Is Your PC Ready for Vista? (Don't Count on It.) Steve Bass Friday, April 21, 2006, 01:54 AM (PST)
Remember the hardware hassles you went through when upgrading to Windows XP? Last week BetaNews said half the PCs in use today won't be adequately equipped for Vista. Captain Bill's Microsofties have recommendations, but as usual, they're both vague and unrealistic, something only Microsoft call pull off.
For instance, Microsoft's saying PC's should have 512MB of memory or more. They oughta change the font size on the "or more" because my intuition, based on how XP performs with 512MB, is that you'll need at least a gigabyte, especially if you want to take advantage of Vista's fancy graphics. Me, I'm aiming for 2GB, or more if my PC's systemboard can handle it.
There's more to Vista's needs and you can read about it in No Vista, but 'Vista Capable' Stickers Instead.
BTW, Vista will come on a DVD (the Windows Vista Beta 1 DVD was 2.46 GB). I'm guessing that if you don't have a DVD player, your PC probably isn't ready for Vista anyway.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. Until Microsoft releases precise requirements, all of us pundits are talking through our hats. (Yeah, I know, so what's new.)
Are You Upgrading?
Yes, but I have to do it. According to my editor, it's a job-related obligation. After all, I am in the business of trying all these new things.
What's going to be fascinating, though, is watching the stats to see how many people bother with Vista. My prediction is that not nearly as many as Microsoft hopes for.
My preference, and that goes for the systems I watch over (hi mom), is to stick with XP. It's the most stable version of Windows I've used and it does everything I need (including an occasional crash I can kvetch about). I can't see laying out a grand for four PCs to update my hardware, just for Vista. But I'll concede -- if you're buying a new system anyway, sure, get one with Vista on it.
Check Out Vista Demos
There are a couple of spots for you to see Vista in action.
The first is a Camtasia Studio screencast (from
TechSmith) and you can get to it from Betsy's Weber's
Blog. The screencast shows Vista's voice recognition feature, though you'll also get a good look at Vista's interface.
Then watch as Microsoft's Chris Henley
demonstrates Vista's games and parental controls. Turn your PC's volume down because the opening of the screencast has an annoying -- and loud -- sound effect. While you're at the site, you can also watch Outlook 2007 and Office 12 screencasts.
What about you? Will you stick with XP (or if you're like my brother in law, Win 95), upgrade to Vista, or chuck it all and buy a Mac?
Linear Mode
