[Dixonary] I'm Back Online!

[guerri@tapcis.com]

I am back, the upshot of my computer travails is the purchase of a new one,
and I may post details on tapcis.com later.

The new machine has Vista - no way to quickly get anything else. My initial
reaction is ugh! The fan seems to run way too much, too many unwanted
things come installed, including McAfee which may contribute to the
slowness, and things are generally odd and there is just too much stuff
surrounding even the simplest activity. For instance, I don't happen to
like all my documents going into the Documents and Settings hierarchy as
"my documents" etc. So I wanted to create my own hierarchy under C:\. Took
me awhile to figure out how.

I should mention that this is the "home" version. Home enhanced or
something like that - I forget exactly. I was told there is no "pro"
version, just a business version. Actually I saw a higher level version but
it was not called "pro".

-- Guerri

--------------------------------------------------------------------
myhosting.com - Premium Microsoft® Windows® and Linux web and application
hosting - http://link.myhosting.com/myhosting

[Dodi Schultz]

Welcome back, Guerri!

Condolences on the Vista.

--Dodi

[waynescottmd@earthlink.net]

Vista is a monster. It will not run most software that runs on XP, so you
have to buy a lot more. I found a shop with a person that would convert my
new Toshiba from Vista back to XP. What a relief.


> [Original Message]
> From: Dodi Schultz <SCHULTZ (AT) compuserve (DOT) com>
> To: <Dixonary (AT) googlegroups (DOT) com>
> Date: 3/5/2008 9:39:09 PM
> Subject: [Dixonary] I'm Back Online!
>
>
>
> Welcome back, Guerri!
>
> Condolences on the Vista.
>
> --Dodi

[Lindsey]

Vista is a monster. It will not run most software that runs on XP, so you have to buy a lot more.
Why do I suspect that was at least part of the plan?

--Lindsey

[waynescottmd@earthlink.net]

I think we all know that was exactly the plan!!!


> [Original Message]
> From: Lindsey <slbourne (AT) earthlink (DOT) net>
> To: <Dixonary (AT) googlegroups (DOT) com>
> Date: 3/6/2008 12:28:43 AM
> Subject: [Dixonary] Re: I'm Back Online!
>
>
>
> waynescottmd (AT) earthlink (DOT) net;42353 Wrote:
> > Vista is a monster. It will not run most software that runs on XP, so
> > you have to buy a lot more.
> Why do I suspect that was at least part of the plan?
>
> --Lindsey
>
>
> --
> Lindsey

[Judy G. Russell]

Vista is a monster. It will not run most software that runs on XP, so you have to buy a lot more. I found a shop with a person that would convert my new Toshiba from Vista back to XP. What a relief.

I'm probably going to upgrade my computer later this year... and it will NOT be to Vista. I'm thinking of buying XP now so that I can wipe out any Vista installed on a new computer and install XP!

[Judy Madnick]

From: "Judy G. Russell" <jgr1 (AT) jgrussell (DOT) com>

<< I'm probably going to upgrade my computer later this year...
<< and it
<< will NOT be to Vista. I'm thinking of buying XP now so that I can
<< wipe
<< out any Vista installed on a new computer and install XP!

Vista is really that bad, huh? The laptop I'm using now is going on three years old. There's a good chance that I'll buy a new one within the next year. I just assumed I would end up with Vista but that by then the wrinkles would be ironed out.

Are there issues if we have two computers, one with XP and the other with Vista, and I ever have a problem with the Vista computer and have to go back to the XP computer for a short time?

Judy Madnick

[Judy G. Russell]

Vista is really that bad, huh? The laptop I'm using now is going on three years old. There's a good chance that I'll buy a new one within the next year. I just assumed I would end up with Vista but that by then the wrinkles would be ironed out.

You'd think that, by now, they'd have at least a major service pack available for Vista, but it still isn't available (it should be, by the end of this month or the end of April at the latest, but...).

Are there issues if we have two computers, one with XP and the other with Vista, and I ever have a problem with the Vista computer and have to go back to the XP computer for a short time?

Depends on whether you're running any Vista-only software or whether you have any software or hardware you'd need to use on the XP machine that would need drivers that you don't have already. Generally speaking, you should be fine.

[waynescottmd@earthlink.net]

I think that's a very wise idea.


> [Original Message]
> From: Judy G. Russell <jgr1 (AT) jgrussell (DOT) com>
> To: <Dixonary (AT) googlegroups (DOT) com>
> Date: 3/6/2008 9:30:44 AM
> Subject: [Dixonary] Re: I'm Back Online!
>
>
>
> waynescottmd (AT) earthlink (DOT) net;42353 Wrote:
> > Vista is a monster. It will not run most software that runs on XP, so
> > you have to buy a lot more. I found a shop with a person that would
> > convert my new Toshiba from Vista back to XP. What a relief.
>
> I'm probably going to upgrade my computer later this year... and it
> will NOT be to Vista. I'm thinking of buying XP now so that I can wipe
> out any Vista installed on a new computer and install XP!
>
>
> --
> Judy G. Russell
>
> *-- jgr*

[Tim B]

Due to hardware problems coming at exactly the wrong time, I had a new
desktop and a new laptop in November, both with Vista. I still have an
XP laptop, and the three coexist quite happily on the network at home.

My main problems with Vista have been lack of compatibility. I have at
least 2 Windows applications that don't run on Vista, and support for
DOS applications is very limited. All this has prompted me to start
moving towards freedom from MS software. Apart from Publisher, which I
haven't yet found a substitute for, I'm not even putting MS Office on
the Vista machines, just OpenOffice.

If I had no existing work to transfer, though, I think I'd be quite
happy with Vista!

Best wishes,
Tim B.

[Dodi Schultz]

Judy M:

I hear from geeks in the computer consult business that XP is just plain
banned at some major companies.

--Dodi

[Judy Madnick]

From: "Tim B" <dixonary (AT) siam (DOT) co.uk>

<< All this has prompted me to
<< start
<< moving towards freedom from MS software.

So older versions of Word aren't compatible with Vista?

Judy

[Judy Madnick]

From: "Dodi Schultz" <SCHULTZ (AT) compuserve (DOT) com>

<< I hear from geeks in the computer consult business that XP is
<< just plain
<< banned at some major companies.

XP or Vista?

Judy

[Tim B]

> So older versions of Word aren't compatible with Vista?

I think they are, but why take the risk?

Best wishes,
Tim B.

[JohnnyB]

Judy

>
> So older versions of Word aren't compatible with Vista?
>

Um well -- in the "old" windows / NT days, word for windows (Word97/Word2000) was not always or fully compatible with word for NT
(word97/word2000)

Mind you, MS have just published (in response to a legal judgement) the file-specs for word documents - nearly 800 page pdf - in
which they claim complete legacy consistency --however, one published description of the document is that it reveals thousands of
man-years of development with not a single man-year of design input and there are questions about whether such a publication which
meets the letter of the law is not in fact bloody-minded obscurantism

JohnnyB

[Judy Madnick]

From: JohnnyB <johnnybarrs (AT) gmail (DOT) com>

<< Um well -- in the "old" windows / NT days, word for windows
<< (Word97/Word2000) was not always or fully compatible with
<< word for NT
<< (word97/word2000)

And Word hasn't been backward compatible . . . ever probably, unlike WordPerfect (which is my preference but I haven't had much choice but to use Word because that's how everyone sends documents).

Judy

[fhaber]

Anyone wanting XP on his new machine should hurry some. Last I heard, OEMs cannot sell XP preloaded after June. There are some other annoying drop-dead limits on retail XP and loose OEM copies.

Unless Ballmer can be persuaded, that's it. A shame. I'm not as anti-Vista as some, but any operating system that presumes from the getgo that I am a thieving street vendor in Kuala Lumpur - well, that opsys has a couple of strikes against it.

To be clear, I do prefer XP for all normal business uses. Dell is starting to charge MORE for XP on those machines it offers with both. Yes, Vista prices were just cut by Microsoft - both OEM and SRP. I think that should be a powerful prima facie, even for the Adam Smith types around here.

[Toni Savage]

Hope you didn't pay too much... Staples is the best place to buy these days.... our tech just got a superduper one (he says so, and HE's a tech) for $700 at Staples. And 20% off on all peripherals.

-- Toni Savage


--- On Wed, 3/5/08, guerri (AT) tapcis (DOT) com <guerri (AT) tapcis (DOT) com> wrote:

> From: guerri (AT) tapcis (DOT) com <guerri (AT) tapcis (DOT) com>
> Subject: [Dixonary] I'm Back Online!
> To: Dixonary (AT) googlegroups (DOT) com
> Date: Wednesday, March 5, 2008, 8:25 PM
> I am back, the upshot of my computer travails is the
> purchase of a new one,
> and I may post details on tapcis.com later.
>
> The new machine has Vista - no way to quickly get anything
> else. My initial
> reaction is ugh! The fan seems to run way too much, too
> many unwanted
> things come installed, including McAfee which may
> contribute to the
> slowness, and things are generally odd and there is just
> too much stuff
> surrounding even the simplest activity. For instance, I
> don't happen to
> like all my documents going into the Documents and Settings
> hierarchy as
> "my documents" etc. So I wanted to create my own
> hierarchy under C:\. Took
> me awhile to figure out how.
>
> I should mention that this is the "home" version.
> Home enhanced or
> something like that - I forget exactly. I was told there is
> no "pro"
> version, just a business version. Actually I saw a higher
> level version but
> it was not called "pro".
>
> -- Guerri
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------
> myhosting.com - Premium Microsoft® Windows® and Linux web
> and application
> hosting - http://link.myhosting.com/myhosting

[Toni Savage]

And I've heard that VISTA is banned!

-- Toni Savage


--- On Thu, 3/6/08, Dodi Schultz <SCHULTZ (AT) compuserve (DOT) com> wrote:

> From: Dodi Schultz <SCHULTZ (AT) compuserve (DOT) com>
> Subject: [Dixonary] I'm Back Online!
> To: Dixonary (AT) googlegroups (DOT) com
> Date: Thursday, March 6, 2008, 2:24 PM
> Judy M:
>
> I hear from geeks in the computer consult business that XP
> is just plain
> banned at some major companies.
>
> --Dodi

[Toni Savage]

They are only compatible if you install an "add-in" to read the new formats.

-- Toni Savage


--- On Thu, 3/6/08, Tim B <dixonary (AT) siam (DOT) co.uk> wrote:

> From: Tim B <dixonary (AT) siam (DOT) co.uk>
> Subject: [Dixonary] Re: I'm Back Online!
> To: Dixonary (AT) googlegroups (DOT) com
> Date: Thursday, March 6, 2008, 5:35 PM
> > So older versions of Word aren't compatible with
> Vista?
>
> I think they are, but why take the risk?
>
> Best wishes,
> Tim B.

[Guerri Stevens]

I am toying with the idea, but one of the problems with converting to XP
is that it might be hard to find the proper drivers for whatever
hardware there is. I could not install XP on my original computer
because it would not recognize that there was a hard drive!

At the moment, I agree that Vista is awful. I know that there is some of
it that I will continue to consider awful, but after awhile I will get
used to the new way things are done. Like, as far as I can tell now,
there is no way to say "I want all folders to use this view". I can say
"all folders of this kind", whatever that means.

waynescottmd (AT) earthlink (DOT) net wrote:
> Vista is a monster. It will not run most software that runs on XP, so you
> have to buy a lot more. I found a shop with a person that would convert my
> new Toshiba from Vista back to XP. What a relief.

[Guerri Stevens]

Make sure you can get whatever drivers you need before you do that.

Judy G. Russell wrote:
>
> I'm probably going to upgrade my computer later this year... and it
> will NOT be to Vista. I'm thinking of buying XP now so that I can wipe
> out any Vista installed on a new computer and install XP!
>
>

[Tim B]

> They are only compatible if you install an "add-in" to read the new formats.


Someone pointed out to me the other day that the free conversion
programs from Office 2007 formats to the older formats can be used with
any word processing or spreadsheet software, not just older versions of
Word and Excel.

Best wishes,
Tim B.

[Christopher Carson]

The driver issue is a major 'gotcha' particularly with notebooks. There
have been lot of people on the laptop forum who have discovered that it is a
major PITA finding workable drivers since notebook drivers tend to be
customized by the manufacturer. Plus many of the utilities such as function
key handlers, etc. aren't available in XP versions for machines that shipped
with Vista. Some of the advice given new Vista owners is to make sure you
have at least 2GB of RAM. That seems to be the Vista 'sweet spot' as far as
performance is concerned. A visit to www.blackviper.com will yield quite a
bit of 'tuneup' information on Vista to optimize performance. There's no
help for the learning curve except to grit your teeth and jump into it
although I understand that you can set Vista up to look a lot like XP but
then you miss out on some of the nice things in the Vista interface.

Chris

[Judy G. Russell]

Make sure you can get whatever drivers you need before you do that.

Yeah, that's definitely the key.