Eye Current

Microsoft to Fix Broken Windows

We mentioned last week that Microsoft Vista had some issues, and we thought some venders were a little quick to adopt the new operating system. While some users were going out of their way to avoid Vista. Jim Louderback the Editor in Chief of the Well known PC Mag. Gave a parting shot on Vista and that earlier reviews may have gone to easy on Microsoft.

Rest assured, you haven't heard the last of me. I will continue to write a column in PC Magazine. I still have too many issues to discuss with you. For example, my latest beef is with Vista.

Maybe it was something in the water? I've been a big proponent of the new OS over the past few months, even going so far as loading it onto most of my computers and spending hours tweaking and optimizing it. So why, nine months after launch, am I so frustrated? The litany of what doesn't work and what still frustrates me stretches on endlessly.

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I could go on and on about the lack of drivers, the bizarre wake-up rituals, the strange and nonreproducible system quirks, and more. But I won't bore you with the details. The upshot is that even after nine months, Vista just ain't cutting it. I definitely gave Microsoft too much of a free pass on this operating system: I expected it to get the kinks worked out more quickly. Boy, was I fooled! If Microsoft can't get Vista working, I might just do the unthinkable: I might move to Linux.

It looks like there is some super secret beta testing for Service Pack 1. Microsoft just announced that they should be releasing it in the first Quarter next year. This is gonna be a big one an over 1 gigabyte download for a servive pack. and one that isn't promising much for extra features.

Vista SP1 will be a large download: Roughly 1GB, based on current test versions. By way of comparison, Windows XP--the whole thing--shipped on a CD, which only holds about three quarters of a gigabyte. Installing the OS upgrade will require 7GB of free hard drive space, though much of that will be returned to the user once the megapatch is applied, Microsoft said.

Some of the fixes will include addressing hibernation and waking up of laptops. Groups Management and allowing Google desktop searching. Of course there will be added driver support and promises of fewer crashes.

posted by Ray L. @ 8:20 AM