Windows XP or Windows Vista and What notebook
 

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Frankly, I think you should purchase a Mac, or Apple product.

I've got windows, and I would love to see that idiot Bill Gates tarred, and feathered, and boiled in oil. He creates a product, that has more problems with it, then it's worth. I've never been happy with any of the software programs, everyday there is a new problem, and I would love to throw my computer out the window, and be done with it.

If I had known then, what I know now, I would have gotten an Apple, or a Mac...

The other problem is that when they first put PC computers on the market the big selling point was that they would get cheaper to buy as the technology progressed. What a bunch of bull that was...

Like when CD's came on the market to replace Cassettes... Well, we've all been fooled again by American business, and now it costs as much for a computer as it used to cost to buy an old used car. CD prices haven't dropped, and they still take up more space in your vehicle, then cassettes ever did, sigh....

I really couldn't advise you, other than I hate anything to do with Microsoft... :roll: Or the latest so called technologies for that matter.... :lol:

This is how I really feel about Bill Gates, and Microsoft.... :lol:

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As far as Bill Gates....he let all the Software companies know well ahead of time his new OS was coming out. These companies could have been decent about developing patches. I think you're looking at the wrong person/persons to blame Red Raven.

As with XP OS...the new Vista OS will need some time to develop. It is a good system for those who are savvy enough to tweak it to true optimum performance.

I would recommend staying with XP for another couple years. You can still purchase laptops with XP. I just bought a HP business class with XP Pro. With the frustration over Vista...many of the merchants are wise to the fact...and are offering you XP.

PM Vavega...she mentioned to me there is a way you can buy a Vista machine, and save the OS and put XP on there. Later down the road, you can reinstall Vista. If you do go with a Vista machine...get one with a lot of memory.

For wireless...I use Sprint...and use my cell phone as a modem. I love it. You can also have an aircard, or a USB modem, for the same service, and therefore you are issued another phone number, so you do not tie up your cell line, while on the computer.

I use Delorme, and PC Miler for a laptop mapping/routing system, with an Earthmate GPS receiver. The PC Miler system is ultra expensive...but it is a Commercial base system. Prior to that I used the Delorme for years, and it is reasonably priced...although non-com. If you are patient....this Market is rapidly expanding, and many new competitive systems are about to emerge.

The laptop GPS mapping is nice, but better suited for routing, storing and upgrading info, and viewing full results.
You may wish to consider a GPS stand alone unit for your actual enroute aid. I use a Garmin stand alone....and find it worth every penny. I bought a Garmin Nuvi 350 for $320 off eBay.

The stand alone GPS are also about to emerge with Commercial base mapping systems. This summer Cobra is scheduled to come out with a Commercial mapping system from Seimens VDO.
You can install updates and extra info to them off your computer. Some also can be used as a Bluetooth handsfree device for your phone, and an MP3 player for music and audiobooks...linked to your Truck sound system.

We have recently done a number of threads on all these subjects. A search will help you enormously.


$20 bucks says this gets rerouted without GPS to Surveys forum. :wink:.....Recalculating.... :lol: (inside joke for stand alone users)

I have a HP DV8000 laptop in the truck with Windows XP Media Center Edition. I use the laptop for everything. Entertainment (games and watching movies), gps routing (CoPilot and Microsoft Streets & Trips 2007), Quicken, logs (drivers daily log), and the internet via a Sprint wireless card (I only use the built in wireless when I'm at home).

At home I have a "small footprint" HP machine with Vista Home Premium on it. While I've never had a single problem with it, it does seem to be slower than XP. The machine at home is much higher on the scale as far as a machine. It's Vista that's gotta be slowing it down. However, it's a very reliable machine.

As far as going with a Mac, the only problem you're going to have there is finding the software to use. I don't see many options for the GPS or logbook programs.

I like Toshiba notebooks myself but have to agree stay with xp I will be buying windows XP to put on here I hate vista its a mem hog. its slower BUT it sure is pretty.

Another forum you might like is....

Trucking Product Reviews by Truckers for Truckers.

Lots of info you are requesting in that forum.

I have the HP DV9000 and went with the Vista upgrade. It came with 512MB of DDR and also upgraded that to 2GB and she hums!!! I have had two issues with Vista, in the new Media player it has a Fair Use program built into it so you can't download movies or remove the Media Player. The other thing, it took me a while to Sync my Treo, after a while I figured it out but was a hassle (was a PALM issue not Microsoft's). Other than that I like Vista. My wife has a Toshiba with XP and cannot stand to use it, it's slow and luggy compared to mine with Vista. If your going to spend some money on a laptop with some speed I would say go with Vista, if your going to get a average laptop go with XP. Microsoft has released several updates already and most of the bugs are getting worked out.

Just do your home work and figure out what will be the best for you!, here's a great site for Vista and other windows editions. http://www.winsupersite.com/vista/

Well...it has been one of the most profitable tax-free Industries for thousands of years. :roll: ....often times even considered a "community service." :mrgreen:

I have owned personal computers for the last 10 years. Started out with Win95 then 98, ME, Win2000, XP and now vista. I never have had any major problems. If you stay up to date with the Hardware and software you have less problems. My most major problem was replacing a bios battery on an old Winbook and I haven't used an anti virus program since WinME.

Patches are not always fixing the problems they ignored, some are though. Mainly it's about staying ahead of hackers to avoid security problems and avoiding virus's and worms.

Couple of corrections for you:

Microsoft didn't, and still doesn't, make/build computers. They sell operating systems and software. Bill Gates created MS-DOS v1.0 for use on the IBM PC.

As for computers being obsolete in 2-3 years, they are if you have the need to have the latest and the greatest of everything. My old computer was killed by a power surge about a month ago. That machine had been running pretty much non-stop for the past 6 years. I started on it with Windows 98, then upgraded to Windows XP when it was about 2 years old. After the operating system change, the only thing I did to it was to change out the hard drives (they were too small).

The laptop I'm on now will hopefully give me 3-4 years of use. Of course, I'm guessing on that because this is the first new laptop I've ever bought. I replaced an OLD IBM ThinkPad that was about 5 years old when it was given to me, and it lasted about a year in the truck.

As far as "new programs from Microsoft", there are only 2 MS programs on my computer, aside from the operating system: Microsoft Office 97 (which I only use Word and Excel on) and Microsoft Streets and Trips 2007. I upgrade the S & T yearly for the map updates. I can pull out my old copy of S & T 98 and I guarantee that it'd run on both this XP laptop and my Vista home pc.

As for Microsoft (or any company) giving support for old products, what do you expect? This isn't 1907, where something was meant to last for the life of the person using it. Things are updated constantly. I download an average of 3-4 updates per week for XP, and 1-2 per month for Vista.

If all you're going to use a computer for is basic web browsing and e-mail, no, you don't need a great machine. Hell, you can buy a internet appliance that hooks directly to your tv. Then you don't even need a monitor. If you're going to use the computer for other things, such as most people do, you're going to need a better machine that's fairly new. If you're going to run high-end CAD, create your own DVDs, play the newest games, then you need a top of the line, constantly updated computer. It's just how things work.

We'll use something else as an example:
I used to own a 1979 Subaru 4 door sedan with 4 wheel drive. To engage the 4wd, you had to come to a stop, push the clutch and pull a lever to engage the 4wd. Sure, it was 4 wheel drive, but is it the same as my mothers brand new Subaru Outback? Hell no. I tried to get that car to spin, but it refuses to do so. Why? Well, it's updated. It has true all-wheel drive, traction control, wheel sensors on each wheel that will send the power to the tires with traction, etc etc.

Windows XP
 

For now, everyone should stick to XP. When microsoft releases there first service pack (slated for november) that is when the Vista system will be at release quality and could be considered for use. Dont buy a mac, unless your going to edit video it isnt worth having, no games, no software, not much of anything at all, and for you microsoft haters, bill gates owns a controling interest in it, look it up..... So if you like bill gates a lot, buy a computer from him, otherwise get a nice dell with the complete care warranty(where if you drop it intentionally its covered) or a good HP or Gateway, they will not steer ya wrong.

If your car breaks down, is there a button to press on it that will "Repair" itself?

Can you put a chicken in the microwave and hit "Start" (no other buttons) and it come out as a perfectly cooked meal?

Some people just aren't "made" to use computers. My brother is one. He's bought probably 15 computers in the past 10 years. When he screws them up, he buys a new one. Other people can use them, however.

If you think Windows is hard to use, I'd hate to see you trying to use Linux, or worse yet Unix.

I can imagine the one button idea for computers and the internet and making everything so simple.

You would have buttons like:

push here to steal this persons personal information
push here to steal credit card numbers from this corporation.
push this button here to add $100 to your saving account.

Then we would have the "osama" button: click here to knock down all power grids in the United States to destroy the US economy.

Simple is not always better.

But back to the thread, if your not sure about buying Vista, just wait 2 years for Microsoft's next OS "Vienna". It should be out in 2 years and then you can ponder, should I upgrade or keep XP?

hi mapleleaf!

i have 11pc's running everything from xandros (linux) win server 2003 up to winxp and vista. i personally like vista and found that i use that box as my personal machine more and more over a dual opteron win xp pro. mostly becasue of the graphics, i love the aero look, and being as this machine has 2 gigs of memory and a 256 mb video card i don't see any slowdown that others report. my only problem is it's slow to update a monitoring program i have installed for my dc project, but that's a minor annoyance.

as to your question of which is better? neither one is better, they both are OS's (tools) and will do the job for what you've stated. as for what you should use, save yourself some heartache and look at your list of software programs, then see if they're compatible with vista. it might be that some of your favorites aren't and the developers won't be willing to upgrade them. you say you want to have faxing, but if you can't find a fax program compatible with vista what good is it? here are 2 listings for hardware and software compatibility.

tom's hardware vista list

iexbeta


you can always buy one with vista installed and then if you don't like it, wipe it off and put xp on it for @ $80. and save vista for the future. add in how adventerous are you? do you have the time and temperment to experiment with it? it's different in how functions are arranged, so you can spend some time looking for things that aren't where you thought they were in xp. that part has been enjoyable for me, but it might not for you. there are more wizards than in the past, for example there's a vista easy transfer wizard that with a special cable that will let you transfer your files and folders automatically. so in other words it's your personal preferences that will determine your decision and no one else's.

if you do go with vista, don't get home basic, either premium or ultimate and get the most ram memory you can afford (at least a gig and 2 if you can) or make sure there's open slots so you can add later. and get a seperate video card, DO NOT go with onboard video. HTH. ;)

Most likely wouldn't address his needs for the trucking-related software he said he needed though.That comment doesn't make any sense at all. It used to be a computer with a 4-color, 14" display, a 32 MB hard drive, a 10 MHz CPU and 640K of RAM cost in the neighborhood of $4,000.

This computer has a 16.7-million color, 19" LCD display, 600 GB worth of hard drives, the equivalent of something on the order of 4 GHz of CPU power, 4 GB of RAM, and it cost in the neighborhood of $1,000 (a little hard to pin down because of rolling upgrades.)

Hardware has gotten staggeringly cheap, and if you run Linux, your total cost for software is $0. I haven't spent a dime on software since 2001. (But Linux wouldn't address the original poster's needs for trucking-related software any better than a Mac would. All of that stuff, indeed tons of stuff, is only available for Windows. Blah.)
I'll agree with you there. I remember one CD I didn't buy in the '80s because it was too expensive at $12. I wanted to buy that same CD again a few years ago, the SAME disc, not some new special gold edition, and it was $28. CDs didn't get cheaper. Their prices rose at a rate higher than inflation.

But anyway, back to topic. XP vs. Vista. XP is hideously ugly after you've used Vista for a little while, but Vista has huge problems everywhere. In the end, I didn't get the job I was trying to get which would have required me to use one or the other, so I went back to no Windows at all, and I like that the best. If I had to use one or the other, I'd rather look at Vista, because it looks vaguely close to as slick and eyecandyful as the Linux or OSX desktops, but I'd much rather be responsible for maintaining the integrity and continual functioning of XP.

What are the problems that Vista has?

You can also download the Vista advisor and it will tell you if you have drivers or hardware on your computer that are not supported by Vista.


Brief Description:
Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor is designed to help Windows XP users identify whether their PCs are ready for an upgrade to Windows Vista, which edition of Windows Vista meets their needs, and which features of Windows Vista will be able to run on their PCs.




http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/d...displaylang=en