Microsoft Vista launches next week. Who cares?
Microsoft will launch its Windows XP successor next week dubbed Windows Vista on Jan 30. Key features include a newly skinned GUI, better search (allegedly), new multimedia creation tools such as Windows DVD Maker, and “completely redesigned networking, audio, print, and display sub-systems.” That’s about it.
The thing is, my PowerBook has been doing all of this since 2001’s release of Mac OSX. It’s a much better OS than any I’ve seen, though I currently use XP on my desktop. To upgrade to Vista, most computers 1-2 years old don’t support the minimum requirments like a graphics card to run Vista, hence, it should be at least a few hundred dollars to upgrade, not to mention the hassle and time spent in reloading all of your programs (something Apple does out of the box).
So the technologist in me wants to buy and install it right away just to see if it stacks up, and if it can significantly improve the operating system experience. The skeptic in me tells me it wont do anything better than OSX, a trusty browser, or even XP does. And I wouldn’t have to worry about upgrade headaches and additional costs. Will you be buying Vista next week?
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“To upgrade to Vista, most computers 1-2 years old don’t support the minimum requirments like a graphics card to run Vista, hence, it should be at least a few hundred dollars to upgrade, not to mention the hassle and time spent in reloading all of your programs (something Apple does out of the box).”
I think you’ve been watching too many Apple commercials. A computer only a year old will easily support the upgrade.
I just got back from MacWorld. The big new feature in the new version of OSX is a disk restore feature. Windows has had this forever.
Actually, Chris, I can name several PC manufacturers that shipped computers sans the needed 128mb graphics card over the last two years. In actuality, most still don’t, hence, you’ll have to upgrade for Vista.
I take it your excited for Vista then? Or are you just trying to cut Mac enthusiasts down to size? If the latter, I’m right there with you. Nothing’s more annoying than unquestioning Mac nerds. But to suggest Windows operating systems are superior if not equal in quality to Mac OS purely out of spite is just wrong. As a user of both systems and a developer, I can say Apple engineers more intuitive software for the most part. That’s not to say Microsoft doesn’t churn out comporable apps, if not way more, but they’re definately not as intuitive.
Actually I’m not a MS fan and I’ve been considering a switch to Mac. I think Apple get’s way more credit than they deserve. Their stuff still has its problems.
I will say that I am excited about the new version of Office. Especially this one. (Not that I use Office very much myself, but it still looks pretty cool.)
My favorite part of the CES keynote was when the guy was showing the 3D map of Las Vegas using Windows Live and an Xbox controller, and he had to solicit an applause from the audience. Oh, also the part when Bill was joking about infectious diseases. (I assume he was referring to himself and not something computer related.)
Of course the “big debate” always comes down to what you use your computer for. I do mainly web-based programming, email, internet, iTunes, music recording and editing, pictures, Quicken, and some video editing. The Mac is perfect for me, and I have no complaints whatsoever.
🙂 <– Me being PC free since April 2005
“Oh, also the part when Bill was joking about infectious diseases. (I assume he was referring to himself and not something computer related.)”
It’s comments like these that give Mac zealots a bad image. I’m not saying that all Mac users are zealots, there’s just a few.
I really like Mac OS X. I’d also really like to give Vista a try, but the hardware on my Dell laptop (which is 2 1/2 years old) won’t cut it.
My next computer will be a Mac, and I’ll probably run Parallels with a Windows OS, probably Vista.
I’ve heard from a peer that he’s had problems installing a non-beta release of Vista on a Mac, using either Bootcamp or Parallels. Hopefully that gets fixed.
No. I went to a Microsoft preview a few months back. They yapped about Vista and Office 2007. A rep from Microsoft flat out told us that it was better to wipe your machine and install a fresh copy of Vista than to do an upgrade. Forget that. I’ll wait till SP1 comes out (probably around December).
The problem is, despite it’s flaws and not having some features that OS X nails, XP is still really good for everything I need to do on a Windows machine. Really, really good .. like, the best Windows OS ever. So I’m not in any rush to update.