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Who will benefit from this development? Basically, folks with Windows XP machines who have chosen not to upgrade to Vista until now because they found it pricey. But it's not as easy as that: Most of those people probably have PCs they bought in 2006 or before, and while some of those aging machines will run Vista well, many won't. (If you bought a Windows XP computer in 2007, I have a hunch you did so specifically to avoid Windows Vista, and therefore today's news means little or nothing to you.)
I certainly hear some grumbling about the cost of Vista--especially Ultimate, which, even at its new price, is pretty expensive compared to Apple's $129 Max OS X 10.5 "Leopard." But I'm curious whether there are really that many people out there who have been itching to buy a Vista upgrade--and have a PC potent enough to run it well--but haven't done so yet.
One also wonders what's motivating Microsoft to cut prices. The company says that research showed that a cheaper Vista would appeal to more computer users beyond early adopters and geeks. Logical enough. But did it misjudge the public's willingness to fork over $300 for a piece of software when it initially priced Vista? And is the price drop a sign of panic, or a confident statement that it thinks Vista has mass appeal?
Today's news doesn't affect the price of new Windows Vista computers. And I have a sneaking suspicion that for every Microsoft customer who's psyched by the prospect of a lower-cost Vista, there are several who'd be far more thrilled if the company undid its announced plans to discontinue Windows XP on June 30th. (I've rarely if ever run into anyone who's told me that he or she thinks Windows Vista is a major argument for buying a new computer--but a lot of folks have worriedly asked me if it's still possible to buy an XP box.)
CNET's Ina Fried has more news and analysis on all this.
Time for one of Techlog's patented Silly Little Polls(tm):
I think the reason people have not upgraded is because there is no reason to do so. Windows XP works well and Vista provides no compelling reason to upgrade.
Microsoft can tout all the "enhanced security" of Vista vs XP, but it just doesn't resonate with the end users. If people were so concerned about security - enough to upgrade to Vista, anyway - do you think we would still have people connected to the web WITHOUT an antivirus solution on their PC's?
Vista shows no "must-have" feature for the average computer user to justify the upgrade. The eye-candy can only take it so far.
I remember woking for the geek squad back when xp first came out. 75% of PC's that rolled through our tech bench were because of viruses, adaware. malware and other security vulnerabilitys. I dont think the genaral public is eduacted enough to really understand what the benifits of vista are. The security is definitly tighter with vista and does have the eye candy. I purchased a vista machine primarily to stay ahead of the curve and have to admit this operating system is just as reliable as any xp box that i have owned. (not to say that it is flawless) I dont understand why people even bother upgrading machines purchased in 06 or below due to the pricing of computers, why spend 2-300 dollars on an OS and other upgrades when you can bye a whole machine preloaded with Vista for 3-500 dollars. This is where the education factor comes into play.
Out of curiosity, how many of the 65% of people who said either "No effect" or "Couldn't pay me to use" have ever used Vista on a capable machine? I do use Vista, and find it just as usable as XP. Then again, I am a M$ fan, and don't know much about computer compared to some people.
I have vista on a capable machine. However I got it through my school. I'm independent as far as preference other than I'm a PC guy. Vista runs my games cleaner and everything but if it wasn't for M$ strong hold on the game market I would be a sole Linux user.
If I had to buy it even after using it for about 1 year I wouldn't. I use Vista Business and it does everything I need it to do even amazingly sets up all the drivers without even asking for a CD. But it is way too pricey and Vista Home Premium and below are horrible. Vista Business and up are ok.
Vista Home Premium and below is horrible of this MS Technet article: http://forums.microsoft.com/technet/showpost.aspx?postid=1185469&siteid=17&sb=0&d=1&at=7&ft=11&tf=0&pageid=0
See next comment for rest of reply.
I have vista on a capable machine. However I got it through my school. I'm independent as far as preference other than I'm a PC guy. Vista runs my games cleaner and everything but if it wasn't for M$ strong hold on the game market I would be a sole Linux user.
If I had to buy it even after using it for about 1 year I wouldn't. I use Vista Business and it does everything I need it to do even amazingly sets up all the drivers without even asking for a CD. But it is way too pricey and Vista Home Premium and below are horrible. Vista Business and up are ok.
Vista Home Premium and below is horrible of this MS Technet article: http://forums.microsoft.com/technet/showpost.aspx?postid=1185469&siteid=17&sb=0&d=1&at=7&ft=11&tf=0&pageid=0
See next comment for rest of reply.
Apparently the only way to fix it is to go into the Management console and add the Local Service group to the Administrators group in the Users and Groups snap-in. Well Home Premium and below do not allow access to the Users and Groups snap-in due to "License Restrictions". Also Home Premium and below don't even have an Administrator account which really bugs me because even Windows XP Home has the Administrator account for fixing the computer if you reboot into Safe Mode.
The only thing Vista Ultimate has going for it is Media Center, Bitlocker, and Games. However the built in Vista games can be added in the control panel as a feature in Vista Business through the Programs and Features. So that just narrows the list down to just Media Center and Bitlocker. Any other applications are either useless in my opinion or fullfilled with software such as Nero for CD/DVD burning.
See next comment...
My final decision would be go for Vista Business as the best product even for home if you're an intermediate-advanced user because unless you utilize and need Media Center or need your harddrive encrypted like a government organization then Ultimate seems almost a waste.
Hopefully I didn't write an entire blog here over your blog but it was basically explaining why the price drop doesn't affect me much as an advanced technical professional.
I have a laptop with Vista, it's a pig. It hardly functioned with 512 megs of memory and with 1 gig it's still pretty damned slothful. I'm savvy enough to have made XP run quite securely so the added security in Vista is just redundant and annoying, the constant windows that pop up to tell you that your getting ready to change something however minor are overblown. When I bought the S.O a laptop for Valentines I got it from Dell with XP, runs nicer and cost 150$ less then the Vista version. Vista is a scam AFAIC.
I have been using Vista for 8 or 9 month. It has worked for me and I really don't understand all the negitive hype. I recently deleted all of my wife's pictures accidently. Using Vista's restore to previous version saved the day for me.
My sister bought a Laptop Vista (HP) and when she uses Works it keep on telling her it is not responding when she want to do some thing else in works for a couple of sec. I use XP Word and I have never had that kind of problem. As for the price drop, it does not make me run out to upgrade or run out to buy a newer. XP works fine with MacAfee and game are just great for a 3-year-old computer. Chang is hard to do when something is working great. I am with XP until it dies.
I already use Vista Premium. For me, it works better then XP did. However, I recently bought an 24" iMac with OS X Leopard...guess what; my windows machine has been turned off ever since i made the switch. I guess i turn it on today to get the Service Pack and update anti virus....
I'll switch to Vista when you tell me the advantages. I hate to say it, but perhaps Mac is a better way to go if I had to give up XP.
I have been using Vista for about 6 months and agree with those above who said they don't know what the negative hype is about. Honestly, I have almost no problems with it. I run Vista Ultimate because I got it for cheap and it runs flawlessly. All of my games run perfectly and Adobe Photoshop and After Effects also run perfectly. Once you turn of UAC it is nicer than XP. Really, people have incorrect information and bad media hype telling them that Vista is really problematic. Heck, it even finds update drivers for ATI and NVidia cards for you or at least lets you know that there is a newer on. That is a nice feature if you aren't computer savvy. Maybe it isn't worth $300, but then again, paying $125 for a new OSX version every year makes it cheaper than OSX since verison one. Pay for a new MS OS every 3-5 years or a new OSX version every year. They both work and both have flaws ... but ultimately, both get the job done.
I have been using Vista for a good 9 months and I don't understand the negative hype either. if you don't like UAC, turn it off, and don't complain. I also want to stress that you run Vista on a CAPABLE machine. According to this post:
"I have a laptop with Vista, it's a pig. It hardly functioned with 512 megs of memory and with 1 gig it's still pretty damned slothful.
dwharbin
February 29, 2008
1:18 PM PT"
I am sorry, but all I have to say is... BS. run Vista with 2GB of RAM and it will FLY. Btw, OS X has its own version of UAC, just as annoying. I have to type my administrator pw when moving system files (sure, that might be a good idea, but still annoying), and installing programs! and AFAIK, you can't turn it off.
I don't want to offend any of the above posters, but are you all crazy? Or are you all employed by Microsoft?
Vista is a failed operating system. It's the equivalent of Windows ME for a new generation. It was designed to satisfy Microsoft's partners and not the consumers. It's junk and it will be gone before you know it. Every new feature comes with too steep a price (in dollars, hardware, or aggravation) regardless of any change in the retail cost.
I'm like a sizable subset of people who still use an XP machine: I have too much invested in hardware and software which will not work properly with Vista to ever even consider an OS upgrade like that. My next upgrade will be a new motherboard for my existing system, and I'll reinstall my existing version of XP on it (which is perfectly legal).
And unless Microsoft changes their mind about the June 30 deadline (and they will probably have to), there will be a lot of upgrades like mine in June.
+
Vista is Just Fine
Enough with the techno-ignorant comments that Vista is as bad as Millennium. Are you people mo-rons ?! Vista was very stable when it was released last Spring and it's only gotten more stable since then. My V Home Prem came pre-loaded on my HP Touchsmart and it's been great since Day 1. I didn't like the constant pestering of the UAC so I've disabled it, done. No further complaining about it. I'm behind a hardware firewall like everyone with broadband and multiple PCs so I'm well protected just from that. To borrow from Chris Crocker: "Leave Vista alone!"
as i voted is the poll, they couldn't pay me to use Vista, actually, how much are we talking about here......... :)
as I already voted in the poll, you couldnt pay me to use vist. actually, how much are we talking about here....... :)
Six months ago, I bought a new PC with Vista Home Premium. A month after I bought it, my bro-in-law from Oklahoma wanted to check his email, and couldn't believe how slow it ran, compared to his (slower) PC with XP. I recently repaired a friend's Toshiba laptop, which is a PIII with 512 MB of RAM (I have 2GB). This PIII is faster with XP than my PentiumD is with Vista. And no, I'm not running all the eye candy. And when is Vista gonna learn how to save my folder settings? Or which directory I save documents to? The other day I had to download a bunch of pdf files from the internet, and about every third file, I had to remind Vista that I wanted them in the \Documents\PDF Files\ directory. XP may be considered geriatric by some, but it hasn't succombed to PC alzheimer''s like Vista has!
Am I the only Vista Home user that has complained about a system so slow that literally every click of the mouse takes 20-25 seconds. Do you realize how long it takes to get through files at that rate or to find something? It has been like this from the start. I bought this machine WITH Vista on it and figured that it would be built for Vista. I have written to Gateway AND Microsoft about the problem, but neither of them have answered me. I would LOVE to have a solution to this problem that is now almost a year old. I've put up with this for WAY too long and am ready to chuck it all and purchase a MAC. IS THERE ANYONE WHO CAN GIVE ME KNOWLEDGEABLE FACTS TO TAKE CARE OF THIS PROBLEM?
You could pay me to buy Vista... pay me enough to purchase my new MAC!!!
YES! Dear Diana, the way to solve this is with an old DOS command, please use format c:, then install Linux or quickly get a copy of XP-PRO while you can. Vista, just be thrown off the nearest "Vista" by a cliff! They took out all the usable apps, then hold them hostage as "Upgrade Versions" ie: business, ultimate and so on.... This software should have a BETA-label on it!
any tech person knows...NEVER USE 1.0 of ANY software as it's really a "Public-beta-test" ! this is how they pay for it, or really how WE pay for it! Xp-pro is the best, most stable, full of features OS that is the most compatable with the widest variety of hardware & software. Sorry, I feel your pain, I own Vista and have removed it, went back to Xp-Pro & Linux (at least it's free) and love then both! How about Microsoft ASKING what we want & what we like, then making it better! The ARK was built by an amatuer (Noah)...The TITANIC by skilled professionals! N-Joy!
I, like others here, have been happy using Vista for over a year now. RREAM, you didn't post enough info to diagnose your problem, please navigate to microsoft forumns for help. Diana try turning off indexing.
What programs are people trying that are not running? Every program I've installed has run just fine, though some turn off Aero to run, but other than no problems at all. I'm interested in knowing what you've installed that isn't working.
Finally, Microsoft never has been nor ever will be responsible for companies like HP not coughing up drivers, if your printer doesn't have drivers blame HP! By the way, just wanted to thank HP for NOT releasing decent drivers for my photosmart printer. I bought an Epsom printer that uses a lot less ink, I'm spending alot less in ink!
rkinne01, thanks... but I tried turning off indexing... along with alot of other "tixes". Nothing worked. I use programs such as Photoshop CS3, which my XP laptop has NO trouble running. All the programs that are on my Vista Desktop are also on my XP laptop and my laptop (though I only have 1/2 the RAM on it) run MUCH faster! I have no viruses, my Virus software tells me, but again, I cannot get anyone from Microsoft or Gateway to pay any attention to my pleas for help, so I am turning to MAC. I refuse to pay Microsoft techs for THEIR problems. I've already paid them enough!!!!
I have to agree since i am in the IT world, Vista was a ME insult to the new users in 2007. Hardware does not work with it and secondly they admit that the new service packs are not to fix other issues. It is a shame that next year the new OS will be out called Windows 7 and that will kick people in the butt. Also Vista has issues no on really wants to admit them. so MS messed up again and always will. we just live with it or change OS's
I prefer XP or Linpsire. Hey check out Linspire its ike MAC OS X and it runs on anything
I forgot to mention in my Vista complaint above that my CD/DVD writer no longer works as it used to... it's fickle... I cannot drag/drop anymore - it keeps asking me for a "useable CD", though they are the same CDs that I used before one of the "auto" updates... since then, the stupid thing can no longer work as it once did... now it's a complicated work-around to get it to record. Everything about Vista for me has been nothing but frustrating. I spend 2/3 of my work time waiting for it to work or trying to figure out why it won't work... that's WAY too much unproductive time on the computer!!! Years ago, my 286 was faster - REALLY!!!
"I have a laptop with Vista, it's a pig. It hardly functioned with 512 megs of memory and with 1 gig it's still pretty damned slothful.
dwharbin
February 29, 2008
1:18 PM PT"
I am sorry, but all I have to say is... BS. run Vista with 2GB of RAM and it will FLY.
anfy
March 03, 2008
9:01 AM PT
Your kidding right?!? You call B.S. and then tell me that 1 gig of memory is'nt enought to make my Vista laptop "Fly"? My S.O.'s XP laptop flys with 1 gig of memory and that was before I tweaked it. Vista may have some virtues but have you noticed the plethora of Craigslist ad's that begin or end with "Wont run in XP"? Microsoft did what it has ALWAYS done ie: shoved it out the door before it was done. They finally perfected XP and now they think it's time for us all to buy the next thing, which I guess might be a thought if there was something Vista did that was markedly superior to what XP can do. I never had a security issue using XP so getting Vista for that seems redundent.
I demonstrate to al my friends and family that Vixta is a real solution! you can, too! Google for Vixta!
DL, butrn the image to CD, reboot!