Microsoft's Vista: What You Must Know Before You Buy

The hardware requirements for Vista have many people hesitant about installing the new operating system. Older computers that were acceptable for Windows XP may have to be extensively upgraded. The expense has some people saying they’ll just wait until their next computer before trying Vista.

For instance, the Home Basic version of Vista will require you to have an 800 MHz processor. Premium Vista demands a 1 GHz. Many an old campaigner will be left behind by this standard, including the one I use for typesetting. I’d be willing to upgrade the chip, if I could find one for its obsolete socket type. All that are available are “pulls”, second hand chips removed from used machines. Installing one can be a roll of the dice.

You’ll need 512 MB of RAM for Home Basic, and a full 1 GB for Premium. I’ve always favored having a lot of RAM, believing it the best way to improve a PC’s performance. But what if you’re stuck with one of those microATX boards that have only 2 slots, and you’ve got a 128 MB module in each. You’d have to yank one and replace it with a 512 MB. The 640 MB total would run Home Basic nicely, but your pocketbook would be $65 lighter.

The only hardware that doesn’t get hammered by Vista is your graphics card. 32MB of video RAM is sufficient for Home Basic, and a lot of computers have that and more. The problem comes if you want Premium. In that case, 128 MB is required, setting you back another $35. But it’s not the money that worries me as much as the extra heat generated inside those old design cases, many of which don’t have enough fan ports.

Another worry is the size of your hard drive. You’re going to need a lot of free space to load Vista, 15 GB worth. If your notebook has one of those little 40 GB drives that are so popular, 37.5 percent of it will be taken up by the operating system. Add another 5 GB of applications and necessary files, and half of your disk is claimed. You’re well on the road to a bogged down drive.

With all these things considered, is Vista worth it? Look at the numbers, and total up the changes your machine will need. The $99.99 upgrade fee will be less than half the total cost for many of us.

Article Source: http://www.content.onlypunjab.com

Michael Quarles is the author of the book "Building a PC for Beginners". His website is www.monkeyseemonkeydobooks.com

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