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WinXP Approaches

by Steve Gibson, Sep 22, 2001 6:32am PDT
Related Topics – Windows XP

That glorious day where Microsoft bestows upon us their latest and greatest innovations on how to make the internet faster and our lives more efficient is almost here. WindowsXP will be showing up in both desktop and laptop machines being sold by pretty much all of the major brands.

Officially, Windows XP won't debut until Oct. 25, but Microsoft is permitting PC makers to sell computers with the new OS on Monday. Initially, Microsoft instructed PC makers to soft-pedal the prelaunch. But subtlety appears to be falling by the wayside. And roughly 30 days after the Oct. 25 release, Windows XP will become the near-exclusive OS for consumer computers, according to sources in the PC industry.
I've been meaning to give XP a shot, a friend at MS was kind enough to get beta2 sent out my way right around time all hell broke loose and I was in the middle of moving so never got to check it out. Doh.


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  • #229
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    By: Nexum x
    Reply
    Well, i've been unimpressed by XP, but have given it time to develop before voicing my heartfelt feelings about the thing, but here it goes...

    I for one don't think I will EVER use XP, and certainly never pay for it (only get it w/ new pc), simply because I don't see anything there i want that 2k doesn't do. Is it more stable? Not really. Does it support more devices? No, and now i have everything running in 2k, i'm not gonna change to xp to find no drivers for my xxx are out yet. Is it faster? No, I've read reports at Ars and other places that gaming is significantly slower under XP. Do I think i'll benefit from the new GUI? No, the redesign of the GUI is the realworld equivilent to the 6-year old kit who found mom's makeup bag.

    Quite simply, there isn't enough in there for me to spend an obscene amount of money on the thing, others may disagree and find something useful, but I think the vast majority (esp those using 2k) see XP as a poorly performed GUI facelift.

    Omissions such as USB2 support are glaring, and will bring problems (like no USB in 95) in the future.

    I saw a negative comment on OSX back in the posts, forget whether you like Apple or not - OS X imo is the most awesome OS I have ever used. Someone said it was cartoony, well i've used it as a professional graphic designer since june, and i am so incredibly impressed at its usability, i can do stuff so much quicker, and the dock is a godsend as a little place to tuck all the things i want out of the way. Technically it's also incredible, take a look at the Ars Technica report on the thing, awesome virtual memory management... etc etc i could go on, but this is supposed to be about xp.
    Sep 23, 2001 4:20am PDT

    Thread Truncated. Click to see all 3 replies.

  • #79
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    By: el-kaboom x
    Reply
    Currently and have been using XP RC2 for the last two months or so as my main (and now only) OS. It's very stable so far, and at this point I've only a few complaints:

    1. Messenger: You have to know who to dig into the system to get rid of it.
    2. Remote Assistant: It's on by default, and any ususpecting new-to-NT type person could run into trouble. On MS's news rooms there was a mild flame war about the security of this. My arguement, this is only a temporarily secure function, others claimed it was hack-proof. Either way one can disable it in control panel, and also go a step further and disable terminal server just to make sure.

    I also had initial trouble loading the Win2K drivers for my video card, but somehow (and I don't remember how either) I got them loaded. Games run just as smooth as they did under WinMe. Sound Blaster drivers loaded and work fine, VIA chipset drivers loaded and installed just fine, shit even my printer and scanner worked with the stock XP drivers without a hitch.

    When it comes out, I'll be snagging the Home edition. There's not much in Pro that makes it worth the extra $100 for me.
    Sep 22, 2001 10:28am PDT
  • #57
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    By: laidback x
    Reply
    Using 2000 Advanced Server, 2000 Professional, and XP at work on a regular basis since July-August, I can honestly say out of all three
    if given a choice, 2000 Advanced Server interface just looks..."right". I'm sorry if I wanted the look of XP, I would have used Mac OS-X-GS-R-Turbo-Type-P. Sure, XP's scheme and look can be changed, but the underlying thought about it all is that you shouldn't have to change it in the first place. Show anyone in the business world the interface of 2000 compared to XP and guess which one would be considered professional and not Pre-school OS.

    Best reaction towards XP so far by a co-worker:

    "I think my grandma will finally be able to use a computer now."

    Oh yeah... btw, Microsoft... There are only 10 more tries left before the copy of Office XP on the hottie secretary's machine down the hall needs proper validation. It's already been installed on another machine, so I guess I will have to reinstall something different for her. DAMN. Wasted productivity time flirting around with a woman. Oh no... Bill, what should I *DO*?

    *flipping Microsoft the sign*
    Sep 22, 2001 9:56am PDT