Vista Part 3

Well I don’t think I’ve ever had so many responses as I have to these Posts on Windows Vista =) But obviously it’s a controversial subject.

Now I realise that many of the things I said where good about Vista can be backported or substituted into XP. There are freeware alternatives to everything really, and Microsoft has allowed many things intended for Vista alone to be installed into Vista.

While this is true, I don’t think it makes for a killer argument on why we should stick with XP. As Thinker said:

“BTW, one thing to say: Many says, that all that stuff in Vista can be downloaded for XP too. I assure you, that when you try your to load all those application into XP it will work terribly slow. I checked it”

Okay, again, I know that depends on your set-up etc, but I’m thinking of this from the point of view of 90% of users across the world. Yes, personally I use Media Monkey instead of Windows Media Player, but most people will use the supplied applications.

Just imagine clean-installing Windows XP SP2.

Its good, its clean, its fast. But It’s also pretty dated in terms of a modern Operating System being 7 years old and all. That’s okay because you can of course give it all the functionality you want by installing additional software and updates.

If you really want to spend you time removing out of date software, updating new software, finding freeware etc then go for it. I’m guessing most people will not.

Paul Thurrott makes the strongest case I have seen for why XP is good, but not good enough:

“Aside from obvious look and feel issues, the most striking thing about downgrading from Windows Vista to XP is the sheer number of things that need to be installed and configured in order to bring the older OS up to speed with its more recent stablemate.”

Amongst these he describes the following:

• Hardware Drivers, XP is distinctly lacking
• Out of date software applications including MSN Explorer, Outlook Express, and Windows Messenger, IE6 and WMP9.
• Missing applications, such as all many new applications I mentioned yesterday
• Microsoft Update, a crappy web-based version. You’ll have to find and download the new Microsoft Update software.
• Start Menu, It likes to shuffle programs randomly. See if you like it after trying the Vista start menu.
• Hidden applications,
• ClearType, disabled by default in XP.
• Windows Search, download and install Windows Search or suffer with the default.
• Networking, Rarst mentioned XP having vastly improved networking making it worth upgrading. Vista has even more improved. “In XP, you have to enter the WPA network key TWICE to initially configure wireless networking. There are repeated "Now connected" pop-up balloons: Yeah, we get it, you're connected. And then there are those annoying disconnected network adapter icons in the tray.” Oh well, I guess there are some handy registry hacks for that aren’t there? =P
• Power management, Manually enable the power management icon and hibernation
• Backup, XP has none of this
• User interface, dated, ugly and lurid.
• Disk Defrag, doesn’t happen automatically
• Hibernation and Sleep modes, good luck with getting these to work

“I know, I know. You're looking at this list and you're thinking big deal. Remember, however, that this isn't a list of unique Vista features--a list that would include such technologies as BitLocker, Media Center, and Windows Calendar, among many others. This is a list of things that impact me, as an individual, on a regular basis. A list that should be combined with the list of issues from the previous section to provide a wider overall picture of the real world day to day differences between using each system. In this light, the advantages of Windows Vista are very real. Very real indeed.”

I couldn’t agree more.

I think it is easy to look at Vista and say, “so what?” but the reality is once you have actually become accustomed to using it, going back to XP feels like stepping into the 90s.

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