Vista

20 things you won't like about Vista:
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=printArticleBasic&articleId=9000829



That's nice, but if we're not supposed to write to the registry, and not supposed to write to Program Files (WHAT???) then where exactly are we SUPPOSED to write application settings?

Under XP or 2K the appropriate place is C:\Documents and Settings\[username]\Application Data. That's probably the same in Vista. If you think about it it's the only sensible way to do it for a multi-user environment.

"If you think about it it's the only sensible way to do it for a multi-user environment."

Well that's all well and good for storing stuff like user control perferences in Half Life 2, (which it actually stores in INI files in the program directory, OOPS) but what about things like high score tables, which you'd want all members of a household to be on?

...

Ah, I see, there's an All Users under Documents and Settings. So you'd put it in C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data.

Hm...

I've just always resisted putting things in Documents and Settings. If everyone put their app stuff in there it would be hard to find the data for a particular app, because every idiot company puts the data under Company Name/Application Name instead of putting it under Application Type/Application Name. If I want to find my FTP program's directory, I look in Program Files/Internet/App Name, because that is where I have put it. But if I have a spyware program for example under "Tenebril/Spycatcher" I'm not gonna be able to find that because hell if I know that the company that makes Spycatcher is named Tenebril.

If Microsoft wants to do that, then they need to standardize the directories stuff goes in, just like they have created "file types" to make it easier to find files of a particular type.

Vista sucks willies! That's all the info you'll ever need to know.

Where do I pay?!

PS: Is that the standard installation, or is there a plugin?

:)

No plugin needed, it's a standard feature of the OS.
And as to an ironic joke that someone else on this forum coined a week ago.
"Why is it called Windows Aero, is it full of holes?"

[/quote]

I would be careful about that - you don't know what viruses you'll get - especially with it being Windows ;-)

But 5 months after release every PC (except mine and a few others) will have Vista installed on it.

I think we should wait another 8 or so months and see what actually comes out the door. Its still in beta, and a lot of people are already complaining. My guess is that many of these features are likely to change. Thats what this stage of beta is partly for anyway.

If it was out there would be reason to jeer, but right now it's all hot air.

Nice read sswift! :)

I printed it out and read it in the bath! :D

I saw a feature in PC Format about a benchmarking app in Vista that gives your computer a score from 1-7... The testing machine's stats were:-

Intel CPU 3.8GHz
2GB RAM
50 GB Harddrive
NVIDIA Geforce 7800 with 248MB Graphics memory

And it only scored a 3... A rig like that only scored a bloody 3, that's less than half! :)

The more I read about Vista, the more I think Linux or Mac... lol, nice advertising!

Dabz

LMAO! Every *new* PC maybe. Average Joe PC-owner doesn't upgrade their operating system at all. When the PC dies they buy a new one ( because they're buying throwaway Dell, Gateway, HP, etc machines which are cheaper to replace and hard to upgrade anyway ) so they'll upgrade when it comes installed on the last machine they bought.

I just disliked how I couldn't make heads & tails of Vista for the 10min I spent playing around with it on my PC-Tech's rig, just seemed like bloat-ware to me, more-so with the addition of "gizmo's".

He apparently agree'd as well, and is reinstallin XP on it soon.

I prefer a OS without the fancy bells and whistle gadgets of OSX, and Vista. Something simple and elegant but a bit more modern than the classic windows look is what I'm after.

I quite like the base non Aero Vista skin, just wish there weren't all the big pretty icons and stuff

@Gabriel:

If I remember correctly, the last few times Microsoft released major new versions of Windows, they marketed the hell out of it, to the extent where many clueless 'Average Joes' thought they needed a copy. There were even midnight releases so you could queue up in the cold, dank, neon-tinged darkness to secure yourself a copy… And scores of people *did*.

I think - like many people on this site - you have a very different idea of the average computer user than is actually the case. The Windows XP launch was even less successful than the launch of Windows 98, which itself was less successful than Window 95.

In fact I rather suspect all the hype did was convince a few fence-sitters to part with their cash and convince a lot of the more savvy users that it was a much more successful launch than it in fact was.

@Gabriel,

Possibly you are correct on all points. I remember the '95 hype better than the XP hype. If I could be bothered I'd do a search on opening day retail sales figures for each OS...

And my definition of the 'average computer user' may indeed be off. What *is* the defintion of the average computer user? ;)

Well a fair point, the average computer user is a pretty damn vague and ambiguous term, and I didn't really help anything by using it.

When I use the term, I'm talking about someone who buys a HP, Dell, etc.. uses it for email, printing the odd letter, storing photos of the kids, and maybe playing a few games on Yahoo or Pogo. Someone who really doesn't know much about computers, and frequently struggles with spyware, has to get help whenever anything goes wrong.

I'm not trying ( this time ) to be a smartass, I just genuinely think a lot of computer-savvy people don't realise that we ( I say we, and I shouldn't generalise really ) "geeks" are not the majority, and specifically don't realise how many people there are who use a computer but only for a little time here and there and really don't know much about them.

Perhaps this is just because we "geeks" are - because of our greater computer experience and the amount of time we spend using them - much more visible than your average ( there goes that word again :( ) busy, working parent who barely gets 30 mins a day all to themself.

There was all this junk flying around the net before XP was released. I remember the HUGE outcry and many websites raving on about Windows Activation and how evil it was that MS could be doing such a thing. How Windows Activation would record everything about you down to the last time you cut your toe nails etc etc. How XP could make your PC grind to a halt and how much trouble we'd have due to lack of drivers. How people were insisting they'd not budge from 98. The list went on and on.

I'm not sure if I can even run Vista on my laptop yet as its only a little 1ghz thing with 512mb RAM. Also, do I *need* Vista to browse the net and program in Delphi 7 (which is a majority of my time), more to the point will Delphi 7 even work in Vista *gulp*.

I'll be buying Vista early after its release only because I need to know 2 things - Does Delphi 7 work? and do the programs I've done for clients work in Vista for when/if they upgrade. If not I'm gonna freak out like I've never freaked out before as I've approx £2000+ worth of components for it, some only work in the version I have.

Interesting read though. Looks like its gonna be a pain in the butt :)

Some people would argue it is *this* ‘ignorant’ demographic that is most susceptible to believing the hype. Such a consumer probably wouldn’t stand in line at midnight, but, finances permitting, they’d purchase the OS within the first few months, when they notice it on the store shelves and the marketing terms (‘makes internet browsing quicker, easier and more secure’, ‘new support for photo organization and classification’, etc) are still fresh in their minds.

I’m not trying to be argumentative, I’m just suggesting that marketing plays a significant role in ‘Average Joe’s’ purchasing decisions and many did purchase retail Windows ’95, ’98, ME and XP for their existing systems, whether a DELL, HP or clone. Unfortunately for Microsoft, Vista’s steep hardware requirements will indeed affect their ability to market the product to the 'ignorant masses'… Unless it’s delayed *another* twelve months, which is definitely possible given Microsoft’s track record.

But I could be wrong, and my opinions could be based on a distorted view of reality - I’ll be the first to admit it if that’s the truth…

> When the PC dies they buy a new one

Yeah well since PC processors aren't really getting much faster many people aren't really good upgrade as quickly.
Plus, it's soon gonna be the case where almost everyone on the planet already has windows and most don't need a new PC.

Wrong ... You will need them ... sure CPU does not get faster ... but it gets multi-plier core every 18 months ;-) (especially as intel is targetting 45 and 32nm chips in 07 / 08 which theoretically means oct to hex core chips on the current chip size and thinking that already quads are planed with the current for the comming spring ... yea :-) )

Hooray, even more CPU time wasted for users to check their e-mails, play freecell and look at Internet porn.

Yay, I get to watch 5-6 porn videos on 5-6 processors while only using 5% of the processors powers. Yay. *sigh*

I just bought a Dual Core, I don't think I've used the second core yet ;) Except with Oblivion.

With so many nagging screens and restrictions happening they might as well realease a version called:

"Windows Vista: Nanny Edition"

What real benefits does Vista have over XP though?
Why are folk wetting themselves over transparent 3D windows?
Aero. So what?
Will people be willing to buy a high-spec PC just so they can open Notepad in a transparent 3D window?
If so, they need urgent medical attention.

Maybe I woke up on a different planet?!

> What real benefits does Vista have over XP though?

If games make use of the extra features that are available then it might be worth it. I'm not running out to buy a copy of it though - I only just got XP a couple months ago.

use linux instead, not many games but oh well,

I used to hate windows, but now that I only use linux it doesn't trouble me anymore :)