When XP was the villain

At the end of 2001, just after the release of Windows XP, users were already "complaining" about the incompatibilities, the slowness, the futility of upgrading... As they did in 1999 when Windows 2000 was released and in 1997 when Windows 1998 came out and in 1995 when Windows 3.1 and DOS were still commonplace in American corporations and homes. Ed Bott, co-author of the newly released "Windows Vista, Inside Out, Deluxe Edition" (recommended) remembers those early days of Windows XP...

Nice setup: PHP and MySQL with IIS7

Either it is easier in Vista, compared to XP, or I was just luckier this time (making open source software to work can be really awkward sometimes) installing PHP and MySQL. I just followed the complete instructions on how to create a Windows Vista powered web server using these extremely popular tools. However, I just want a developer box not a server box, so I did not open port 80 nor changed the priority of background services. I used my own directory paths, and installed MySQL selecting Detailed Configuration, Developer Machine, Multifunctional Database, and Decision Support (DSS)/OLAP. Other than that, I followed each step to the letter. Also, very important to install the MySQL Administrator that comes with a very nice GUI, unless you think that using the command line is cool... Now, you're all set to start fine tuning your skills and learning a bit more.

Vista vs XP: a non-issue? Maybe

There is no need to conduct a scientific survey to realize that a lot of people are already using Windows Vista. Just go to a library, visit one of those ubiquitous cafés or simply peek at your neighbor wielding a laptop computer in the bus or train. It occurred to me that this sort of "debate" about upgrading or downgrading, better or worse, now or later or never, and so on and so on, are as just meta-realities created by the media... And you know what happens to your life when you pay too much attention to the media? Well, fill your mind and spirit with that sort of apocalyptic junk food that proclaims in a veiled fashion that "the end is near, repent". Precisely, that sort of veiled discourse cleverly intertwined with "be more beautiful and this is the formula just for you" and "buy more and save more"... Let's turn the TV and the Internet off once in a while as a matter of mental hygiene.

Windows Mobile Device Center

For many years I was an avid Palm user (7 years, to be exact) and owner of at least 5 of those cool gadgets mostly because of an impressive screen resolution. Only when I found a handheld device running Windows with a decent screen, like the Dell Axim (this one is three years old) with an amazing 640 x 480 screen hard to find anywhere else, even today, I made the move. Windows Mobile, the OS that used to be called Windows CE and then PocketPC, is way more interesting and useful than the non-multitasking Palm OS. On the other hand, in Windows XP the synchronization process, usually linked to Outlook, is made through a kind of moody and always bland application called ActiveSync. In Windows Vista, ActiveSync is gone for good and replaced by Windows Mobile Device Center, a nicer, more useful, feature-rich application. Do I want to use ActiveSync again? Not if I can help it.

Facts from Redmond: familiarity breeds more acceptance

In the chock full of information and links special edition of Microsoft TechNet newsletter (4 June 2008) to which I subscribe, the editor introduces some interesting facts and figures indicating that "over the past eighteen months, Microsoft and our partners have made tremendous progress in compatibility, performance, and battery life. Here are updates on a few key facts:

• Windows Vista now supports more than 77,000 printers, cameras, speakers and other devices.


• More than 2,700 software programs are “Certified for” or “Works with” Windows Vista-logoed; 97 of the top 100 consumer applications are compatible.


• 62% of small businesses said Windows Vista saves them time, and 70% said it makes them more productive, according to an independent survey.


• More than 140 million copies of Windows Vista have been sold, making it the fastest selling operating system in Microsoft history. Even Macs run it.


• 71 percent of Windows Vista customers like it better than their last operating system.


• People familiar with Windows Vista are two to three times more likely to have a favorable impression of it.

And perhaps the most intriguing fact: "Every 10 PCs that switch to Windows Vista is the equivalent of taking an automobile off the road, in terms of greenhouse gases." Should you be interested, there's a research paper that supports this fact: Windows Vista Energy Conservation. You can also link to Microsoft TechNet for a complete series of resources, including troubleshooting, about Windows Vista.

The SideBar and its Gadgets

Who doesn't like convenience? When you are in the middle of work, creating a Web site, while replying to your e-mail or being creative in Photoshop, with many windows open at a time, the last thing you need to do is to click the Start button and try to find some application you need right away. Windows SideBar to the rescue. This Vista feature and its mini-applications called Gadgets can do the trick for you. You choose from the selection of Gadgets that comes with the operating system: Calendar, Clock, Contacts, CPU meter (shown), Currency, Feed Headlines, Puzzle, Slide Show, Stocks or Weather (shown). Or you can go to the online gallery and get a cool "launcher" like the one shown, where I have quick links to my favorite tools and programs. And by the way, another tip: take advantage of the Windows key (WinKey, shown above). Since the times of Windows 95 we use WinKey + E = Explorer, WinKey + F = Find, WinkKey + D = Show Desktop, etc. And of course, pressing WinKey by itself is the equivalent of clicking on Start/Windows logo, from wherever, regardless, even if the Taskbar is hidden. But in Windows Vista you have an additional feature: All the Quick Launch items in the Taskbar, from left to right, are assigned a consecutive number from 1 to 9. If you have the Quick Launch activated now, press the WinKey and, say, 2. What do you see? Try it. It's different for any computer configuration. Do you understand now what I mean by convenience?

Not only the experts, real users like Vista

...and proof the naysayers wrong. Ed Bott, one of the co-authors of "Windows Vista Inside Out," (MS Press) says that "the formula for getting excellent performance out of a Windows Vista PC is much more prosaic [than a secret formula or a magic bullet]: start with quality components, make sure every piece of hardware has the right drivers and every piece of software is up to date..." Need we say more? Read his excellent series on Fixing Windows Vista. In addition, Microsoft created a great resource for those still undecided or for those thinking of moving up to a better OS: The Windows Vista Experience.