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Don,
Thanks for posting that message on FLYIN. (The right place for such a
discussion.) This is important to all of our computer-using community.
I think about 2/3rds of the points in the message are bunk or hoaxes but
some of those points have some validity.
Me, I'm not planning to upgrade any of my current computers to Vista. Heck,
only my best one could even handle it at all and I'd need a couple of
upgrades on that.
I think XP will keep me happy for quite a while. Comments interspersed
below.
Don's friend wrote:
Ok, here is the vista update as many of you are writing to me with
suggestions...
1) as of January 30th all computers with XP were ordered back to manfg to
get Vista on them
I think he must have meant the new computers in the stores. Indeed, many
manufacturers keep selling with the old operating system for years because
knowledgeable buyers often won't buy a new operating system in the first
year it's out. Very few businesses will change their computers over to the
new operating system in that first year.
XP has tome time left to go.
2) I took my vista computer back to Walmart as did many other customers, we
were told that
Since the machine was basically working they would not take them back
and they had no
More computers with XP on them
Apparently, this guy was dissatisfied with his cheapie machine loaded down
with a heavy operating system and way too little RAM memory. Perhaps it
would have been fine with a bunch more RAM. Whenever you are short on RAM,
your computer will be a dog. This affects performance more than speed, in
my experience.
I got bit by this when I upgraded my laptop and my daughter's computer to XP
Home. The memory on both those computers is insufficient for XP which
really needs 512 MB RAM. My laptop is limited by its hardware to 256 (and
it's full) and my daughter's computer had an old motherboard which was
limited to 196 MB. They run pretty well after they finish loading but it
takes forever to load XP Home and for it to settle down ready to run.
With XP, 512 isn't bad but it's happier with 1 GB. With Vista, I'd at least
double those numbers.
If you buy a computer with Vista, you can go out and buy a consumer copy of
XP and I'd be mighty surprised if you had any problems running XP on your
new machine - at least for quite a while. Remember, 99.9% of all computers
out there are running XP or something older.
If you are buying a new computer and want XP, I'd buy from a vendor that
offers it with a choice of operating system.
3) called emachine and they are not allowed to sell or put XP on anymore
machines after Jan 30th
That'd be a strange contract with Microsoft. That's what happens when you
go with a bottom feeder manufacturer.
4) even though Microsoft says a minimum of 1GB RAM, eMachine (Gateway) can
sell the computer
With 512MB because the vista version on the computer is an abbrviated
version called BASIC and I would have
To pay $239.00 more for the PREMIUM VERSION or $399.00 more for the
ULTIMATE VERSION.
When you buy a computer with an operating system already installed, you're
usually getting Windows at a reduced OEM price - sometimes a really reduced
price. But that's true too if you buy the computer from a company that
offers options for the operating system.
If you buy from a consumer vendor that only sells Vista (at the discount
price), you'll have to pay full consumer price to get one of the better
Vista options.
5) print drivers will only be upgrade by each printer mfg going back 18
months so if your printer is
Older than that, you will have to purchase a new printer to work on
Vista.
This might be a real bite for some Vista buyers. I have an older wide
carriage photo printer that works perfectly and I'm not planning to replace
it in the near (couple of years) future.
But my scanner has driver problems with XP because it's too old. It does
work with the XP built in scanning functions, but not with as nice of
software as came with it, originally.
6) digital camera users will have to go thru the same thing waiting for new
drivers to become available
From your camera mfg.. And depending on the camera, mine is two years old
and will not get new
Drivers so I will have to replace my camera
This may be one of the least important worries. Unless you have a really
old camera or a really cheap one, you have a memory card. Just put your
card into the new computer's card reader and it's treated like a hard drive
- just copy the pictures up to your real hard drive then clean off the card.
Be happy.
True, some image manipulating software may not run on future computers.
This is mostly only a problem for hyper-perfectionists who shoot in RAW
format. RAW format needs special software to be understood, edited and
converted. If you get to the point where you can't get conversion software,
you may loose the use of old formats which are in a camera's RAW format or
any proprietary format. (I'm still looking for software to convert some of
my very old Kodak DCS proprietary format pictures.) Files in JPEG (.jpg)
format should be safe for the long term.
7) getting thru to any of the tech supports for any computer related product
is almost impossible I am
So frustrated about holding two and 1/2 hours only to get hung up on....
You pay for tech support with every purchase. If you buy cheap, you're
buying cheap or no tech support, says the guy who has done years of computer
manufacturer call-in tech support. I recommend pre-made computers from
companies who get good ratings for their tech support. (Sorry, I haven't
been watching the ratings in the last few years - I assemble my own from
parts now-a-days.)
And lastly, if your new computer comes with vista you cannot format it and
use a copy of XP
Because all the chips and video cards, sound cards etc will only work with
Vista installed so that
Is definetly not an option... So I guess we all have to dig deep in our
pockets this next year to
Upgrade everything we own to Vistas specifications... Thankyou very much
bill gates, your jerk
This, I think, is mostly bunk. It's possible that some manufacturer will
include some parts that won't be supported with XP. These will be either
bottom-feeder companies or good companies where you have an operating system
choice and you choose a Vista optimized machine. I think it'll be a while
before this becomes a real problem.
But, if you buy factory made, buy it with the operating system you want and
make sure it works with any essential accessories before you buy. If you
buy from a computer integrator local company, be sure you pick a competent
one and be sure you're not buying the first build of any package.
For now, you get what you pay for. If you buy cheap, you get cheap.
Ed
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