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Old but reliable XP preferred to Vista(Omaha World-Herald (NE) (KRT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Jun. 23--Standing before a white background, "PC" bemoans his operating system in a country song called "The Vista Blues." "So many users, leavin' me And they ain't comin' back Vista's got issues, it's so glitchy They're leaving me for Mac." In Apple's ongoing PC-vs.-Mac advertising campaign, the company currently is trying to capitalize on the perceived weaknesses of Microsoft's Vista operating system. People are switching, Mac claims, because Vista is difficult to use and constantly beset by software bugs. Users are indeed switching but most often not to Macs. They're downgrading to Windows XP, a Vista predecessor that was released in 2001. "Probably 75 percent of our customers are still going with XP," ARN Networks owner Mike Steele said. "For businesses it's almost 100 percent." Vista, which was released in late January of 2007, is a good operating system, but it's not for everybody, said Steele, whose Omaha company builds and services residential and business computers. "It's not backward-compatible," he said. That means that if your computer peripherals are older -- like printers or scanners -- they may not work with Vista. Steele, who is the host of a weekly radio show called "Computers 101," has simple advice for those looking for a new computer. "If you're going from this point forward, with new equipment, definitely go with Vista. And you can't blame Microsoft too much. Can you imagine trying to find drivers for all of the printers made in the last 15 years?" On top of compatibility problems, Microsoft may have gone too far while trying to tighten the security gaps that plagued early versions of XP. Where XP's security settings had to be enabled by the user, Vista was preset with all security features turned on. That decision created hassles and annoyance -- and many on-screen prompts -- for users who just wanted to check their e-mail. "They tried to protect people from themselves, but they went overboard," Steele said. Now, nearly 18 months after Vista's initial release, many users are activating its downgrade feature to return to XP. Available only for Vista Business and Ultimate versions, downgrading reinstalls XP's Professional, Tablet PC or X64 editions. Starting June 30, however, the ability to downgrade will be limited as Microsoft plans to halt XP sales. Computer builders and manufacturers will still be able to install XP by exercising customers' downgrade rights as outlined by Microsoft. At Geeks, a west Omaha computer repair shop, most customers still ask for XP on new systems. Major manufacturers like Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Lenovo also offer the downgrade, though often with an additional fee attached. Geeks will make the switch free of charge. "We put a Vista sticker on it but install XP," owner Jaymes Salestrom said. "They basically get both systems, but use XP." Salestrom has seen Vista-related angst ease in the past few months, especially since the release of Service Pack 1, a software update designed to smooth rough edges. "It made huge improvements," he said. "It solved a lot of problems. People are saying they like it now." For those who haven't switched to Vista -- and won't -- help is on the horizon. Microsoft's next new operating system is slated for release in late 2009. Called Windows 7, it may end up creating the experience Microsoft had hoped for with Vista. "I think, ultimately, Vista will end up being more like Windows ME (released between Windows 98 and XP)," Steele said. "It took steps forward" but was really a bridge to XP, he said of Windows ME. Thankfully for many Windows users, Microsoft didn't burn the bridge from Vista to XP. --Contact the writer: 444-1387, [email protected] To see more of the Omaha World-Herald, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.omaha.com. Copyright (c) 2008, Omaha World-Herald, Neb. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |