Windows Vista Tips And Tricks

holy bunch of MS bull
they can make it simple to change over and use the old files from winXp or they can keep the crap vista in the store,
i was not going to change over but started to think about it lately,
that is until i seen your post here.

i think i’ll pass on the vista i have room with a good view already.

why get a new vista with an out house in the middle of it.

Seems a bit odd that you’re switching to Vista after panning it in all your prior reviews.

I am not surprised at the inability of Vista to read / write / mount ISO images… Seems Microsoft has bowed down to the DRM “gods” and has removed certain features of Windows that MIGHT POSSIBLY be used to circumvent copy protection, thereby “dumbing down” “the world’s most advanced operating system”. You can look forward to much more of this kind of thing in the future. I.e. your old $200+ PCIE video will no longer give you anything better than 800X600X256 colors because it does not have the encryption keys built into the BIOS, forcing you to purchase a $400+ video card that has the keys built in (all part of DRM, my friend). And that is just the beginning!! Look to replace your DVD drive, sound card, etc., etc….
I would suggest everyone listen to Leo and Steve interview Peter Gutmann on their “Security Now 74″ podcast. VERY interesting information about the “cost” of implementing DRM in Vista. We MAY go to Vista where I work, but I seriously doubt I will ever load Vista at home… XP seems to work just fine for my needs, thank you very much.

I think your blanket statement; “Your software won’t work” is a tad overkill.
All my Office 2000 apps work, I just don’t use PIM. Even Publisher 97 works. Never heard of Miranda IM and what’s Segoe UI?
The only app, and I have many, that didn’t work in my Vista migration was Rex Mail Backup.
Network Magic handled my networking without a hiccup.
Some minor glitches but, hey, so does my new Toro one pull start lawnmower.

luv this, paul

Vista has some HUGE security and performance flaws coded in, on purpose. Read the forums at http://www.grc.com and articles at http://www.badvista.org. MS is pushing the entire personal computer industry into a new direction that most of us will not like.

Multiple links here: http://badvista.fsf.org/what-s-wrong-with-microsoft-windows-vista

I’ve been using Vista for about 2.5 months now on an Inspiron 9400, 2gb of memory, Core 2 duo and high end graphics card. I’ve also been using Office 2007.

I use GAIM for my IM client and it worked fine.

I’ve also been using a Novatel XU870 express card (had to switch to an expressCard because the laptop doesn’t have a pc card slot), using the Novatel software to connect to cingular - the software works but is a little flaky when taking out the card.

The video on the laptop was jumpy until an update was released by MS about the middle of Dec.

I put Paint.net on it for a graphics program and it works great as does adobe’s reader.

My ISO mounter of choice is from Daemon tools - they have a 32 and 64 bit version (I’m running Vista 64 bit as an experiment on another box).
Yahoo’s Music Jukebox also installed and works - but probably needs an update to be a little more stable.

The biggest problem with software I”ve found is not running the applications but shutting them down. for some reasone many of them crash during shutdown.

The 64 bit version won’t run some things, but then I can always startup a virtual PC running an older OS and I can run anything I want (having 4gb of memory helps).

Other than the issues mentioned above, I’ve been very happy running Vista.

I’ve also got a 2gb SD card in the built in slot to be used by readyboost - does it make a difference? good question.

Thank the e-gods you have the courage and the knowledge to venture forth where we mere mortals would surely have been left confused, lost and overwhelmed. I look forward to reaping the rewards of your adventure with confident appreciation.

I hear that Vista is far to intrusive in checking all your software and Computer for ??

Like it or not, sooner or later we’ll be forced into using Vista - maybe not for a few years yet but eventually. It appears my Epson scanner and printer won’t work in Vista, so I’ll have some ugrading to do (along with the ubiquitous video card replacement) - but the moment will come when support for XP is ended and no more security patches will be issued, or you’ll find a software package that will only work on Vista - as with Win 3.1, Win95, Win98, WinME, and now XP - they’ll all be gone and it’ll be a Vista world.

Until the next version of Windows is released after that…

or maybe Linux will have taken over by then (uh, huh).

x

thats the point anna i have said it to chris before,

and in several other forums but never in an out right manner like this.

MS, kills the previous os systems with updates that have errors in them. just about 2 months before they announce they are getting ready to release a new os. or program like ie.
the same thing has happened ever os they changed too. the evendince is overwelming. and the fact they are making another os that wont use the same add ons like our printers or scanners like they did with the new os to stop all other os’s winXP, just proves it more.

The fact is Anna, that Linux can only “take over” if people start using it. I for one am planning on moving to Linux when I eventually upgrade my Windows XP machine. For now, it does everything my wife and I need it to do, and there is plenty of open source and freeware Windows software to keep it doing what I need for a good long time.

My main complaint with Vista is not even the DRM issue, although I don’t relish having to have top of the line hardware made for gaming in my pc made for computing. My main problem with Vista is quite simply the expense involved. It is an expensive OS. Since I am able to play with Linux at work, I have found that it is very easy to work with in most situations, and where there is a problem, a solution is probably already available if you have a little time to look for it. Will I recommend it to friends when they start looking at new PC’s, if the Vista loaded ones get too expensive? Yes. There is definitely an adjustment in terms of what programs to use, and how to interact with the PC, but much of that can be removed with a little bit of time setting the machine up.

That said…

I second Daemon tools for iso mounting, although I wasn’t sure if they worked on Vista, glad to see someone else has already tried it and had it work. We have several people at work who have been using Vista a good bit for a few months, but I am not sure what software they are using for things. Vista should be interesting in the office environment. Thanks for taking it on.

I for one have ran a little experiment to test Windows Vista Business edition. My main concerns are that Soundman.exe (Realtek AC ‘97 Audio Driver Utility) didn’t work, and installation of Visual Studio (VS) 2005 was painstakingly long. You have install SP1, then SP2 for the SQL Server Express, then SP1 Update for Vista (currently in beta). VS worked fine after that though!

I also recommend running Daemon Tools on Vista, works like a charm! I love the fact that it doesn’t intrude in the slightest, but just sits there as a tray app to let you know it’s there should you need to employ it.

I love the new user interface, but hate the annoying “Are you sure you want to do this?” box that pops up every time you do something other than launch an application. As an administrator with elevated permissions, this type of thing should be disabled by default (although that can be done as well).

As I said above, the only thing I have an issue with is the sound drivers, because Vista didn’t recognise my AC ‘97 audio chip, quite possibly one of the most common audio chips in the world.

The Beta ATI Graphics Drivers installed and ran fine with Counter Strike: Source, but for an operating system that has been out in various beta and Release Candidate forms for some time now, you would have thought that ATI would have had some concrete (i.e. “Non-Beta”) drivers by now.

There are a lot of nice touches in Vista which genuinely do give it a great look and feel. I’m glad i’m lucky enough to qualify for a free copy through University and not have to foot a bill for it!

Pete Crane, you wrote: “All my Office 2000 apps work”
Are you using 32 or 64 bit version?

Does OFFICE 2000 install and work with Vista 64 bit version?
Thank you!

The reason M$ blocked the ability to process iso files in Vista is becuase that’s the way people download Linux — through iso files. Duh!

I have the vista upgrade ripped onto my desktop from a friend. WIll the upgrade work if i just use deamon tools to upgrade? Instead of mounting it onto a disk?

Aaron - did you find a solution for soundman.exe not working? I have the same problem with my AC97.

I have not found any solution for soundman.exe not working. I wondered about following Aaron’s suggestion and downloading SP1 for Vista, but that seems to be for Visual Studio, which I don’t have.

I had the same problem as Aaron and Helen. There is a solution to for the Realtek AC97 Audio, if you go to their site, you can now see they have upgraded the drivers for vista. I download it and mine is working fine again now.

http://www.softwarepatch.com/utilities/ac97-realtek-driver-vista.html

I forgot to mention soundman.exe is working fine. I’d recommend that people keep a eye on their manufacturers websites regarding hardware because they are upgrading for compatability with vista, some just take longer than others.

Some of this is pretty humorous.
M$ stopped iso because linux dist is iso LOL!
GNU is worked up why? Because vista works and costs money? HUH? Isn’t it like comparing apples and oranges? As far as running GNU on vista either turnoff the ask option or author needs to provide a cert.
linux as an alternative? LOL
With the amount I have invested in my hardware I need it to do more than the few things linux does and a little less clunky.

I am trying to get the XU870 work on windows vista. But the system crashes every time i insert the card into the slot. Has anybody a solution on how to get it work?

Rob Keiser said that this card runs on vista.

But how?

I have now upgraded to Windows Vista Business as my main OS, and still had the Woundman.exe issue, so going to follow Jenn’s link. Other than that, there is no problems so far. I just had FireFox extensions to download, VS2005 to install and then finally my iPAQ.

Has anyone else tried installing office 2003? I have, but found that Outlook gobbled so much RAM that I decided to remove it and use the Windows Mail and Windows Calendar instead, which wrok much quicker as they are far more lightwwight.

I’ve successfully installed the updated sound drivers and they work perfectly. I realised that Outlook 2003 slows down due to the way that it activates on Vista. It’s running fine now.

Jenn, thank you for the updated RealTek driver link!

Hi guy’s i will start with i am not as good as you but i am geting ther,i have two laptop’s one on windows xp and one on windows vista i am usto xp a lot more and many of the programs i like dont work on vista but i can say that vista is a lot better and i think that in about a 1 or 2years will be great.
Just want it to ask if i can put xp on vista but on other hard drive and the same on xp or is inposible.
A and about the ISO with me is aweys working great on xp and vista.

My email is kgbangela@hotmail.com

About the wicrosoft offica 2003 on vista i have 2007 and 2003 on vista,but the laptop i have is with a lot of memory so with me is working great .