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Just the Other Day by Lee Besing |
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| Are You Ready for Windows XP?
October, 2001 |
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Just the other day, someone called me to ask if I knew anything about Windows XP, the newest flavor of Microsoft's software expected to hit the streets on October 25th. Since you can't even buy it yet, my answer was Not yet. Since that time, however, I have been researching Windows XP and what I have found out is both exiting and alarming at the same time. At this time, I cannot recommend upgrading an existing computer unless it was built with XP in mind originally. Many new features have been added and these new features enhance your abilities with audio visual functions, such as video conferencing, sharing software across the Internet, asking a friend to help you fix your computer remotely (similar to PC Anywhere or Remote Access). But these features also open certain loopholes for security breaches by hackers. One of the main official reasons for upgrading to Windows XP is to get a more stable operating system. If you're a Windows 95, 98, or Me user, you've probably encountered your share of unexplainable lockups and crashes. If so, you may have considered abandoning Windows 95, 98, or Me for Windows 2000 Professional to take advantage of its more stable operating system kernel. However, chances are that a number of factors prevented you from making that jump. For example, Windows 2000 Professional costs more, and has strict hardware and software compatibility rules. In addition, it's packed with complex industrial strength security and networking features that can make it difficult for the average computer user to manage. Well, the new Windows XP Home Edition is supposed to be a blend of the best of the Windows 95, 98, Me and 2000 platforms. It takes the wide range of hardware and software compatibility from Windows 95, 98, and Me, as well as the ease of use features. It also adds the stability found in Windows 2000 operating system kernel, but removes the complexity. The end result is a very stable platform designed specifically for the needs and capabilities of the average home user. To begin my research, I obtained Windows XP release candidate #1 direct from the source and started to load it on one of my computers at home.
I learned that you had to have Internet Access while installing, unless you purchased a pre-loaded XP ready PC from a manufacturer. The XP CD-Rom includes a utility to check your existing computer for compatibility issues, and that requires a connection to Microsoft's Web site for the latest updated compatibility list. Since I’m running on cable, connection was not a problem. I found that XP did not like my Symantec PC Anywhere version 10 software (latest version) that happens to conflict with XP's remote access software. It didn't like Roxio's Go Back 3 Deluxe software either (also latest version). Driver incompatibilities popped up all over the system, affecting everything from my digital camera, printer, CD-Rewriter, Intel USB Webcam, Microsoft's USB keyboard and optical mouse, Creative Labs Sound card (current model), and more importantly my raid controller. I didn't list all my equipment, but wanted to impress upon you that I had all new, updated equipment with an Intel Pentium III high end processor, keep my software and device drivers constantly updated, and yet still found over three dozen device drivers that would have to be replaced. The kicker? Many of these drivers are not even available yet. According to Microsoft’s Website, here is the minimum hardware you need to use Windows XP Home Edition. Note that XP Professional was a bit more demanding and the minimum is never high enough for a real user in my experience. To prove my point, look at their Internet Access requirement, a 14.4kbps modem is acceptable? Not in my book! Here's What You Need to Use Windows XP Home Edition
Share a single computer with everyone in your family? Now you can each access your own accounts without having to close each other's applications or restart the computer. The clean, simple design of Windows XP puts the features you use most often up front and center, so you can get to them quickly. Windows Media Player for Windows XP gives you a single, easy-to-use place to play DVDs, organize music, burn CDs, and more Windows Messenger is the easy way to communicate with your friends and family in real time. You can see who is online and choose to communicate through text messaging, voice, or video with excellent performance and better quality than ever. Windows Movie Maker lets you capture, edit, organize, and share home movies on your computer, whether you made them with a digital video camera or an analog camera My Pictures is the place to work with your digital photos. Here you can organize, preview, and even order prints of your pictures via a Web service Internet Explorer 6 includes new and better features to simplify Web browsing tasks, increase reliability, and help keep your personal information private Remote Assistance lets you allow a friend or support professional who is also running Windows XP to remotely control your computer to demonstrate a process or help solve a problem. System Restore actively monitors system file changes, so that if something goes wrong with your computer, you can restore your system to a previous state without losing data Network Setup Wizard makes it easier than ever to set up your own home network so all the computers in your house can share printers, devices, files, and an Internet connection |
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Lee Besing is the owner of Computer Solution Experts, a consulting firm that provides on-site service and support for PC computers and networks. |
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