Around the web a search for Vista alone will yield many an article about the terrible experiences people have had, how much better Windows XP is, and how it’s just junk.

It isn’t.

I’m saying this as ever, as a new user to the system, and as a Mac OS X and Linux user too. I’ll wager many of those proponents of the ‘Vista sucks’ message are either those who need/want to drive up visitor numbers/advertising revenue and those willing to read that message to confirm a half baked belief that will vindicate them as right. But this isn’t about what is right or wrong, just the facts. Just the facts Jack.

I purchased an Acer Aspire M1640 the other week as I had decided that I needed to have Vista to develop sidebar gadgets as part of my work. Also the Dell was getting somewhat long in the tooth. So I bought my first new PC ever. I bought it pre-built as it worked out cheaper, quite a lot cheaper. £279 bought a Core 2 Duo E4700 system (2.6GHz), 2GB RAM, 250GB HD, Vista Home Premium license, DVD+/-RW, etc. A good solid middle of the road base unit.

 
The Vista desktop definitely isn’t lipstick on a pig!

I can only liken the situation with Windows Vista to that of when Windows 95 came along and replaced Windows 3.1/11 for Workgroups. For the first time in history 95 worked somewhat different to how Windows had up until that point (centered around the MS-DOS Executive/Program Manager) and suddenly that was out and a more Mac/Amiga alike desktop came along with the desktop being fundamentally very similar. Windows 95 also made the 386 history and it really did deserve a Pentium machine with 8MB of RAM — this was quite a big thing in 1995 when a 486 with 4MB was more common.

 
Flip3D is a gimmick and Compiz has it roundly beat but it’s pretty.

Vista, particularly the Windows Explorer has changed quite dramatically from the Explorer that has evolved from 95 through to XP/2003; and some people are very resistant to change. I work on websites that have a few customers who sadly are not very forgiving of any change, even when it’s for the better.

The start menu goes a bit further than XP did and one thing that got me right away was the lack of the Run command by default. It’s easily added back but then you start using that instant search facility (much better in location/immediate use than Apple’s Spotlight but this in part related to the horrible Dock concept, IMHO.)

Searching for a file based on a meta-tag

You then realise not only can you tap in Word and enter to run Word, but us old school types who have found it easier to do Start + Run and tap in winword and enter will find that works as well.

 
Instant search also finds applications by filename, not just shortcut name!

It even takes parameters. So instant search is search as well as the run command combined.

The start menu also no longer folds out to reveal forever expanding menus that head to the right of the screen. It all works in place. Again takes time to get used to but it is better, but then I like the new KDE 4 Kicker menu! Some don’t.

In terms of speed, so far no problems at all. It boots quicker (and I have loaded up most of what I need) and the applications open quicker. Word 2007 took an age for example (compared to 97-2003) on my P4 Dell with XP but on this it’s open in seconds. Certainly I have better hardware now, but even so, the oft mentioned bloat does not appear to be causing problems at all.

 
Adding tags to files is a breeze

I will be continuing my observations but what certainly is clear is that particularly in the SP1 era, Vista is actually a great improvement over the slightly anaemic looking XP in comparison. It seems better thought out and has broken away from those conventions first established in Windows 95. This is a good thing.

 
Windows Explorer gets a needed update for a world hooked on data and lots of it. It’s very nice and better than Mac OS X’s Finder.

I’ve never hated the Mac OS X interface but I have never adored or loved it, mostly because I cannot stand the Dock which is an awful way of managing windows but with Vista it felt very much like what I already knew but with good improvements. In many respects it has a lot of the things that I like about KDE 4.1 about it.

Tune in for more

So let’s see what I have running in my household (which consists of me, myself and I):

• OpenSUSE 11 on the laptop
• Windows XP and 2000 on the Dell
• Windows NT 4 Server on the other Dell which is a glorified NAS (Network Attached Storage) box
• Mac OS X 10.4 on the eMac
• Mac OS 9.2 on the iMac

A balanced lot I think. The top two get the most use in general. The time has come however to take the jump and start plugging away with Windows Vista.

I have never bought a new computer in my life. Unless you count the Commodore 64 in 1990 which technically wasn’t bought by me but my parents. But it was new. Since then I have had a hotch potch of second hand stuff, not that this has bothered me. I have also built plenty of new PCs all faster than what I had at the time (Pentium IIs, then IIIs, then Athlon XPs, Pentium D’s etc.) but never a new computer for myself.

That has now changed as I have bought an Acer M1640 Core 2 Duo system that worked out somewhat cheaper than building it myself, brand new. I’m actually quite looking forward to it and the Dell will get retired and probably sold in the Friday Ad or eBay when I have got the new Acer up and running fully.

It comes with Vista.

Now, universally it has been in-vogue to bash Vista, particularly from people who haven’t used it. Some people have used it and got their fingers burnt but others have used it and liked it so much that their satisfaction as with anything in life wasn’t even mentioned. I personally have never had any issue with Vista, but then I don’t currently run it. This is partly deliberate because I did consider just buying Vista Home Premium for the Dell. It would have run fine-ish once the memory was upgraded but it would have been a bit sub-par so it wasn’t worth it. Potentially my laptop would work with it but again, why muck up something running fine with something that may well slow it down?

Why have I done this.

Not out of masochism that’s for sure. I’m a web developer but I do have roots in traditional desktop applications too and there are some things I want to blend together; mostly for work. I wrote a sidebar and gadgets system that emulates the functionality that Facebook first debuted with, followed by the BBC and London Borough of Redbridge. Now despite blowing my own trumpet, I’m reasonably proud of this as I know lots of people are finding it useful, but secondly because I programmed it all myself, it works well and it didn’t cost anything other than my basic wage to implement.

One of the features I want though and have done for a long time is to be able to ‘download’ these gadgets onto a Vista sidebar gadget or an OS X Dashboard Widget. I mean, it’d be cool seeing when your bins are collected after a bank holiday on your sidebar/dashboard without needing to go to the council website itself. One could argue: but that would negate people coming to the website! Well, maybe so, but if it makes things easier for people I’m all for that. (Despite possible suggestions on occasion, I don’t spend my day plotting how to make things a nightmare!)

However to do this I have an OS X box to start with, but just lack the Vista box. So primarily this is being used to develop sidebar gadgets. It’s an expensive proposition but it will also get some good use.

Otherwise, the box will spend a good deal of time putting it’s pair of 2.4GHz cores to use by running Notepad… It should at least be the last PC I need to buy for some years! I’ll be sure to let you know how it all goes.