Win Vista Advice please

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daddystabz

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I am a longtime Windows XP Home Edition user and have had overall a great experience with it. Windows Vista is coming out in just a couple days and I would love to get some informed advice from you all here, since you are so knowledgeable.

Should I upgrade right away for wait a long while while they iron things out?

What should I do to prepare to upgrade?

Would it be possible to but another new hard drive and to simply install Windows Vista on it somehow? How would this effect my other hard drives that are currently running Windows XP Home Edition?

What version of Windows Vista is right for me based on my user description I listed below?

My system is a Pent 4 2.6 GHZ Hyper Threaded, 1 Gig 3200 400 MHZ DDR dual channel RAM, ATI Radeon X1600 512 MB video card, Creative Soundblaster Audigy Platinum 2 Sound Card. I am currently running 3 hard drives (my 4th. crashed on me recently). I will be adding a 4th. again soon.

Do I need to do anything special to prepare for when I do upgrade? I heard that it is better to start with a clean install but I really don't want to lose any of the data I already have on my machine. My other hard drives are still running Windows XP Home Edition. I am primarily a gamer and home productivity guy...one of the new MMORPGs I plan on playing in the near future will feature DX 10 graphics and they recommend Vista with a DX 10 video card.

Thanks in advance!
 
First advice - don't think about getting Vista anytime soon. Just recently even Microsoft admitted that there are serious issues with Vista and that they are already working on the first service pack.

You system should run Vista fine and yes, you can install Vista on a separate hard drive or a partition no problem.

Don't count on stuff that is not released yet. Vista doesn't even have enough userbase to make any game profitable yet, so in worst case scenario those MMORPGs may never get released, may be delayed or may be backported to DX9, making you look like a fool with your expensive and slow Vista :p
 
Well, the game I'm following is Age of Conan and I'm sure it will be released. In fact, Microsoft is playing a hand in its development and they have just announced a delay on it till October to give them extra time to develop the X-Box 360 version. They also relesed brand-new screens of it utilizing DX10 graphics. I think once again that M$ is trying to cash in on both the game on pc (with Win Vista) and on the X-Box 360.

If I did buy another hard drive and install it once I log into the system to format the drive how can I install win Vista on it? Can I just use the Wn XP tools to format the new drive and then run Win Vista setup and choose a path to install it on that new hard drive? Then will I have an option at bootup whether to boot into Win XP or into Win Vista?

All 3 of my hard drives currently run Win XP, with the OS being installed on drive C.
 
If I bought windows vista ulitmate now, then could I upgrade to service pack 1 later on when they release it?
 
Service packs are always available to current users of the OS, you would just download a patch file probably.
 
Apparently you didn't read Nodsu's advice.

I too, do not recommend Vista YET. First, it is too new and has all the bugs and little hardware/ driver support.

Second, as a noob you're going to have even more difficulties understanding a new and underdocumented OS.

Stick with XP for now. M$ is going to support it for at least 7 more years.

There are NO performance gains with Vista, in fact, performance goes down. There have been several independant tests.

BUT, if you feel like experimenting and are willing to spend the dough, then the only version worth getting is ultimate. Be prepared to cough up some serious $ and deal with royal headaches. Bear in mind, few people on this forum will be able to help you for quite some time. I for one, do not intend on upgrading for several years.
 
as stated, service packs are available free for those with legitimate versions of vistas, like how it is with XP.

your PC specs can run any of the vista versions, basic recommended one is the home premium but ultimate has everything in it already...

Before you commit to an upgrade, check on the net if vista drivers and support are available for your hardware. This is highly important! You should be looking for graphics card, chipset, audio, printers, USB devices that needs its own drivers to run, etc.
Next check if your software you wish to run can be used on the vista platform smoothly or if there's a vista version of the program available..

When you do upgrade, choose whether you want to replace your OS (upgrade) or just dual boot with XP or clean install. (first question you ask yourself). Then after installing the OS, check for any windows updates etc, and install the AV and security software then other programs, like you would when installing an OS.
 
I am going to go with Vista Business when I build a test system for Vista. There is no way I will upgrade this system until I see how Vista runs. People are saying that the Aero interface is slow, but if you follow some guidelines like having a 64-bit capable processor of 2.5GHz or higher, a Vista ready motherboard, at least 1GB of memory and a good fast 3D capable video card, Vista should run smoothly and efficiently. Not many systems will meet these requirements right now. XP when though similar stuff when it was first released. With 2 Service Packs under it's belt, you can install XP on most any system with 256MB RAM
 
For the person who was planning to update or upgrade from Windows Vista Business to VISTA Ultimate: Today, Jan 31, CNET reports that the upgrade from Vista Business to VISTA Ultimate will be set at $259.00 on Feb 01.
 
raybay said:
For the person who was planning to update or upgrade from Windows Vista Business to VISTA Ultimate: Today, Jan 31, CNET reports that the upgrade from Vista Business to VISTA Ultimate will be set at $259.00 on Feb 01.

ummmm....Thats not even what the original poster was asking! lol....
 
Hey TMagic I have read much advice from people who were saying that with a Core Duo and 2gb RAM they still are not running smoothely with the AREO on!
 
Sjbrand99 said:
Hey TMagic I have read much advice from people who were saying that with a Core Duo and 2gb RAM they still are not running smoothely with the AREO on!

We shall see how Vista goes. It will be interesting to see who has troubles with Vista and who will not. I plan to build a Vista test system next month, after taxes are done
 
I've tested it out myself looks like a plan, but man what you got to do to get it to work on current systems.

1GB min, 2GB maybe but 4GB of RAM
Video Card you need 256MB instead of the min 128MB

Cheapest version looks okay but boy is it so limited, I hope nobody buys that one. I would have to go with the top end Vista for my needs then get the Business for the other PCs. I guess the Laptop can run the Business with 2GB of RAM.
 
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