Installing Windows Vista!

This is a great segment and an even greater idea, but I found it a little misleading.

A friend of mine and I just went through the steps of upgrading to Vista last week and we did not find it so smooth a process.  It's time consuming and clumsily executed.  The fact that you have to download an external upgrade advisor is kind of absurd.

I don't think any computer older than two years should be subjected to Vista...and even then, it's a gamble.  A lot of the programs my friend had didn't run properly after the install and setting up games again was frustrating.  Every time he went to launch a game, vista auto changed profiles from Aero to normal because of “supposed” graphic limitations, but he has a kick azz graphics card.

The whole ordeal was extremely irritating.  Ultimately, he ended up completely wiping his machine and clean installing everything from scratch.  That solved most of his problems, but a few games and programs still run a little odd.

Instead of trying to upgrade myself, I just bought a new computer with Vista installed.  It works better.  Upgrading is a pain in the butt.

This is the part where, as a cross-platform user, I have to point out some contrasts.

I have upgraded OSX on my four-year-old iMac three times since I got it.  Not a one of those upgrades was anywhere near as troublesome or clumsy as upgrading from XP to Vista.

I didn't have to download an external advisor, almost all of my applications and games worked without a hassle, and I haven't encountered too many graphics limitations just yet.  I didn’t find any limitations to the number of times I could install it on my household Macs either, but I only have two at home and one at work.  (I know there are limitations.)  I upgraded all three without encountering any user limitations.

Now, I'm not preaching for either side.  I love Vista on my new computer.  It runs well and everything works somewhat smoothly, but upgrading seemed like such a hassle when compared to the same procedure on a Mac.  Given, there is a far greater difference in the operating systems and my argument just is not fair, but as a tech enthusiast myself, I couldn't help but mention this.

Which reminds me I'm supposed to be having a free Vista upgrade coming my way from HP. "Supposed" being the key word.

I saved myself the trouble and bought an HP with Vista installed.  It really is a great operating system...just be mindful of upgrading.  It can be a serious hassle if you already have a lot of software and drivers installed on your machine.

In any case, best of luck upgrading.  I hope your experience is smoother than mine.

BTW, what's your oppinion of Crackdown having had the opportunity to play the full game now?

I upgraded all my computers at home, some were 4 years old, I didn't have a problem with any of them and the upgrde application isn't a requirement that I know of. I do know someone who has had problems with a home-built computer, so obviously it depends on the machine and the components inside.

Apple has it a little easier because you're not going to have an infinite combination of thousands of different kinds of RAM, video cards, NICs, and other components in a given Mac.

 

Crackdown is crazy fun once you get the hang of it. I'm liking it a lot. Who knew looking for glowing green orbs could be so entertaining?

A few things to point out here. 

The reason we have a downloadable upgrad advisor is so that you can prepare your machine before you attempt to install Windows Vista or even have the disc for that matter.  Here is the Upgrade Advisor link if you are interested in seeing if your machine can run Windows Vista: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/buyorupgrade/upgradeadvisor.mspx

As for the Mac install comparison; Windows Vista has a bit more complicated install issue because of the vast varity of PC hardware available compared to Apple hardware.

Cool segment.

Personally I'm going to wait to upgrade my main gaming machine to Vista. I'm going to wait for driver stability as well as some games that are written specifically for DX10 which I believe will be this summer.