OS decision 32/64 bit

[Agent]

I have to disagree with your stance - these are issues with the applications and drivers, not with the OS.

Driver issues:

MSKB : 932539 - The screen may go blank when you try to upgrade the video driver on a Windows Vista-based computer.

MSKB : 932814 - You receive an error message that states that a driver was not installed because of a file copy error in Windows Vista

MSKB : 931674 - You may be unable to use a WSD-based scanner driver to transfer scanned data in Windows Vista

Im sure there is more, they are just the first ones I come across. They are an OS issue, not a driver one.

Dont get me wrong here, im not bad-mouthing MS in any way at all. Creating an OS the complexity of windows is certain to have bugs, and MS are dealing with them quite promptly.
What I am highlighting is the constant "everything in Vista that doesnt work is a user error". Its not. If it was, there wouldn't be any need for patching the OS (100+ since release is a fair amount).

Also there are many application issues that can be caused by Vista.
Its easy to blame the applications them self by claiming they are not "designed" for Vista. Thats all well and good, but how do you know if its the app at fault, or the OS doing something wrong underneath?

MSKB : 932246 - March 2007 Windows Vista Application Compatibility Update

The March 2007 Windows Vista Application Compatibility Update is a package of software updates that address common application compatibility issues in Windows Vista. When you try to install and run certain legacy games or applications in Windows Vista, you may experience one or more of the following symptoms:
• The game, the application, or the firmware may not be installed correctly.
• The game, the application, or the firmware may cause system instability.
• The primary functions of the game, the application, or the firmware may not work correctly.

Is Microsoft providing this update out of the kindness of their hearts to try and win more people over, or are there flaws in Vista that they know about that stop these app's functioning correctly when they intended for them to work?

I guess we will never find out for sure, but with the OS being so new, im betting that the odd bug slipped through to stop app's running that they intended to. They are only human after all

[directhex]

worth noting that 4GiB RAM isn't a limit - 4GiB address space is.

[Blitzen]

Every Vista problem isnt user error - some people have serious issues with the OS.

Sorry Agent......i have to disagree.

At first (1st month maybe) people did have alot of issues with it including drivers. I did aswell.

This, as far as the experience i have had using it (since the MSDN D/L was available), is rectified now and its the scaremongering about the problems that stops people using it.

Like i said, i think that if you have a relatively new system (under a year old), and if you have the patience to look, all the drivers are covered.

Creative drivers STILL pretty much blow

They do yep...But they always have done regardless of which OS they have been for.

[Splash]

Driver issues:

MSKB : 932539 - The screen may go blank when you try to upgrade the video driver on a Windows Vista-based computer.

MSKB : 932814 - You receive an error message that states that a driver was not installed because of a file copy error in Windows Vista

MSKB : 931674 - You may be unable to use a WSD-based scanner driver to transfer scanned data in Windows Vista

Im sure there is more, they are just the first ones I come across. They are an OS issue, not a driver one.

Dont get me wrong here, im not bad-mouthing MS in any way at all. Creating an OS the complexity of windows is certain to have bugs, and MS are dealing with them quite promptly.
What I am highlighting is the constant "everything in Vista that doesnt work is a user error". Its not. If it was, there wouldn't be any need for patching the OS (100+ since release is a fair amount).

Also there are many application issues that can be caused by Vista.
Its easy to blame the applications them self by claiming they are not "designed" for Vista. Thats all well and good, but how do you know if its the app at fault, or the OS doing something wrong underneath?

MSKB : 932246 - March 2007 Windows Vista Application Compatibility Update

How many patches were there for XP in the first 100 days?

My point being that whenever a mainstream OS with as many changes as are implemented in Vista is released these things always happen. And I stand by my claim that most (by which I mean the majority of) issues that people are throwing their arms in the air and FUDing about are down to sloppy drivers and software that expects to run using local administrator credentials.

[Agent]

Sorry Agent......i have to disagree.

But which bit are you disagreeing with?
I know Vista is working fine for ya, but saying that every issue is a user error is just plain wrong. No OS on earth is bug free, and never will be. People do get effected by these issues, hence why OS's are patched

Vista *is* immature. I have no doubt it will be a great OS though. I agree that there are plenty of people that spread FUD, but I also know a fair number of people that have issues with it not related to drivers - The slow file copying is one that immediately comes to mind.

This issue happens across various platforms (AMD and Intel) and on different chipsets. Its has a hotfix out on a 'need to contact and talk to MS to obtain it' basis. Even then apparently its not solving the issue for some people - Just have a read of that link.

Some people speculate that its some of the DRM kicking in, others that its a big in the way thumbnails are generated (although I think this has been discredited?) - I have no idea. All I know is that it is an issue that's causing many grief.

How many patches were there for XP in the first 100 days?

My point being that whenever a mainstream OS with as many changes as are implemented in Vista is released these things always happen. And I stand by my claim that most (by which I mean the majority of) issues that people are throwing their arms in the air and FUDing about are down to sloppy drivers and software that expects to run using local administrator credentials.

No idea how many were within the first 100 days of XP, would be interesting to compare though

I understand your point and agree with you on it - there is still many sloppy drivers about, but you surely can see that Vista itself is far from perfect, and its hard to pin the blame sometimes.
The examples I provided prove that the OS is still immature and needs work on it. Every issue is simply not a driver issue

On the plus side - Vista is holding up very well on the security front

[redlight]

Vista 64bit was a lot less hassle than when I moved to XP.
Maybe that is my failing memory though.
Anyway on a lighter note this thread reminded me of this
http://www.adelaider.com/?thread=6909

[Splash]

The examples I provided prove that the OS is still immature and needs work on it. Every issue is simply not a driver issue

I agree - it's an immature OS. What I disagree with is Agrippa's statement that it's not a [i]functional/i] OS. Also I must ask that you reword the last part of your statement to "not every issue is a driver issue" for clarity.

[acrobat]

What is wrong with the Creative drivers? Would I have trouble with my X-Fi if I moved to Vista 64?

[Splash]

From the Creative drivers site

This download is a driver providing Microsoft® Windows Vista™ 64-bit and Windows Vista 32-bit support for the audio device listed below. For more details, read the rest of this web release note.

Current Release Features

* Provides basic audio support and control options for sampling rate and speakers only. Applications bundled with your audio device will not work with this driver.

Known Issues

* This download does not support direct monitoring.
* Speakers can be configured in Control Panel only.

Requirements

* Windows Vista 64-bit or Windows Vista 32-bit
* Sound Blaster® X-Fi™ Xtreme Audio

Notes

* This package is only for the Creative Sound Blaster audio device listed above. DO NOT install this package for other Sound Blaster audio devices.
* To install this driver
1. Close all other Windows applications.
2. Double-click the downloaded file.
3. Follow the instructions on the screen.

I don't have an X-Fi, or Vista x64, but if it's like the 32 bit Vista drivers for my Audigy 2ZS it's pretty much stereo sound only

[acrobat]

Wow.

Thanks for the reply I won't be moving to Vista any time soon then it seems. Theres a couple of applications that come with my sound card that I have to use (no alternatives). So I'll have to stick with XP until they sort that out.

[Defenestration]

If you use XviD for encoding you may struggle to get it working on 64-bit.

XP is much faster than Vista (up to 20%) when used for video encoding.

Not a big deal, but I noticed a couple of downward spikes in HDTach when testing my hard drive speed under XP Pro x64, although the average speed was about the same as under XP 32-bit.