The Age of Vista – does the ‘ow’ start now?

Alex Zaharov-Reutt
Monday, 22 January 2007 21:21

Your IT - Entertainment

Having used Vista since the RC1 days, and now running a Microsoft-supplied version of the final code that was released on November 30, the Vista experience has, for the most part, been exceptionally good.

Certain drivers on my system are still required, but none that are missing impede overall functionality, and the operating system is a much greater pleasure to use that the 6 year old Windows XP, and is much more stable, too.

Most manufacturers that have still not as yet released Vista drivers for various bits and pieces of hardware, some crucially important, others not so, have relied on the fact that the consumer launch of Vista is promised for January 30.

Even so, all the missing drivers will not magically become available on that date, but progressively onwards thereafter, and hopefully with as much consumer pressure as possible, in as quick a timeframe as can be managed after the January 30 date.

So, should you run out and buy Vista immediately upon its release? Well, if you simply must have the latest operating system, and have a modern enough computer system, or can buy a new one with Vista pre-loaded, nothing will stop you from getting Vista on the day its released or not too long thereafter. The ‘ow’ factor of paying for upgrades, a whole new computer or even waiting for updated drivers will be of little consequence for this type of user.

But for the rest of us, moving to Windows Vista is truly best done with a brand new computer, unless you computer is relatively modern and has enough memory and a graphics card to experience Vista the way Microsoft wants you to experience it.

Those with a stable setup, happily running the software that’s used every day, happily connecting to the Internet and a range of peripherals, including printers and other devices, an old adage pops in appropriately. It is… ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’.

Vista is an excellent operating system. It is, without doubt, the best operating system Microsoft has ever produced. It is so good that I use it exclusively – Windows XP is now but the Windows of yesteryear for me.

But if your world of Windows is working, and you are appropriately protected with Internet security software, and regularly update Windows and the various programs you use, there’s simply no need to rush to upgrade to Vista immediately.

Wait for the drivers you need to be upgraded. Take advantage of Microsoft’s Vista Readiness Tool at the Microsoft Vista website http://www.windowsvista.com website for help on this, and/or visit the websites of your hardware’s manufacturers to see if Vista drivers have become available.

What else should you do if you want Vista? Read onto page 3 for the conclusion...