[Cialug] Microsoft's attempts to overcome Vista preconceptions

[Brandon Griffis]

This is actually kind of interesting to me.  I've been trying to figure out
the pros vs cons of Vista.  I think it's easy to say that "it sucks" but a
lot of times when I push for reasons I don't get much back (usually just
"it's so bloated").

Bloat is a genuine concern, and honestly I'm at a loss to find *what* is
bloating Vista vs XP, as I don't see *much* difference.  So I figured I'd
ask here to see what differences people find and their thoughts pro v con.

So here is the short list of things I do think Vista is good for.

UAC - I realize I'll probably get some flack on this one, but I think this
is a great thing.  Administrative actions *should* need to be confirmed.
Ubuntu (and most desktop linux versions) do the same thing.  It's about time
Windows caught up a little to the idea that there should be a user account
and an administrative account, and they shouldn't be the same thing but you
should be able to do the actions without having to log out and back in (ala
win2k).  Granted they aren't actually separate accounts, but still I think
it's a step in the right direction

Start Menu Search - this is quite convenient as it keeps me from having to
leave the keyboard when trying to launch a program in windows *FINALLY*.
(yes I know there are programs that have been around to do this and that you
can setup hotkeys, but I'm talking about built in features and this is
nice).

Installation - This one won't matter for most people as they get Windows
pre-installed.  But it's nice to finally have a windows version that will
actually install to SATA drives (XP sp2 wouldn't do that without a separate
driver).  Which is the second benefit of the install, you can load drivers
from flash or CDs and not have to hunt around for a floppy (and a driver
file small enough to fit on one) if you *do* need to load a driver during
installation.  Both of these things are in the "it's about fscking time"
category for me, but again, improvements over XP so they have to be checked
off in the positive category for Vista.

64-bit OS - I can't count XP 64 as... well, it just didn't work.  64-bit is
an absolute requirement, if for no other reason being able to actually use
more than 3GB of memory.

-----

As for the problems:

Long boot - It takes a long time to boot.  I realize the idea is to
hibernate and restore (but even that takes as long as an XP boot used to).
And hibernating with a dual boot can cause problems when mounting the
partitions in other OSes.

Driver Signing - This is specifically a 64-bit vista problem.  In all the
32-bit versions it works just like XP where it will tell you that it doesn't
recommend it, but let you override.  No problem there.  But the 64-bit
version *will not* let you run unsigned drivers period (unless you disable
it during every boot using F8).

Memory hog - No idea why.  (perhaps someone could enlighten me).  But 70% of
2GB used up without a single program running is just insane.  (note: that's
un-tweaked).

Missing 3D Interaction - Why on earth develop a desktop capable of 3D and
then do *literally* nothing with it?  For the resources it takes up it
should at least offer something.

Thoughts?  Additions?  Questions?  Tomatoes to throw?

-B

On Wed, Jul 30, 2008 at 10:02 AM, Matthew Nuzum <newz at bearfruit.org> wrote:

> >From a co-worker:
>
> --
> Matthew Nuzum
> newz2000 on freenode
>
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
>
> Spotted this: http://www.mojaveexperiment.com/
>
> In interviews with computer users, Microsoft have been asking what
> people think of Vista. That is, people who've never used Vista.
>
> According to the video on the above website, the response was largely
> negative.
>
> They then showed the interviewees Vista but pretended it was called
> Windows Mojave and that it was the next version of Windows. Cue lots
> of "Wow, it's so cool" responses.
>
> At the end of the video, the interviewer comes clean and, again, cue
> "I gotta get it" type responses.
> _______________________________________________
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> Cialug at cialug.org
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>
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