OT Vista

M

MissL

Cathlete
For those of you out there who are getting ready to purchase a new computer or upgrade to Vista, I would advise that you wait or, better yet, buy a MAC. I got a virus on my "old" computer and ended up purchasing a new one rather than pay to have the other one cleaned up (I had already sunk $$$ into it for other repairs and upgrades and decided enough was enough). This was in early February. All of the new computers I looked at had Vista as the OS (except, of course, for the MACS). Since purchasing this new computer, I have had many, many glitches, and a lot of issues with what few existing software programs have been "patched" or "upgraded" to (supposedly) work with Vista. I can usually find a way to work around it, but it is so %&$*#!!! frustrating.x( AND I have tons of software that I have purchased over the last several years and none of will work with Vista--even antispyware software that I bought in January!! I have contacted the manufacturers of some of the software programs that I used often before, and, while some insist that they are "working on the upgrade to Vista" which they will make available "soon," others indicate that there was no guarantee at the time of purchase that their software would work with new OS. Broderbund, for example, has NOTHING that will work with Vista so far, and I was quite fond of my Print Shop software. I realized at the time of purchase that Vista was ahead of the game, so to speak, and that all of the software had not caught up, but I had no idea the extent of it. If I had, I would definitely have purchased a MAC instead. One of the things holding me back from that for years has been that I had invested so much in all the software I use, I couldn't see starting over. But, heck, it looks like I'm starting over again anyway, so I'd go for it. Personally, I think Microsoft may have really screwed up this time. Just my .02.

Thanks for letting me vent.:-(

MissL
 
I have heard horrible things about Windows Vista. I'm not at all surprised. And this is why I'm loyal to Apple. I *heart* my Mac and will be soon upgrading from an iBook to a new Macbook. :)
 
WOW!! Thank you so much for this. I had been eyeing a new HP notebook. You may have saved me!! Do you think Mac is better?
 
<<For those of you out there who are getting ready to purchase a new computer or upgrade to Vista, I would advise that you wait or, better yet, buy a MAC>>

I work in IT, and I completely agree with this statement.

I'd at least wait until Service Pack 1 for Vista comes out before even considering the upgrade.

For the life of me, I can't figure out WHY they thought having SIX DIFFERENT VERSIONS of this OS would help people!!

My next home computer is gonna be a Mac...
 
Thank you, Shelley, for the link. I agree that Vista has some desirable features and that eventually it might be a good thing. But I also agree that it was rushed, and I don't see any reason for it. It isn't as though software manufacturers have new and/or upgraded Vista-ready products sitting on the shelves and/or piling up in warehouses. And I can tell you from my unfortunate experience that this OS could have used another six months (or so) of working out some major glitches and doing some fine-tuning. I mean, I don't think Bill Gates/Microsoft would have lost any $$$$$ by waiting. What was the big hurry?

So, okay, after six months (or so) of $%!!#$% and #$&%!@ times a thousand (or so) maybe I will say yes, I really like Vista. But there still is the problem of all this obsolete software that I (and other consumers) have invested much $$$$$ in and probably will not be able to use b/c all will not be upgraded. I did not realize I enjoyed the use of so many different programs until they were unavailable to me. Even though in the past I have thought about checking into getting a MAC, the investment I have in Windows XP- and 98-compatible software has prevented me from seriously checking into it or considering it.

I don't know if the MAC is better or not, luvmylabs, but at least now I would have considered it an option.

Is there anybody else out there with Vista?

MissL
 
I bought a new computer just before Vista was released, so instead of having it installed, I got a free upgrade coupon for it. I'm holding off on using the coupon until the glitches get worked out.
 
Another option of course is to bypass the Mac and the Windoze and buy into a Linux system. HP and Dell are entertaining preloaded linux systems in the next quarter. I think you can buy an preloaded system from Walmart.com

If you feel the need to buy a computer right now shop stores like Tigerdirect for a "clearance". It will be an almost state of the art computer running XP with a coupon for a Vista upgrade.

The agreement that all the computer companies have to sign with Microsoft is that they won't sell an old OS with a new computer, so you can't buy a new computer with XP. But what happenned to all of the computers in warehouses that hadn't sold yet? They're being sold as clearance right now. Possible great bargains out there.
 
I recently went thru Vista hell with my Mom's new PC. Her old PC, an Emachine (which aren't great) had some motherboard issues and she needed a new PC. I should have researched Vista a bit. One thing I learned is Vista does not run well (very slow) on a PC with only 512M of RAM. If any of you are thinking of a new PC with Vista get at least 1G of RAM. I will say that I remember XP having driver issues with Digital cameras, printers, and scanners that worked on previous Windows versions. In my Mom's case her new HP came with a printer. Unfortunately she still uses AOL...you have to get a special AOL CD (I got mine at Walmart) that says AOL Openride. As my Mom is almost 80 I didn't really want to teach her another email program. The Acer we 1st got was crap and we exchanged it for an HP. The HP had 1G of RAM and was way faster than the previous Acer with 512M of RAM.

Honestly...I do think the whole Vista thing will make more people try Mac's. And I say whatever works...:)
 
I just thought I'd share my recent laptop hell story. I bought a Dell inspiron about 2 years ago for $1300. I got lots of goodies on it - most of which I never used. Anyways, I had a power connection issue with it only 3 months or so after the 1 year warranty expired -(how convenient). I paid $250 for repairs and then 6 months later the motherboard failed - my computer guy said it was likely due to the stress put on the motherboard from the power connection issue I had earlier. The cost of repair would have been $500! I thought, there's no way in %^$# I was going to sink more money into this lemon. Looking on ebay to see how much I could sell it for parts, I found lots of other inspirons on sale because of the exact same problem.

So, I had my computer guy (whom I have dealt with before and have also heard many positive things about) put together a laptop for me. He said that masss produced laptops have a 30-50% failure rate. He said that his failure rate on his laptops are 20%. He said you really have to look at the quality of the parts that you put into the laptop. So far, I'm thrilled with my new laptop. It seems to be much better quality and it cost slightly less than what my Dell did. Not to mention the fact that if I have a problem in the future, I know exactly who to take it to and I can call him anytime, without charge, to ask questions. It also comes with the 1 year warranty. Personally, I think buying from your local mom and pop stores is really the way to go! Especially if you have heard wonderful things about them. It only took him 3 days to put it together and he also transferred all of my information from my Dell harddrive over to this one. Anyone wanting to buy a new computer should really check out this option!!

The reason I didn't go with a mac is because in the rural town that I live in, I'd have to go 80 miles to find a repair shop that services mac. So, if you are cosidering buying one, find out where the closest repair shop is. Also, when a local shop puts togehter a computer for you, they can add whichever os you want. I had the computer guy put in XP, as I had heard the horror stories of Vista and did not want to go there. He also said he is not impressed with the new functions of Vista - said they certainly aren't worth the problems.

Forgive my rant, but I was hoping my problems would help someone else who might be considering a rather large purchase such as this.

Angie
 
Hi Miss L,

I have a question. Can you format your hard drive and then install Windows XP? That is what I would do.

I have to thank you for posting this thread. I had been thinking of getting a new computer, and was reluctant about Vista. I remember when XP first came out, I had to replace nearly every hardware, because nothing ran with it. So, I was waiting until there was further info on it. Also a friend of mine just bought a new Dell home PC about 2 months ago. Luckily for her, it didn't have Vista installed, but did offer a free upgrade. She just ordered the upgrade, but it hasn't arrived. I was able to save her the aggravation, by printing out your post for her to see that she should hold off on installing the upgrade. Dell is now showing the upgrade as order pending, so I'm thinking, Just maybe they have it on hold until they can find a patch. That would be the right thing to do. I suggested to my friend, that since the upgrade is free, she should go ahead and get it, but not install it. I figure eventually they will have patches available, and then maybe Vista will be a good option, but not now.

On the other hand, I am hearing a lot of good things about Mac.
 
I just purchase a new computer with Vista, and have a 80GB Ipod. Had problems with my ipod and had to restore, and plugged it up to the computer, kept getting these crazy messages. Call apple and they told me that there is a bug they need to work out with the new vista system, but in the mean time go to another computer with XP or 2000 to restore, and also keep checking on the website for updates. I have a non-working ipod with over 600 songs. They told me when you finished uploading songs, don't disconnect your plug directly from the computer, but used the eject button. At any rate, I can't listen to my ipod. I'm learning the hard way, never purchase a new system until all problems are resolve FIRST!


DJ
 
You can always downgrade. But be sure you make a backup of your current HD first. Or take it to the Geek Squad and have them do it. Again, make a backup copy of your HD first.
 
I have to say that my laptop is slowly dying and dh just bought me a new Dell Laptop with Vista. After less than a week with it we are sending it back and getting an HP with XP on it. We could not get a lot of our program to work with Vista. There did seem to be some glitches as well. It was a real disappointment. I can add Vista later to the new one if I want to. Hopefully there are programs that work and the glitches are gone.

http://wd.1ww.us
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I got my first mac last june and i LOVE it! I would say it's more intuitive to use than anything I've ever seen on a PC. AND all the 'new' features Vista is supposed to have are pretty much already available on Mac OS 10.
I've talked to several people who are PC people (as I was too) and the ones that have upgrated to Vista have all had problems. Previously installed software not compatible, computer freezes up, etc. It's such a shame and so freaking frustrating.

cristina
 
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