xp or not xp?wots the answer

[billy bruiser]

i got hold of a corperate version of windows xp pro,is this a **** version or is it ok to install??,and is xp worth the change from me??please help.thanx

[lechumbl]

Hi billy bruiser,

Is XP right for you?? That is a decision that only you can make.

I have been running it in test on 52 systems for more that a year, and it only got better..So saying that............

First, we need a little more info..........
What is your current OS?

XP is an excellent OS, but it depends on you, as to your need.

It runs appplications faster and more solid that any OS to date.

Many that have installed it swear by it, other that have installed it swear AT it.

My vote is go for it, and you will be pleasently surprised.

By the way, welcome to the forum and there are a lot of folks here who are more than willing to help in any way they can...........except for money.

[Jetrunner]

if it counts for anything,, i just got xp pro,, and its a lot better than the other os'. there's only one thing i dont like...its VERY picky on cd quality when you put it in... like if you have a cd with scratches,,, it will probably run on 98 or me,, but i had like 7 cds, that were scratched, that wouldnt work on xp... well, that's just me, but i still think its a great change.. GO FOR IT!!!

[Arsonist]

there are some downers though. like when you have to do the ctrl+alt+delete thing, which is very infrequent, it asks if you want to send it to microsoft. it gets anoying

[lechumbl]

Hi Arsonist,

Just disable the "Send to MS" function.

(1) Right click on "My Computer".
(2) Click on "Properties"
(3) Click on "Advanced" Tab
(4) Click on "Error Reporting"
(5) Click on "Disable Error Reporting"
(6) Leave "But notify me when critical errors occur".

That will show you the errors but not send them to Mickey Soft.
OR, you can uncheck the "But notify me when critical errors occur" box and it will no longer bother you.

Piece of Cake!!

[Jetrunner]

yes,,, i had that question answered about a week ago,, very helpful,
that's just one annoying thing.... any way to turn down cd pickiness(for lack of choice of words) like to where it wont just reject a cd cause it has scratches?????

[lechumbl]

Hi Jetrunner,

"any way to turn down cd pickiness"

Not that I am aware of.

Actually, I have never heard of a CD-ROM being that picky, because of the OS, only because of the CD-ROM itself.

Interesting??

[crono]

Maybe you could try one of those CD doctors that repair scracthes?

[Arsonist]

thanks lecumbl dude! the cd thing...just a thought but maybe you should try cleaning your laser lens or whatever they use to read the cd.

[moonraker]

I think that you will find that there is no definitive answer here. Personally I don't find anything in XP that shouts to me as a "must have" feature. I have been running 2k for some time now (NT prior to that) and I have to go with the opinion that XP is a jazzed up point release of 2k. IMHO a change for the worse with all the extra screen clutter and huge duplo like icons. ugh.

However, coming from 9*/ME, I think the majority of people will find it a welcome change and certainly <b>far</b> more stable than any of those ever were. There may be some issues with very old games but any new ones should certainly run without any problems.

It's really a question of what you want and expect from an OS. At work I run a lot of CAD/CAM and these are number crunching intensive apps, and as such I want an OS that is as stable as I can get without too many frills, added to which I want to be sure that the drivers for my high end 'professional' graphics cards are readily available and proven. Therefore I shall be sticking with 2k for quite a while yet. I would say the same if it were for others in the organization running Word, Excel, Powerpoint etc, 2k is doing the business, there isn't any new feature in XP that is going to suddenly transform thier working lives so, again we'll be sticking with 2k.
At home it's a different story of course. Being able to lock junior out of the system settings will be a boon for a lot of people, and the user switching feature (albeit nothing new) is a nice touch. In the end I would say that if it ain't broke, don't fix it but..... if you want the latest and flashiest set of wheels on the block, go for it!

[lechumbl]

Hi Moonraker

"I have to go with the opinion that XP is a jazzed up point release of 2k."
Actually, WinXP has replaced both the Win9X platform and the Win2K platform. MS is no longer making the 9X.

Secondly. I agree about the Dr. Seuss looking GUI.
BUT, the GUI can be changed to the Win2K GUI with a couple of "penstrokes". Then you have the goodies and stability of XP, and the look of 2K.

That is what I do and I feel that I have the best of both worlds.

Many companies cannot afford to change to a new OS every time one comes out. So, many companies stay until the end, or MS no longer supports the OS (example...Win95).

At home is a different story........"Damn the torpedos, full steam ahead" with the latest and greatest OS.

Just my three cents worth (inflation, you know).

[tripodal]

depending on the person you are .. either Win 2000 or Win XP
xp if you dont mind all the pretty pictures. and 2000 if you want it to look exactly like 98,2000, me did.. except it wont crash.
or has been my experience

[lechumbl]

Hi Trip,

Exactly my point..........

I don't care to look like 9X or 2K, but I DON'T want to look like Dr. Seuss had a bad day either.

Some choice, huh??.

[tripodal]

well at least the kiddies will like xp, bringing up the next hacker generation addicted to microsoft... just like cigarettes



look mommy, the little pictures are purrty
let me try mommy

[tripodal]

i swear to got if either of my childrens first word is "microsoft" i will kill many many people..........

[BigBen]

Hi,
Having vistited the shops asking about XP it seems in the UK at least that it is selling very poorly, especially the full Pro version.... People don't like the price :mad: but the activation thing seems to be the real turn off.....


Regards

[moonraker]

This is a point I did not venture into, the cost of the thing. If you already have something that works for you, is it worth the cost of the upgrade (or the start from scratch price if your version does not qualify for upgrade). From my point of view, coming from win2000, I would have to say no.

Hi lechumbl, I know that most of the Dr Seuss/Tellietubbies look can be turned off but it doesn't quite end up back at 2000. Some of the icons (the ones that look like hard shelled, brightly coloured sweets) seem to persist. :D It would be good if there were some shareware/freeware shells around that worked with it, like there are for Linux.

It's all a matter of personal choice and if you are really fed up with Microsoft there is always Linux.

[KMS]

my 2p --> XP's a giant step forward from 9x/me, it rocks :)

[JMke]

Originally posted by lechumbl

It runs appplications faster and more solid that any OS to date.


I don't share this opinion at all

got my new PC & installed XP on it... after 5 days formatted the HD & reinstalled good 'ol Windows 2000,

Win2000 is more responsive & reliable imho