View Full Version : XP or Vista? That is the question!
gustavo85
10-23-2008, 9:42 PM
Well about half a year ago I bought a laptop that of course came with Vista. Recently its been starting to slow down. So what do you guys think? Shall I reinstall Vista or switch it to XP? It's a Gateway laptop, with 2GB ram with an Intel Pentium Dual-Core 1.6Ghz processor.
petluvr
10-23-2008, 9:50 PM
You won't be able to downgrade I tried it the vista has beem programmed to not allow so you will have to completely erase your operating system to go back to XP.
gustavo85
10-23-2008, 9:55 PM
I'm willing to do that (that's what I was planning). Now, shall I do it?
petluvr
10-23-2008, 9:57 PM
If it were me I would stick with the Vista. That's what I have and i hated it at first but have gotten used to it. Mine also slowed down tremendously until I stopped all automatic updates and that fixed the speed problem.
The Zigman
10-23-2008, 10:29 PM
I downgraded my laptop to XP SP3..
It is smokin fast...
problem is ..
Most new computers were deisgned for Vista, so the hardware does not have any drivers compatable with XP.
No hardware manufacturer will support using hardware designed for Vista on an XP machine.
HP wouldn't help me remove Vista and install XP. I downloaded dozens of drivers from HP's website, and finally got the ones I needed to make my machine work correctly.. It was not easy, and if you arent sure of what you are doing, I would reccommend not even trying to do so...
gustavo85
10-23-2008, 10:33 PM
I downgraded my laptop to XP SP3..
It is smokin fast...
Thanks! That's what I was thinking, that's what I want to know!
The Zigman
10-23-2008, 10:34 PM
I edited my post above...
gustavo85
10-23-2008, 10:38 PM
I have some idea...I had fun with my other laptop, after 3 years it died on me but I practiced on it...
The Zigman
10-23-2008, 10:44 PM
then I would see what hardware is in your system, and try to locate the XP drivers for it..
sound drivers,
CD rom, display, touchpad, chipset...
Make sure you can find drivers for everything, or you're gonna have a really bad time...
zzyzx85
10-23-2008, 10:58 PM
Also, the problem is that Microsoft has pretty much stopped developing fixes for XP. They're dedicated to supporting Vista now.
gustavo85
10-23-2008, 11:10 PM
then I would see what hardware is in your system, and try to locate the XP drivers for it..
sound drivers,
CD rom, display, touchpad, chipset...
Make sure you can find drivers for everything, or you're gonna have a really bad time...
done already
gustavo85
10-23-2008, 11:11 PM
Also, the problem is that Microsoft has pretty much stopped developing fixes for XP. They're dedicated to supporting Vista now.
But shouldn't XP be quite fixed by now?
The Zigman
10-23-2008, 11:13 PM
Actually they just released SP 3...
gustavo85
10-23-2008, 11:15 PM
Actually they just released SP 3...
Also true, but fixes are usually more common with new software...
Mgamer20o0
10-23-2008, 11:42 PM
they havent stopped the updates yet. when they find holes they will fix it...... personally a lot of the problems come from A when vista first came and out and the driver support wasnt there yet or 64 bit which runs a little differently.
UnderWaterDiver
10-24-2008, 12:03 AM
Hi,
Why don't you make it dual boot.
It's not so hard to do it. Just you need to have HD space.
Take a look at:
http://apcmag.com/how_to_dualboot_vista_with_xp__stepbystep_guide_wi th_screenshots.htm
I did it my self, works.
krytan
10-24-2008, 1:23 AM
Have you thought about using lynx.
abcdefghi
10-24-2008, 9:22 AM
Was the laptop running fine with Vista when you got it? if so I would not be looking to downgrade back to XP but would be looking for the cause of Vista getting slower.
Clean out all the temp files, remove any programs you don't use (especially all the crap manufacturers dump onto new PC/Laptops) check for virus / spyware etc. It sounds to me like it was not always slow, so I would be finding the cause and fixing that.
When was the last time you defragged your HD?
piggy67
10-24-2008, 9:42 AM
I had vista wiped off my pc and xp black installed,this thing has a turbo charged hemi now.....oh...xp black is just xp with some extra programs to make it go faster,way faster........
There should be minimal to no difference in speed between Vista and XP.
grannylvsfish
10-24-2008, 10:50 AM
vista takes a lot of memory, vista stinks! I have a xp computer, I am keeping it forever! getting a new hard drive to keep the computer pretty free of extra junk I do not need. I will never have vista!
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vista takes a lot of memory, vista stinks! I have a xp computer, I am keeping it forever! getting a new hard drive to keep the computer pretty free of extra junk I do not need. I will never have vista!
That makes no sense at all. Vista uses more memory than XP because it can do more than XP can. Maybe we should all go back to Windows 3.1.
unvmyplecos
10-24-2008, 11:28 AM
lmao yeah right
To the Op, even a re-install of Vista will help, because you will have a virgin OS without the crap that many OEM's put on there. But...
I hate running Vista on laptops, I get quite of bit of side jobs downgrading comps back to XP. The only snag is usually finding network or sound drivers for XP, since most manufacturers dont wanna spend time supporting two seperate OS's. But one of the best ways to do your own downgrade is to google your laptop's model number with the keyword "XP or downgrade", there alot of forums and bloggers documenting the process and sometimes have driver bundles available too, especially for the more popular laptops.
But on the other hand Vista is starting to turn around and driver support is pretty solid now, but there is still a difference between the two operating systems in terms of speed and functionality. I currently have 2-3 copies of Vista that I dont use anymore and sadly I might just wait until Windows 7 to upgrade again.
The Zigman
10-24-2008, 1:08 PM
With all the different options in Vista it's not that hard so customize it to make your PC run better.. There are several different versions capable of different functions. If your system is starving for ram, and is slow, turn off some of the animations, and special junk features like the gadget toolbar, and thimbnails and that hind of stuff that looks nice, but eats up all your memory.. Or upgrade your computers..
Although I did it, its not really something I would have done if I didnt have to, most all new software is going to require Vista soon.. However, With So many companies using XP since NT is no more, I would imagine that Microsoft will support XP a little longer than we all think.
I had to downgrade my system because my laptop got smoked in a thunderstorm, and a critical piece of business software was not vista compatable...of course NOW there is an Upgrade.. That I got for FREE... Now I could run Vista.. that figures huh??
Yup Windows XP support will be around until 2014, businesses are still running XP and its still available as an OS on new laptops for business users.
Slappy*McFish
10-24-2008, 6:45 PM
I'm still rockin' Win2K Pro.