Free Vista Upgrade Probs!

[Jiggles]

Iv been trying to sort out the Form for the free upgrade that i got when i bult my pc for christmas BUT when i type evrything in to the website to get it, it says the Redemption number has not been recognised

Anyone come across this problem before?

[DMX Will]

I haven't, but I haven't tried to do it! I would try contacting whoever it is your dealing with direct :)

[Jiggles]

Done :)

[colinm345]

Im not sure but I think the official launch date for Vista is the 19th of this month??

[DMX Will]

Not sure when it's out, but not yet. Callum should at least be told that mind!

[Jiggles]

Just had a look 30th Jan

[Thames Valley Discos]

give it another 4 years, it should work ok, even xp is still having patches.

[Jiggles]

i CANT get my free version as promised :D

[colinm345]

i CANT get my free version as promised :D

Thanks for that mate as I thought it was the 19th as there is a Vista developers launch in Reading and online on that date:)

However If I were you I would take it back and ask for my money back

[BeerFunk]

What exactly does Vista offer over XP anyway?

[Jiggles]

its an upgrade really they give me the Vista DVD for free when i give them the form ( http://upgradeweb.moduslink.com/vista/ )

[Thames Valley Discos]

its a bit more than an upgrade
https://www.microsoft.com/windowsvista/getready/default.mspx

[BeerFunk]

Had a look there, nothing that would benefit me to be honest. 3D navigation of applications?? Apart from the look, what's the point?

[Candybeatdiscos]

It is absolutely rubbish, My wife's cousin was a beta tester for it and had nowt but problems, far more pop up warnings as well, he said he wouldn't buy it for at least two years.

[A1DL]

What exactly does Vista offer over XP anyway?

good point Beerfunk, I was wondering the same, is it a new operating system or a piece of software?

someone please explain for the non-techie minded :)

we're still running all our desktops on W2K (thin client), when we looked at Windows Server 2003 a year or so ago there was no tangible benefit in spending £,000s to upgrade, so being cynical I'd ask the same of "Vista" - if it won't make the business more productive or reduce costs then we won't be buying

[Jiggles]

Its said to be fast, not use system resources (what a laugh), and look cool!

[sleah]

Well, it looks cool when you have a HUGE graphics card!
I'm running RC1 (sort of beta but not quite ready) and it's got a few bugs and lack of hardware drivers that should be sorted in the final version.
To be honest I haven't found any real 'benifits' as such over XP.
Seems very stable though.
Time will tell. I just a geek so had to have it whatever!

[colinm345]

good point Beerfunk, I was wondering the same, is it a new operating system or a piece of software?

someone please explain for the non-techie minded :)

we're still running all our desktops on W2K (thin client), when we looked at Windows Server 2003 a year or so ago there was no tangible benefit in spending £,000s to upgrade, so being cynical I'd ask the same of "Vista" - if it won't make the business more productive or reduce costs then we won't be buying

Could not agree with you more although Microsoft claim it will:)

The only thing that I can see at a moment making a business more productive on the computer side is a hideously expensive duo core processor or a new machine with the processor built in that will inevitably speed up multitasking operations

Sorry btw it is a new operating system

[A1DL]

thanks for the clarification Colin :approve:

[Danno13]

Hmm.. i'm toying with the idea of buying it. Its only £115 for an OEM ultimate edition.. but it does seem to just be about the look of it rather than any extra functionality (unless you count more virus scanners/firewall/popup blockers etc. which are just a nuisance if you already have other software you use for this purpose), and since i run XP in classic mode to do away with the stupid graphics that make it run slower, it may not be for me.

[colinm345]

thanks for the clarification Colin :approve:

Lol Thats a pleasure but I wish I was as techie as you on the sound equipment it all sounds double dutch to me:) :D :D :D :D

However I believe that Vista is required to run the new Microsoft X Flight Sim as it should be run:confused:

[colinm345]

How do you run Xp in classic mode I thought you could only do that with the control panel settings:D

[Danno13]

Yeah.. its in the display settings under themes.

Also, there's loads of tweaks you can do under System properties->performance.

[LastMinuteDJs.net]

Not sure of the benefits of Vista yet, but will know soon.

My other job is promotional work and i'll be promoting Vista for the next few months once it gets launched. Down in London for training next week so will find out all then.

Naturally, i'll only get told the good stuff - not the bad stuff...

[DMX Will]

First of all - Tony - Vista is the new Operating system to be launched by Microsoft towards the end of the month.

I love Vista, and I have been using it for the past couple of months. I have the final version (Ultimate). It was released to volume licensing bussiness back in October/Novemember time, and thus how I have a (legit) copy of it.

In the final release I found I did not have to install ANY drivers, including my Web cam (which are known for having bad driver issues). I would have to install all the drivers for my motherboard/graphics card when I used the same system on XP.

The major change is the look and feel about Vista. If you are able to run the "Windows Aero" theme (I am doing so on a nVidia 128mb graphics card) the whole windows experience is changed, as everything fades smoothly together, there is also a lot of transparency effects in the theme.

The other big change is security in Vista, it has a better firewall than XP, and other programs such as Windows Defender etc come as standard with the OS. One of the first things you notice with Vista, is that you are required to confirm every action that could affect your computer in a security pop up window. At first this is very annoying, but you soon get used to it. This feature is handy, as a couple of times I have blocked unknown "Happenings" on my computer.

I would say there is very minimal hardware compatibility issues, and you will find most programs are either already compatiable, or they have bought out a new version of their software that WILL work with windows Vista, but on the whole,9/10 bits of software worked first time.

With the release of Vista comes the release of Microsoft Office 2007. Which I've also been running for a while, and have just got to grips with. It too has had a total make-over and generally looks alot more sleeker.

I have had one problem with Vista, and that is no matter what I do I simply cannot log in to MSN/Windows Live Messenger, no matter what I do. I believe there is something hardware related going on there, and I have plans to switch my two machines around to see if this is the case (My other is running XP still). HOWEVER, I also know about 5 other Vista users, all who can use MSN/Windows Live Messenger without problems, I think ive just got bad luck.

Would highly recommend you try it, even if you pop down to PC World or whatever and try it out on one of their machines.

Will.

[LastMinuteDJs.net]

Would highly recommend you try it, even if you pop down to PC World or whatever and try it out on one of their machines.

Will.

If you do this on any Saturday or Sunday after it's release in a PC World, Comet, Curry's, Staples or John Lewis store - there should be a demonstrator there to show it off and tell you more about it...