I bought a new Dell computer almost two months ago with Vista Home Premium
pre installed. I realize just about every thread here deals with problems
.... and I've had a few with Updates. Before I bought this new computer I
had been using Windows 98 (Celeron 400) on a computer purchased in 1999 if
my memory serves me correctly.
On that old computer I would have to reboot at least once a day to set
something straight. In all honesty, I do not believe I have ever rebooted
to solve a poorly behaved program under Vista. Even with the minor issues I
have this is a breath of fresh air. A poorly behaved program (very rare for
me under Vista) simply gets restarted and that's that.
I've had several ideas (not original I'm sure) on how things could be
improved. One would be to have the OS imbedded in the processor, another
would be (and I see this now with Google) would be to keep all of your
documents offline. While that make make a few folks nervous, I do all my
banking online and would fine it great to have access while on vacation (or
at someone's home) to all of my files. Do I really need this tower sitting
on my desk? It's the same size as the tower I bought from Gateway back in
1993 or so.
vista is better than win98, but if its better or not than xp
is under big debate.
"Dave Horne" <dave.horne@home.nl> wrote in message
news:Ox11$$wdHHA.4564@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...
>I can't edit that post via my newsreader ... but I meant to write 'find'
>instead of fine.
Actually, Vista is much better than ANY of the previous versions. I too
bought a Dell w/ Vista Premium and have run the Hell out of it, trying to
lock it up, and it just hangs in. I've had all MS OSs since the DOS days,
and this latest version is the best. Perhaps you should just hang around
the Mac user groups and bother them with your drivel.
...............................
"kirk jim" <11@11.11> wrote in message
news:Ob6T8CxdHHA.4308@TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...
> you skipped xp.....
>
> THATS why you like vista.. hehe
>
> vista is better than win98, but if its better or not than xp
> is under big debate.
>
> "Dave Horne" <dave.horne@home.nl> wrote in message
> news:Ox11$$wdHHA.4564@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...
>>I can't edit that post via my newsreader ... but I meant to write 'find'
>>instead of fine.
>
>
"Dave Horne" <dave.horne@home.nl> wrote in
news:ObHWw8wdHHA.4004@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl:
> I bought a new Dell computer almost two months ago with Vista Home
> Premium pre installed. I realize just about every thread here deals
> with problems ... and I've had a few with Updates. Before I bought
> this new computer I had been using Windows 98 (Celeron 400) on a
> computer purchased in 1999 if my memory serves me correctly.
>
> On that old computer I would have to reboot at least once a day to set
> something straight. In all honesty, I do not believe I have ever
> rebooted to solve a poorly behaved program under Vista. Even with the
> minor issues I have this is a breath of fresh air. A poorly behaved
> program (very rare for me under Vista) simply gets restarted and
> that's that.
>
> I've had several ideas (not original I'm sure) on how things could be
> improved. One would be to have the OS imbedded in the processor,
> another would be (and I see this now with Google) would be to keep all
> of your documents offline. While that make make a few folks nervous,
> I do all my banking online and would fine it great to have access
> while on vacation (or at someone's home) to all of my files. Do I
> really need this tower sitting on my desk? It's the same size as the
> tower I bought from Gateway back in 1993 or so.
>
> Sorry ... just speaking to myself.
>
>
My Window 98 used to crash all the time. I hated it. Windows 98SE
wasn't much better, except more stable USB. Windows ME was a disaster.
Windows 2000 was nice, but the first really stable OS was Windows XP.
I haven't tried Vista yet. You can certainly find detractors and
defenders of this new OS, but I think the reason you like Vista so much
is because you are now crash-free.
That's the same way I felt when I began using Windows XP. It was great!
Still is. The machine I'm on right now is still running the original XP
Home install of April 2003, and it's as fast as it ever was. It runs
24x7. It's crashed, maybe, 3 times.
I also have Windows XP Pro and Media Center machines that have performed
just as well.
I'm of a completely different opinion. I also bought a new Dell machine with
Windows Vista installed. I have had nothing but problems with Vista since day
one. (The Dell machine seems to be just fine). In synopsis:
[1] USB hard drives do not work with consistency. I have several and Vista
often just freezes up when trying to read a file off a USB drive. The only
way to correct the problem is to disconnect the drive and then plug it back
in again. Until you do that, the entire system is locked up. So not only does
Vista fail to work properly with USB drives, it also fails to recover from
such a failure.
[2] You cannot access network (NAS) drives. They simply won't work because
MS in all its wisdom decided to use a protocol level that is not compatible
with the vast majority of existing NAS drives. You can change that if you dig
into the Vista system registry - but even then, accessing a NAS drive is hit
and miss. Sometimes it will work and sometimes it won't. And when it does, it
will often just provide the first level of a folder heirarchy. If you try to
access a subfolder on a NAS drive, Windows Explorer will fail while its
trying to do so.
[3] Wireless network problems. If you use ethernet to connect to your
network things might work okay. But if you use wireless to connect to your
network, don't bet on it. You'll find that network functions that work on
ethernet won't necessarily work with a wireless connection.
[4] Internet Explorer has problems also. IE7 has frozen on me 4 times
tonight just reading the newsgroups via windowshelp.microsoft.com. Looks like
java problems.
[5] When Vista conks out on you, which is does with regularity, windows
explorer is most often the program that stops responding. Windows Explorer is
the guts/control center of the operating system. When it keeps freezing and
can't even recover from problems (you often have to reboot to get Windows
Explorer working right again) you've got an OS with serious problems.
I rate WIndows Vista right there with Windows 95 and Windows Mellenium - in
other words, it sucks. A crap product considering it was 5 years in the
making. it might be useable if you're a technician, but I certainly can't
recommend it for home users. And don't expect much response from Microsoft on
these issues. You'll find few, if any, possible solutions anywhere for these
problems once you start digging for answers.
Read the forums awhile and you'll see these same problems being reported by
many people. And I haven't even gotten around to trying to set up my
multimedia stuff yet. I can't even get to that without reliable hard drive
and NAS drive capabilities.
"Boris" wrote:
> "Dave Horne" <dave.horne@home.nl> wrote in
> news:ObHWw8wdHHA.4004@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl:
>
> > I bought a new Dell computer almost two months ago with Vista Home
> > Premium pre installed. I realize just about every thread here deals
> > with problems ... and I've had a few with Updates. Before I bought
> > this new computer I had been using Windows 98 (Celeron 400) on a
> > computer purchased in 1999 if my memory serves me correctly.
> >
> > On that old computer I would have to reboot at least once a day to set
> > something straight. In all honesty, I do not believe I have ever
> > rebooted to solve a poorly behaved program under Vista. Even with the
> > minor issues I have this is a breath of fresh air. A poorly behaved
> > program (very rare for me under Vista) simply gets restarted and
> > that's that.
> >
> > I've had several ideas (not original I'm sure) on how things could be
> > improved. One would be to have the OS imbedded in the processor,
> > another would be (and I see this now with Google) would be to keep all
> > of your documents offline. While that make make a few folks nervous,
> > I do all my banking online and would fine it great to have access
> > while on vacation (or at someone's home) to all of my files. Do I
> > really need this tower sitting on my desk? It's the same size as the
> > tower I bought from Gateway back in 1993 or so.
> >
> > Sorry ... just speaking to myself.
> >
> >
>
> My Window 98 used to crash all the time. I hated it. Windows 98SE
> wasn't much better, except more stable USB. Windows ME was a disaster.
> Windows 2000 was nice, but the first really stable OS was Windows XP.
>
> I haven't tried Vista yet. You can certainly find detractors and
> defenders of this new OS, but I think the reason you like Vista so much
> is because you are now crash-free.
>
> That's the same way I felt when I began using Windows XP. It was great!
> Still is. The machine I'm on right now is still running the original XP
> Home install of April 2003, and it's as fast as it ever was. It runs
> 24x7. It's crashed, maybe, 3 times.
>
> I also have Windows XP Pro and Media Center machines that have performed
> just as well.
>
> Yes, it is nice to say good bye to crashing.
>
That would make processors rather large having the OS built in. The already
have a CPU program (yes your CPU needs to run programs to manage it) builtin
called microcode. Then the bits and pieces that plug into a computer like
hard drives have code that either the bios runs or also have their own CPU
of some type. Then there's the BIOS to tie the hardware together - basically
a collection of real mode device drivers so you can set the thing up and so
it can launch an operating system.
If your name is Apple it could be (I'm not saying it would be) feasable.
Known hardware, known OS. Makes it hard to fix mistakes.
"Dave Horne" <dave.horne@home.nl> wrote in message
news:Ox11$$wdHHA.4564@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...
>I can't edit that post via my newsreader ... but I meant to write 'find'
>instead of fine.
Did you ever think it might have something to do with DELLLLLLLLL.
I have a 5 year old Packard Bell Pentium 4, 2.0Ghz, 128mbs ATI Radeon
Sapphire 9550 card, 1 Gig of DDR, and am running Vista home Premium on it
like a dream.
I wasn't going to build a brand new computer just to have a look at Vista.
Aero, Networking with XP Pro, Printing, EVERYTHING, works.
So, is it the software, the hardware, OR THE USERS where the blame lays for
YOUR problems?
"phillfri" wrote:
> I'm of a completely different opinion. I also bought a new Dell machine with
> Windows Vista installed. I have had nothing but problems with Vista since day
> one. (The Dell machine seems to be just fine). In synopsis:
>
> [1] USB hard drives do not work with consistency. I have several and Vista
> often just freezes up when trying to read a file off a USB drive. The only
> way to correct the problem is to disconnect the drive and then plug it back
> in again. Until you do that, the entire system is locked up. So not only does
> Vista fail to work properly with USB drives, it also fails to recover from
> such a failure.
>
> [2] You cannot access network (NAS) drives. They simply won't work because
> MS in all its wisdom decided to use a protocol level that is not compatible
> with the vast majority of existing NAS drives. You can change that if you dig
> into the Vista system registry - but even then, accessing a NAS drive is hit
> and miss. Sometimes it will work and sometimes it won't. And when it does, it
> will often just provide the first level of a folder heirarchy. If you try to
> access a subfolder on a NAS drive, Windows Explorer will fail while its
> trying to do so.
>
> [3] Wireless network problems. If you use ethernet to connect to your
> network things might work okay. But if you use wireless to connect to your
> network, don't bet on it. You'll find that network functions that work on
> ethernet won't necessarily work with a wireless connection.
>
> [4] Internet Explorer has problems also. IE7 has frozen on me 4 times
> tonight just reading the newsgroups via windowshelp.microsoft.com. Looks like
> java problems.
>
> [5] When Vista conks out on you, which is does with regularity, windows
> explorer is most often the program that stops responding. Windows Explorer is
> the guts/control center of the operating system. When it keeps freezing and
> can't even recover from problems (you often have to reboot to get Windows
> Explorer working right again) you've got an OS with serious problems.
>
> I rate WIndows Vista right there with Windows 95 and Windows Mellenium - in
> other words, it sucks. A crap product considering it was 5 years in the
> making. it might be useable if you're a technician, but I certainly can't
> recommend it for home users. And don't expect much response from Microsoft on
> these issues. You'll find few, if any, possible solutions anywhere for these
> problems once you start digging for answers.
>
> Read the forums awhile and you'll see these same problems being reported by
> many people. And I haven't even gotten around to trying to set up my
> multimedia stuff yet. I can't even get to that without reliable hard drive
> and NAS drive capabilities.
>
> "Boris" wrote:
>
> > "Dave Horne" <dave.horne@home.nl> wrote in
> > news:ObHWw8wdHHA.4004@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl:
> >
> > > I bought a new Dell computer almost two months ago with Vista Home
> > > Premium pre installed. I realize just about every thread here deals
> > > with problems ... and I've had a few with Updates. Before I bought
> > > this new computer I had been using Windows 98 (Celeron 400) on a
> > > computer purchased in 1999 if my memory serves me correctly.
> > >
> > > On that old computer I would have to reboot at least once a day to set
> > > something straight. In all honesty, I do not believe I have ever
> > > rebooted to solve a poorly behaved program under Vista. Even with the
> > > minor issues I have this is a breath of fresh air. A poorly behaved
> > > program (very rare for me under Vista) simply gets restarted and
> > > that's that.
> > >
> > > I've had several ideas (not original I'm sure) on how things could be
> > > improved. One would be to have the OS imbedded in the processor,
> > > another would be (and I see this now with Google) would be to keep all
> > > of your documents offline. While that make make a few folks nervous,
> > > I do all my banking online and would fine it great to have access
> > > while on vacation (or at someone's home) to all of my files. Do I
> > > really need this tower sitting on my desk? It's the same size as the
> > > tower I bought from Gateway back in 1993 or so.
> > >
> > > Sorry ... just speaking to myself.
> > >
> > >
> >
> > My Window 98 used to crash all the time. I hated it. Windows 98SE
> > wasn't much better, except more stable USB. Windows ME was a disaster.
> > Windows 2000 was nice, but the first really stable OS was Windows XP.
> >
> > I haven't tried Vista yet. You can certainly find detractors and
> > defenders of this new OS, but I think the reason you like Vista so much
> > is because you are now crash-free.
> >
> > That's the same way I felt when I began using Windows XP. It was great!
> > Still is. The machine I'm on right now is still running the original XP
> > Home install of April 2003, and it's as fast as it ever was. It runs
> > 24x7. It's crashed, maybe, 3 times.
> >
> > I also have Windows XP Pro and Media Center machines that have performed
> > just as well.
> >
> > Yes, it is nice to say good bye to crashing.
> >
Its not the Dell machine. The first thing I did was install Windows XP for
dual boot on this new Dell machine, and these functions all work just fine if
I boot the machine in Windows XP. I've been using computers since 1980 both
in my work and personally, and I've done customer tech support for some
larger software companies. I know the tech support dance between helping
users and allocated per incident time quotas. I installed Windows XP exactly
because of the short hand response one gets (like yours) when one raises
these issues. Blaming it on another component is a part of meeting per
incident tech support time quotas. So, a word to the wise, if you bought a
new machine, install WinXP in dual boot mode. Then you can always check
whether your problem exists in both Vista and XP. If it doesn't, then at
least you know your problem is not a hardware problem, but rather a software
issue. And you can avoid by all those short hand tech support responses that
try to push the issue off onto the hardware.
"Mick" wrote:
> Did you ever think it might have something to do with DELLLLLLLLL.
> I have a 5 year old Packard Bell Pentium 4, 2.0Ghz, 128mbs ATI Radeon
> Sapphire 9550 card, 1 Gig of DDR, and am running Vista home Premium on it
> like a dream.
> I wasn't going to build a brand new computer just to have a look at Vista.
> Aero, Networking with XP Pro, Printing, EVERYTHING, works.
> So, is it the software, the hardware, OR THE USERS where the blame lays for
> YOUR problems?
>
> "phillfri" wrote:
>
> > I'm of a completely different opinion. I also bought a new Dell machine with
> > Windows Vista installed. I have had nothing but problems with Vista since day
> > one. (The Dell machine seems to be just fine). In synopsis:
> >
> > [1] USB hard drives do not work with consistency. I have several and Vista
> > often just freezes up when trying to read a file off a USB drive. The only
> > way to correct the problem is to disconnect the drive and then plug it back
> > in again. Until you do that, the entire system is locked up. So not only does
> > Vista fail to work properly with USB drives, it also fails to recover from
> > such a failure.
> >
> > [2] You cannot access network (NAS) drives. They simply won't work because
> > MS in all its wisdom decided to use a protocol level that is not compatible
> > with the vast majority of existing NAS drives. You can change that if you dig
> > into the Vista system registry - but even then, accessing a NAS drive is hit
> > and miss. Sometimes it will work and sometimes it won't. And when it does, it
> > will often just provide the first level of a folder heirarchy. If you try to
> > access a subfolder on a NAS drive, Windows Explorer will fail while its
> > trying to do so.
> >
> > [3] Wireless network problems. If you use ethernet to connect to your
> > network things might work okay. But if you use wireless to connect to your
> > network, don't bet on it. You'll find that network functions that work on
> > ethernet won't necessarily work with a wireless connection.
> >
> > [4] Internet Explorer has problems also. IE7 has frozen on me 4 times
> > tonight just reading the newsgroups via windowshelp.microsoft.com. Looks like
> > java problems.
> >
> > [5] When Vista conks out on you, which is does with regularity, windows
> > explorer is most often the program that stops responding. Windows Explorer is
> > the guts/control center of the operating system. When it keeps freezing and
> > can't even recover from problems (you often have to reboot to get Windows
> > Explorer working right again) you've got an OS with serious problems.
> >
> > I rate WIndows Vista right there with Windows 95 and Windows Mellenium - in
> > other words, it sucks. A crap product considering it was 5 years in the
> > making. it might be useable if you're a technician, but I certainly can't
> > recommend it for home users. And don't expect much response from Microsoft on
> > these issues. You'll find few, if any, possible solutions anywhere for these
> > problems once you start digging for answers.
> >
> > Read the forums awhile and you'll see these same problems being reported by
> > many people. And I haven't even gotten around to trying to set up my
> > multimedia stuff yet. I can't even get to that without reliable hard drive
> > and NAS drive capabilities.
> >
> > "Boris" wrote:
> >
> > > "Dave Horne" <dave.horne@home.nl> wrote in
> > > news:ObHWw8wdHHA.4004@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl:
> > >
> > > > I bought a new Dell computer almost two months ago with Vista Home
> > > > Premium pre installed. I realize just about every thread here deals
> > > > with problems ... and I've had a few with Updates. Before I bought
> > > > this new computer I had been using Windows 98 (Celeron 400) on a
> > > > computer purchased in 1999 if my memory serves me correctly.
> > > >
> > > > On that old computer I would have to reboot at least once a day to set
> > > > something straight. In all honesty, I do not believe I have ever
> > > > rebooted to solve a poorly behaved program under Vista. Even with the
> > > > minor issues I have this is a breath of fresh air. A poorly behaved
> > > > program (very rare for me under Vista) simply gets restarted and
> > > > that's that.
> > > >
> > > > I've had several ideas (not original I'm sure) on how things could be
> > > > improved. One would be to have the OS imbedded in the processor,
> > > > another would be (and I see this now with Google) would be to keep all
> > > > of your documents offline. While that make make a few folks nervous,
> > > > I do all my banking online and would fine it great to have access
> > > > while on vacation (or at someone's home) to all of my files. Do I
> > > > really need this tower sitting on my desk? It's the same size as the
> > > > tower I bought from Gateway back in 1993 or so.
> > > >
> > > > Sorry ... just speaking to myself.
> > > >
> > > >
> > >
> > > My Window 98 used to crash all the time. I hated it. Windows 98SE
> > > wasn't much better, except more stable USB. Windows ME was a disaster.
> > > Windows 2000 was nice, but the first really stable OS was Windows XP.
> > >
> > > I haven't tried Vista yet. You can certainly find detractors and
> > > defenders of this new OS, but I think the reason you like Vista so much
> > > is because you are now crash-free.
> > >
> > > That's the same way I felt when I began using Windows XP. It was great!
> > > Still is. The machine I'm on right now is still running the original XP
> > > Home install of April 2003, and it's as fast as it ever was. It runs
> > > 24x7. It's crashed, maybe, 3 times.
> > >
> > > I also have Windows XP Pro and Media Center machines that have performed
> > > just as well.
> > >
> > > Yes, it is nice to say good bye to crashing.
> > >
You have altered the DELL machine form its factory default. No wonder the
Techs don't want to help you.
As for me, I am 59yo. with my own business, building and repairing
computers, and setting up company networks and security.
You are not the only smart-ass
"phillfri" wrote:
> Its not the Dell machine. The first thing I did was install Windows XP for
> dual boot on this new Dell machine, and these functions all work just fine if
> I boot the machine in Windows XP. I've been using computers since 1980 both
> in my work and personally, and I've done customer tech support for some
> larger software companies. I know the tech support dance between helping
> users and allocated per incident time quotas. I installed Windows XP exactly
> because of the short hand response one gets (like yours) when one raises
> these issues. Blaming it on another component is a part of meeting per
> incident tech support time quotas. So, a word to the wise, if you bought a
> new machine, install WinXP in dual boot mode. Then you can always check
> whether your problem exists in both Vista and XP. If it doesn't, then at
> least you know your problem is not a hardware problem, but rather a software
> issue. And you can avoid by all those short hand tech support responses that
> try to push the issue off onto the hardware.
>
> "Mick" wrote:
>
> > Did you ever think it might have something to do with DELLLLLLLLL.
> > I have a 5 year old Packard Bell Pentium 4, 2.0Ghz, 128mbs ATI Radeon
> > Sapphire 9550 card, 1 Gig of DDR, and am running Vista home Premium on it
> > like a dream.
> > I wasn't going to build a brand new computer just to have a look at Vista.
> > Aero, Networking with XP Pro, Printing, EVERYTHING, works.
> > So, is it the software, the hardware, OR THE USERS where the blame lays for
> > YOUR problems?
> >
> > "phillfri" wrote:
> >
> > > I'm of a completely different opinion. I also bought a new Dell machine with
> > > Windows Vista installed. I have had nothing but problems with Vista since day
> > > one. (The Dell machine seems to be just fine). In synopsis:
> > >
> > > [1] USB hard drives do not work with consistency. I have several and Vista
> > > often just freezes up when trying to read a file off a USB drive. The only
> > > way to correct the problem is to disconnect the drive and then plug it back
> > > in again. Until you do that, the entire system is locked up. So not only does
> > > Vista fail to work properly with USB drives, it also fails to recover from
> > > such a failure.
> > >
> > > [2] You cannot access network (NAS) drives. They simply won't work because
> > > MS in all its wisdom decided to use a protocol level that is not compatible
> > > with the vast majority of existing NAS drives. You can change that if you dig
> > > into the Vista system registry - but even then, accessing a NAS drive is hit
> > > and miss. Sometimes it will work and sometimes it won't. And when it does, it
> > > will often just provide the first level of a folder heirarchy. If you try to
> > > access a subfolder on a NAS drive, Windows Explorer will fail while its
> > > trying to do so.
> > >
> > > [3] Wireless network problems. If you use ethernet to connect to your
> > > network things might work okay. But if you use wireless to connect to your
> > > network, don't bet on it. You'll find that network functions that work on
> > > ethernet won't necessarily work with a wireless connection.
> > >
> > > [4] Internet Explorer has problems also. IE7 has frozen on me 4 times
> > > tonight just reading the newsgroups via windowshelp.microsoft.com. Looks like
> > > java problems.
> > >
> > > [5] When Vista conks out on you, which is does with regularity, windows
> > > explorer is most often the program that stops responding. Windows Explorer is
> > > the guts/control center of the operating system. When it keeps freezing and
> > > can't even recover from problems (you often have to reboot to get Windows
> > > Explorer working right again) you've got an OS with serious problems.
> > >
> > > I rate WIndows Vista right there with Windows 95 and Windows Mellenium - in
> > > other words, it sucks. A crap product considering it was 5 years in the
> > > making. it might be useable if you're a technician, but I certainly can't
> > > recommend it for home users. And don't expect much response from Microsoft on
> > > these issues. You'll find few, if any, possible solutions anywhere for these
> > > problems once you start digging for answers.
> > >
> > > Read the forums awhile and you'll see these same problems being reported by
> > > many people. And I haven't even gotten around to trying to set up my
> > > multimedia stuff yet. I can't even get to that without reliable hard drive
> > > and NAS drive capabilities.
> > >
> > > "Boris" wrote:
> > >
> > > > "Dave Horne" <dave.horne@home.nl> wrote in
> > > > news:ObHWw8wdHHA.4004@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl:
> > > >
> > > > > I bought a new Dell computer almost two months ago with Vista Home
> > > > > Premium pre installed. I realize just about every thread here deals
> > > > > with problems ... and I've had a few with Updates. Before I bought
> > > > > this new computer I had been using Windows 98 (Celeron 400) on a
> > > > > computer purchased in 1999 if my memory serves me correctly.
> > > > >
> > > > > On that old computer I would have to reboot at least once a day to set
> > > > > something straight. In all honesty, I do not believe I have ever
> > > > > rebooted to solve a poorly behaved program under Vista. Even with the
> > > > > minor issues I have this is a breath of fresh air. A poorly behaved
> > > > > program (very rare for me under Vista) simply gets restarted and
> > > > > that's that.
> > > > >
> > > > > I've had several ideas (not original I'm sure) on how things could be
> > > > > improved. One would be to have the OS imbedded in the processor,
> > > > > another would be (and I see this now with Google) would be to keep all
> > > > > of your documents offline. While that make make a few folks nervous,
> > > > > I do all my banking online and would fine it great to have access
> > > > > while on vacation (or at someone's home) to all of my files. Do I
> > > > > really need this tower sitting on my desk? It's the same size as the
> > > > > tower I bought from Gateway back in 1993 or so.
> > > > >
> > > > > Sorry ... just speaking to myself.
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > > > My Window 98 used to crash all the time. I hated it. Windows 98SE
> > > > wasn't much better, except more stable USB. Windows ME was a disaster.
> > > > Windows 2000 was nice, but the first really stable OS was Windows XP.
> > > >
> > > > I haven't tried Vista yet. You can certainly find detractors and
> > > > defenders of this new OS, but I think the reason you like Vista so much
> > > > is because you are now crash-free.
> > > >
> > > > That's the same way I felt when I began using Windows XP. It was great!
> > > > Still is. The machine I'm on right now is still running the original XP
> > > > Home install of April 2003, and it's as fast as it ever was. It runs
> > > > 24x7. It's crashed, maybe, 3 times.
> > > >
> > > > I also have Windows XP Pro and Media Center machines that have performed
> > > > just as well.
> > > >
> > > > Yes, it is nice to say good bye to crashing.
> > > >
General comments re Vista 
Linear Mode
