Ok...my wife has just about 2000 in a stipend to put towards a new laptop. Plus, the hospital has a deal with dell that will knock basically 10% off the cost.
When I build the inspiron, it gives me a choice of operating systems. I'm no computer guy so help is appreciated. Ive read that service pack one will be out 1st quarter for vista, but it will soon be followed by pack 3 for XP.
We will likely net surf, do basic photo stuff, play madden/nhl/mvp, burn home movies to dvd with this thing.
Thoughts/comments appreciated, plus any other rec. for the laptop that you may have.
Thanks in advance boys. Cant believe its 2nd quarter and my Fish are still in the ballgame! Let it rain.
Tony
XP vs Vista help
Moderators: Bill_Abner, ScoopBrady
Vista is not as bad some people try to make it out to be. If all your doing is net surfing, looking at pictures and that kind of stuff just get Vista now so you won't have to pay for it down the road. There are a lot of little things that just make it a nicer experience than XP. I'm running Vista x64 and it runs perfectly fine. I have had almost zero problems and we're talking 64 bit, that alone should cause more problems than it has.
The only downside to vista is that it can be a resource hog. You should definitely get 2 GB of RAM. If you really are going to spend $2k than you should be fine in that regard.
EDIT: As far as games, the titles you list aren't big system hogs so no need to worry about Vista slowing those down as some people might point out.
The only downside to vista is that it can be a resource hog. You should definitely get 2 GB of RAM. If you really are going to spend $2k than you should be fine in that regard.
EDIT: As far as games, the titles you list aren't big system hogs so no need to worry about Vista slowing those down as some people might point out.
Last edited by LAking on Mon Nov 26, 2007 11:51 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"Be tolerant of those who describe a sporting moment as their best ever. We do not lack imagination, nor have we had sad and barren lives; it is just that real life is paler, duller, and contains less potential for unexpected delirium." -Nick Hornby
I have both and run both. Take it for what it's worth, Vista will go down in history as Microsoft's version of Windows ME (Windows Millennium). It requires a lot of hardware to make it run decent and as far as overall computing experience over Windows XP, it offers a minimal experience. That's why so many are pissed at Vista and run Windows XP instead.
The user interface or GUI looks nice but I can get a similar look using Windowblinds 6.
Games for the most part no better and slightly worse in Windows Vista. The highly touted DirectX10 is a joke and requires a new video card to achieve the results Microsoft claims which so far is not worth the investment in new hardware.
Vista is very stable for me, i'll give it that as I run Vista Ultimate on my IBM laptop with no problems but I have 3GB of memory to get it to run decent and a good CPU. If the so called SP3 for Windows XP does in fact make XP run even faster than Vista then it will give more ammo for not upgrading to Vista.
The bottom line is I can do 85-90% of what I already do with Windows XP but it requires more investment in the hardware just to make it run as fast as Windows XP. Vista has gotten more stable with the recent Microsoft updates but a lot of computer user feel that Vista is not as big of an improvement over what is currently available with Windows XP.
To add fuel to the fire. Microsoft is already talking about Windows 7 which is their next OS and will probably deliver what Windows Vista was supposed to have been in the first place.
I followed Vista thru it's development and what we were suppose to get was a really state of the art operating system. Microsoft over promised and under delivered, because they had a lot of pressure to deliver something and hence Vista was shoved out the door in a rushed state.
The user interface or GUI looks nice but I can get a similar look using Windowblinds 6.
Games for the most part no better and slightly worse in Windows Vista. The highly touted DirectX10 is a joke and requires a new video card to achieve the results Microsoft claims which so far is not worth the investment in new hardware.
Vista is very stable for me, i'll give it that as I run Vista Ultimate on my IBM laptop with no problems but I have 3GB of memory to get it to run decent and a good CPU. If the so called SP3 for Windows XP does in fact make XP run even faster than Vista then it will give more ammo for not upgrading to Vista.
The bottom line is I can do 85-90% of what I already do with Windows XP but it requires more investment in the hardware just to make it run as fast as Windows XP. Vista has gotten more stable with the recent Microsoft updates but a lot of computer user feel that Vista is not as big of an improvement over what is currently available with Windows XP.
To add fuel to the fire. Microsoft is already talking about Windows 7 which is their next OS and will probably deliver what Windows Vista was supposed to have been in the first place.
I followed Vista thru it's development and what we were suppose to get was a really state of the art operating system. Microsoft over promised and under delivered, because they had a lot of pressure to deliver something and hence Vista was shoved out the door in a rushed state.
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FifaInspected
- DSP-Funk All-Star
- Posts: 1799
- Joined: Mon Oct 17, 2005 3:00 am
I'll second that.FifaInspected wrote:Do yourself a favor and leave them both behind. Come join the apple cult and leave all your computing worries behind you. The integration of the iLife suite alone will make you a believer
Seriously... eat the Apple... it's ok this time.
XBL Gamertag: Spooky Disco
Thirded that. I can tolerate XP (and run it fabulously in Boot Camp) but wouldn't touch Vista with a ten-foot pole, particularly if gaming. Just curious Rodster, which "must-have" apps are Windows-only?Spooky wrote:I'll second that.FifaInspected wrote:Do yourself a favor and leave them both behind. Come join the apple cult and leave all your computing worries behind you. The integration of the iLife suite alone will make you a believer
Seriously... eat the Apple... it's ok this time.
I say this with some trepidation these days. Since the iPod fad took off, Apple has started to behave exactly like the Microsoft evil empire in a lot of ways. I'm not nuts about the company any more, but still love the product.
Blub, business wise I need Streets and Trips, Quicken Home and Business, Peachtree Accounting and Office 2007 Business Suite.
For gaming it's even more imperative i'm in a Windows environment for my racing and flight sims like rFactor, GP4, Richard Burns Rally, Microsoft Flight Simulator X where it's so CPU and graphics intensive i'm trying to squeeze every last frame per second I can out of the program.
I like OSX and Macs in general but I found myself using both computers for different tasks like my Mac handling the internet and my Windows doing my business and gaming stuff so as you can see Windows got more play time from me.
For gaming it's even more imperative i'm in a Windows environment for my racing and flight sims like rFactor, GP4, Richard Burns Rally, Microsoft Flight Simulator X where it's so CPU and graphics intensive i'm trying to squeeze every last frame per second I can out of the program.
I like OSX and Macs in general but I found myself using both computers for different tasks like my Mac handling the internet and my Windows doing my business and gaming stuff so as you can see Windows got more play time from me.
Tony always run the native resolution which is usually the highest setting as it always looks the best. I have a 17" flat panel so I run 1280x1024 and that it's highest setting.MUTTS wrote:what about screen resolutions...im sure you all have opinions to help me there as well
Thanks again
Tony
What screen do you have?
Fair enough Rodster - you're right that most of those don't have direct counterparts on the Mac, except for most of the Office apps (although not Access, which is a problem for me as well).Rodster wrote:Blub, business wise I need Streets and Trips, Quicken Home and Business, Peachtree Accounting and Office 2007 Business Suite.
For gaming it's even more imperative i'm in a Windows environment for my racing and flight sims like rFactor, GP4, Richard Burns Rally, Microsoft Flight Simulator X where it's so CPU and graphics intensive i'm trying to squeeze every last frame per second I can out of the program.
I like OSX and Macs in general but I found myself using both computers for different tasks like my Mac handling the internet and my Windows doing my business and gaming stuff so as you can see Windows got more play time from me.
There's no doubt gaming on the Mac side is effectively dead. But with Boot Camp it really isn't all that big a deal anymore. The productivity apps you mentioned also should run fine on that side, but I can see your point - if you're already using Windows for work and gaming it hardly pays to switch to the Mac side just for browsing.
You better have feckin 20/20 vision because you're going to need it.MUTTS wrote:Was thinking of getting the 15.4 inch 1680x1050Rodster wrote: Tony always run the native resolution which is usually the highest setting as it always looks the best. I have a 17" flat panel so I run 1280x1024 and that it's highest setting.
What screen do you have?
I made the mistake and ordered my IBM Thinkpad with that resolution and man is everything tiny. The screen is beautiful but I have to squint to see things on the screen sometimes.
I ordered a 15.4" Dell laptop with the standard resolution and it's much better when trying to see things on the screen.
It's obligatory as resident Apple fanboy for me to remind you that ALL new Macs run Intel processors and are fully capable Windows machines. You can take your existing XP license (or buy Vista) and install it on the Mac (using both Bootcamp and/or Parallels/VMWare) and get NATIVE speed; in fact the 17" MacBook Pro was recently rated the fastest WINDOWS laptop available. This is not daunting, hacking, or even the least bit complex. Choose to boot into Windows, or boot into Mac OS, with Windows files available inside the Mac OS. You'd be able to run all of your business apps, games, PLUS all the Mac apps.
You could also install Linux etc.
If you have ANY interest in the Mac for email, web surfing, iLife (photos, movies, music, etc.) and general design durability it's crazy not to at least consider a Mac.
You can run every popular OS at native speed and with full support, which you can't do on a Dell.
You may pay a little more in the near term, but you save a ton in software thanks to everything bundled with the Mac.
You could also install Linux etc.
If you have ANY interest in the Mac for email, web surfing, iLife (photos, movies, music, etc.) and general design durability it's crazy not to at least consider a Mac.
You can run every popular OS at native speed and with full support, which you can't do on a Dell.
You may pay a little more in the near term, but you save a ton in software thanks to everything bundled with the Mac.
Sport73
"Can't we all just get along? I'll turn this car around RIGHT now!"
"Can't we all just get along? I'll turn this car around RIGHT now!"
I'm aware of all of that Sport but I have zero interest in that because of my intense games and the graphics cards I need. Also I build my own rigs. I'm one of the few who has used OSX, XP and Vista and actually prefer Windows over OSX.
They all have their pros and cons and have used all of them minus Linux which I have never used and have zero interest.
They all have their pros and cons and have used all of them minus Linux which I have never used and have zero interest.