Windows - Vista or XP?

[FlopShotArtist]

Which do you use and which do you like better? (If you use an older version of Windows, Linux, or have an Apple, just don't post)

I had Vista on my laptop for about a year. It was always SOOOOOO slow and so hard to find stuff on. Last night I finally just said forget it and reformatted my hd and put XP on it.

Can't be happier. Other than the fact that Toshiba doesn't really have any built in drivers for XP and I had to go online and find drivers for the particular model (Satellite A135-S4527) just to connect to the internet, have audio, video, etc.

Runs RIDICULOUSLY fast - I love it!

XP > Vista

[MunkeyGolfer]

Working in the IT department with well over 1000 computers, I still say XP over vista. The performance is just outstanding with Xp and SP 3. Dell (who is our major supplier) is still selling us computers with xp. A lot of them say they only come with Vista but we request xp and get it . With all that said, at home I have a Mac and run Vista with boot camp and it is the fastest Vista that I have seen yet.

Bottom line, on a pc, XP wins hands down. On my Mac, Vista wins.

BTW if anyone who has XP and hasn't installed SP 3 yet, it increases the performance by roughly 10% if you install it .

Disclaimer: if your computer explodes, implodes or starts to smoke from the direct result of installing SP 3, blame Microsoft, not me

[Craig Mac]

Windows XP Pro SP3 on both home computers. My only experience with Vista is fixing my landlords computer every couple weeks

[tonyy]

As a Mac user I'm going to vote Leopard! hehe.

Anyway, my parents still use Windows and I'm gonna go with XP. Vista is neat and all but it's damn confusing/annoying. It runs slower (so it seems) and XP is a lot easier to navigate.

[iacas]

Neither.

[alf174]

Engineering tools I use haven't been ported for Vista yet so XP Pro for two of the laptops and Vista for the laptop that I use for general purpose stuff.

[Surefire]

I use both but as a software developer I like lots of the new toys available in vista.

[GaijinGolfer]

Right now Ive got an older Dell Lattitude laptop that runs on XP. It works pretty well.
My parents recently bought a new Dell laptop that has Vista and it runs waaaay faster than my computer does with XP.
With my computer, you have to wait a minute for it to load when you first turn it on, with my parents' computer as soon as you turn it on, its loaded.
With mine, when I clicked on a program it takes about 10 seconds for it to load. With my parents' computer, it loads instantly.
Granted, my computer is about 5 years old and their's is brand-new, but even still, I think Vista works better.

[FlopShotArtist]

Right now Ive got an older Dell Lattitude laptop that runs on XP. It works pretty well.

Sounds like your computer is full of all kinds of sh.t causing it to load slowly. A fresh new computer with XP loads faster than a fresh new computer with Vista.

[Smallville]

XP. I'll get Vista when I HAVE to. At least til they stop supporting XP.

[FlopShotArtist]

XP. I'll get Vista when I HAVE to. At least til they stop supporting XP.

My computer doesn't support XP - I still found a way around it!

[GaijinGolfer]

Sounds like your computer is full of all kinds of sh.t causing it to load slowly. A fresh new computer with XP loads faster than a fresh new computer with Vista.

Not really. Ive got about 20 pictures on it and Ive got the required software to go on AOL, but other than that it just have the normal windows software.

I scan for spyware and viruses every couple of days and my software is up to date, so I know thats not the issue. My computer is about 5 years ago and from what I understand, they gradually slow down over time. Before my parents got their new laptop they had one that ran on XP. Same thing, the one with Vista runs way faster than the one with XP did.

[MunkeyGolfer]

Not really. Ive got about 20 pictures on it and Ive got the required software to go on AOL, but other than that it just have the normal windows software.

You are some what right. A lot of the slow down with older computers is due to hard drive fragmentation (even if you defrag) and the fact that windows is notorious for duplicating files on it's own and not deleting temporary files completely.

If you bought two laptops exactly identical, one with xp and one with Vista, the Xp machine will run faster. When I used Windows, I used to low level format once a year and my computers would last a long time with out much speed loss.

[Harry Longshanks]

Not really. Ive got about 20 pictures on it and Ive got the required software to go on AOL

I am not kidding when I tell you to ditch that AOL software right now. That sh!t will take over your computer and slow it down and crash it. It's a b!tch to even get completely off the computer. It installs so many useless utilities and applications that don't work, run in the background, and generally just grind the CPU to a stop.

My parents used AOL for a long time, and it was always causing problems. If you have AOL for broadband, get rid of every trace of the AOL software and access the actual AOL site by typing aol.com into your browser.

[GaijinGolfer]

Ive also been told that over time they will slowly get slower as the processor starts to wear out.
Im not complaining. Ive gotten my money's worth out of my Dell and it does what I need.

[GaijinGolfer]

I am not kidding when I tell you to ditch that AOL software right now. That sh!t will take over your computer and slow it down and crash it. It's a b!tch to even get completely off the computer. It installs so many useless utilities and applications that don't work, run in the background, and generally just grind the CPU to a stop.

Well, I'll tell you what. Thus far, AOL has been waaaaay faster than the dial-up provider I used to use. AOL has a faster connection speed, the connection is more reliable and my computer doesnt seem to run any slower or crash any more than it used to.

[Harry Longshanks]

Well, I'll tell you what. Thus far, AOL has been waaaaay faster than the dial-up provider I used to use. AOL has a faster connection speed, the connection is more reliable and my computer doesnt seem to run any slower or crash any more than it used to.

Are you using AOL Dial-Up?

If so, I'm not sure you could remove the software even if you wanted too. But if you have broadband (DSL, cable, etc), ditch the AOL software, you don't need it.

[GaijinGolfer]

Yup, dial-up.