Head to Head: Windows 7 vs Windows Vista
Windows Vista can lay claim to introducing many features and enhancements over Windows XP, but it really needed a major overhaul to make it work as a coherent whole. So much so that it took a whole new operating system to get it right.
Windows 7 is far more than Windows Vista Service Pack 3 and using it will make you feel like you’ve got a new machine.
You may also like...
advertisement
Latest Management News
Palm 'disapointed' by results, Pre sales
Palm's chief executive believes the Pre would have sold better if it had arrived before the Motorola Droid.
Latest Management Features
Public internet access: who is responsible?
In the first of a series of articles looking at business issues faced by IT managers, we look at the steps companies need to take if they open their networks up to visitors.
advertisement
Most popular
- Your Views: Google Street View across the UK
- Reviews round-up: Windows Phone 7 and Firefox Mobile
- Q&A: Conrad Wolfram on communicating with apps in Web 3.0
- Why is Microsoft accelerating Service Pack 1?
- Palm 'disapointed' by results, Pre sales
- Google updates Chrome, awards security bonus
- Report: Macs cost less to run than Windows PCs
- A guide to BlackBerry Messenger 5.0
- Windows Phone 7 review ? hands on
- HTC Legend review
Whitepapers
Want more background on today's hottest IT trends?
Visit IT PRO's whitepaper library for more on virtualisation, encryption and other topics.
Register for IT PRO
You'll get exclusive member benefits including free whitepapers, downloads, Webinars and weekly newsletters full of the latest IT PRO news, reviews, insight and expertise.
I am running Vista Ultimate and feel...
ripped off by Microsoft because ... [we] never received the extras we paid good money to get," said "Hellfire" in a long comment. "The very least that they should do is offer a heavily-discounted upgrade to Windows 7 Ultimate to those that have lost money by purchasing Vista Ultimate.... (quote itworld)
By JaKowal on Wednesday Nov 4
Lack of drivers & problems with older applications
I bought a new machine and dual booted with XP and Vista 64. XP wouldn't install on SATA only system and had to slipstream (combine drivers and services packs onto a DVD). Vista 64 wouldn't work with some of my perpherials like a serial A4 graphics tablet and there where no update drivers for scanner and film scanner and no support for video and TV hardware. The support came for some things 18 months after launch, but was lacking for others. In upgrading to Windows 7 (leaving XP alone) it hung for 4 hours with no indication of what it was doing. All the software had to be installed again, even though this was W7 64 Ultimate over Vista 64 Ultimate. Most of the software to be installed would not run. There are no SCSI drivers, even for current Adaptec cards, no drivers for a current HP printer and it is hard to find a method to enable installation as Vista 64. Having installed and fixed compatibility to XP SP2 the application prompts for permission everytime it is run. Never did that in Vista. The background for Vista was okay, neat. The W7 is terrible. I have switched it to plain, making it more like my XP screen. Over all this was the hardest upgrade to install since Windows 3 days before drivers where on the internet. It would seem the age old advise for products from M$ remains true - don't get any until at least the first service pack.
By Ip_gfge5146c4406 on Friday Nov 6
No version of Windows can be purchased
@Benny Har-Even: "with its relative affordability, free alternatives have lost some of their lustre..." Let's get this straight once and for all, one can only buy a *licence* to run a copy of a Windows OS, one can never *own* a copy. In contrast to this abomination, a user always *owns* their copy of the "free alternatives" to which you refer.
By 6tricky9 on Friday Nov 6