Ashish Patel

There isn’t much to say on this topic, but just want those who read this blog to know that I’ve “upgraded” from Windows Vista to Windows XP.  As Apple says,  “to a more familiar” experience - rather for me a more “stable” experience.

This YouTube video illustrates my latest frustrations as of late.

Being an IBMer has perks, I get to test some of our products for Microsoft Vista compatibility. I felt like blogging on this task because what I’m about to write will help those newbie Vista users if they run into problems.

The following is a list of what I did and the problems I ran into. I also have included the solutions to my experiences:

1. Installing Microsoft Vista:
   • I’ve never ever seen a more beautiful installation experience in my life. The install screen starts up when I boot the computer with the DVD. I am asked for the language and timezone that I am in, and I click Install Now. The installer will then ask me for the hard drive I’d like to install to, so I pick that and click continue. Almost 30 minutes later (or atleast thats how long it took me to eat and wash dishes) - Microsoft Vista is booting up for the first time!
   • Good news: The thing I love about this install experience, compared to others, is the lack thereof configuration panes. I hate configuring systems upfront, because I usually tend to double check and alter configurations when I need that feature. This was pretty cool how it just got the job done and I didn’t have to watch my computer screen the whole time.
   • Bad news: The progress bar on Vista when starting up pauses, for over 10 minutes - so I get curious and scared at the same time. I pull the plug on the computer and start up again, but this time I start Vista in safe mode. I find that Vista gets stuck again while trying to load the crcdisk.sys file. A little bit of Googling later, I find that if you unmount your pcmcia drivers then Vista may boot up.
   • So I put the installation DVD back in, and try to repair my Vista from command prompt. I know from my XP machine where the pcmcia.sys files are (system32 and drivers directories). I simiply rename the files with .bak extensions. Restart Vista and presto!
2. Using Vista
   • Previous file restoration: To me its like CVS and its about time that I can restore a file to a previously edited version.
   • Aero: A tricky one to get working. Apparenlty Vista rates your computer’s performance and if you have a 3.0 or higher for 3D gaming then Aero automatically turns on. I have a 128MB GeForce 6600 Nvidia card in my Toshiba M40, but apparently the display drivers that I got from Windows Update give this rating a mere 1.0! I thought of trying to install a different 6600 driver, I choose 6600 GT. Installed the driver, rebooted, and forced the recalculating of my computers performance, my index jumped from 1.0 to 3.9 on 3D gaming (take that sh*t ). Aero automatically turned on!
   • Using Aero: What can you do other than Windows Key + TAB for fancy Aero tricks? Other than the look and feel of the windows, this is lacking in my eyes. Whoopy ding-dong.
   • Java: Java5 doesn’t install with Aero running - who knew. I got Java6 to install with Aero though, which is still in some RC or beta mode. So you’re pick, I haven’t had any problems with Java6 yet.
   • Tagging: You can create contacts in your Contact list and tag pictures with keywords or contacts. Thus, when searching your files you get what you tagged. I think this is pretty cool.
   • Side bar: I saw this with Google and Yahoo, why is MS so late on this? Anyways, its handy nonetheless.

There have already been reports of faulty XBOX systems. Some would say thats expected since Microsoft make it (based on the history of Windows), but I would say just don’t ever let Microsoft make a car.

Now to the XBOX problem. It doesn’t seem to be a common problem, so I hope things get fixed with elegance (if possible)

Problems included screens going black and the appearance of a variety of error messages.

“So, the Xbox 360’s been available for, what, 15 minutes, and already the crash reports are streaming in,” a poster on Engadget said. The sites did not say how widespread the problem was.

O’Donnell, who declined to say how many reports the company had received, said calls represent a “very, very small fraction” of units sold. The number of calls was not unexpected, she said.

O’Donnell said the best way to resolve the issues is to call 1-800-4MY-XBOX for trouble shooting. If that does not solve the problem, she said, Microsoft will repair or replace the unit.

So everyone knows about the hype that the XBOX 360 has been creating. From a technical perspective, I think Microsoft did a great job in bringing in a custom Power5 processor for XBOX 360 over the old Intel Pentium III in the first edition of XBOX. As a result, games will be a lot better since the 360 will be able to render so many more polygons, giving graphics a more realistic touch.

However, from a business perspective, the XBOX product line may not be all what its made out to be. The first XBOX was a bloody disaster for Microsoft as it cost them approximately $4 billion in losses. Although the hype around XBOX 360 is huge, its only expected to rake in $1.5 billion in consoles, games, and accessories in just 3 months! Although this is hardly an uptake on the $4 billion loss, its quite impressive to see that Microsoft plans on puting 3 million XBOX 360 consoles into homes across North America.

Most people today see the 360 as just a gaming console in your home, however, this is Microsoft’s foot into your door. The Microsoft business will most likely use the XBOX 360 as a platform for delivering media to anyone’s home that is equiped with the XBOX hardware. - which is quite a smart move on their part. The good thing is that IBM will also benefit, since its their processor at the heart of this beast! Glad to see IBM and Microsoft doing good together.