FROM XP NEWS: Kinda says it all.
In way too many cases, people condemn operating systems or applications that
they've never even used, or that they've only fooled around with for a few
minutes or a few hours on a demo system at the store or a friend's computer.
In fact, some of the most adamant criticisms I hear about Vista come from
some of my friends and relatives who have never run the OS. They'll admit
that they're basing their opinions on what they've heard from others, but
insist that if those others are saying it, it must be true. I hear people
proclaim, "I've never used Vista and I never will" - just as proudly as they
proclaimed the same thing about XP a few years ago.
One good friend of mine, who is fond of the above proclamation, tells me
that he won't use Vista because "the DRM prevents you from playing any of
your previously downloaded music." That's just patently untrue - I play
previously downloaded music on my Vista machine all the time and so do many
other people, and without jumping through any particular hoops to do it. But
it's something he read on the web somewhere, and he's integrated it into
what he "knows" about Vista.
Now, there are some good reasons not to upgrade to Vista. If you have older
hardware that's not supported and you don't want to buy new peripherals or a
new machine, or if you have applications that won't run on Vista, that's a
perfectly good reason to stick with XP.
But don't blame Vista when peripheral makers fail to provide drivers for
their hardware components. Someone commented to me last week that he had
bought a new computer and his Epson printer wouldn't work with it because
"it's running that stupid Vista." Hey, that's Epson's fault, not Vista's.
All my older HP printers work just fine with Vista - because HP has provided
Vista drivers for them. He searched the Epson site and couldn't find Vista
drivers for his printer; sounds to me as if Epson wants you to buy a new
printer instead. I'd recommend that when/if you do so, you make sure it's
not an Epson.
Another good reason not to upgrade is because you don't need to. If your XP
computer works just fine and it's doing everything you want it to do, keep
it. Don't feel pressured to go with the newest OS just because it is new.
Just don't condemn the newest OS because it's new, either. And remember that
XP went through its growing pains, too. Those who point fingers whenever a
security flaw is found in Vista apparently have forgotten all those flaws
that have been patched in XP. And those who grumble about Vista's new
interface don't seem to remember that they were the same ones grumbling
about all the changes that came with XP.
I have nothing against saving money; that's one of my favorite things to do.
So if you just don't want to pay for a new OS, you'll hear no argument from
me. But for some, money has nothing to do with it. I know many folks whose
companies pay for the upgrades, who still want to stay with their old,
familiar operating system. And that brings us to some of the not-so-good
reasons for not upgrading.
Some folks - maybe most folks - aren't comfortable with new things, even if
those new things are improvements. A case in point: one of the reasons I
love my Saturn Ion is the unusual position of the speedometer and gauges -
in the center of the dashboard rather than hidden behind the steering wheel
as in most cars. It's far easier to watch your speed while keeping your eyes
on the road. Yet that feature has gotten terrible reviews and most of my
friends think it's "weird." They want those gauges where they've always
been, and they don't even want to try out the different configuration. For a
photo, see
http://www.wxpnews.com/D7DK86/070925-Dashboard
Likewise, I have friends who take one look at Vista's new Explorer and run
screaming from the room (well, figuratively). They immediately "don't like
it" without ever giving it a chance. Same thing with Office 2007's ribbon
interface. Maybe it's just my life-long penchant for learning new things
that causes me to embrace these changes, but new features such as the
clickable path in Explorer make it easier for me to get around in the file
system, and I welcome that. Sure, it took a little getting used to, just
like the center- mounted speedometer, but now I'd hate to be without it.
In the U.S., our criminal justice system is built on the principle that a
person is to be considered innocent until proven guilty. New products get no
such protection. For those who have used Vista for a few months and decided
that they like XP better, we just have a difference of opinion. The relative
merit of an operating system interface is a subjective matter and some will
always hate what others love. There's no problem with that. But for those
who have judged Vista guilty - of user unfriendliness, of slowness, of
security problems, or whatever - without ever using it or after giving it a
spin for only a day or two, I really can't put much stock in your opinions.
I'll always support your right to use whatever software works best for you
(including Mac and Linux), but can't you go ahead and use it without calling
those of us who happen to like Vista stupid or implying that we're nothing
but Microsoft shills?
What do you think about the OS wars? Why do people (yes, myself sometimes
included) have a tendency to denigrate others' choices? Why do so many folks
fear anything that's new? Do you take pride in your refusal to upgrade - or
on the other hand, do you take pride in being an early adopter? Have you
vowed never to upgrade based on something you've read or heard, without ever
actually trying the new software out for yourself? Or are you just sensibly
waiting until the first service pack, or for a price drop, or until your
current computer dies, or until your mission-critical applications have been
upgraded to work with Vista? Tell us what you think at
"Mea505" <> wrote in message
news: ups.com...
> Hello, all:
>
> A friend of mine just purchased (from one of the television programs,
> which has an association with Dell) a new laptop computer. However,
> before she bought it, she did not realize it had Vista on it. She
> wants to take Vista off and put Windows XP on the computer. I (as well
> as a lot of other people I know) have heard a lot of 'bad publicity'
> about Vista. She doesn't want it, she cannot use it because, well, she
> is not comfortable working with this specific OS and wants to take it
> off and put Windows XP.
>
> What's the down-side associated with Vista? Why are so many people
> complaining about it? I have never seen it, I don't want to see it and
> I am happy with what I have, which is Windows XP. However, will there
> be on "untoward problems" associated with the concept of taking Vista
> off and changing the platform to Windows XP?
>
> Thanks,
>
> Mark
>
...
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