Yes, I know we have all been told what Vista will require to run until the world looked level. But honestly, it’s not near as intense as most of us ever would have thought!

Microsoft, for the first time, is telling PC owners exactly what it’ll take for them to run its forthcoming Windows Vista operating system.

As expected, the software giant on May 18 unveiled its Windows Vista Get Ready Web site, along with a set of minimum PC hardware guidelines for Vista Capable PCs—which call for at least an 800MHz processor, 512MB of RAM and a DirectX 9-capable graphics processor, but ask for more for those who seek to use all of Vista’s features—and an Windows Upgrade Advisor application as part of a campaign to prepare people.

Vista, Microsoft’s first major overhaul of Windows since 2001, promises numerous updates for performance, security and productivity. Given that it’s long been expected to require more powerful PC hardware than Windows XP, consumers and business IT managers have been awaiting Microsoft’s recommendations as they plan for upgrading to the OS, due in early 2007, or as they evaluate the purchase of new systems.

But even though the minimum hardware specs for the OS show that Vista will run on just about any PC sold over the last few years, its most advanced features—including the three-dimensional Aero user interface—will require additional performance, causing at least some consumers and corporate IT departments to take a look under the hood before upgrading….. Source: eWeek

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