Arhu

Arhu

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Hi folks,

my old system finally died on me and I had to get a new one. It came with Windows Vista, of course, so I'm willing to give it a shot. Being a newbie with this, I was wondering if someone with more experience could give me any pointers as to how to get started. The do's and don'ts etc. And hints, tips or links to some of those?

Oh, and is it possible to do your everyday stuff with a normal user account now (with no admin privileges)?

Thanks!
 
From the user POV it's not that different from XP really, apart from the slicker graphics; the same dos and don'ts apply. Limited user accounts aren't that different from XP either; the same limitations apply. However, admin accounts are significantly changed: whenever you're about to do something that requires admin privileges, Vista pops up an alert and you need to click "continue" to, well, continue.

Hints, tips? Here's one: find, buy, beg, borrow, or steal a USB token with a couple of hundred MB (or more) memory. Stick that into a free USB slot and let the system use it for "ReadyBoost" -- it will significantly shorten program load times (eventually).

All in all, Vista is neither the monstrosity nor the tremendous leap forward that various people make it out to be; it's an evolutionary step forward from XP, with everything that entails, both the good and the bad. Some more or less fundamental flaws have been fixed, others are still there, and some transition headaches remain.

IMO the most significant thing about it is that the 64-bit version is "fully functional" and can be run just about as easily as the 32-bit version, only with slightly higher performance and the ability to address 4+ GB RAM. I'm running it, and have so far encountered exactly one game that fails to run on it: Sacred, due to an incompatible copy protection driver.
 
Prime Junta said:
Hints, tips? Here's one: find, buy, beg, borrow, or steal a USB token with a couple of hundred MB (or more) memory. Stick that into a free USB slot and let the system use it for "ReadyBoost" -- it will significantly shorten program load times (eventually).
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Really? I read about it in German computer magazine c't and they said it didn't really do much for performance. Sounds as if you have better experience with it?

I'm still installing my programs and configuring stuff. So far I like Vista. It's shiny. ;) Had a problem with my internet connection, which kept disconnecting every couple seconds, but it was either fixed by one of the windows updates I installed or by the settings I changed.

I got Vista Business Edition, 32 bit I think. No need for 64bit (yet), as I'm only using 2GB of RAM so far.

About those user accounts - in XP it wasn't possible to work without admin privileges because often programs wouldn't install. I wouldn't mind working as a normal user though. What are you doing in this regard, PJ? Admin or user? And why?
 
Arhu said:
Really? I read about it in German computer magazine c't and they said it didn't really do much for performance. Sounds as if you have better experience with it?
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It depends on what you do, and also on how much memory you have. Tom's Hardware Guide explored this in-depth: [ http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/01/31/windows-vista-superfetch-and-readyboostanalyzed/ ].

I'm still installing my programs and configuring stuff. So far I like Vista. It's shiny. ;)
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Very. Not to mention translucent.

Had a problem with my internet connection, which kept disconnecting every couple seconds, but it was either fixed by one of the windows updates I installed or by the settings I changed.

I got Vista Business Edition, 32 bit I think. No need for 64bit (yet), as I'm only using 2GB of RAM so far.
Click to expand...

If you're planning on upgrading to 4 GB, I would strongly recommend that you install the x64 version off the bat; there's no upgrade path from 32-bit so you'd have to do a clean install which is a PITA as you know.

About those user accounts - in XP it wasn't possible to work without admin privileges because often programs wouldn't install. I wouldn't mind working as a normal user though. What are you doing in this regard, PJ? Admin or user? And why?
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Admin, because I regularly install and uninstall stuff -- and because the new security architecture has plugged the holes that existed in XP's admin accounts: it's not possible (or at least very very difficult) to get the system to do really pernicious things without one of those alert thingies hitting you. Strangely, I *like* those pop-ups. They make me feel safe. :p
 
I sure tried to like Vista. I had it installed for around six months and I loved the interface and the nice apps like Sidebar, Flip 3D, the movie editor, pic viewer, and the "glass" look of Vista. But the thing was just so unstable. For some reason it would not load certain drivers at certain times. It would not load my video drivers, I would reboot, those would load but then my sound card driver would not load. Next reboot, CtHelper would not load and I would get a popup informing me of that fact...every minute. About the only sure fire way of running Vista stable for me was to get the one good boot up with everything loaded, and just leave the computer on.

I can't even remember the last thing it did to me, but it was the last straw so I reloaded XP and have been having no problem with that. Now I run WindowBlinds for a really pretty, and variable desktop setup. Gives Sidebar like apps too.
 
Prime Junta said:
It depends on what you do, and also on how much memory you have. Tom's Hardware Guide explored this in-depth: [ http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/01/31/windows-vista-superfetch-and-readyboostanalyzed/ ].
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*ponders* I guess I could reserve some space on my usb stick and try it out.

If you're planning on upgrading to 4 GB, I would strongly recommend that you install the x64 version off the bat; there's no upgrade path from 32-bit so you'd have to do a clean install which is a PITA as you know.
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Indeed. Thanks for the warning too. But then again, I don't mind so much installing an OS from scratch once a year. It makes me feel clean, like taking a shower after a long and sweaty day. ;)

Eliaures said:
About the only sure fire way of running Vista stable for me was to get the one good boot up with everything loaded, and just leave the computer on.
Click to expand...

Oh boy, I had that with my old computer, for a different reason though (it was a hardware problem). I hope I was lucky this time... so far it's looking fine.
 
Arhu said:
...So far I like Vista. It's shiny. ;)
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First, :w00t:-- Welcome to Vista Club-- :nod:

Indeed, the interface is rather shiny. And if you could, try to top it off with this new LCD monitor ;):
http://www.hothardware.com/News/Dell_Crystal_LCD_Monitor_Launched/

On the readyboost feature, the minimal performance benefit depend on several factors:
http://www.anandtech.com/systems/showdoc.aspx?i=2917&p=6

For Vista's features guides, setting up, and tweakings:
http://www.tweakguides.com/TGTC.html

To make your Vista desktop to look even better:
http://interfacelift.com/wallpaper/index.php?sort=date
 
Arhu said:
*ponders* I guess I could reserve some space on my usb stick and try it out.
Click to expand...

I'd suggest you scavenge one for the purpose; USB sticks aren't hard to come by. I've got a bunch knocking around drawers with various company logos on them that I picked up for free.

Oh boy, I had that with my old computer, for a different reason though (it was a hardware problem). I hope I was lucky this time... so far it's looking fine.
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Yeah, that can happen. Some configurations just don't play together well. I had to install XP on my box three times before I got everything behaving as it should. So far, Vista has been a less painful experience; however, I think that one reason may be that I had the "right" hardware -- not bleeding-edge new but not exotically old, and everything from major vendors.
 
My ASUS M2N32 came with an onboard 512k just for this. I hope (but doubt) its faster than USB 2.0 though. You'd they'd make it compatible for different/faster hardware.

There's a nice feature if you only have one account and you prefer to automatically log in.

http://www.lockergnome.com/windows/2007/02/20/configure-vista-for-automatic-logon/

I used Run to find netplwiz instead of Search because I've had to manually turn all the indexing junk off. Vista (quite rudely) tells you it can't be turned off in Help but a quick search of google tells you how.

The old way with NT, 2K or XP still works but you just end up putting it in the Registry which anything can read. This method doesn't put it in the registry and possibly encrypts it.

I'll give you another tip: the CD-Key works equally well with a 64 bit copy of Vista as it does with the 32 bit version. In fact, I was told by the University's IT guy that every copy of Vista is identical, what version gets loaded is based on that key.

Its really not a bad OS. Some things I found are really odd like removing Hardware Sound support and the inability to Span multiple monitors. I've been told this has to do with the built in DRM. However, the HW sound issue has largely been resolved with emulation and the latter is fairly rare, especially with the popularity of Widescreens.
 
Lucky Day said:
I'll give you another tip: the CD-Key works equally well with a 64 bit copy of Vista as it does with the 32 bit version. In fact, I was told by the University's IT guy that every copy of Vista is identical, what version gets loaded is based on that key.
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Almost correct. The 64-bit and 32-bit versions are different (meaning, the installation media are different, and there's no way to switch between them other than with a clean install); however, the license key does indeed work with either version.

However, all 32-bit and all 64-bit installation media are identical; you choose which version to install when you run the installer -- either by explicit selection or by keying in your license key. It's also very easy to upgrade (although not downgrade) between different versions: you just enable and/or install new features.

Its really not a bad OS. Some things I found are really odd like removing Hardware Sound support and the inability to Span multiple monitors. I've been told this has to do with the built in DRM.
Click to expand...

Uh... I have two monitors and my desktop spans them, so I'm not quite sure what you're talking about here.

As to hardware sound support, this isn't a limitation in Vista per se, but simply a matter of missing driver support for most current sound cards. One of the biggest "under the hood" changes in Vista was a complete reworking of the driver architecture: now, the system is inherently more stable and secure, but the change broke most old hardware drivers. Microsoft also stumbled badly in its (lack of) support for third-party hardware vendors. As a result, the only sound card that would work properly in Vista on release was the SoundBlaster X-Fi series -- and even it had its share of problems.
 
Are really spanning your monitors or are you extending your desktop? If you are spanning them what video card are you using? What's your actual resolution? This is impossible on an nVidia card with Vista. The option is not available in the nVidia control panel in Vista, just on XP. You'd need a special card that tells Vista its a really wide monitor then can split the signal like the TripleHead2Go from Matrox.


For soundcards it is the X-Fi that I have for a soundcard and ALchemy, as I understand it, is a modified form of OpenAL which emulates EAX instead of actually using it on the card itself.
 
also get TweakUAC, a free software tool that you can use to quickly toggle UAC (User Account Control of Windows Vista) on or off.

index.php
 
Well, if it could be tweaked to "remember settings" for programs so you only have to click OK once for each application, like personal firewalls do it in "learning mode", that would be great. But turning it off completely? Nah...
 
Well, UAC could be quite annoying if you already got used to the ways of WinXp. But UAC haven't bothered me enough to turn it off - probably half of the reason is i just don't care each time it pop-up (click "continue") and go on doing my intended task...
 
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