Vista or XP on a new PC?

[MorseLady]

I am thinking of buying a new high spec PC and have OS options including all versions of Vista, XP Pro or XP Media Edition.

Is Vista a good option on a new PC which supports it or should I go for XP pro which I have used and trusted for years?

My main uses are photo editing and creating music files.

[NooNoo]

OK Vista has some great features, but things are in a different place. I have had 3 machines in this week with stupid update problems, I have had one corruption of a profile but other than that, no problems with hardware that has been checked for compatibility.

XP on the other hand, you know where everything is, and I have answered a gazillion questions on fixing stuff.

Personally I like Vista, you don't have to fiddle about with floppy disks with SATA drives or RAID, media center is built in and with the right hardware and 2gb RAM it's quick and easy to maintain. The only thing that disappointed me was the lack of a graphic to stare at when it's defragging.

The next question is do you get 64bit or 32 bit - well that entirely depends on your peripherals. You also need to check out Vista compatibility with your existing software you might want to run.

[Ferrit]

I have to agree with NooNoo
I like Vista on a good machine.
I can think of only one reason not to use it. If you have some software
that absolutely wont run on it.
I use Vista Ultimate 64 bit.
Memory is cheap and plentiful so if you want to have more then 3.2 gigs which i do then go 64 bit. They can say what they like about 64 but 2 facts remain.
Its the future and it runs most everything I have yet to see any 32 bit not run . I am sure some doesn't but its likely not too mainstream.
It has a great media centre and I do a lot of gaming on this machine
F.E.A.R
Tiger Woods 2008
Crysis
etc etc
all run smooth as silk and they look good.
Media center in ultimate/premium turns the computer into a nice recording machine thats simple to use and can be programmed a long time in advance.
In fact i can set it to record a years worth of a weekly series or it will record a whole series of sports such as golf
Parental controls in Vista also rock. No need for 3rd party software if thats a feature you need
Whole image backup is also available with a setup for automatic. I haven't restored from it yet but I suspect it does work

[NooNoo]

Whole image works ferrit - I tested it 4 weeks ago.

[nunob]

I would have to agree with both above I have had a great experience with Vista so far. The backup and recovery is a take off from Small Business Server 2003 and it is an amazing feature that I have tested a few times just to try out. My advice would be to check the websites of all of your software that you plan to use and ensure that the versions you have are all supported by Vista or they have an upgraded version. I woul also like to add that XP is a 6 year old operating system and Microsoft won't be writing updates for it forever. ;)

[OMGmissinglink]

Other things to keep in mind when buying Vista PC's check that all external preferals have support drivers that accually work!

[Ferrit]

Whole image works ferrit - I tested it 4 weeks ago.

Thank you NooNoo
Another 50 dollar program built into vista ultimate

[deepblu]

When I migrated from Win2X to WXP I was just a tad nervous about stability.
I found XP to be more or less rock solid.
Vista...well - more or more rock solid.
Not to mention vastly improved file management.
I spend alot of time shoving around my 100,000+ FLAC files and it's a breeze with Vista (ultimate)
Seems the Vole has learned a few things lately.

[CCT]

I still have a Win98 machine (stepson curently using for internet) and have this XP Pro machine that runs all games moderately well on mid specs.

I would still have a Win 95 machine but it was stolen (I still have ALL the install discs and may buy a cheapo comp from a second hand store and load it (I know, I will have to deal with MS$ BUT the theft was reported to the cops and Acer).


So, I recommend, you keep your old stuff, make sure you get the SP3 slipstreamed into an nice recovery disc for it (since that is likely the last support you'll get), and then focus on the most bang for the Vista Buck.

[Niclo Iste]

Well I hated vista for its hoggish use of resources however if you don't mind learning a different way of using windows aston shell (www.astonshell.com) is handy for reducing the use of unimportant features to free up resources. I wouldn't mind using vista if I get that again.

[BOB IROC]

As the above posters said and I agree with their points. I run Vista 64 bit on my workstation at home and work and 32Bit Vista (all ultimate versions) on my laptop. I have yet to come across a major problem and any incompatibility was fixed with a minor update. In fact the only thing I cannot get to work on my Vista Computer is my 7 - 8 year old Visioneer Scanner. I have read many articles and forums that seem to bash Vista but I have yet to find a major flaw. It runs, its stable, the file managment and GUI are great. It definately likes to suck some resources but give your puter at least a couple gigs of Ram and nice moderately priced dual-core processor and it runs smooth as silk. Just be prepared for a little bit of a learning curve getting used to the new interface. But once you do you will see that they put a little thought into the GUI layout.

If you come across an app. that for some reason you like/need to use that is just not vista compatible then I recommend running a virtual PC using Virtual PC 2007 or VMWare. If you have a licensed version of Windows XP it is very easy to set up. I run that at work for a couple management apps that just do not like Vista.

[slgrieb]

MorseLady, unless you have some mission-critical software (or some peripheral in the same category) that just won't work under Vista, there isn't any reason to choose XP. Sure Vista has higher hardware requirements, but that just means a few bucks these days. Memory, hard drives, and decent video are cheap, and even for an XP machine you wouldn't really want the minimum level of hardware if you're running any current software, now would you?

Old operating systems, programs, and decrepit computers just aren't worth the aggravation and hassle. Nope, woman, stay current.

[deepblu]

... I recommend running a virtual PC using Virtual PC 2007 or VMWare.

Yesh!
Best of both worlds as I run VPC 2007 for some XP audio apps that I don't care to spend another $ XXXXX.xx in order to upgrade.
VPC ... FREE Microsoft product that almost seems anti-vole.
Amazing.

[Matridom]

I'm running Vista Ultimate 64 for over a 1 1/2 years at home, a month ago, i installed SP1 RC1. I have yet to have a bluescreen/software issue. Unless you *need* XP, go with vista, it's the future and more stable than XP. With the higher security requirements implemented in vista (specialy forced kernel mode driver signing in 64 bit and not allowing executables into userspace memory) it's a lot harder for creepies to get into the nooks and crannies. As a side effect, the programs that won't work in vista? well, the "lazy" programmers are being punished for it and get a good push to write secure code.

[deepblu]

"visit my site at www.matridom.ca"

Hi Matridom ... been away for awhile and still cannot connect to your brane.

[Matridom]

"visit my site at www.matridom.ca"

Hi Matridom ... been away for awhile and still cannot connect to your brane.

Ya, I know, It's mainly ISP issues, should be fixed in about a week or so.

[MorseLady]

Thank you everyone for the very informative and helpful replies and if I do decide to buy a new computer I will go for Vista and I will buy the highest spec I can afford but definitely lots of memory!

[deepblu]

Thank you everyone for the very informative and helpful replies and if I do decide to buy a new computer I will go for Vista and I will buy the highest spec I can afford but definitely lots of memory!

And remember that Virtual PC 2007 and the like can emulate an XP box in Vista, therefore virtually no loss of functionality.