the Computer Science Department offers free Vista isntall CDs and AFAIK the keys to go with them, so after checking to make sure my system can Handle it Vista here I come. And on a related note when is Halo 2 ported to the PC?
Posted by Euripides (Member # 9315) on :
I was going to post this separately but since you've started a thread on Vista, here is an article on its DRM protection.
Posted by Blayne Bradley (Member # 8565) on :
you have got to be kidding me, no way can Microsoft be this stupid.
Posted by Blayne Bradley (Member # 8565) on :
Like I'm reading this and I'm hoping it will be written "ha ha we fooled you" but it just keeps getting worse and worser. This is insane.
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
Enjoy the incompatibilities!
Posted by Bokonon (Member # 480) on :
EU3 may not work on Vista, my friend.
-Bok
Posted by Blayne Bradley (Member # 8565) on :
by the looks of it nothing will work on Vista there goes that idea.
Posted by Euripides (Member # 9315) on :
That macbook pro is looking sweeter and sweeter.
Posted by Fusiachi (Member # 7376) on :
Might be the perfect time to try a linux distro.
Posted by Tstorm (Member # 1871) on :
We've actually received and installed Vista on a few PCs at my workplace. I can honestly say I'm not that impressed by the early results. One guy says it's taking 400MB of RAM to run Vista alone, and he's still looking at the culprit of this. All but two of the computers in the IT office where I work are Vista now.
I can see myself holding off for a year or two, at least.
Posted by quidscribis (Member # 5124) on :
We've been thinking of switching to Macs or Linux. Yup.
Posted by aspectre (Member # 2222) on :
quote:...Microsoft...repairs for problems in its software,...came...with...the first one that touches Vista. The hole...was in a "malware protection engine" that helps...Microsoft security products - including "Windows Defender" for Vista - guard against online threats. The problem could let an outsider "take complete control" of a victim's computer, according to Microsoft... (MSNBC is a joint Microsoft - NBC Universal venture.) ...a security researcher for COSEINC...initially had high praise for Vista. But she said subsequent exploration revealed troubling weaknesses - even in features that are supposed to enhance Vista's security. After Rutkowska pointed out such issues, a Microsoft security manager wrote on his blog that Vista had intentionally made accommodations for user convenience and making sure applications worked properly - and that those decisions did not amount to "security bugs." Rutkowska replied that she now wondered whether Vista's security model was "a big joke."
Added to the voice command "application" which allows outsiders to take over computers - to which Microsoft security replied "But it hasn't exploited yet." - it is quite apparent that Microsoft is still in the business of "It's not a bug. It's a feature!!!"
[ February 15, 2007, 02:03 AM: Message edited by: aspectre ]
Posted by Nighthawk (Member # 4176) on :
I just got a new laptop with Vista installed.
- Neverwinter Nights 2 does not run well. Even running the toolset, if I have one visual effect on a map, I can actually hear my MP3 player slowing down as a result.
- If you're using Visual Studio 2005, you'll need to install the service pack. Visual Studio 2005 Service Pack 1 is *only* 420Mb, making it the single largest service pack in Microsoft's history.
- I have heard reports that World of Warcraft doesn't run at all on it, but they're not confirmed.
- The visual interface is pretty and all that, but every now and then you'll find applications that are incompatible with it. So what does the OS do? Switch the entire visual scheme while that application is running. And it's not particularly obscure: almost every Macromedia product I have (Fireworks especially) causes this switch.
- You know what drive me crazy? When I tell my computer to "hibernate", the screen goes completely blank. Hello? Some FEEDBACK as to what the hell you're doing would be nice!
- The security "feature" made me want to put my fist to the screen:
"Hello there, this is the OS. It seems like your system is trying to launch some file called 'Notepad'. Are you *really* sure you want to do that?"
"Wait, 'Solitaire' is trying to launch to... what exactly are you trying to do?"
"I disabled Norton Antivirus and ZoneAlarm firewall. You didn't need those, did you?"
"You must be crazy 'cause you're trying to launch 'Control Panel'. This must be a system breach. Please wait while I launch some overwhelmingly massive program that will grind your machine to a halt while it figures out what to do."
"I see you're trying to change your wallpaper. You must be on drugs, so I put some colorful flowers up for you instead."
GAH!
Posted by Will B (Member # 7931) on :
I question whether "upgrading" was really the right title for this thread. Posted by Ela (Member # 1365) on :
quote:Originally posted by quidscribis: We've been thinking of switching to Macs or Linux. Yup.
You can run Linux on an Intel Mac.
Posted by anti_maven (Member # 9789) on :
Blayne, there was a Slashdot article a couple of days ago (I don't have the link to hand) that went into detail about problems gamers are having with graphics compatability.
I'd triple check that the games yourun are 100% compatible if I were you.
*edit to add link*
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
quote:- The security "feature" made me want to put my fist to the screen:
"Hello there, this is the OS. It seems like your system is trying to launch some file called 'Notepad'. Are you *really* sure you want to do that?"
"Wait, 'Solitaire' is trying to launch to... what exactly are you trying to do?"
"I disabled Norton Antivirus and ZoneAlarm firewall. You didn't need those, did you?"
"You must be crazy 'cause you're trying to launch 'Control Panel'. This must be a system breach. Please wait while I launch some overwhelmingly massive program that will grind your machine to a halt while it figures out what to do."
"I see you're trying to change your wallpaper. You must be on drugs, so I put some colorful flowers up for you instead."
GAH!
I am loving the new Mac ad.
"Hi, I'm Mac."
"And I'm PC." "You are attempting to communicate with another person. Allow or deny?"
"Who's that?"
"Oh, he's with Vista, my new OS."
etc., etc.
Lemme see... Okay, I had the dialog a little off. But it's hilarious. Here it is. *giggles*
Posted by Nighthawk (Member # 4176) on :
I have to say the Mac ads are brilliant; I'll give them that.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
I actually find most of them incredibly annoying. But the Vista one is clever.
Posted by Nato (Member # 1448) on :
I think I might end up skipping over Vista entirely, just as many of us successfully avoided the Windows ME cesspool. MS says they plan to have their next OS out in two years (although I remember that two years was the original proposed interval between XP and Vista, and that leap actually took them five, even after they discarded/postponed almost every one of the major changes that was supposed to be in Vista).
quote:Nighthawk posted: - The security "feature" made me want to put my fist to the screen:
"Hello there, this is the OS. It seems like your system is trying to launch some file called 'Notepad'. Are you *really* sure you want to do that?"
"Wait, 'Solitaire' is trying to launch to... what exactly are you trying to do?"
"I disabled Norton Antivirus and ZoneAlarm firewall. You didn't need those, did you?"
"You must be crazy 'cause you're trying to launch 'Control Panel'. This must be a system breach. Please wait while I launch some overwhelmingly massive program that will grind your machine to a halt while it figures out what to do."
"I see you're trying to change your wallpaper. You must be on drugs, so I put some colorful flowers up for you instead."
Hahaha, oh dear!
Posted by Blayne Bradley (Member # 8565) on :
so far only Call of Duty doesnt wanna run.
Posted by Architraz Warden (Member # 4285) on :
quote:Originally posted by rivka: I actually find most of them incredibly annoying. But the Vista one is clever.
I'll agree the Vista one is clever, while most the others are lacking.
"You have come to a sad realization. Allow or Deny?"
Someone did finally made a spoof that illustrates my dislike of the previous commercials. We'll just say it ends with PC asking "Are... Are you high?"
The best ad / non-ad is still the iMac spoof from years ago (right around the Think Different ad campaign). I'll see if I can dig up the link (it has made the 'rack rounds before).
Posted by Fusiachi (Member # 7376) on :
quote:Originally posted by Ela:
quote:Originally posted by quidscribis: We've been thinking of switching to Macs or Linux. Yup.
You can run Linux on an Intel Mac.
Heck, many distros have PPC builds, too. And, WoW runs pretty well. Surprisingly well, actually. If only I could say the same about LOTRO.
Posted by BlackBlade (Member # 8376) on :
By Vista they mean maximum security prison,
Complete with bureaucracy based security!
It seriously sounds like they took a page from mainland Chinese tourist attractions when they designed it.
You approach the ticket booth to buy admission tickets, there are literally 3 people there. One to take your request, another to count your money, and a third to observe everything. There is definitely a supervisor nearby as well. Thats all for ONE booth, every adjacent booth most likely has the same staff.
Sounds to me like Microsoft's gaming console division should probably be designing future windows incarnations, people actually compliment THEM on their layout and functionality.
Posted by erosomniac (Member # 6834) on :
So on a whim I decided to upgrade a PC to Vista, just to see. I checked both with individual hardware manufacturers and software providers to ensure driver/program compatibility. I ran Microsoft's Vista compatibility program. Everything greenlighted so I figured, why not?
Well, now Vista appears to be mostly installed on my system, but I can't boot. Windows starts to load and then BSOD's for a split second before restarting my system. Safe Mode starts the long list of loads, then abruptly stops and restarts. Booting from CD results in the repair tools "Searching for problems..." for hours (I had it run overnight) without finding anything. I have no other boot options, as my old OS is already gone and I can't access the Rollback program. I tried to reinstall from CD, but it tells me that if I want to do a new install, I need a new CD key.
I'm sure I'd have a ton of griping to do about the OS, if I could, you know, actually get to it. Instead, I have a formerly excellent computer now rendered useless until I format the hard drive and reinstall XP.
For reference, hardware on this machine: Pentium D 950 Presler Some Asus socket 775 board 2 gigs DDR2667 RAM Geforce 7900 card of some kind
Posted by Blayne Bradley (Member # 8565) on :
Hmm, mine worked without any problems. I suggest google.
So far Vista is pretty good for me, it doesnt crash, ALL my games work (got CoD running finally). My only issue is having only 1 gig of ram suxors, I need 2 gigs to run smoothly in BF2 and 4 gigs one day if i wanna use the super duper civ4 maps.
Posted by erosomniac (Member # 6834) on :
I don't know why I'm surprised, but Microsoft's phone support is atrocious. I'm on my fourth transfer now, because the goon before keeps transferring me to the wrong place.
Pain and suffering will ensue, ye inept phone support goons.
Posted by Abhi (Member # 9142) on :
I'm running Vista ultimate and office 2007... vista is... slow. it's better than i was expecting it to be, but i dont know why it takes 500MB ram to just run the OS... that's bizarre in my opinion. i'm running it on my laptop [that has 2gb ram] but will probably keep it away from the desktop as i dont really want half my ram to be taken up by the OS...
i havent managed to get Company of Heroes to run, but other games seem to work fine [i.e. Eve-online, and Football Manager 2007].
Office 2007 is pretty bizarre. It took my brother 2 days to learn to do "save as" [though admittedly i figured it out on the first day thanks to my Mac experience]. the file explorer system is aweful! and "quicksearch" is far less than acurate. i tried to launch a game from the quicksearch, but vista tried to run the autorun file instead... in MEDIA CENTER!!!
yea... that caused a crash.
Posted by Dubshack (Member # 10403) on :
My boss bought a laptop with Vista on it and recruited me to fix the wireless connection. It was running a wizard, and wouldn't let you escape the wizard... It kept asking for an access key, which our company uses four key hex system and those simple access keys for home setups don't work... After running through the "diagnose the problem" wizard and the constant badgering from Windows Security about what I was doing and constant popups that McCafee Antivirus required registering... Eventually somehow I frustrated the system enough that it connected to our network. I don't know how, considering I never entered the keys... Apparently Vista has the ability to break into secure wireless networks if it thinks your incompetent.
One of my colleages said it looked so much like the Mac operating system. I said it looked so much more like communism.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)