Vista

[todd_k]

anyone have Windows Vista 64-bit? I'm about to purchase parts for a new pc build and I need to decide if I want 32 or 64-bit Vista.

 

[budbo]

Are there any Pros to Vista over XP I am missing?

Security if you aren't already running anything, and DX10 if you are a hardcore gamer. Not enough to justify $110 upgrade.

a tracker for every Linux Distro that is active.

Interestingly enough Linux is no more secure than a properly configured XP box, If you configure it to do all the things Windows can it actually becomes less stable than XP. The fact there are literally a few hundred builds many of which are not compatible with each other. It is a good choice if you are a programmer, or just do basic stuff that doesn't need wide compatability. Give you another myth buster, per capita, Linux servers get more attacks and average more security patches than windows each year. I'm not a big gates fan but Windows is still the mainstream and more software is written for it than anything else. People who complain about the stability of 2K and XP are generally either repeating things they have heard or don't know how to configure a windows server or workstation.. We use both where I work and the linux servers are actually down more often than windows because they get patched more often...

Interesting you bring up my favorite argument and the subject of my master's thesis :rockin:

anyone have Windows Vista 64-bit? I'm about to purchase parts for a new pc build and I need to decide if I want 32 or 64-bit Vista

What do you plan to do with it? If you are buying the "Home edition" I'd stick with XP. I have been working with Vista since the first Beta build and other than the new graphics have yet to be impressed.

 

[todd_k]

What do you plan to do with it? If you are buying the "Home edition" I'd stick with XP. I have been working with Vista since the first Beta build and other than the new graphics have yet to be impressed.

I plan on using it for everything; internet, pictures, gaming, video... I plan on having this PC for a few years so I don't want to get another copy of XP, I'd rather get Vista if it's going to work properly. Plus, I'll have a 64-bit processor so I thought I'd take advantage of the 64-bit Vista. Nothing I do now runs on 64-bit but like I said, I plan on having this pc for a few years so I don't want to have to upgrade again anytime soon.

 

[budbo]

The key there is, very little software can actually use the 64 bit power. If you are a gamer then Vista is going to improve your experience if you are buying a DX10 ready video card once the games are written for it. If you go 64 bit make sure your hardware all have drivers for it before you buy, and get home premium edition at the minimum.

 

[todd_k]

Maybe I will go with Vista 32-bit Home Premium. It's about $30 than a full install of XP home (and I need a full install regardless of which one I buy). My only concern now is my power supply, it's 400w and i don't know if that is gonna cut it.

 

[Rick91981]

Avoid 64-bit like the plague unless you really need more than 3GB or RAM. 64-Bit Operating systems suffer from a severe deficiency of driver support and many things do not work. So unless you really have a compelling reason to get it, stick w/ 32-bit.

 

[todd_k]

I'm sticking with the 32-bit Vista, got it for $218 on Amazon (not OEM either). Here is what I got from newegg. Not top of the line but a major improvement from my AMD 1.3 Ghz.


Default building a new PC - can I use my old power supply?
I'm wondering if I can get away with using my old Antec 400W power supply with this new PC. This PC is for everyday use and I will use it for some gaming but I'm certainly far from top-of-the-line. Here are the spec's:

ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard - http://www.newegg.com/product/Produc...82E16813131013

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5600+ Windsor 2.8GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103771

SAPPHIRE 100166L Radeon X1650XT 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102068

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145590

Thermaltake W0093RU ATX 12V 2.0 Version 500W Power Supply - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817153028

 

[Rick91981]

Your old 400W should be enough to run that, but I typically like to get bigger than necessary just to leave myself some headroom.

 

[Thalon]

I just got a new Dell computer and it has Vista installed.

What garbage! I am about to reformat it and install XP.

Are there any Pros to Vista over XP I am missing?

• MS Paint that comes with Vista saves in .jpg by default, and the picture viewer does a nice slide show.
• You can resize NTFS partitions without destroying data or having to reformat.
• Windows Experience Index allows you to compare your hardware's performance with your friends' systems using standardized baseline ratings.
• The search box automatically has the focus when you click on the Windows logo (formerly the Start button on the taskbar), so as soon as you click the logo you can start typing... anything. It doubles as a Run dialog box - you can type the name of a program you want to run and it will run it, or type the partial name of a file you want to search for and it will search for it.
• If your computer doesn't boot all the way into Windows, a troubleshooter automatically takes over and does a decent job of trying to fix the problem without you having to fuss with it hardly at all.
• "Documents and Settings" is now called simply "Users", and "Program Files" is now called "ProgramData" (notice no space) for easier batch file usability. Oh but wait, you can't run unsigned batch files (.bat extension) anymore. You either have to buy a trusted PKI certificate from a CA authority and digitally sign all your batch files, or learn VBS scripting instead of batch scripting. Whoops, sorry to complain on the Benefits list. Couldn't help myself.
• I hear that the Windows Media Center is vastly improved over the one included in WinXP. Vista's version is pretty slick. I never used the one with XP so I can't say for sure. WMC would be included in Vista Home Premium or Vista Ultimate only.
• Instead of using Alt+Tab to switch between programs, use WindowsLogoKey+Tab. It cascades the windows themselves around a 3-dimensional axis so you can tab and shift-tab through them like business cards in a Rolodex.

See anything earth-shattering there? Anything worth the extra hard-earned cash?

Vista is a true hog of system resources and confusingly complicated to configure. Microsoft went so far overboard on the hardware requirements you essentially have to have a system built within the past 9-12 months just to be able to handle it. The most commonly configured settings seem to always be 4-5 levels deep in menus, whereas they were easily accessible in previous Windows versions.

Bottom line, Vista sucks. Stick with XP even if you're buying the full version outright. It's not going anywhere anytime soon.

 

[Yuri_Rage]

Bringing up a slightly old thread here, but it seemed like the right place to vent and/or ask questions.

I just bought SWMBO a new Dell laptop, and I didn't have a choice about the OS - it was Vista or nothing. So far, Vista isn't all that impressive. It's just different enough to be irritating, and I agree with just about every negative aspect posted here so far.

Now here's the real kicker...it seems to me that the damn OS is slowing the whole computer down. It's got a dual core 1.8GHz AMD 64 with 2 GB DDR and a 5400 RPM hard drive. The video card is an ATI Radeon 1270 with 256 MB on board. Why is my brand new computer so f'ing slow?! What am I missing? I have a damn degree in computer science, I got it all connected and updated, and it's still freakin' SLOW!

 

[Beerrific]

Bringing up a slightly old thread here, but it seemed like the right place to vent and/or ask questions.

I just bought SWMBO a new Dell laptop, and I didn't have a choice about the OS - it was Vista or nothing. So far, Vista isn't all that impressive. It's just different enough to be irritating, and I agree with just about every negative aspect posted here so far.

Now here's the real kicker...it seems to me that the damn OS is slowing the whole computer down. It's got a dual core 1.8GHz AMD 64 with 2 MB DDR and a 5400 RPM hard drive. The video card is an ATI Radeon 1270 with 256 MB on board. Why is my brand new computer so f'ing slow?! What am I missing? I have a damn degree in computer science, I got it all connected and updated, and it's still freakin' SLOW!

My SWMBO just got a new Dell laptop with Vista too. I didn't want her to get Vista because I don't want to have to worry about 'fixing' it for her. She kind of likes Vista but I find it irritating. She got the dual core intel and it is very fast...she has not complained.

I thought one of the 'great' things about Vista was that you could drop it and install XP...maybe I made that up.

Oh, BTW, did it take a ridiculous amount of time to get to you? SWMBO's took over a month...4 weeks past the original estimated ship date.

 

[rpucci]

Avoid 64-bit like the plague unless you really need more than 3GB or RAM. 64-Bit Operating systems suffer from a severe deficiency of driver support and many things do not work. So unless you really have a compelling reason to get it, stick w/ 32-bit.

What he said....

 

[Beerrific]

What he said....

Unless you are soon to upgrade to OS X (v 10.5). Then, no worries!

 

[Yuri_Rage]

Oh, BTW, did it take a ridiculous amount of time to get to you? SWMBO's took over a month...4 weeks past the original estimated ship date.

Nope, got here in about 2 weeks (about 2 weeks prior to the estimated ship date, surprisingly enough).

 

[Yuri_Rage]

What he said....

No driver problems here. Everything works. The 64-bit hype about things not working is beginning to fade (unless you're using Linux).

 

[Beerrific]

We use a computer in our lab with Winx64 and everything works except LabView. I think we could get it to work but don't really need to.

We have it loaded with 12GB of RAM and it is AMAZING! Can run MatLab programs in seconds that take hours on a laptop. And do it while processing a background animation that consists of 1000s of 100+MB JPEGs.

OK enough of that kind of talk....

 

[rpucci]

I'm sticking with the 32-bit Vista, got it for $218 on Amazon (not OEM either). Here is what I got from newegg. Not top of the line but a major improvement from my AMD 1.3 Ghz.


Default building a new PC - can I use my old power supply?
I'm wondering if I can get away with using my old Antec 400W power supply with this new PC. This PC is for everyday use and I will use it for some gaming but I'm certainly far from top-of-the-line. Here are the spec's:

ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard - http://www.newegg.com/product/Produc...82E16813131013

AMD Athlon 64 X2 5600+ Windsor 2.8GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103771

SAPPHIRE 100166L Radeon X1650XT 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102068

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145590

Thermaltake W0093RU ATX 12V 2.0 Version 500W Power Supply - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817153028

I have a AMD 64 bit 3000 Winchester core and it ran GREAT for almost a year. I have an all quality parts inside as well. Aout 3 months ago for no apparant reason this machine stopped working. It would not even POST! I started out swapping out the RAM then threw in another hard drive to no avail. I was getting an odd beep code from the BIOS (3 short beeps) and took a peek at the Phoenix website and it was unlisted. I then noticed that there was an LED readout on the motherboard (A-Bit AV8). The code displayed was 9c. I looked through the documentation I had and the documentation online but it was not listed. I started to search the www and found out what the issue was. It was my old 400W power supply. Apparantly, the amperage for the 12V DC output needs to be at least 25A and my old power supply was 15A!!!!!! I put in another powersupply that I had and knew was functional with 20A on the 12V output but still nothing. I then went out and purchased a new 600W PS with an amperage of 35A on the 12V output ant it fired right up! Been working fine since. I would HIGHLY suggest a new PS with a 12V amperage of at least 30A.

Hope this helps.

 

[rpucci]

Bringing up a slightly old thread here, but it seemed like the right place to vent and/or ask questions.

I just bought SWMBO a new Dell laptop, and I didn't have a choice about the OS - it was Vista or nothing. So far, Vista isn't all that impressive. It's just different enough to be irritating, and I agree with just about every negative aspect posted here so far.

Now here's the real kicker...it seems to me that the damn OS is slowing the whole computer down. It's got a dual core 1.8GHz AMD 64 with 2 MB DDR and a 5400 RPM hard drive. The video card is an ATI Radeon 1270 with 256 MB on board. Why is my brand new computer so f'ing slow?! What am I missing? I have a damn degree in computer science, I got it all connected and updated, and it's still freakin' SLOW!

You mean 2GB DDR RAM right?

Try doing an update on the BIOS and get the latest drivers, Vista ones, for all of your hardware.

 

[Yuri_Rage]

oops...edited...2 GB

...and it came with Vista installed - OEM. I've installed all of the updates that I can find. No dice. Still a slow POS.

 

[ohiobrewtus]

No driver problems here. Everything works. The 64-bit hype about things not working is beginning to fade (unless you're using Linux).

Here's another vote for sticking with XP for now. I'm an IT Manager and after running Vista for sever months (including the Beta releases) on my 2nd desktop at the office I couldn't force that on my users. It's too different, too cumbersome and it takes way too much work for admins to 'bypass' some of the increased security measures.

Granted, I haven't revisited it for a while, but I did a company wide pc rollout about 2 months ago and Vista wasn't even an option.

A good network neutralizes most threats at the firewall, I don't need an OS that's locked down that much.

As for 64-bit OS's I've been running XP64 for about 2 years on my primary desktop at the office and have W2k3 server running on a half dozen servers I'm very pleased with both.

 

[olllllo]

5400 RPM seems slow. Why not 7200?

 

[Yuri_Rage]

5400 RPM seems slow. Why not 7200?

IIRC, that was the best I could do, given the options presented during the "customize my computer" phase of buying from Dell.

 

[Whiskey]

Vista has it's pluses (mostly eye candy). But just like XP was when it first came out, it's full of issues. The safest bet is to stick with XP until Microsoft releases the first (or maybe second) service pack.

Some folks seem to forget that XP, which arguably is a pretty stable platform after SP2, was a complete mess when it first launched, few things worked right, compatibility issues (even with MS touting XP being compatible with just about everything....), etc.

The deal with the whole OEM/vista thing is that you will not find a new Dell, HP, Gateway, insert store-bought 'puter here, that does not have Vista. MS is no longer supplying XP to OEM vendors. So that leaves folks who are going to buy a new "big name" OEM computer with only the Vista as a choice for an OS. Dell, HP, Gateway, etc, do not work well when you try and install a different OS then what they were shipped with, just like they are hardly upgradeable hardware wise (they don't want you to upgrade, they want you to buy a new one!).

I personally like the fact that Vista has somewhat stringent minimum system requirements. It forces OEM vendors to step up and produce somewhat current spec'd machines. However, being the money driven monsters that OEM vendors are, they are still cutting corners on hardware which leads to brand new PC's that barely chug along when running Vista.

::::To Yuri_Rage, What do you mean by slow? Slow when starting up? Slow when loading or using a program? Does it hang when trying to multi task programs? The first thing I would do is uninstall all the garbage that typically ships with OEM computers (free offers, junk software that no one uses, etc), not just delete the short-cut, remove it completely. Turn off any features you do not plan on using, if you are using the Aero interface turn it off and see if that helps. What AMD processor did it come with a Turino, Opteron, Dual Core, etc. Also try and turn off your "Cool and Quiet" feature (if it has it).

 

[Zar]

Ummm.....I'm running Vista Home Premium on a new Dell without any problems.
Don't get me wrong, the UAC's where a P.I.T.A. and I had to wait for a
Roxio patch. But all in all I like it.
It does take a little getting used to, but then again, anything would be better
than the 850mhz WinMe system I was running before.

WinME was horrible. Id rather have 3.1.

Im running Vista on my new Dell at home. havent had many problems with it. IE seemed to crash a lot but i just use Firefox so no loss there. Im still in the process of removing some of the stupid crap Dell puts on there though.

 

[Yuri_Rage]

What do you mean by slow? Slow when starting up? Slow when loading or using a program? Does it hang when trying to multi task programs? The first thing I would do is uninstall all the garbage that typically ships with OEM computers (free offers, junk software that no one uses, etc), not just delete the short-cut, remove it completely. Turn off any features you do not plan on using, if you are using the Aero interface turn it off and see if that helps. What AMD processor did it come with a Turino, Opteron, Dual Core, etc. Also try and turn off your "Cool and Quiet" feature (if it has it).

It's slow to boot, slow to shut down, and slow to load programs. In fact, most of the time there is an annoying delay between clicking the mouse and having an action happen (in particular when clicking or right-clicking desktop icons and actions).

I've already been seeking and destroying all of the garbage that Dell installed for me. I think I've gotten most of it. I removed most of the background processes (i.e., "task bar icon" garbage that launches when the computer boots). I turned off a lot of the cutesy display animations and other such crap.

The processor is a Turion.

I think I may have found part of the problem. The hard drive defrag program was set to run at 1:00 AM every Weds. However, it had never completed its action, so I think it was doing a portion of the defrag in the background every time I turned the computer on. I turned off the scheduled defrag and ran a full defrag last night. Things seem to be a little better.

 

[olllllo]

I'd up it to a faster drive. Seems llike that could be a real bottle neck.