Gizmodo Tests XP vs Vista vs Vista SP1. (Vista still sucks)
“…we noticed with Windows Vista was when we tried to transfer a large folder full of files over our 100Base-T network. While XP was able to transfer the 1.37GB folder containing 2606 items in a quick 3:37 (minutes/seconds), the Vista transfer seemed to hesitate at the end, taking a leisurely 12:58 to perform exactly the same copy from one PC to another over our network. Then when we compared the current shipping version of Vista with its upcoming service pack, there wasn’t much difference, with the Service Pack speeding things up by 0.865% in the PCMark tests.
The only part of it that’s bugging us is the network file transfer speed got even slower in the SP1 release candidate. Also continuing that bothersome disk speed problem is the way Vista couldn’t read and write on that speedy 15,000rpm SAS drive anywhere near as fast as XP did.” Read the full report (with a tiny bit of good news) at Gizmodo.Com
Windows Vista Refunds!
December 30, 2007 at 10:30 pm
That is pretty weird that Vista seems to have such a problem transferring files. Is it because Vista somehow is scanning/indexing the files as they are moved? If it’s something as pointless as that, I sincerely hope an update will address that issue.
Like many things in Vista, you need to know where to turn things off that are turned on by default (for security reasons mostly). Once you do that, the OS will feel speedier.
Although…would be nice if Vista had everything turned OFF by default… (see, even I have issues
January 4, 2008 at 10:17 am
I just wrote my weekly newspaper column about how Vista has been a disaster. I would like to send it to you, but I cannot find an email to send it to.
Zinchuk
brian.zinchuk@sasktel.net
January 4, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Brian: I prefer not to send my e-mail address. Which paper was it in?
http://www.world-newspapers.com/saskatchewan.html
January 4, 2008 at 2:54 pm
It will be in next week’s Battlefords News-Optimist. We are not online, so you will not be able to find it that way.
This is it here, if you want to repost it.
Window Vista can clear out a medicine cabinet
Intended for publication the week of Jan. 6 2007.
By Brian Zinchuk
A year ago, I picked up a computer on Boxing Day. Because Windows Vista didn’t come out until a few months later, the computer had the option of a free update to the new Microsoft operating system.
I never got around to doing the upgrade. And now, I’m glad I never did.
This Boxing Day, I once again picked up some bargain basement computers. This time, they were all loaded with Vista. It’s a good thing I don’t get headaches, because now, a week later, I would have run out of Advil, Motrin, Tylenol, Tylenol Extra Strength, Tylenol Quick Release, Aspirin, and maybe even Children’s Tylenol. I might have even raided the first aid kits in the cars.
The first headache was networking. As these computers are all meant to work together for my hockey photography shoots, so it is imperative the networking works.
All of them came with Norton Internet Security preloaded, so I activated it on Michelle’s desktop. Big mistake. Norton made it pretty much impossible to network. That’s great if you are trying to keep bad guys out of your computer, not so good if you need to share a printer and files. Norton got uninstalled, pronto.
This brings us to printers. We bought a clearance HP 1012 laser printer a year or two ago that has been absolutely wonderful. It tremendously cut down on our printing expenses.
But Michelle’s new HP desktop computer won’t recognize it – a printer made by the same company. Indeed, Vista will not recognize it, other than to say it doesn’t work with Vista. HP’s website says a new Vista driver (the software that tells the computer how to use specific hardware) is in the works, but nearly a year since the launch of Vista, I doubt it will ever come out.
A search of online forums says if I install the printer driver from the original disk (not the website download, the highly recommended usual source), it might work. But all indications are that the installation has failed. Yet, strangely enough, the printer registers on the list of printers.
A print job on it works. But then the print spooler crashes, and you need to restart the computer. After that, it works all the time, for a printer that is not supposed to work. I’ve even printed from the network on it, but that again crashed the print spooler.
Next was the “easy settings transfer” that was not in any way easy, and took several attempts before it worked. That only occurred after running it in several, smaller steps.
Then we started installing all the little programs needed to make it all wonderful things on the World Wide Web wonderful, like Flash, Adobe Acrobat and Java.
“Java” should be called “lava” for the meltdown it has caused on the desktop.
First, it would not run. Then the wireless network would not connect to the router. Upon rebooting, bad things started happening. Think blue screen of death, several times over.
A half dozen reboots and several attempts and crashes by built-in windows recovery software, and Windows is up again. But it will not connect with my wireless router. It will connect with the neighbour’s router, but not mine. I unplug the thumbdrive network adapter, and plug it in again. No luck.
I run system restore, which is meant to take the computer back to an earlier, functioning stage. It runs, and crashes. Blue screen of death. Fifteen more minutes to get the Windows screen up again, after several reboots. This is an entire afternoon. It rebooted no less than 25 times during this unmitigated disaster.
When I started to I write this, I still did not have Michelle’s desktop functional. I almost had to reinstall the computer to factory settings, throwing away many, many hours of software installations and transferring settings. Finally, miraculously, I somehow got it all to work again.
I am a dyed-in-the-wool computer geek. I have spent as much as a weekend struggling to get a modem to work on Windows 3.1. I build computers from scratch. If I am having such grief, I pity any mere mortal who has had to contend with similar computer catastrophes. It could make for many very expensive Vista-operated boat anchors.
There was a time I used to go to Apple.ca to watch their TV commercials lampooning Vista. At the time, I just thought they were funny.
Now I see they are real.
Brian Zinchuk is a reporter with the Battlefords News-Optimist. He can be reached at brian.zinchuk@sasktel.net
January 4, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Brian. I have posted your story. Thanks!
January 11, 2008 at 2:29 am
So far (touch wood) i’ve had a pleasurable experience using Vista. I got so used to much of the features that i would find it difficuilt to switch back to XP if needed. There are some stuff that still needs to be fixed, since transferring files though the network was definately slower and also transferring files from one place to another on the same HDD was slower too (cant really understand why!) I also kinda hate the new start menu, I am still not used to it, but then again, i dont use it too much. Another thing i dont like is the UAC, it pops up too frequently, ven sometimes just for deleting an MP3 or a Document.
Other than that, i’m quite happy using Vista
April 5, 2008 at 6:41 pm
Windows sucks! LINUX is the future!