XP vs Vista

Vista is safe, secure, and reliable.  Most of SP1 was nothing but security rollups and not the big change you saw between XPSP1 and XPSP2.

I use both and I am really getting to the point where I dislike XP and prefer Vista more and more everyday.  There are so many more things I can do like indexed searching, set local group policies (more easily), etc.

For your stated purposes, Vista will work just fine.  I would go with Vista Home Premium as a minimum.

I will jump in and second what JM said. I agree that VISTA is very stable and it's a good OS.

Don't let the naysayers persuade you.

Cute story: 

We just started getting new computers at work. We were using XP Pro, 2000 SP4 and 98, now we are starting with VISTA. We called our software provider for our record keeping software and they stated that "our programs will not work under VISTA." They advised they tested it and couldn't get it to work.

So guess what I and another computer geek did. We installed the software and got it working with VISTA> The first in the entire state to do it. We contacted the company and they asked what we did, but I (being childish) refuse to tell them as unless they pay me a consultant fee, I won't help. Yeah, it's being childish, but oh well.

PS..All we had to do is install the program as an Admin, then run it under XP compatibility. That's it.

Vista is slower then xp

Vista takes up more memory when running on the desktop

Vista desktop graphics take up alot of background resources but can be disabled

I have found vista to crash more then xp

May have to futter about with some programs to get them to work but most programs work on vista.

Drivers aren't an issue if its a computer with vista preinstalled.

I found can run more programs simultaneously on xp then vista without lag but this may be due to hardware constraints.

Eg printing out a 200 page document on vista 2Gb of RAM up to 100% of RAM usage, document kept aborting print only printing 20 or so pages. On xp printed full document out no problem.

Vista has upgraded paint so you can zoom out.

Has better file copying options, ie will not just ask yopu if you want to copy over a folder or not but will ask you if you want to merge folders and files etc.

Before sp1 it took more time to calculate how long it'd take to copy a large file/ group of files then copy them this has been rectified.

Has better searching.

Has more security, note some may find this a nuisance can be disabled though.

Perhaps, was a while ago near when vista came out.

My new laptop is slightly better then the laptop I had.

It was a vista driver however, but they seemed to need to improve it alot there were alot of other glitches

like it kept getting removed from the printers and faxes and had to be reinstalled every few weeks.

Right now I'm running xp MCE on my laptop but it has a vista home basic oem license and also a business upgrade disc.

I'm going to try and use vlite to slipstream sp1 and adjust some settings before installing though, but I need to do that when I have a bit more time as reinstalling programs takes a while, particularly getting maple and matlab and some other things activated.

I just ordered my sister a new laptop and after nearly a year of Vista I requested XP on it. Why? Because to put it simply Google have made XP just as desirable as Vista.

You do get a thrill out of using Vista, I'll admit and if you move from Vista back to XP you'll miss a few of the features.

Like I said, I used Vista for a year and whenever I get back onto a Windows XP machine I always feel like I'm back at home, just that my 52" plasma has been stolen and replaced with a 20".

To put it simply: XP is easier and more stable. Vista is XP - grown up to be a moody teenager. 

Fair call

but its also sad that vista has inherited alot of these problems and has arisen its on in addition.

I agree XP is more stable, BUT how much more...there are thousands of posts on the XP page about problems.

VISTA is 1 1/2 years old, XP around 7.  You would think that after 7 years the problems would be solved. 

So that's my spin on it. 

If you want an easier OS, then you should go back to Windows for Workgroups 3.1.  If  you want a faster OS, then go back to Windows ME, 98SE, or 95 which were all faster than XP.

 At some point you have to leave your comfort zone in order to learn new technology.

Yea, right.