They Criticized Vista. And They Should Know.

[FormerDittoHead]

Here are some comments floating around about Vista circa 2/2007:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/09/business/09digi.html?_r=1

Here’s one story of a Vista upgrade early last year that did not go well. Jon, let’s call him, (bear with me — I’ll reveal his full identity later) upgrades two XP machines to Vista. Then he discovers that his printer, regular scanner and film scanner lack Vista drivers. He has to stick with XP on one machine just so he can continue to use the peripherals.

Did Jon simply have bad luck? Apparently not. When another person, Steven, hears about Jon’s woes, he says drivers are missing in every category — “this is the same across the whole ecosystem.”

Then there’s Mike, who buys a laptop that has a reassuring “Windows Vista Capable” logo affixed. He thinks that he will be able to run Vista in all of its glory, as well as favorite Microsoft programs like Movie Maker. His report: “I personally got burned.” His new laptop — logo or no logo — lacks the necessary graphics chip and can run neither his favorite video-editing software nor anything but a hobbled version of Vista. “I now have a $2,100 e-mail machine,” he says.

It turns out that Mike is clearly not a naïf. He’s Mike Nash, a Microsoft vice president who oversees Windows product management. And Jon, who is dismayed to learn that the drivers he needs don’t exist? That’s Jon A. Shirley, a Microsoft board member and former president and chief operating officer. And Steven, who reports that missing drivers are anything but exceptional, is in a good position to know: he’s Steven Sinofsky, the company’s senior vice president responsible for Windows.

[trotsky]

1. Vista was not ready for prime time, and hardware was not ready for Vista.

My personal thoughts on this are that MS should have made Vista a 64-bit ONLY operating system, and delayed its release for another year. Let XP stand as the final 32-bit Windows platform, support it for an extra year or two, and make a clean break to the 64-bit environment with Vista.

[MyNameGoesHere]

2. Just proves that there are idiots in every sector.

Why would anyone in their right mind upgrade before checking to see if drivers are available? That does not work for Linux, Apple, IBM, or an OS. To blame Vista is not the issue, the issue is allowing novices and yes dumb corporate managers to upgrade without a brain. And BTW who's fault is it about driver support really? Why does the manufacture never get bad mouthed when ... It is their product? Because it is easier to knock an OS that must provide drivers for 100,000 peripherals.

[Deja Q]

3. Tell them to buy new hardware. That's what we're all told.

:D

Vista is working great for me, seriously...


Bloody typo...

[Gore1FL]

4. I guess I am a black sheep.

I like Vista.

[KillCapitalism]

5. Vista is fine for me.

Now that I have the horsepower to run it on the new box.

[JPettus]

6. My wife runs it on her new laptop

Only because I'm not back from Afghanistan full time to set her up with Linux and be there to support it if she runs into problems. However, the day is coming when we seriously move to be a Microsoft-free home.