Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate FULL VERSION [DVD] [OLD VERSION] Reviews

• Second verse, same as the first but twice as loud and a whole lot worse.

  
  By A1F92EK0MUNOVR on 2007-05-02
  Meh.
  
  Vista reminds me of Windows XP except:
  1) It's prettier. Hey, translucent window frames! Neato.
  
  2) It's far more annoying. Have you seen that "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC" commercial where the secret service guy is standing behind the PC asking him to approve or disapprove everything? Vista is totally like that. It's extremely annoying. Simply trying to run a built-in program from Windows' own control panel will pop up a box asking me if I want to run it. What's up with that? I just clicked it, so yes, I want to run it. You'll run into a lot of these and they don't really improve security because after the first 100 times, you're not even going to read the box anymore. One day it will say, "A hideous virus wants to delete your hard drive and send nastygrams to the President. Approve?" and I'm going to say yes simply out of habit.
  
  I also say this feature fails the "dad" test. Is my dad going to know when to approve or disapprove things? I can picture him puzzling over the dialogue, wondering why it's asking him that.
  
  3) There's a problem with Vista wireless networking. You can find people talking about it through Google but there's nothing on the Microsoft site about it. Every 60 seconds, Vista polls for new wireless networks whether it needs to or not, which will give you a ping spike. If you're surfing or downloading you won't notice, but if you're gaming, it's extremely aggravating. If you switch to a wire, the problem will go away. If you switch to XP, the problem will go away. It's purely a problem with Vista wireless.
  
  4) What I really care about are my other programs, not my operating system. We are getting an ever more aggressive, annoying and resource hogging operating system when all we really want it to do is shut up, sit down and enable me to run my other programs without too much interference. Microsoft seems to think that most people log on purely to enjoy the operating system. No, we log on to enjoy our OTHER programs so this big bloated operating system is just getting in the way and hogging the resources that our other programs wish they had.
  
  I would love to see a "Windows Skeleton" operating system that simply stripped out all the annoying, resource hogging junk I didn't want and let me run my applications in peace.
  
  
  Edit:
  I've been using Vista for a while now and I just want to say I still stand behind my initial 2-star rating. My final analysis:
  
  Stick with Windows XP for as long as possible.
  
  I think the bottom line is that Microsoft's efforts to improve security and kowtow to concepts like DRM have created a problem worse than the initial threat. I've gone for years with nary a hit on the various anti-virus programs I've used, and yet here I sit with a crippled operating system which seeks to save me from a problem that I never really had to begin with.
  
  And it's true what they say about gaming: some of my games are experiencing problems which only occur in Vista. I don't know the technical source of those problems, but only Vista users are getting them.
  
  The semi-mandatory "driver signing" is annoying too, and will only get worse with Windows Server 2008. I download brand-name drivers from companies like Nvidia and I have to follow their directions that basically say, "ignore all the Vista warning messages you're going to get".
  
  Vista is just downright unfriendly to the consumer AND to the developer.
  
  I second the motion that you should at least wait until Service Pack 1 is out, but truthfully, I'd suggest just running Windows XP until you're absolutely forced to upgrade for some reason.
  
  Edit 2 (December 07):
  The way Vista separates Administrators from Peasants on your home system really doesn't help anything. A lot of the programs out there have an auto-update section which doesn't work unless you run the program as an Administrator, which means quite a lot of stuff has to be run as an administrator, which means the whole act of separating it out is nothing but another poorly thought out "security" measure that adds way more in annoyance than it adds in actual security.
  
  Also, I was going to access Microsoft Support to notify them of a bug I'd found, which is highly annoying and easily reproducible. On their support web site I find this gem:
  "90-day no-charge support begins on the following dates:
  
  * From the date you place your first support request.
  * For Windows Vista, from the date you activate the product.
  
  Cost:$59.00 US per support request after all no-charge support is used."
  
  So wait...
  
  It's going to cost me $60 to report this bug in your software?
  
  And if I'd bought XP, I could report it for free since it would be my first support call, but since I bought Vista and activated it more than 90 days ago, it's going to cost me?
  
  Chalk that up as yet another reason to not buy Vista. Stick with Windows XP.
  
  
  

• The best things about Vista - My Two Cents...

  
  By A3SVPT0JZYYBY0 on 2007-01-31
  Here is what I love about vista, for a full review with photos go to [...]
  
  Windows Start Menu
  Start menu is something we're all used to. Since the old days it hasn't changed much, until now. Finally, it is easy to use and navigate through; it has a bunch of options, and a nicest thing of all - if you make a good use of it you'll have to see it only for less than a second when starting an application. The reason why this is possible is thanks to an integrated search right into it. Sure thing, before it was easy to just click a Windows button and R (Run command), and then run say "notepad" or "calc", but what if you want to run Photoshop, Dreamweaver, or any other application which does not lay in your system's path for easy find? Well that's where this search bar comes into place and if you make yourself use it to run applications instead of looking through the list of all programs you will be amazed! I just type "dream" and a Dreamweaver opens up. Productivity boost? You bet!
  
  Sidebar and Gadgets
  Sidebar in Vista is OK. It is really not as cool as widgets are done on Mac OS, but it's good enough I suppose. I really like a simple design it presents, and it's nice to have couple of widgets like weather, analog clock, system up-time and maybe battery monitor always at a glance. Check out my sidebar below.
  
  User Folders
  You'll see that Microsoft finally changed the way things are stored and named in your personal User Folders. Namely, there is no more My Documents, My Pictures, etc. but rather, since it is logical that all of those are My folders, they followed common sense and named everything without that annoying "My" prefix.
  This helps in couple of ways, firstly if you have a lot of folders in your personal user folder, you can start typing the name and get to the folder in matter of milliseconds. On the other hand, your Pictures, Music and Videos do not reside in your Documents folder any more (thank God), but rather in the user folder itself. This way you can put all of your stuff in the user folder where it is easily found, and accessible. This makes backups of all of your files really easy easy as well since they all share a common place.
  
  Shadow Copy
  This is a really important and great feature. How many times it happened that you overwrite or make changes to a certain file (document, photo, etc.) and then you realize you wish there was a way to go back and undo the change, either immediately or couple of days later. With Vista, this is possible thanks to the Shadow Copy. You can go back in time and revert to any version of a file at your convenience. Thank you Microsoft! :)
  
  Network Center
  Networking took a major overhaul and it is really user friendly. Everything is controlled through a Network and Sharing Center and all of the little but important options about your network preferences are right there in one window. Besides connection to other networks you may set Sharing and Discovery preferences and easily control (and always know who) has access to your files, printers, media, etc.
  A very cool thing is that you can specify the location type for any network connection, and Windows will automatically apply the correct settings for that location. For example, you can designate any network you connect to as Home, Work, or a Public location and Windows will do the rest.
  
  Backup
  Finally there is an simple way to backup files in Windows. Windows Backup existed for a long time but for a novice user it is definitely too much to set up. Now, with Backup and Restore Center at our fingertips it is easier than ever. Within two minutes you can have a daily backup scheduled and then you can simply forget about it. The interface could not be simpler, you choose what types of files you wish to backup, (Documents, Media, etc.), set the backup location (say your external HDD), and that's it. Vista will go through at the times specified and create an incremental backup of all files you desire. There is also an option which allows you to do a full system backup - which you can restore in case of a system failure, emergency, or whatever may come your way...
  
  Mobility Center
  For laptop users, this is a really cool gadget. You get a small control panel with an instant access to the volume controls, battery status, network status, external display configuration, sync center and presentation settings. The most important details for any laptop user all in one place. If you are about to give a presentation you can easily turn on the Presentation Mode, and your default settings for such task/event will be applied immediately. You can set special wallpaper, turn off the screen saver, access the external display and set the desired volume with one click of a button.
  
  Windows Defender
  With all kinds of Malware going around the internet, it's nice to have Windows Defender inside Vista by default. Besides protecting you against malicious software, it also comes with Software Explorer tool which gives you a nice view for managing important security-related areas of the computer such as: Startup Programs, Currently Running Programs, Network Connected Programs and WinSock Service Providers.
  
  Reliability Monitor
  This tool is a great thing, especially for a geek like me. If you ever wonder what's going on inside your computer at any given time, open up the Reliability and Performance Monitor and check out anything, from what the CPU is working on, what applications are writing/reading from a hard drive, to what applications are using the network, as well as how much memory is being used by currently open programs. Really, just an amazing informative tool!
  It also lets you run System Diagnostic test which generates a beautiful Report on pretty much everything! It even gives you suggestions on how to improve system's performance if such action is needed.
  
  Parental Controls
  I do not have kids yet but I find this feature to be really great. In the world we live in today, it really is important to protect your family in all ways possible. Parental Controls in Vista let you do just that, so you can rest assured that when your kid (or a friend) is On-Line, they can do everything within specifically preset limits. You can restrict certain websites, set log in time limits so you can make sure your kid is doing homework and not playing on-line, set game ratings you approve, and limit any specific applications from being run on the computer by that user. It also comes with Activity Reports which let you see at any time top 10 websites visited, logon times, applications ran, games played, etc.
  I use Parental Controls for a special Friend account, to set the applications friends who visit me can run, and what they can really see on my computer. There is a Guest account in Vista as well, but I prefer to do it this way since I have more control.
  
  Clock
  Looking at a clock is such a trivial thing, but once you get some more options you realize what you've been missing on. In Vista you can set two more different times you'd like to keep an eye on, and with a simple click on a clock in the taskbar, you can pull up a widget with a calendar together with all of your time zones. Calendar is also integrated so effectively that getting to a date you desire can be accomplished with minimal effort.
  
  Photo Gallery
  Not that I use the Photo Gallery much, but I just may start doing so. It is beautiful, useful, and with everything just a click away. You can touch-up photos, tag them, rate them, add captions, print, email, burn them to a CD or DVD, and make movies with them - all with a click of a button. Everything is accessible right from the Photo Gallery itself, so you will have no more excuses why your photos are not organized and why your friends are still waiting for a disk with photos from a New Year's party a month ago.
  
  3D Flip
  Yea, everyone brags about this as being a really cool thing. Flipping through the running applications as if they were slides in a 3D environment. I think it's nice, but I am not yet used to it that much. Mostly beacause I forget it exists, unless someone stops by and then I have to show off my Vista a little bit. Therefore, once I get into my head that it exists - I bet I'll use it more often. It's pretty!
  
  Power Options
  Finally some more power to the (mobile) users; we are now able to fine tune everything from hard drive running time, wireless adapter preferences, even PCI Express, USB and Processor Power Management. There's a lot more too, and I really love it since it really means a lot when I can set up my laptop to last 3 and a half rather than 2 and a half hours on battery!
  
  Ready Boost, SuperFetch and Hybrid Drive Support
  Vista comes with couple of never before seen terms which all spell: performance and efficiency.
  There's never enough RAM on a computer, so if you are not really looking for a RAM upgrade, or you just can't fit more into your machine, Ready Boost comes in handy. Some of those super fast USB flash disks and hard drives can be used by this Vista feature and pretend like they are RAM - therefore - you get to work with more applications without need for Vista to bother too much with those slow swap files on the hard drive.
  SuperFetch is a memory -management technology built in right into Vista that keeps track of all applications you use most frequently and it preloads them into memory. Its algorithms are able to detect even which programs you most likely run on weekends, and load those into RAM for a faster access just before you're about to use it. Maybe this is why I am experiencing a really fast opening of both Dreamweaver and Adobe Photoshop. They are just snappy!
  Hybrid Drive technology is developed jointly between Microsoft and Samsung. Hybrid drives are those hard drives which come together with some amount of Flash Memory on board, besides the conventional hard drive space. They offer an extended battery life for laptop computers, faster application access times and faster resumes from the sleep mode. When the drive is not much in use it can turn off and use its energy-efficient flash memory for data storage until that buffer is filled up or new data is needed directly from the drive. It is a promising technology and definitely something I'd like to have - therefore it's in my faves. Vista supports it right out of the box.
  
  And for grandparents - BIG ICONS
  Vista icons have changed, and they can be rapidly resized and still stay very smooth. This makes it just awesome when my grandma is browsing the computer, since she does not have to wear glasses in order to look for a CD icon in My Computer, but rather see it immediately because it can almost be sized up to a real-life CD ROM. Check out the screen shot! I love it, and she loves it. Also, with a nice control over the fonts, I can easily size those up too, and then everything will be Crystal Clear for her.
  
  And last, attention to detail
  Even though many say Vista needs some more polishing done, and I agree to a certain extent, do note that developers at Microsoft did pay attention to those nice little details we all start appreciating once we experience it. When renaming a file, in most cases we do not want to rename the extension as well, so to make our life just a little bit easier and more productive, developers went a step further. When you click the file name, only the name is automatically selected so if you start typing - the extension will stay the same. Thanks!
  
  So, this has been my two cents why I will definitely NEVER ever go back to the Windows XP again. It just doesn't cut it!
  
  

• RTM is a surprising improvement over beta builds and RCs.

  
  By A1JIQJ0WTVKT9Z on 2006-12-22
  I tested various beta builds of Vista throughout its development process, and I must confess I thought I would end up hating the end product. However, Microsoft has cleaned up the final build nicely and the RTM is very much a polished product. The new Aero interface is pretty slick, and the visual effects are delightful (though hardware intensive). In addition, the new Sidebar allows you to customize your desktop with various gadgets such as calendar, weather, news headlines, or notes. User Account Control will take some getting used to, although it does help to bolster Vista's security; anti-virus software is incompatible with Vista due to hardened security, so the onus is now on users not to click anything stupid.
  
  While the new eye candy and tightened security are certainly exciting, there are a few drawbacks that prevent me from giving this product a 5-star rating. Most are "what ifs" but are still worth considering.
  
  First, Windows Vista has been thought to contain significantly restrictive DRM technology. In particular, I have not yet been able to determine whether or not Vista complies with the CGMS-A standard and obeys broadcast flags on analog TV signals. If so, this would allow broadcast and cable channels to specify whether or not content could be recorded. It seems ironic that your 20-year-old VCR might serve you better when it comes to recording television than your brand new Vista PC's Media Center would.
  
  Second, Microsoft has been pushing its Genuine Software Initiative. The Product Activation scheme devised for Windows XP has been taken a step further, with Vista reverting to a "Reduced Functionality Mode" if it is not activated. However, one major difference in Vista is the ability to force a machine into Reduced Functionality Mode once it has already been activated. If you have Windows XP and ever tried to download anything from the Microsoft site (including Automatic Updates), you might remember having to validate your copy of Windows. If your license was deemed "genuine" you were able to download your updates or the new version of Windows Media player, and if you were determined to have an illegal copy of Windows you were refused access to the downloads. The consequences of having an illegal copy were minimal: you couldn't get some of the latest and greates utilities, but you could still use your operating system. In Vista, this has all changed. If your computer fails a Genuine Advantage check, Microsoft will flip what techies lovingly refer to as the "kill switch". Once you fail the genuine advantage check you will be constantly prompted to reactivate and your computer will revert to Reduced Functionality Mode if you fail to do so. Most people would say "so what? I paid for my license, so I'll be fine." However, the first round of the Genuine Advantage program under Windows XP caused so many problems that even Microsoft published a workaround for if your machine was erroneously denied access. Unless Microsoft has made some drastic improvements to the Genuine Advantage technology, many people will again find themselves blacklisted by Microsoft for no apparent reason - and this time the stakes are higher because the end result can be that your operating system is forced into Reduced Functionality Mode, effectively rendering it useless.
  
  DRM and licensing restrictions have long been a gripe of technology enthusiasts. Together, they combine to offer the end user less control over his/her machine than ever before. This, coupled with the ever-present privacy concerns over Windows needing to "phone home" all the time just to guarantee a valid license, is no small cause for concern. It remains to be seen how intrusive these new technologies will be, but the potential for disaster is certainly present.
  
  Big brother aside, performance issues also work against Vista. Windows is now more of a CPU, memory, and graphics hog than ever before. While I have not noticed considerably slower performance, I have noticed shortened battery life on my laptop while running Vista. Despite the "advanced" options for enhancing the mobile experience, I am not convinced that Vista will be a viable choice for laptops.
  
  Overall, new features and a revamped GUI provide a nice experience - if your hardware can handle it. Despite the improvements, I still have concerns over DRM and the "kill switch" that prevent a 5 star rating. Hopefully time will prove me wrong.
  
  

• OK, but don't expect too much!

  
  By A2RIXSMGE9VIBG on 2007-01-28
  I have used the official company ultimate version for about a month now and i will cut right to the chase. unfortunately the cons outweigh the pros....
  
  pro: more modern interface, somewhat more securer, better networking
  
  con: way too expensive, vista is more like an upgrade than an entirely new OS, some menues (like windows explorer) are very confusing, several popular programs (divx, quicktime) do NOT work right, or at all, including some MS programs (visual studio, sql server)
  
  verdict: unless you like to have the latest of everything or the money doesn't matter, keep on using xp until the first vista service pack.
  
  

• Terrible product - here's why

  
  By A1IO93OKI5A23F on 2007-06-12
  I was really looking forward to Vista. I ran out and got my copy as soon as it hit shelves. Two weeks later, I uninstalled it. I don't know when, or even if, I will reinstall it. Here's why:
  
  1) Game support - BEFORE you buy Vista, make sure your favorite game has a Vista patch, because it most likely won't work otherwise. Check online to ensure that they are compatible, because many just aren't.
  2) Immature drivers - in point 3 below, you'll see that Vista flat out does not support many hardware devices. Even for those that it does, the drivers are so new, that the device (like my GeForce 7900GT) actually run SLOWER in Vista than XP.
  3) Hardware support - most vendors are NOT releasing Vista drivers, to force people to buy new hardware. For instance, my scanner (Epson) has no vista compatible driver (I tried the XP driver), and neither does my camera. BEFORE you buy Vista, check to see that your hardware is supported!
  4) Copy protection. Like to copy a DVD so you can watch it whenever you want? Forget it! It WILL NOT happen in Vista, M$ made sure of that. Same thing with programs like TuneBite that let you convert WMA songs into MP3s.
  5) Antivirus. Vista's security it, well, more secure than XP. But the antivirus applications compatible with it are VERY lacking at this point. And there are already viruses (virii?) out for Vista, so you DO need it.
  6) Firefox - many sites do not work under Firefox with Vista. And some extensions do not work. I can't help but think this might be intentional.
  
  
  
• Five Years And This Is It?
  By A11D1KHM7DVOQK on 2007-01-31
  For some time now Windows has been nagging customers about their new software. Well, not nagging, but over-advertising, should I say. I currently have XP. I will keep buying Windows's operating systems for the simple fact that not only are their OS's are cheaper, but are much, how to I put this, more intruitive to the internet world. I might as well be the very first person to "see" and play around with the Vista so far (just through reading reviews). Microsfot promises a much more stable and secure computer, two factors Mac has ALWAYS and probably will forever have above them. The question is, what really are they doing back there in Microsoft land? No offense to all the hype of the OS, I'm sure I will want to upgrade within the next two years but I must ask, how on earth is this consdiered better than XP?
  
  Now there are many factotrs to an OS, this one not so complicated. Really the most unimpresive thing was that it was already made. And chances are, you own it. There's not much of a difference between XP and Vista other than some new features that may spike an impulse buy. But please BEFORE you do that, know what you are buying into. There are really only a few reasons to upgrade from XP to Vista.
  
  1. You want to network with Windows. XP doesn't really have such a great networking stradegy, if it really is one to begin with. It is a way better OS than XP as far as linking computers together. This also makes it much easier to share a DSL internet connection, but even then XP has this feature, and its not that hard. Wireless networking also comes in, thanks to ethernet, Bluetooth, and other collabrations.
  
  2. The way you open windows. And even then, is that really a reason to upgrade your version of Windows. Anyhow, it comes with a slick black/chrome scheme. Opening and minimizing Windows becomes more like a Mac. You can view your Windows like a flow or in 3D.
  
  Otherwise, most of Vista is a true dissappoint.
  
  Security is a big issue with Windows computers and you should always have Norton, McAfee, AVG, or some sort of third party anti-virus vendor. And in Vista, you still do, because much like its big brother XP, it is full of security holes. The firewall is really nothing more than the one you have with XP. It asks you when certain files try to download onto your computer, but that's about it. It doesn't really try to stop viruses or adware, something a Mac is virtually prone to. Otherwise, same old, same old. Firewall, and that's about it as far as what Windows offers for security. They also have their Spyware detector, but Ad-Aware is not only cleaner and more efficent but has a longer list of definitions. Lame. And the look, nothing more than having your Windows XP taskbar, menus, and start button black. Nothing at all has yet to be added on to it. No dock, no easy search, no nothing. Just your same old XP look, only black and chrome. Yawn. (Besides, can't you get those for free online?) The so called "Aero" graphics window frames are nothing special. The only interesting feature is that you can mouse over the items you have open. Lame. Also, no multimedia enhancements. Same Windows Media Player and same DVD maker. Lame. The so called backup program is awful. You have to back up a whole thing of files, like "My Computer" or "Documents". Lame. Also know if you are planning on upgrading Vista you must have a pretty good computer or your sstem will just keep on crashing. Of course XP does that enough. Not very comforting to know Vista does that more than XP. Lame.
  
  Oveall, not a needed upgrade for your Windows XP system. Some networking features are nice, and the look is slightly appealing, but otherwise it's Windows XP packaged into a different box. The enw security features aren't really anything, nothing new with multimedia, and the new backup program is a complete dud. Keep your XP system, this isn't worth the extra hundred dollars. 2 stars.
  
  
• Smooth Install--Excellent Performance
  By A15TYEW9AG6SN on 2007-02-03
  Having bought and installed every version of Windows this installation and upgrade (from Windows Home XP) was the smoothest. Microsoft's Beta testing appears to have been very successful. By the way, I am just an average home computer user.
  
  Vista first inventories the software and hardware and indexes whatever files are needed for the transfer. Then it installs, which took about an hour in my case on a Celeron D CPU at 2.13 Gigahertz and a little over 1G of memory, with the standard Dell-Intel graphics chips (not exactly a high-end computer).
  
  The look and feel and the interfaces and integration of Vista with other software is awesome. The software has killer diagnostic tools that are a cut above the usual third party software algorithms--for example, Vista remembers what has been tried and tells you so if you try to repeat a recommended "fix". I liked, and installed two "gadgets" in the left sidebar--a floating office--style clock and a calendar.
  
  All the software on my machine functioned after the install and reboot, even software Vista identified as possibly not working--in my case, the Intellipoint mouse software. It did work just fine.
  
  The install did kill my broadband internet connection for a brief time; and after going 'round and 'round with the idiots at Adelphia/Comcast customer service--who stated that company modems did not work with Vista, and that they are not ready to offer help for their customer running Vista (do not believe them)--I fixed the connection after discovering (through a Vista diagnostic tool) that competing firewalls from Windows Security Center and Windows Live One Care were blocking inbound streams.
  
  In fact, Vista has a very nice feature in its Windows Security Center (that helped me fix my broadband connectivity) which tells you when you have competing security features enabled. In my case, it was two firewalls, one of which (Windows Lived One Care), was set to "restricted". When I removed this firewall, and left the Security Center firewall enabled everything worked perfectly.
  
  By the way, despite what I read elsewhere, my iTunes runs smoothly. I also have lots of third party software (defraggers, spy removal software, password software, etc.) on my computer, and all of it, except the well-known buggy and unstable System Mechanic 7, operates without problems, and did so without having to download "patches".
  
  I believe Microsoft did a great job on producing and testing Vista. I highly recommend it to anyone that wants to move beyond XP.
  
  
  
• Not ready for Primetime....
  By A1D45ZHOPX3HW5 on 2007-04-03
  I bought Vista to get the inevitable familiarity over with as early as possible and what I discovered was an operating system not even close to being compatible yet. Half if not 80% of all routers are not Vista-ready yet, so you can't get a network running for at least a few more months. Any accesories you own with your system no longer work unless they're compatible.. (ie, printers, scanners, burners, etc) so you not only buy an operating system, you have to buy an entirely new set of hardware to go with it. Majority of my programs did not work with Vista, be it Adobe software, Maya, Poser and God forbid any games you own like Warcraft. For the expense and complete hassel, it's not worth owning until eveything is "Ready" (which will probably be a year from now) Save your money. - I returned my copy.
  
  
• Update: save your cash - stick with XP..
  By A1IILFFC2EUXFC on 2007-01-31
  Another UPDATE - 06/15/2008: I replaced my pc with a quad core Q6600, 4gb's of ram (3.3 useable with 32bit Vista), a 150gb Raptor drive and Shuttle barebones system. I'd planned on building a new computer anyway so the expense wasn't directly tied to trying to make Vista run faster. Now that SP1 has bee released and various other updates, I can finally say Vista's pretty good. Smooth, reliable, fast and good looking. The catch is that you need a fast machine. The moral of this story? don't be an early adopter of a new o/s.
  
  UPDATE - 05/17/2007: Unfortunately, I let my enthusiasm for an updated o/s affect my first opinion of this product. After living with Vista Ultimate for about four months, I can't recommend switching from XP. Especially if you have anything less than a fast dual core processor, a minimum of 2GBs of ram, a video card in the range of a Nvidia 7 series or higher. The driver support has improved over the last few months and the o/s is almost as stable as XP. My biggest complaint is speed. Prior to 'upgrading' to Vista, XP ran very quickly on this machine. This with an Athlon 4000+ and 1GB of RAM. Boot times were very fast. Programs started quickly, file transfers were quick, windows snapped open and minimized in a blink. In other words, XP had an overall snappiness that I really appreciated. Vista on the same machine runs like a '68 Volkswagen Van. Boot times were slow - very slow. At least twice as long as XP. Programs were slow to start and close. File transfers are slow. Certain programs ran so slowly I stopped using them. Webroot's Spysweeper for example. With XP in this machine, a complete system scan might take 10-15 minutes. It took somewhere around two hours with Vista. Juice, a podcast receiver, worked but consumed so many cpu cycles that the machine was unuseble while downloading new podcasts. In fairness to MS, slow running, third party apps can't always be blamed on MS. It could be that the software developers haven't done their job and tweaked to support Vista. I tried ratcheting back the visual effects, I increased my ram to 2GB's, I used a 2GB flash card for ready boost and carefully tweaked start-up programs and processes. Nothing seemed to help until I upgraded my cpu to an Opteron 185. I also installed a faster hard drive. Now after ~4 months, I finally have a machine that approches the performance of my old XP rig but I had to spend hundreds of dollars for the pleasure. Bottom line, I can't think of a single reason to move to Vista from XP. Forget the hype about Vista being more secure. It is straight out of the box but if you're using a security suite with XP (ie.Kaspersky, Trend Micro, Norton..), Firefox and use a little common sense, Vista has no real-world advantage over XP. Bottom line, save your cash and stay with XP (or Ubuntu or Apple for that matter). I'm really disappointed with Vista - I wish I would have saved my cash. Apparently a lot of Dell customers feel the same way as the Dell website offers recently started offering XP as an alternative to Vista. I wish Amazon's review system let me change the original star rating. If it did, I'd change it to 1. I'm really disappointed in Microsoft - six years and this is what the consumer gets. Microsoft has officially jumped the shark with the release of Vista.
  
  Original review:
  Buy the oem FULL version. You will save $$$. Search Amazon for "Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate 32-bit for System Builders [DVD]". I didn't know Amazon sold this so I purchased it from another vendor for 199.00. Amazon's price is very close at 219.00. The only downside to the oem version is a POSSIBLE enforcement of the single use license. Supposedly you are limited to only one computer for the life of the hardware. In other words, if your computer is destroyed, the license seems to say you'll have to buy another copy of Vista. There's a lot of chatter about this but I suspect that Microsoft will honor the license as long as there are reasonable circumstances involved. I'd guess that if in a year or two when I build another pc, it probably won't be a problem to use the oem license. Regardless, caveat emptor. The vendor I purchased from jumped the gun and started selling Vista about a week ahead of the official launch. I installed and have been playing around with it for a few days now. I did a clean install which went fairly smoothly and quickly. Certainly less than 30 minutes. Right off the bat there were updates from Microsoft. First impressions: driver support isn't quite there yet. If you have any peripherals that are a couple years old or are from smaller vendors, you may find yourself out of luck for a while. I use an M-audio external soundcard that M-audio doesn't even have a beta driver for yet. At least two programs I like and use regularly won't run in Vista. Vista has an XP Service Pack 2 compatibility mode but this didn't help in those two cases. Luckily, Firefox installed painlessly and works very smoothly. The new Vista security features are nice and are very much 'in your face' but not in a bad way. The warnings are necessary for the average consumer in my opinion. The overall look and feel of Vista is somewhat similar to OSX from Apple. From the genie effect of minimized windows, widgets (Microsoft calls them Gadgets) and an overall look and feel not unlike the Apple Aqua interface. I wish the look was a little more anti-Apple if only to demonstrate some individuality. Vista appears to be a solid, reliable, good looking and well protected o/s. However, at this point I can't think of a compelling reason to recommend moving from XP to Vista. When XP was released, the killer app was stability - XP is leagues ahead of 98/ME in that area. If you're currently using XP service pack 2, update regularly, not running in admin mode by default, use a two way firewall, anti-virus, anti-spyware and using a little common sense (all these things apply to Vista and to a somewhat lesser degreee, OSX), moving from XP to Vista doesn't seem to yield any dramatic security improvements. Security is supposed to be the killer-app in Vista for the average consumer. Vista is better looking and makes for a smoother and more pleasant computing experience but it's not a must-have. If you can't resist, I'd wait at least 3 months for the driver support to firm up or make sure beforehand that your peripherals are supported. The hardware requirement is more modest than what I had come to expect based on reviews. I'm using a AMD 4000+ (2.4 Ghz), 1 GB of RAM, an Nvidia 7800 GTX, nForce 4 m/b and a 7800 rpm hard drive. This is probably a higher performing machine than average but not exceptional by current standards. Vista runs very smoothly with programs opening and running a little faster than XP. A lot of people are recommending 2GB of ram but 1 seems to be fine in my case. Using the Vista CPU and RAM performance gadget, RAM useage rarely exceeds 60%.
  
  
• The Cost is Ridiculous!
  By A77Z8LXC0Z5ZQ on 2007-02-16
  Regardless of the details, good or bad, of the operating system, it's silly expensive! The Premium Upgrade versions force you to install it on top of XP. Wow... isn't that great! One of the most aggregious examples of Corporate Greed I've seen in years!
  
  
• Incredible Operating System
  By A2JQ3OFWOH6KX4 on 2007-01-30
  I waited several hours in line on the night before release to be one of the first to use Windows Vista. I must say that Vista is an amazing operating system. It is hands-down the best product that Microsoft has ever put out, and probably the best operating system that the world has ever seen.
  
  Why upgrade from XP? There's so much new in Vista that your head will just boggle. From new Internet Explorer 7 to desktop search features to a virus / spyware scan utility that eliminates the need for Norton, Vista is on the cutting edge of technology. Another thing that impressed me is the improvements Microsoft made to the little games that come with the OS. Solitaire, Minesweeper, and all your favorites are back with improved graphics and game play along with newcomers like Chess and Hold'Em. Did I mention the the Aero desktop environment is the worlds first 3D desktop?
  
  Windows Vista is more than just an incremental upgrade, it's on a whole new level compared to XP. Congratulations to Microsoft for releasing an amazing product. They spent $6 billion and five years on this operating system and it really shows.
  
  
• Long Wait - But Well Worth It
  By A6HFJSPR84BZ3 on 2006-12-14
  I am running the RTM version of Windows Vista for almost 1 month now:
  
  The concerns that Vista is a resource HOG are unfounded!
  The sweet sport for hardware configuration appears to be:
  
  2.0 Ghz processor better, 2GB RAM, Video Card with at least 128 MB RAM, minimum of 10-15GB for fresh HD installation.
  
  The OS is sleek, solid and quite reliable. The are numerous tools and utilities built into the OS that will make the average power user quite happy. At the end of the day, the UI will make almost everyone very happy! It feels like a new OS and that ultimately is what consumers want when they upgrade.
  
  Great new features include:
  1) integrated search capabilities built into every aspect of the OS
  2) abillity to save customized searches as "virtual folders"
  3) choice of integrated anti-virus, spyware and malware protection
  4) 64-bit version of OS included with every version (most users will want to stay 32-bit for a while)
  5) AERO "Glass" User Interface
  6) New versions of IE, Windows Media Player
  7) Extremely quick installation times (most machines can get a full install done in under 35 minutes)
  
  Oh BTW - did I mention that Microsoft finally got the security down solid?
  don't let anyone tell you that User Access Control (UAC) is bad; it isn't - its what makes this OS more secure than any previous MS release!
  
  If you consider yourself a "power user" - make sure that you purchase the "Ultimate" version. There are OS features included in this packaging that can not be gotten anywhere else!
  
  Finally - bite the bullet and do a complete fresh install on the targeted PC - avoid the "install on top of XP" approach at all costs!
  
  
• Get your Pitchforks we're going to Medina!
  By A1GX4R797QZZP8 on 2007-05-04
  Full disclosure: I'm a casual computer user who browses the internet, writes film reviews with Word, and balances his finances with MS Excel. I don't have a grudge against MicroSoft nor do I work for their competition. I was suckered into getting this product as it came standard on my new laptop PC. After a week of using Vista, I must say it completely sucks. On a very superficial level, it lives up to its name with pleasant, softer looking features. But it is just not user friendly. I don't like the changed file views, I am not getting used to the different operating methods (which were much more gradual and easy with XP and prior versions), I fail to see the usefulness of the "switch between windows" button next to "show desktop" on the toolbar, and I still can't find "find" on Internet Explorer. To say nothing of the bucketful of programs which simply won't work with Vista (one example: I installed a little Mahjong video game but loading it causes the whole computer to seize up). Finally, look at the $350 price tag shown above. Is anyone on Earth (outside of government agencies and poorly managed large corporations) dumb enough to pay that price to upgrade to this trash?
  
  I never disliked Bill Gates before Vista, but if the man believes in God he ought to keep giving his money away as fast as he can. Hell is too good a place for the person who authorized the release of this product and then unleashed his stooges to write good reviews about it here. What is going on at Microsoft? This product is a complete and total disaster.
  
  
• I love the new features - should have progressed more in 5 years
  By A2OV2M4XAXZWNJ on 2007-02-03
  I beta tested Vista from early on and have run the complete version for about 2 months now via TechNet and Microsoft Connect. I love how it works and runs. Only real argument I have is that I run it 64 bit with a dual core and some programs are not compatable (not Microsoft's fault.) They need to catch up! On another note, Microsoft released details of this OS a long time ago, yet kept dropping features (new file system...) to get to an earlier release date. Again, I love it, but after 5 years of the "best" programers, I expected more.
  
  
• Not for beginners
  By A3D67J5X8KUED3 on 2007-02-21
  It looks very pretty and has some usefull features, but if you are planning to upgrade your OS, or adding a new computer to an existing system, watch out. Consult the Vista compatability list carefully, most of your existing periphials, scanners, printservers, printers, Non Microsoft games and applications may not work, and drivers are not available. Purchase only if you plan on replacing most of your periphials. My printer is less than 6 months old, and although the company states it is Vista compatible, the drivers in Vista do not work, the printer company does not have standalone drivers, and does not intend to release any.
  
  
• Look both ways before installing your OS!
  By A2YIYEXBJFTKWD on 2007-02-28
  I have performed about 12 Vista installations for clients so far and I still can't think of anything nice to say about it. The people who have said nice things about Vista here on Amazon MUST be Microsoft employees or shareholders, there is no other plausible explanation.
  
  If you are considering Vista, be sure you have a very new computer. You need a fast machine with lots of memory to make this work, and you need a newer machine to be sure that drivers are available for the components under the hood. This brings me to the second point, be sure to check with your PC manufacturer or peripheral(s) vendor to be sure that a Vista driver is available FIRST. There are a lot of systems and/or components that still do not have drivers for Vista yet! One of my clients bought a brand-new HP all-in-One printer for use with the Vista computer we built, and the driver disk in the printer box was useless, no Vista drivers were included. I went to HP's website and they only have a 'print' driver for the device. A driver which will allow him to use the scanning, and faxing capabilities of the printer will not be available for at least another two months. This isn't HP's fault; Microsoft was slow to release this to vendors so they are still writing drivers for this OS. If your computer says "Vista Ready" on it, don't be suckered into thinking you can slide into the digital 'EasyPass" lane. That emblem is just a cheap sticky marketing ploy to sell product and in no way implies that there are already Vista Drivers available for your unit! I had two instances, both with Dell PC's, that said they were "Vista Ready". The sticker should have read, "Will Eventually be Vista Ready". The drivers will not be available for some time yet (no timeframe was offered from Dell Tech Support). There are a lot of sound cards, video cards etc... that this is also the case with, so do your homework ahead of time, and YES, YES, YES, download and use the free'Advisor' tool from Microsoft BEFORE you fork over your hard earned Benjamins to be sure this will work. The only machine that I found was 100% compatible with Vista out of the box by the way was my Fellowes Cross Cut 14 page shredder (purchased here on Amazon). It interfaced very nicely, and it appears that inserting the disc in that was much more productive than any PC I had tried up to that point.
  
  If you do manage to get this OS installed (kudos to you young Jedi), strap in for a frustrating few hours of getting to know your computer. Microsoft has assumed that its user-base is getting dumber by the minute and has developed a myriad of controls "by default" to keep you from hurting yourself. Not saying this is 'entirely' a bad thing, but the Big Brother act has gotten completely out of control with Vista. For the technically adept, be prepared to constantly repeat yourself (I have to click "Allow" 9 nines to install Norton AntiVirus), be prepared to find yourself pleading with your PC that you do in fact know what you are doing, and be prepared to find yourself in a place where mailing a $1300 computer to Redmond suddenly seems to be a logical alternative to sending yet another "Microsoft Error Report". Turning these controls off is not as easy as it should be and for the most part negates all of the 'security' controls Microsoft touts as a big selling point (ie. improvement over XP) in the first place.
  
  Bottom Line, We'll all be using Vista eventually anyway of course, but either buy it already installed on a PC, or do your homework (a lot of it) ahead of time, or better yet, wait at least until Service Pack 1 has been released. By then a pile of the bugs will have been worked out, and manufacturers will have caught up with the distribution cycle and have drivers available for all of your stuff. Trust me, there is nothing more pathetic than hearing a grown adult brought to wimpers, tears, and thoughts of digital Hari Kari over a shiny new piece of software. Don't let it happen to you.
  
  
• Not Impressed
  By A3QQ3ZQUFM4691 on 2006-12-20
  Windows Vista is just another flawed operating system from Microsoft. I have been using the RTM version that my company received and even on pretty good hardware this OS is a resource hog. A lot of applications do not run on Vista so watch out. All Microsoft applications run fine, but not every app you use is Microsoft is it? Warning! Linux users if you use tools to connect to Linux systems beware, I got a blue screen of death a few times trying to run PuTTY and No Machine. The Aero "Glass" effect is not impressive, especially since it's been used (and looks better) on Mac OS and a lot of versions of Linux. I will wait before purchasing Vista until application vendors and Microsoft work out all the kinks. IMO, wait awhile after release to let them work out the kinks as they did with Windows XP.
  
  
• Not worth the upgrade
  By A1QZ1TMMPOYAW8 on 2007-01-31
  Windows Vista copies heavily from Mac Os X. Basically it is Windows XP with a new look. It is not right to force the consumers to buy new hardware by making an OS run slower.
  
  
• Come on?!, Vista is just a cheap copy of other Operating systems !!!
  By A23WRG5X08INFJ on 2007-04-18
  Come one people, Windows Vista is not only as unstable as it's Windows predecesors with a very uglu memory management and a really unsecure and ineffective hard drive and files management; I've lost lots of very important files due to Windows "errors" that shut down applications and even the PC itself, so i decided my self: TO USE LINUX OR TO DIE WITH MICROSOFT !, and i'm still alive ! ;-)
  
  As i told you, Vista is nothing more but a cheap copy of visual effects that Linux users had from several years from now; in facto, right now i'm using a Linux version called Sabayon and it is a million light years away from Windows Vista, it's visual effects are simply incredible (try searching "Beryl" in youtube for you to know what i'm talking aboyt), i have not only 3D windows, but 3D Desktops, incredible effects to minimize and maximize and a veeeery looooong list of features that you have to see it for yourself to beleave it.
  
  I know that you might be concerned for several aspects at this points that wooried me in time (when i was evaluating Windows Vs Linux):
  1.- My Documents, that will happen with them?. Nothing will happen, in fact you'll ba able to open them and modify them as you please, the OppenOffice suite is totally compatibble with your Microsoft Documents.
  2.- My programs?, well there are several options to run Windows programs in Linux, as "cedega", "wine", etc etc etc, si it means that you will be able to run most of the windows programs in Linux.
  3.- Is it hard to use ?. No way !, it's as easy to use as Windows, you will only have to dedicate a few time (may be a couple of hours) to understand several conceps as the multiple destops, the file system, and the users and permission management (that is the one of the most secures in the world) (Microsoft Windows cant's say that!).
  
  So, if you don't beleave search google for sabayon and youtube for beryl and you will open your eyes!.
  
  So... think about spending this 400 bucks twice, because Sabayon and other versions as Ubuntu, Kubuntu, some versions of SUSE, and other Linux distributions are TOTALY FREE of charge!. you only have to download them and burn it to a CD or DVD, whatever you like.
  
  
  
• Lots of potential, but too hard to use and too many requirements
  By A2ORU2HV0YBL8Y on 2007-02-10
  First, the good. Vista is very pretty and has lots and lots of little things you can play around with. Previous version of Windows limited what you can put in a sidebar to 0 items. For instance, click My Computer and everything on the left is pre-decided by Microsoft. Not so with Vista, you can put whatever you want there and in whatever order you want it in. I've found lots and lots of little things you can do. The problem would be is if you have to reinstall, you have to do it all over again.
  
  The Aero interface is very pretty, I love it.
  
  There are other little tweaks too. There is a service that, if the product registers itself in the registry, can boost the priority of multimedia applications so that the playback is smooth. A good idea, very nice. Also, file transfers are executed more efficiently.
  
  But the key is potential. Vista needs to fix a lot of annoyances that make it difficult to use. The first big one is to force OEM builder to go 64-bit by default. 64-bit apps have significantly less load times. So, going 64-bit is to the user's advantage. Also, greedy Hollywood convinced Microsoft that, for some reason, the 64-bit kernel is more secure and thus will only allow the 64-bit version to do certain things. Microsoft is in bed with media giants because Vista is a DRM infested OS. These things are bad for consumers and only a temporary annoyance to pirates.
  
  As I get into it, my "WOW" turned into "HOW?", but more often "WHY?".
  
  The extra security layer of Vista is nothing more than "Are you REALLY sure?". It doesn't stop anyone from installing anything, which is the REAL security problem. Instead of making it easy to be a full Admin and install things, and then convincing users to log out and log in as a limited user when done, Microsoft makes everyone to be an annoyed Admin. The annoyed Admin gets annoyed when he wants to do safe things, if he can at all. Try run IPconfig as a limited Admin. You can't, but what is the harm in allowing a user to get a new IP address? Yeah, that is a potential security problem.
  
  One HUGE security hole opened up by McAfee and Norton is access to the kernel. These vastly inferior antivirus makers decided they need access to the kernel to scan for viruses. But, Vista shut out everything from the kernel except Windows components. If nothing can get in, why do you need access to it? You don't. Instead, Microsoft caved to these stupid companies and now viruses can probably embed the code to gain access in them. Thanks a lot, McAfee and Norton.
  
  And there other annoyances. What happened to the run command? This vital feature is turned off by default. Several good programs require "approval" before running. You cannot just run your antivirus program, a box pops up asking you if your REALLY want to run this program. Getting an IP address from your router used to be quick and painless. Now getting a root canal can be easier. I've tried to speed up the process, but to no avail.
  
  Finally, Vista Ultimate starts far too many services by default. For instance, a service for tablet PC's starts by default.
  
  The quoted minimum requirements are 800 MHz CPU, 512 MB of memory, 15 GB of free space, and for most a DVD drive. In reality, the REAL minimum is a dual-core CPU, 1 GB of memory, and a DVD drive. And, unless you want to hate Vista, what you really need is 2 GB of memory or more.
  
  If the annoyances can be fixed, Vista will be great. Until then, it is just a difficult to use upgrade over XP.
  
  
• BUYER BEWARE!!!!!
  By A1C9DKOMULQ6IP on 2007-02-18
  This is the worse OS that I have ever worked with. I am sick and tired of fighting with it everytime I just want to rename a file. (the pointer keeps changing into a "clock" and booting me out of the prompt). I ASSume that its the indexer, but am tired of dealing with it and the many other things this joke of an OS does to use up resources. (btw, I bought a very highend system that had vista home premium preloaded)
  
  Dont get vista!!
  
  
• Now we know why the girl on the comercial said "wow" ... because nothing works!!
  By A2WZ619Y4PCF2S on 2007-03-14
  Yeah, I said WOW too when I got my copy of Ultimate.... "Wow, I can't believe I paid more money for software that lets me do way less".
  
  Not only can I not use half the software I have bought recently, but half of my expensive hardware is now useless, and with 3Rd party companies and drivers in beta testing still, WHAT WAS THE POINT OF RELEASING THIS GARBAGE SO EARLY?? TO MAKE MONEY WHILE BETA TESTING??? I as a paying customer to Microsoft feel fully taken advantage of, and I'll never forgive them for this...
  I have just removed my copy of vista, and put Windows XP Professional back, and put my copy up for sale.. to try to make half my money back.... MICROSOFT SHOULD BE REFUNDING EVERYONE IF THEY WANT TO SEE FUTURE SALES FROM THIS PRODUCT. I for one, will probably never go back to vista, unless there are some serious changes price-wise AND interface-wise.... So it's up to you the _POTENTIAL_ customer to NOT BUY IT and show those blow hards that they can't take advantage of us. DON'T FALL FOR IT'S PRETTY LOOKS, IT'S JUST A TRICK TO GET YOU TO BUY THIS RATTLETRAP OF AN OS.
  
  **********************************************************************
  * You have just found out you are about to be swindled by Microsoft, *
  * Cancel or Allow? *
  **********************************************************************
  
  Besides, Vista Glass theme (which is the only theme you get, and you cant use your stylexp or custom themes as of yet without major hacks) is only 'pretty' for the first 100 dialogs stating UAC intervention or being informed that your program won't work, just before a nice bluescreen shows up.
  
  My System: Gateway Laptop (Purchased New Jan 2007, 200G HDD, 2GB RAM, SoundBlaster Audigy ZS 2 Notebook, Lexicon Omega breakoutbox, Novation ReMote SL controller (MIDI), Phillips WRITEMASTER DVD-RAM, Maxtor One-Touch 80GB Backup, 4 port phillips USB 2 hub, Intel Pro Wireless, BlueTooth, Internal SATA, ATI Mobile GPU, Widescreen 1280x800 display, Logitech QuickCam, and every part of this worked with XP Pro, take that list and cut in half and a bit more and then you get what works with Vista...
  
  If you like to mount virtual ISO images then think again in vista
  
  If you like being able to save files anywhere as admin without modifying a bunch of permissions/attribs think again.
  
  If you expect to use a Creative sound card with EAX features think again.
  
  If you like using CMD.EXE (the command prompt) in full-screen mode, think again, you wont get to (as for any console program).
  
  If you use visual studio, be prepared for alot of complications!!
  
  The list goes on and on...
  
  
• Vista Should Be Kicked Into A Spartan Well
  By A86DRLTZAYCHZ on 2007-06-11
  Bugs bugs bugs, and I highly doubt they will go away. The amount of resources it takes do simple tasks such as open an application or type a single character is painful. Load, load, load... .
  
  Disabling User Access Control (UAC) isn't exactly the source of the issue. We shouldn't HAVE to do anything but use our PCs in peace. We shouldn't HAVE to tweak this and tweak that. The OS should work excellent and be at least a 6/10 out of the box, not a 1/10.
  
  UAC is NOT the only Vista problem. It has strange pop-ups that complain and give you absolutely no valid reason why it does.
  
  It is a resource HOG (I'm talking bigger than the hog that the 11 yr old boy recently killed in Alabama) like none that we've ever seen before. I've run this on a 2.5GHz dual processor machine and it makes it feel like a Celeron 150MHz. I've seen people type slow, yet the text on screen is STILL behind.
  
  I can't even transfer files across the LAN easily; heck, when I transfer files period, it just hangs saying "Calculating" time. Sometimes it freezes during the transfer, and when you check to see if the file is there, it may or may not be. And if it is, you can't trust that it's all there or hasn't been corrupted during the "Calculating".
  
  They've changed the interface to make things more "cool", but it's giving Advil and Aspirin more business.
  
  I can have the weather and an analog clock on my desktop. Whipeedoooo. The digital clock on the bottom right of my screen isn't good enough; I'd rather minimize everything so I can see the analog clock! Furthermore, I've always wanted to check the weather and time every 5 seconds - *rolls eyes*.
  
  Why do we have to do so much research (in which we don't get paid) just to solve mundane issues?
  
  I've never experienced a more sorry OS. I don't know how it has even has 3 stars. Are MS employees trying to unjustly balance the score here? The only reason why I gave it 1 star is because Amazon forced me to.
  
  Corny metaphor warning:
  The user is Leonidas, Vista is the messenger, and Bill Gates is Xerxes.
  Now give the messenger a good kick.
  
  
• The 'Wow' starts now!
  By A2Y1D9TXJESDG5 on 2007-01-31
  My Windows Vista experience started when I recieved RC2 a few months ago. I can honestly say that the features included with RC2 are excellent, but the RTM features greatly outweigh those of RC2.
  
  The upgrade process is extremely stable, offering minimal input from the user. Personally, I approve of the new boot envoronment (a small DOS-like operating system runs prior to booting to Vista), which is also present both in the upgrade process.
  
  I immediately proceeded to finding the wonderful new features of the operating system. Windows Media Center is much better, offering features such as online content & sports feeds! However, the best feature would be 'Windows Ultimate Extras', where you can get the new 'Windows DreamScene'. Windows DreamScene, also known as 'Motion Desktop', basically allows users running Windows Vista Ultimate to have an animated desktop background!
  
  Overall, Windows Vista is a great operating system, and as a tech, I am putting my approval for Windows Vista.
  
  
• This software really needs a 0 stars option
  By A3OVF00T7CTL60 on 2007-02-20
  Its amazing, I never thought that my nice new high end pc would be able to find MORE compatable drivers for ubuntu than I can find for vista. Simply put I tried to install, which took forever and crashed a few times forcing me to start ALL OVER AGAIN.
  Now I just have to wait for my antivirus software to release a new version (even though this one claimed to be vista compatable) get working video card drivers, buy a new monitor and... oh never mind... Ill just return this POS software.
  
  
  
• Windows ULTIMATE GARBAGE OS
  By A2ZFPNG582ELGB on 2007-03-22
  This OS is not for any ordinary user. If you know nothing about drivers, peripherals, etc, then don't get this OS. Lots of incompatability issues. I thought this OS would make my gaming experience better, apparently it needs lots of work. Can't play CS:S, Day of Defeat, Lord of the rings Online, etc. BF2142 and some other games play slower in Vista compared to XP. I hardly write reviews, but I just want everyone to know that this OS suxs! Stay with XP Pro SP2. Games move faster and load better and encoding video and editing software runs much much better on XP. It isn't worth getting right now, wait a year or two until it gets worked out. Feels like BETA, which it shouldn't. Microsoft, you get a F- for your new OS. You fail. Nice try!
  
  
• Puts the "BOW" in the "WOW"
  By AUL58GNT5L7H1 on 2007-07-13
  Where to start?
  
  Bad drivers and non-existent drivers from very big name companies (HP,Nvidia,Soundblaster)
  
  Most benchmarks say Vista is up to 25% slower than XP on the same hardware.
  
  Memory pig.
  Since when is 2 gigs not enough memory?
  
  Write this down,because of the memory requirements for Vista,the 32 bit version will become obsolete in about 2 to 3 years.
  
  So hold off if you are going to buy this piece of garbage and go 64 bit when things stabilze.
  
  Software issues with anti-virus vendors.
  
  UAC issues up the yin yang.
  Vista nags more than a drunken, shrewish wife.
  
  Rendundent messages telling me that the software might not have installed properly after cancelling an install.
  Yeah,I know it didn't install,because I cancelled the d@mn thing!
  
  I am an M$ reseller and get this stuff for a gretly reduced price becuse of a subscription and I do not have it running on any of my business or home systems because it just flat out sucks!
  
  I have installed it on on a number of different systems along with a couple of Sony laptops that it came preinstalled on and have moved everything back to XP.
  
  This is just a frigging disaster!
  
  Only M$ could get away with selling this bloated piece of garbage to the unsuspecting public.
  
  I flat out hate this OS.
  
  
• They should call the UI "Smudge" instead of Aero
  By A2QF1OD1C527T2 on 2007-02-14
  Microsoft may have spent years trying to juice up the UI, but the result is that you feel like you are working on a slow computer with a fuzzy CRT monitor. Window title bar is now semi-transparent, but instead of clean transparency tried (and subsequently much reduced) in MacOSX, it shows a smudged, fuzzy version of the graphics behind the window. The result is that the window looks dirty, or as if the monitor is badly tuned. When you open and close windows, there is a transition effect that makes you feel like the computer is too slow to complete the operation immediately, or that you are using one of the old laptop displays where everything leaves fading trails. If you drag a window around rapidly, the graphics really lags behind, which is baffling for 2 dimensional display on today's PCs.
  
  Flip3D is supposed to be one of the "Wow starts now" features and looks impressive enough on reduced size screenshots. But if you looks closely, window edges are jagged. More importantly, you still can only fully see 1 window at a time, which defeats the purpose of entering flip 3D in the first place - finding a particular window when you have two dozens open.
  
  Internet Explorer and Office 2007 promise a dramatic improvement in UI by getting rid of the menu bar and replacing it with a toolbar that has perhaps 10 buttons at the top of each window. Not surprisingly, 10 buttons are not enough to replace 100+ menu items. For example, there is no obvious way to save a web page locally from IE, except bringing the menu bar back through a preference. This is not even an option for Office.
  
  The purpose of a good operating system is to let you quickly get to the application you want to work on and then avoid getting in the way of your documents and other content. If you buy this expensive upgrade, you will waste time waiting for UI to catch up with what you want to do, or guessing how to interact with Clippy-like UI of office apps. If you must use Windows, stay with XP. Metal UI theme is actually unobtrusive enough to focus on the vista your window rather than just the curtains.
  
  
• Really overpriced
  By A2YWEG35UMPBJ3 on 2007-03-15
  I've been reading a lot of the discussions here, and one of the common topics is a comparison of the cost of Widnows Vista with that of Mac OS X. Mac OS X, as most people know, has had several major releases in the past five or six years, each of which retailed for $129. Basic versions of Windows tend to be priced somewhat comparably, and "high end" versions like Ultimate are quite a bit more. Here's the logic behind my position that Windows is way overpriced:
  
  Both Windows and Mac OS X are full-fledged operating systems that provide a full range of features for their users. Based on this I would expect each of them to require relatively comparable investments to develop. Windows (a basic version) is priced more or less comparably to Mac OS X. The cost of producing the thing you buy off the shelf when you buy any version of Windows is no more than a few dollars.
  
  However, Microsoft sells what, 10 times as many copies of Windows as Apple sells of Mac OS X? Apple manages to make a profit selling Mac OS X. They stay in business and seem to do okay. Microsoft, on the other hand, makes more than a profit on Windows. Microsoft makes billionaires and multimillionaries. I don't mind people making money on what they do. I don't even mind when people get rich doing what they do. But when a company makes enough money to make someone the richest man in the world and make many others in the company multimillionaires and billionaires, then I have a problem with what that company charges. In pricing Windows, Microsoft clearly uses a "what the market will bear" model versus "a reasonable return on investment" model, and I for one think the market is willing to bear more than it should.
  
  If Microsoft were really earning what they charge for Windows they would have blown past the Mac OS years ago. Is Vista better than the next major release of Mac OS X Apple will be releasing shortly? Maybe. Maybe not. Blown past Mac OS X? Not likely. In that regard it seems to me that Windows users are being ripped off.
  
  
• Stay with XP
  By A8OFFIAL6XTOH on 2007-03-21
  I'm not a tech guy. But from a simple user's standpoint, there is no reason whatsoever to change unless you just have to have a small change in appearance. About 1/2 the software you might have purchased that worked with XP won't work with Vista.
  
  I was thinking that Vista would be an improvement. But there is nothing there. Just some minor superficial changes as far as I can tell. Maybe for IT people, there might be some big difference, but for your average user, there is no improvement at all.
  
  Save your money. Don't buy it.
  
  

• Windows Vista All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))
• Windows Vista Inside Out
• Special Edition Using Microsoft Windows Vista (Special Edition Using)
• PC World
• Microsoft Office Ultimate 2007 FULL VERSION [DVD]

• Microsoft Office Ultimate 2007 FULL VERSION [DVD]
• Microsoft Office Professional 2007 FULL VERSION
• Microsoft Office Home and Student 2007
• Windows Vista Inside Out
• VMware Fusion [OLD VERSION]