New build, operating system woes!!

[ikix]

I shall be building a new system around June/July time and have a few queries about the OS and was hoping you guys could help answer my problems.

1. When i tried using Vista a while ago there were numerous problems i ran into that really bugged me and it even totally trashed my computer making it virtually impossible to install XP once it all went wrong, only solved by hours of work. Have all of the bugs etc. mainly been ironed out now?

2. Which version should i be looking at, Vista Home Premium or Vista Ultimate?

3. I shall be buying an OEM version, what are the problems i can run into with this over retail? (the price just makes it too tempting )

4. Would it be worthwhile installing XP along with Vista or will it be a waste of time and HDD space?

5. To use DX10 capabilities on games do you have to have Vista or is this possible on XP?

Cheers guys, iKiX.

[-iceblade^]

1. sp1 has supposed fixed a lot of things. I'm not so sure.
2. home premium - ultimate isn't really worth it unless you need all those features
3. OEM versions can only be activated for one motherboard. If you upgrade to a new motherboard, you will have to get a new copy. Also, you don't get support from microsoft.
4. if you're going for Vista, then go for vista. I don't relly see the point in dual booting unless you have only one machine and need to use xp-only programs,, etc. In which case you should be sticking with XP
5. DX10 is vista only. Most DX10 games can be played on XP, but the DX10 effects will be disabled.

[Jay]

1. Vista has had 100's of Mb's of patches and a lot of launch bugs are now gone, its quite stable and I use it on my laptop and on my media center every day (Gaming/Video editing etc is still XP)

2. What ever you can afford. I have Home Premium on my laptop and Ultimate on my Media center. To be honest as long as you don't want moving desktops or domain networking get Home Premium.

3. Just get an OEM

4. Not worth it really.

5. DX10 is vista only but no hardware can really run DX10 games properly yet. Not only that but DX10 games don't look that much different to DX9c games at the moment.

[ikix]

What is the main difference between Ultimate edition and Premium, its roughly £50 more but the little tick thing they have doesn't really explain anything

[directhex]

What is the main difference between Ultimate edition and Premium, its roughly £50 more but the little tick thing they have doesn't really explain anything

how does it not explain anything?

it explains everything!

extra Ultimate features:

* Protect against hardware failure with Windows Complete PC Backup and Restore
* Windows Fax and Scan Easily send and receive faxes or scan documents and images with Windows Fax and Scan
* Easier remote access for your business Get to the resources and applications you need with Remote Desktop Connection
* Better protect your data against loss with Windows BitLocker Drive Encryption

i don't really see what more they're meant to write...?

[ikix]

Probably worded my question wrong was meaning to get at whether those extras are worth it or not rather than just believing whatever microsoft put on the page (as it will obviously not slander their own product)

[directhex]

Probably worded my question wrong was meaning to get at whether those extras are worth it or not rather than just believing whatever microsoft put on the page (as it will obviously not slander their own product)

do they sound worth it to you?

[ikix]

do they sound worth it to you?

you're not being particularly helpful here, i was hoping others would give their opinion rather than answering my question with another question.

[directhex]

you're not being particularly helpful here, i was hoping others would give their opinion rather than answering my question with another question.

try applying some of your own thought to it, maybe? how can anyone else form a valid statement on the utility of certain functionality to someone they've never met?

are those four features useful *TO YOU*? and sufficiently so to warrant the extra fifty quid? do you send a lot of faxes? are you paranoid enough about data security to want full drive encryption? do you want to use windows' remote desktop connection to access your desktop over a network? do you want a backup/restore solution? and, perhaps most importantly, do you want a microsoft-provided os-integrated solution for all of these (third party apps could do them all)?

[peterb]

Directhex is quite correct. The additional facilities are documented - do they form part of your requirement? If you are not going to use them then it is a waste of money paying for it. If you think you might use them all, then buy the ultimate edition - but again - as Directhex says, those functions can be added by third party apps. Truecrypt, for example will offer you a very versatile disk encryption system and is open source.

All you are doing is asking someone else to make the decision for you!

Write down what it is you want from the OS (and post it here if you want an opinion) but I expect that if you do that, the solution will present itself to you. So far you have given no indication that you need or will use the additional facilities - so there is your answer.