[tags]windows, microsoft, windows vista, vista, pc[/tags]

Hours after installing the final beta of Windows Vista (also known as RC2), I’m finding myself a bit warmer to its shortcomings. The new Microsoft operating system will be far from polished perfectly, but I’ve heard that the development team still has a few tricks up its sleeve for the final release of Windows Vista – which should be out in another month or so. My assessment remains relatively unemotional; Vista will make for an “okay” upgrade to XP, so long as you meet the hardware requirements to be immersed in a full Aero experience (Glass). You won’t be there 100% of the time, of course; you’ll find that a number of software titles will actually kick the entire desktop UI into a craptastic “compatibility” mode. It’s jarring (more than ugly). My suggestion? Don’t buy Vista unless it ships with your computer.

I’m keeping my eye out for great software specifically designed for Windows Vista. One “must have” (especially for those of us on the cusp) is a piece of freeware called EasyBCD – which will make it easier for you to dual boot between Windows XP and Vista on the same system. I found it quite handy when I was messing with Ponzi’s new system (with both OSes on it). My laptop didn’t fare so well. I’ve been testing every beta build of Windows Vista on the ThinkPad T41p, but when I tried to reinstall XP on it this last time, I wound up with an inexplicably longer Windows launch sequence (like, ten minutes). No matter, I ran chkdsk and discovered a few faulty sectors. Vista’s back on the lappy, and there it’ll likely remain.

I really do hope that the first official release of Windows Vista feels more complete than RC2 does. I’d encourage Microsoft to issue a user interface service pack before 2007 ends – but I’m not holding my breath. Are you ready for Vista?