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Posted: Thu, February 22, 2007
Microsoft Windows Vista - a user's first few daysby Robert Earls
Why install right now?Like it or not, Vista is here to stay. It's going to become increasingly difficult to buy a PC without Vista pre-installed and Windows XP will eventually go the way of Windows 95 where it's only kept running on old PC's without the ability to upgrade. So the sooner you upgrade the sooner you have begin to understand the new features and be ahead of the game. Why shouldn't you install now?There's no doubt that to use run Vista properly you need to have a fairly up to date machine. The side of my Vista box recommends, 1GHz CPU and 1GB of memory, a decent DirectX 9 graphics card to show the flashy new features (more of which later) and 15GB of free hard disk space to install. Although hardware is incredibly cheap right now, this is an enormous amount of power to recommend for an operating system. It's almost like Microsoft had to wait for hardware to catch up before they could release Vista. Before you attempt an upgrade or a fresh install, you really must run the "Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor". This handy piece of software checks all the hardware and software on your PC against a database of known issues that Microsoft knows about. This could be make or break as far as the upgrade goes as once you start the process there is no going back. If the software advises you that some software will not work, or your printer drivers are incompatible you may want to check with the manufacturer for updated drivers. Before you start, make a list of the software and hardware you simply cannot do without and check each manufacturers website for confirmation that it is Vista compatible, or look for updated drivers or patches. The new featuresThere are literally hundreds of new features in Vista, and in these few days I have used it I have only scratched the surface. Here are a few of the most obviously ones. The new user account control is a surprising feature I was not expecting. On a day to day basis you run your normal applications in "User mode" which is protected against damaging any of the important operating system functions. You can't do anything that changes the running of the PC, including the installation of software, without a warning box appearing that either warns you that what you are doing may be dangerous, or actually stops you doing it without first entering the administrator password. The installation program or action is then temporarily run as administrator, and when finished, your back to user mode. This is really quite a neat feature and could be a major reason why viruses and worms slow down after the uptake of Vista. I say "slow down" as virus writers are notoriously cunning and will no doubt find ways around this system, if they haven't already. The desktop is where you will notice the most differences. On the right hand side of the screen, which is typically unused in most PCs, you will find a new gadget bar. Here you will find specially written applets, or mini-applications, designed to be handy and useful throughout your working day. As standard an analogue clock, post-it notes, a weather gadget, plus a few others are available, but many more can be downloaded from Microsofts website such as eBay watchers, media players, iTunes controllers, etc. There are hundreds and more are added every day.  The second thing you may notice is that the task bar now shows a preview of the application when you hover your mouse over the application name. This continuously updated preview is also shown when using ALT-Tab to task switch. This is quite neat when you remember it's there and can be a time-saver. Maybe not quite so obvious is the three-dimensional task switcher. As an alternative to ALT-Tab you can now also use Windows-Tab to cycle through and select any currently running program. Selecting a new task, minimising, or maximising any window now results in a whole host of graphical wizardry with windows shrinking and growing in real-time. An intriguing new feature is called "ReadyBoost", which supposedly gives your Vista installation a much needed speed increase. Using a fast USB2.0 thumbdrive, Vista will cache some commonly used programs making your PC that bit faster. Microsoft has completely re-written the part of the operating system that deals with networking. As a result you may find that some legacy programs do not work. It also means it's a bit of a nightmare to get anything to work as you expect. More on this later. New and changed programs
The InstallationI have been using Windows XP on this PC for 13 months. I use it extensively and had a lot of software installed as well as four printers, a scanner, external hard drive, wireless mouse, UPS, barcode scanner, plus a whole host of other USB peripherals. There would be an awful lot of work to cleanly install all my favorite applications so I chose to install the Windows Vista Home Premium Upgrade. As indicated above, I ran Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor which ran for about 10 minutes and eventually told me of a number of programs which were incompatible. Mainly utilities I was not using anymore, so I removed them all and ran it again. Although it warned me my scanner was incompatible I went ahead figuring I would find drivers later. Running the upgrade program ran Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor again, which again took another 10 mins, so be aware of this. Then followed a very long upgrade process. It took around about 3.5 hours to install, so it's not something you want to do at 4.30pm before you go home. The problems encounteredInitially, there were surprisingly few problems. Maybe I was distracted by the glittery new interface. However, there were a number of drivers and start-up programs which no longer worked and which produced some error messages when windows started. A number of these took some time to track down and uninstall, or disable from the start up procedure. Windows DVD Maker, although this seems like a pretty easy to use program refused to work properly on my machine and would crash in various points in the wizard-based tool.  Windows Media Center apparently works very well with the Xbox 360 allowing you to stream audio and video from your PC to your Xbox360 which is probably nearer your TV than your PC is. Unfortunately, even after a week or so of trying, the complex security now built into Vista along with the extra security that comes with Windows Live OneCare (Microsoft's security suite) and the differences in the networking tools available from the control panel has foxed even this reviewer. Windows Upgrade Advisor, although a useful tool to run, this process is not fool-proof. I have a DYMO LabelWriter 320 which was not highlighted as a problem, but unfortunately failed to work after the upgrade. Although at first I thought it was a temporary problem as the Dymo website promised imminent Vista Drivers, when they arrived, my particular model of LabelWriter 320 was not included and will not be forthcoming. However, I had the exact opposite problem with my flatbed scanner, a Microtek ScanMaker 9800XL. The upgrade advisor suggested it would not work after the upgrade. But it works perfectly well, for now. Vista is a complex operating systems and Microsoft cannot test every single piece of legacy software to ensure it works. Insurmountable problems you may encounter after upgrading could be worked around by installing Microsoft's Virtual-PC 2007 which is free and available for download from www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/virtualpc/default.mspx. This will allow you to install a completely new operating system, such as Windows XP inside your Vista installation, in a sealed off area, in a window, allowing you to run older applications you simply cannot do without. ConclusionVista is Microsoft's most accomplished and secure operating system. The new flashy graphics detract from what has become a mature and well thought out desktop environment. If your PC has the power to run it, and programs you cannot do without are compatible, I would suggest that it is worth upgrading. If you are planning on purchasing new PCs then again choose the Vista option if possible - before long it will be the only bundled option available, so you should try and get used to it now.Microsoft Windows Vista is available from all software retailers. The version reviewed here is the Home Premium Upgrade which retails for approximately £149.99. The software is available online from Amazon.co.uk at www.amazon.co.uk/Microsoft-Windows-Vista-Premium-Upgrade. Other online software retailers include North Wales based Saver Software at www.saversoftware.co.uk/details-4145.htm. About the Author Send a comment about this article to editor@itwales.com. |
Microsoft latest operating system, Vista, has been a long time coming.
Long before the first test version in 2002, and even before Windows XP was released, it was known internally at
Microsoft as "Longhorn". One of its main aims was to improve on the security of windows operating systems. Now after many years of development, false starts, re-writes and a long Beta testing
programme it's finally here. |
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