Gizmo’s Vista Kool-Aid

The latest paid version of the Windows Secrets newsletter contains an article by editor Gizmo Richards touting the superiority of Windows Vista over Windows XP. Sorry, gang, but I couldn’t resist. Below is the email I just sent to the Windows Secrets crew:

Hi, guys,

First, let me say that I have the utmost respect for Gizmo Richards and have been a subscriber to his TechSupportAlert newsletter for some time. In general, his reviews are helpful and accurate.

So, after reading the latest column under Gizmo’s byline regarding the alleged superiority of Vista over XP, I’ve gotta ask: who is that guy and what’s he done with Gizmo?

I’ve owned a Vista laptop for almost a year and been through the initial version as well as SP1. While I will admit there are a few things about the Vista interface that are actually improvements, in general, I’ll take XP over Vista any time. The big reason: it actually works! Things do what they’re supposed to do, even if they don’t look quite as cool.

Vista’s Wi-Fi management is terrible. XP’s Wi-Fi management is simple and straightforward. Vista wants to connect to whatever network it can find despite being told innumerable times to remove offending networks from its list. Sometimes it actually connects to my own network on the occasions when the random-order generator puts it at the head of the list. In these days when virtually every Internet user has a Wi-Fi network broadcasting all over the neighborhood, the list of networks Vista finds gets pretty long and there’s no way I can find to tell it to ignore all but mine and any others I’ve approved. At least XP only connects automatically to those networks to which I’ve specifically connected in the past AND in the order I specified.

Vista’s Windows Explorer apparently has a random view generator, as well. When I create a new directory, it’s a real adventure to see which view configuration it will decide is appropriate. The defaults have the file name…period. No date/time stamp, no size, no file type, all the things XP users take for granted. I carefully set the directory view the way I want it, go into the Tools | Folder Options menu and tell it to set that view for All Folders and the little folder gnomes inside must bust a gut laughing. The next time I go into a directory it’s decided to Group things!

What genius decided that it’s necessary to group my file listings by 0-9, A-H, etc? Alphabetical order is sufficient, thankyouverymuch.

Exploring in Vista is more exciting than ever because I can attempt to access certain directories and be told that I don’t have access to them. Excuse me? This is my machine and I’m the administrator thereof. By definition I have access to whatever I want access to!

Before you ask, of course I’ve turned off UAC, another stroke of genius by the Microsofties. Apparently, there were numerous meetings of the design team to find ways to make Vista as annoying as possible for users who have a clue. If I want a machine that insulates itself from me, I’ll buy a Mac.

I could go on, but suffice to say that I beg to differ with Gizmo on this one. The only reason I haven’t downgraded my laptop to XP Pro is a lack of the required time to do so. The real improvements in Vista are so few and so far outweighed by its stupidities as to be meaningless.

All the above notwithstanding, thanks for Windows Secrets and the work you guys do.

John The Geek

Windows XP Service Pack 3 – No Rush

Those of us still using Windows XP are hearing a lot about Service Pack 3 lately.  Windows XP SP3 has been released for a while now and the usual reports of problems are being received from the early adopters who have already installed it.  It’s good that there are those brave (or foolish) enough to install a new service pack as soon as it’s available.  The rest of us can sit back and watch the fireworks from a safe distance!

My advice is to wait a while before installing SP3.  Hewlett-Packard (HP) has warned owners of their PCs with AMD processors not to install SP3.  There is a known problem where the machines continually reboot after SP3 is installed.  That’s just one example of problems found in the field in the short time SP3 has been available to the public.

Any software upgrade of this magnitude is bound to have some glitches.  Windows XP is a very complex piece of software, actually multiple pieces of software, and catching all the potential bugs in the testing process is simply impossible.  There are too many variables with PC configurations and applications for any testing program to cover every possible combination.

If you’re concerned about the end of life of Windows XP SP2, don’t be.  Microsoft will continue to support SP2 until August of 2009, so you have over a year before you have to worry about that.  By that time SP3 will be stable and you’ll probably have installed it long since.

As with most newly released software, unless there’s a feature or bug fix you absolutely have to have, it’s safer to wait until it’s been released long enough for most of the more serious bugs to be found and fixed.  SP3 adds some features, but the vast majority of those features aren’t things that the average user will even notice.  In short, if you’re not sure you need SP3, you don’t, yet.

Here are some related posts from the blogosphere:

Windows XP Service Pack 3 woes – Windows XP holdouts were blinded by a ray of hope with the release of Service Pack 3, a major update consisting of existing patches with a few enhancements thrown in that has been widely reported to significantly boost significant …

Does your AMD-based computer boot after installing XP SP3? – Last night WSUS deployed XP Service Pack 3 to the sole remaining computer running XP that I have. This morning, I came down and was greeted with incessant reboots. The computer booted, apologized for not being able to boot properly, …

HP recommends against installing Windows XP SP3 – Both HP and Microsoft are working to fix problems causing AMD-based PCs to reboot repeatedly after XP Service Pack 3 is loaded. In the meantime, security expert Dr. Jesper Johansson has beaten the companies to the punch by devising a …

XP Change Corrupts Data, Halts SP3 Rollout – XP Change Corrupts Data, Halts SP3 Rollout Microsoft also suspends autodelivery of Windows Vista SP1. Computerworld — Microsoft Corp. confirmed on Wednesday that it delayed the rollout of Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) because changes …

Fix for Restart Bug after installing Windows XP SP3 – You can only use the following information if you use a non-Intel processor and encounter the previously mentioned restart bug after installing Windows XP Service Pack 3. I’m going to list two possible solutions, one from Microsoft and …

Microsoft blocks Windows XP SP3 update to HP PCs Running AMD CPU’s – The recent Windows XP Service Pack 3 update has left certain AMD-based PCs manufactured by Hewlett-Packard caught in an endless reboot (here) cycle caused by an Intel-specific disk image mistakenly being used with AMD hardware. …

[bit-tech] XP SP3 breaks WHS RDP – According to a post on the Windows Home Server Forums provided by Microsoft, users with Service Pack 3 installed on their Windows XP desktop may well find themselves unable to connect to their Windows Home Server box via the Remote …

John The Geek

Like this post? Publish It On Your Own Blog