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October 31, 2006

Misconceptions Regarding Windows Vista

With the upcoming release of Windows Vista, expected within the next few days, there seems to still be quite a few misconceptions about what exactly makes Windows Vista different and better than previous operating systems. From comments such as "Vista is all eye candy", to "Vista is too much of a memory hog", it seems that many people are seeing only the surface and missing much of what lies beneath.

The new Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) provides so much more than just eye candy. It provides and environment for developers to create applications which can provide a rich media environment coupled with incredible graphic capabilities. One such example is the latest work being done at the Scripps Research Institute (see Windows Vista: The Incredible Potential) in which they have created an application built upon WPF which is currently being used to research the SARS virus and cancer cells.

While Windows Vista does certainly use more RAM, and has higher initial hardware requirements, one must take into account that not only are the programs which are running much more complex, but that Windows Vista’s dynamic memory design has the purpose of keeping more of what the user needs in active memory, thus reducing the amount of time needed to access it. Coupled with the new ReadyBoost feature, this improved memory management will allow users to more quickly access multiple applications which are used the most, while making better use of available RAM.

Many people have also complained that Windows Vista does not support enough legacy applications. While this is true to an extent, it is all part of the advance of technology in computing. When Windows XP first arrived, there were the same complaints, as many of the older Windows 98/DOS based programs would not work. As Windows Vista becomes more widely adopted, many application vendors will update their programs to work on Windows Vista, and also take advantage of many of the underlying new features available. In addition, Windows Vista will provide platforms for new programs the likes of which are currently not possible.

When Windows Vista is released, it is likely that there will be reports of system instabilities, much the same as when Windows XP was released. However, many of these problems will disappear as more and better hardware drivers are released, and applications are updated to work with Vista. In addition, Windows Vista includes a much more comprehensive set of performance and troubleshooting tools which will help IT professionals and users identify and resolve problem issues. With Windows XP, such capabilities are quite limited, and often result in sending an error report, and then living with the problem – with Windows Vista, we may actually be able to fix these kind of issues.

Posted by jrfree1 at October 31, 2006 05:15 AM