Microsoft Windows Vista

By now we've probably all seen the Apple commercials in which the dressed down hipster playing the part of Mac talks tech with the geeky PC, who tries (unsuccessfully) to tout the virtues of Microsoft's new Windows Vista operating system. It's so great, PC says with the help of the circular logic offered by a PR pro, he's "upgraded" to the older, more established Windows XP.

It's easy to say that's just marketing, but you can't help wonder if there's at least a kernel of truth in advertising.

After more than a year on the market, Vista remains the topic of debate on countless Internet message boards. Some praise the new features and tools they say give it more flexibility, stability and security than its predecessors. Others argue it's just another corporate ploy to squeeze money out of consumers by hocking a product they don't need.

For an honest assessment of the "Vista Experience" (not a Mac vs. PC debate), we turned to Jack Tipshus, networks administrator for the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, who has decades of experience helping people get the most out of their machines.

Microsoft Windows Vista

Why upgrade?

Tipshus says that's really a matter of "when" and not "if." Ultimately, it will be a Vista world for PC users as Microsoft phases out support and updates for Windows XP - just as it has for previous versions.

"When that happens, users absolutely need to move on," he said.

But that doesn't necessarily mean now. It's still a transition period and there are hardware and software conflicts out there. Many programs or accessories (like an older printer) simply won't work in Vista. Upgrading could mean replacing those accessories.

Microsoft has announced that early next year it will release it's first major update to Vista, called a service pack. A wait and watch approach until then might make some users more comfortable, Tipshus said.

Above all, let your needs dictate your decision to upgrade, not the marketing hype.

"Don't go buy it just for the sake of change or to embrace something new," Tipshus said. "I like to tell people that computers are like chainsaws. It's a very powerful tool, but if you're not careful, you can lose something very valuable to you."

Most computers on store shelves nowadays will already have Vista loaded and be powerful enough to run it, but if you're putting the OS on an older machine, you should check your specs before you buy. Microsoft suggests having at least a 1 GB processor, 1 GB of system memory, a 40 GB hard drive with 15 GB free and at least 128 MB of video memory.

What to expect

Tipshus suggests going to a computer store and spending some "face time" in front of a display model to get a better feel for the system before you buy.

"It's just like test driving a car," he said.

If you're upgrading from XP and are skeptical of the new OS, Tipshus suggested using the Vista Ultimate or Vista Enterprise editions, which allow you to run XP inside of them. The other Vista versions don't, so if you do get fed up and want to go back, it's going to be a lot more difficult.

While the new system is more secure - though hackers are always going to be trying to crack it - it does ask a lot of questions, like allowing permission for a program to take a certain action. That's intended to help users be more proactive in security, but casual users complain the warnings are sometimes so obscure they just click "allow" anyway without knowing what they're doing, Tipshus said.

And there have been complaints from many wireless network users who can't connect on their laptop on Vista. The problem, Tipshus said, is in the tools the OS uses to get on a network, called drivers. Those drivers might work in XP but not in Vista. And if you don't have them, you can't get on the Internet to go download them. It's a catch 22 that's caught a lot of people off guard.

By the same token, Vista is written so that it will use only 4 GB of system memory (RAM) no matter how much is actually installed. So if you're upgrading or buying parts to put a new machine together, keep in mind the limitations and don't overspend on things you don't need.

The most important thing, Tipshus said, is for the computer to be a tool that empowers people without setting them back. Vista, ultimately, will be the way in which that's done - at least on a PC - but, as with all new things, change won't happen overnight.