Windows Vista beta 2
-
May 23, 2006 03:58
4.0/5
Although Microsoft copied off of Apple's Operating system(which I use and I like) I'm glad they didn't copy the whole thing. The one major advantage of Vista is the awesome game friendly software bundled with the system. This is not only for PC games, but Live Anywhere will be integrated into the "gadgets" section so Xbox 360 owners like myself will have access to Live marketplace and friends so a global community is established once people switch. This is very nice because now if you're on a PC you can download stuff to your Xbox 360 from anywhere and play PC gamers. I am very happy with the integration of PC and Xbox 360 features. Great and best OS for gamers. I am glad Microsoft paid attention to security XP was by far the easiest OS to hurt but Vista definitely isn't. The search tool is obviously nice I use it on OS X at work all the time and now it will be available on a PC. I like the new flip 3d ability it looks very promising as well as the live icons when using alt+tab and flip 3d(I noted that when you do the same operation is OS X that the minimized windows do not display a Live icon but what you minimized as in the same image). I am also enthused about the Media Center Integration. This will be very nice I do not have Media Center but can't wait to use it via my Xbox 360 in my living room. Portable ram is also nice with the ability to use flash drives as speed boosters which you can move from your laptop and desktop. Also what is nice is the new interface. The see through windows are a nice touch and make Vista seem more mature and complex than XP which it certainly is. Overall I am very pleased with the direction that they're going with the OS but they really need to catch up to Apple. OS X and Vista on the same computer is pretty enticing if you ask me. -
June 15, 2006 05:24
Spectacular
2.5/5
I downloaded Vista Beta 2 last week and installed it on my desktop (2.8ghz P4 HT, 1gb RAM, 120gb HD, DVD Burner etc) and on my laptop (centrino 1.7ghz, 512mb RAM 60gb HD etc). My laptop, while it did start windows, failed misirably. Windows was so slow it was pointless and I'm back on Xp already. 512mb just cannot support Vista.
My desktop faired a little better, but I had to upgrade my RAM to 1.5gb to speed up to machine to "normal".
The first thing I noticed was that Vista include Media centre as standard in the ultimate version so I tried to connect my xbox as an extender for my pc. Big mistake. I got a message on my xbox that "this discs region is incorrect for this console. please go to www.xbox.com/support for more information". Following this my PC, which was supposed to be connecting to my xbox, crashed needing a restart.
I know I'm listing all the problems I found with vista but unfortunately their the biggest thing about the OS. The audio in the system is worse than crap. I installed itunes only to find that Vista would not let the icons be placed on the desktop properly , a security issue, go figure!. Anyway, the audio, when playing audio on either itunes or WMP there is an annoying clicking behind the music that is really noticable on a system with a sub woofer.
Once you get past these and a few more problems with vista its actually a good OS. It runs very well with Office 2007 and also with all the included programmes.
Games are a bit iffy. Battlefield 2 would not run properly for me at all no matter what i did.
Another piece of advice i would give is do not install this version on your laptop! It will eat your battery as the gfx demands are huge, my bat went from 3.9 hrs in XP to 1.2 with Vista, and the machine gets really hot.
I would recommend getting vista purely for interest purposes but only install it on a machine that is good enough to run it and with no important files on it. While the tech specs on microsoft .com list 512 RAM, i personally would not install it on a mchine with less than 1.5 and at least 2.8ghz. It will eat your resources.
callaghan001 -
May 24, 2006 12:48
3.5/5
I am tired of the Apple FUD being spread on this site. There is nothing wrong with having an opinion, but people need to keep objectivity in mind when doing a review. The Vista operating system is neither a 1 nor a 10. Further, it is not a carbon copy of OSX.
It has a number of very interesting features. A number of which are not even found in OSX. One would do themselves a service to download the Windows Vista Product Guide (as a comparison). -
August 9, 2006 10:57
4.5/5
This is by far the best looking OS I have seen. Very stable for a beta, can't wait to see the final version. -
July 15, 2006 09:39
4.0/5
This is a review for the 97% (yes, that's MS' world market share!) of us that are currently using Windows and are interested in seeing how the new version stacks up to XP. I'm not interested in how Vista stacks up to OS X or Linux and will not discuss it here.
I've been using Vista for several weeks now and I like it MUCH better than XP. The overall experience is really quite similar, but Vista offers a more polished and user friendly computing experience.
After spending time using Vista, going back to XP feels, well, kinda dorky. The best comparison I can think of is upgrading your car from a Toyota to a Lexus. Even though the Toyota was good, getting back in it after driving a Lexus...it just doesn't satisfy anymore.
Improved features: visual effects
"Aero glass" effects (transparent window borders) are a drastic improvement to XP's "Playskool" borders. They feel sexier and more mature--very slick. Another nice visual improvement is the smooth fading effect during screens and window transitions, which makes for a more pleasing, less abrupt navigation experience.
Improved Alt+tab functionality displays thumbnail images of active windows instead of only an icon, plus the new Windos+tab feature offers a very cool rolladex-style window selector/switcher that flips through screen shots of each open window.
Vista also adds "Gadgets," (aka widgets) which are mini programs that run on your desktop and display information you find useful. I was running a similar program in XP and am glad to see it integrated into Vista. Gadgets I chose to run include a stock ticker that updates periodically, a CPU/memory guage, a "my pictures" mini slide show, an RSS feed, and a mini poker game. The gadgets make your desktop more interesting and eliminate the need to continually navigate the internet for often accesses information.
The downside of these visual "bling" features is, of course, higher demand on your processing power, which may slow down systems not designed for heavy lifting.
Improved features: Start menu
The Start menu in Vista is greatly improved in my opinion. A "Start Search" feature added at the bottom allows you to find programs and files with a few keystrokes and eliminates the need to click through multiple menues or folders to get what you want. This can be a big time saver, but the feature further taxes your processing capability because a search indexer runs constantly in the background to make it possible. I think the extra load is worth the added convenience.
If you're anything like me you find XP's flip-out folders in the Start menu annoying. I was VERY glad to see that MS did away with that and replaced it with tree-style menues that stay within the confines of the menu panel so you don't have to chase them all over your display--thank you MS!
Improved feature: security
Some reviewers find it annoying, but I'm glad to be bothered by the new "permission" screen once in a while. Every time a program attempts to install or wants permission to extract information from your system Vista goes to a black screen that asks you if you want to grant permission to the program. This means you always know what is running on your system and which programs have access to your information--only the ones you want!!! Compare this to beefed up post 9-11 airport security: a worthwile hassle? Arguably so. One change I hope MS makes here is the option to grand "permanent" permision to programs like your anti-virus software so it doesn't have to ask you every time you boot up.
Microsoft has beefed up its security suit in Vista to the point where you only really need to run anti-virus software. This has meant less hassle and increased simplicity for me, as well as $$ savings when it comes to software purchases.
Other changes:
There have been a lot of other subtle changes such as the way you access options in the control panel and the size of icons on your desktop. It takes some getting used to, but things are generally more accessible and easier to use in my opinion. It's a fairly big change from what we've become accustomed to, however, so if you don't like change, this may be a source of frustration for you.
Other improved or new features are auto defragmentation running in the background (keeps your system from slowing down over time as files become spaced out on your hard drive), better assistance with and troubleshooting for failed drivers and programs (Vista will search for solutions for you and often direct you to an updated driver, software, etc.), and a cleaner, less cluttered look and feel.
Overhauled versions of Windows Media Player and Internet Explorer are included in Vista. I like the changes to both of them, but I won't review them here.
Summary:
Vista won't blow you away, but it offers a nice set of improvements over a stale XP operating system. The look and feel are greatly improved and many of the annoying little things about XP have been dealt with. It's not going to convert any Mac or Linux users and that shouldn't be a surprise. It's that age old business story--MS has just gotten too big to be the most innovative company out there. Let's just be glad that there are companies like Apple out there that have a small enough customer base (1.43% of the market) to spend time being innovative. Give MS credit for at least getting up to speed with Vista and even offering a few new and innovative features and improving the overall experience.
As a side note, it's amazing how many Mac and Linux users use reviews to try and convince themselves and everyone else that they are smarter and cooler than the 97% (!!!) of the world's computer users that are using Windows. I'm glad you are cooler, give it a rest! -
May 25, 2006 07:10
4.0/5
First of all, I would (also) like to point out that barring the new aero glass interface, Vista is not a copy of Mac Tiger. It really does go far beyond in several ways. And compared to previous versions of MS operating systems and their beta versions, Vista has really outdone itself, which makes me glad that MS has been listening to users for the most part. Yes there are a few significant kinks, but this is the beta version, and MS has seven (may be more?) months to wipe them out before releasing the final product to the end-user. -
May 23, 2006 01:30
Good
1.5/5
Seems like Microsoft is taking a lot of ideas that have already been implemented in OSX and is giving them new names...years after OSX. No thanks, I'll stick with the original and keep my Mac. -
May 24, 2006 08:47
Good
1.5/5
Microsoft promised us a revolutionary OS that would leap ahead of everything else out there. They have taken years and years to get this thing out the door and it's been delayed and is rumored to be delayed again.
What does this review show us in Vista Beta 2?
Gadgets are OS X's Widgets, which are Desktop Accessories that appeared in System 1 on the Mac in 1984. Desktop Accessories were little applications that would run on top of everything else with tools like a calculator and calendar, etc. This was back in 1984.
Microsoft copied this and also copied the implementation, which comes from OS/2's side bar that had gadgets.
Vista comes with Parental Controls, which has been in OS X.
Vista has a cool GPU-accelerated user interface -- OS X's Quartz Extreme for years.
Vista has a search -- OS X's Spotlight.
Vista's Flip3D is a very poor attempt to copy a patented OS X Exposé. So let me get this straight, flipping through the windows one at a time in 3D space is more productive than cycling through them full screen with ALT TAB? This is garbage. Exposé is a dream because it puts all of your documents scaled down on your screen, side by side. You see all of them at the same time. It's really easy to identify the document you want and then click on it.
Windows Vista finally doesn't run you at root level. This is very good. The implementation may be crap, though, with dialogs coming up all the time for every single thing.
Windows Vista has a photo program -- OS X's iPhoto.
Windows Vista has a DVD authoring program -- OS X's iDVD.
Windows Vista has a calendar program -- OS X's iCal.
Seriously, a company that makes billions in profit every single quarter is outclassed by a much smaller company like Apple? How is Apple able to create all the great ideas and implement them in a fraction of the time as Microsoft? Doesn't Microsoft have any original ideas?
That new help system in Vista was in the Mac OS in 1997! -
May 23, 2006 07:23
3.0/5
Besides haveing a cleaner look and better navigation, this OS is the start of locking down audio and video content on the computer. One day you will never have to buy a disk to have Windows you will only be able to rent it by the hour. I know I may sound offbase but that is where Microsoft would like to take it. That is, out of the hands of consumers and only controled by Microsoft itself. Think if it this way, Microfsoft would never have to make another disk. Instead it would lease the operating system outright. -
August 4, 2006 05:53
Spectacular
2.5/5
It's not bad, but it isn't really all that good either. Here's a breakdown on how I rated Vista (1 being worse than XP and 9 being better - remember, Vista is only beta and this is not the latest build):
Performance: 3
Stability: 5 (it's actually lower, but provided that it's a beta, I let it slide)
Features: 6
Ease of use: 6
GUI/UI: 8
Now I don't see where people say it's the biggest change since Windows 95, as high level, it's still virtually the same design. I was surprised how Vista picked up my Canon i560 the second I plugged it in, unlike XP that needed the Canon drivers. Almost all of my hardware and software worked on Vista. Here's a breakdown on how that went.
System specs:
1.5GB of DDR PC-2700 RAM
Ati Radeon X1600 PRO with 256MB of GDDR2 video RAM AGP 8x
AMD Sempron 64 2800+ @ 1.6GHz
WD 80GB 7200RPM IDE 2MB cache HD (Windows XP)
WD 120GB 7200RPM IDE 8MB cache HD (Vista)
Creative Audigy 5.1 24-bit soundcard
19" Proview monitor (CRT)
What works:
Canon i560 (printer)
Sandisk Cruzer Mini - 512MB (pen drive)
Generic 8-in-1 card reader
Rio S35S MP3 player (use XP drivers)
Visioneer 5800 scanner (USB) (use XP drivers and restart the computer before using)
Rio Music Manager 2.9
Logitech Wingman (controller)
Lavasoft Adaware SE Personal 1.06
Ares 1.91
Mozilla Firefox - tested on 1.5 and also works on 2 beta 1
Microsoft Office XP & 2007 Beta 2
GAIM 1.5.0 (crashes when inserting a picture)
HP Photosmart Photo Printing 1.3.1.19
Print Artist 8.0
DAZ Bryce 5.5
Microsoft Picture It! 10
Quake III Arena (I recommend not using full screen)
Adobe Photoshop 5.5 (Works better with glass disabled but will work with it on)
Avast! antivirus 4.7
What partially works:
Creative Audigy soundcard (used the kx drivers and also used the old Creative drivers for an old build of Vista - got a BSOD from that, but worked after a restart)
Microsoft Plus! for Windows XP (Error during install and Labyrinth game doesn't work, sounds in screensavers also do not appear to work)
What Doesn't Work at All:
Microsoft Picture It! Premium 2001 (program starts but crashes after doing much more than that)
Asus Probe (all versions) (Get a 'NTVDM encountered a hard error when trying to install' message.)
