the need to use the media center software/features, stick with what you have

you can always try to use the "upgrade" option if MCE has it on your XP, if it can update then its based on pro, if not it's based on home

xp home can be "updated" to pro, but not the other way around

GNetX · May 18, 2005, 11:48 AM

Hi,

dj_stick has already given a pretty complete answer - I agree with him!

I just wanted to add to it a bit - Windows XP MCE 2005 is based on Windows XP - there are bits of it that are at the Home level, and others that I believe use elements of Pro. The key difference is that MCE has been given the fancy Media Centre navigation system, and has native support for TV tuner cards - including EPG support and all the other stuff that goes with it. It does all this really well: as a Media Centre operating system, it's great! So yes, there are actual upgrades to the operating system, but not any that will specifically enhance your normal Windows XP experience, unless you're going to be using it as a media centre.

If you're not going to use the media centre functions, it'll be best to stick with standard XP Pro. If you are, then it's well worth a consideration. There are other FREE alternatives to using MCE though, my favourite being using Media Portal (an opensource project) on my XP Pro SP2 system (check out http://mediaportal.sourceforge.net).

Hope this helps.

PangingJr · May 18, 2005, 11:52 AM

Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 (MCE 2005) is primarily based on a slightly modified Windows XP Professional (SP2) core. Dual processors supports.
only certain functionality is no longer available such as joining a Domain.

MCE 2004 is a superset of Windows XP Professional. In MCE 2005 this has been restricted so it cannot join a domain - as a result the price has been brought down nearer to the Home Edition system.

May 18, 2005, 08:27 AM	#1
arammid DriverHeaven Newbie Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 1 Rep Power: 0	Microsoft Windows Xp Media Center Edition 2005 any good!?!??!?!? I currently Have: Windows XP Professional Sp2 Im looking to get Windows Xp Media Center Edition 2005. Is it worth it. Im a home user, I love to play games, Listen to music, and work with ALOT Of software like Adobe stuff and Microsoft Office stuff. Also I do web designing, and Alot of other computer tasks. Im just wondering if I should stay with XP Pro or go to Media Center Edition 2005. Any benefits? I'm not going to be hooking up a tv to it....Im just wondering if theres any upgrades to the actual operating system. Oh and another question, Ive googled all over the damn place, can someone straighten out this SO COMMON AND OLD question. "Is MCE 2005 Based on Xp Home, or Xp Pro." Im sure youve heard it a bazillion times, I hope it wont hurt to answer once more Anyways thanks for any help.

May 18, 2005, 11:48 AM	#3
GNetX DriverHeaven Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Nottingham, UK Posts: 44 Rep Power: 0	Hi, dj_stick has already given a pretty complete answer - I agree with him! I just wanted to add to it a bit - Windows XP MCE 2005 is based on Windows XP - there are bits of it that are at the Home level, and others that I believe use elements of Pro. The key difference is that MCE has been given the fancy Media Centre navigation system, and has native support for TV tuner cards - including EPG support and all the other stuff that goes with it. It does all this really well: as a Media Centre operating system, it's great! So yes, there are actual upgrades to the operating system, but not any that will specifically enhance your normal Windows XP experience, unless you're going to be using it as a media centre. If you're not going to use the media centre functions, it'll be best to stick with standard XP Pro. If you are, then it's well worth a consideration. There are other FREE alternatives to using MCE though, my favourite being using Media Portal (an opensource project) on my XP Pro SP2 system (check out http://mediaportal.sourceforge.net). Hope this helps.

May 18, 2005, 11:52 AM	#4
PangingJr Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 5,989 Rep Power: 71	Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 (MCE 2005) is primarily based on a slightly modified Windows XP Professional (SP2) core. Dual processors supports. only certain functionality is no longer available such as joining a Domain. MCE 2004 is a superset of Windows XP Professional. In MCE 2005 this has been restricted so it cannot join a domain - as a result the price has been brought down nearer to the Home Edition system.