At last! Microsoft has achieved its greatest creation! How did they read our minds in such a way to provide us with the thing that we truly wanted in an operation system? Forget reliability, power, efficiency, compatibility and economy – who needs any of that when we have … pretty colours! Yes, we can now glory in the shimmering aesthetic radiance of Windows XP. Instead of dull grey, we now have vivid greens and blues; instead of bevelled edges, voluptuous curves. Give us pretty colours, and we won’t care if a piece of software is overpriced, inefficient and poorly designed.
Or at least this must be what Microsoft must think if they are deluded into the belief that Windows XP is actually an improvement on the earlier operating systems, because what it actually is, is
a huge disappointment. It’s important to remember that when XP was released, it was so full of bugs that an upgrade was released just 6 weeks latter… then 3 weeks after that… then another 6 weeks latter. There are so many problems with the system that I can’t possibly list all of them, but here are a few of the main considerations:
* It may look easy to use, but Microsoft has removed most of the functionality of the older Windows systems. Now it is almost impossible to set windows up the way you want it, to alter the registry, to create logon scripts. Delving into the workings of the system is forbidden, on pain of having your warranty revoked by Bill Gates, so you have to leave things just as they were programmed.
* The system is unstable, and even on my system (which I like to think of as up to date) crashes at least once an hour. It is painstakingly slow to load, it sticks and freezes on menial tasks, it shuts down programs suddenly, and for no reason, and it takes ages to process data. Often, I have to tell it to do something, turn off the monitor, and then go away for quarter of an hour, to give it time to carry out my instructions.
* It’s even worst than the previous Windows platforms when it comes to privacy and security. The system makes a record of every web page you go on, every password you type, and every e-mail that you receive, and keeps multiple copies of them in multiple directories all across the hard drive. Call me paranoid, but I’m damned sure that my system is spying on me, because I constantly get little pop-up boxes: ‘windows wants to access the internet’ or ‘windows needs to send information over the internet’. More frequently, the computer doesn’t even consult me, and when I’m online I get ‘windows is sending information over the internet’ or ‘Microsoft Word(?) is trying to send information over the internet’ from my firewall software. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if one day I got a message saying ‘recycle bin is trying to send your deleted files to microsoft’!
* The passwords are trifling, and can easily be gotten around. So long as you are an administrator, you can change, or even remove another administrators password without even typing in their current password. Microsoft may as well do awy with the networking aspect completely, because this one oversight compromises the security of the whole system.
* The ability to switch users may look like a good idea, but it is completely useless, because although it is recommended that you have 128 MB RAM, it is also recommended that you have an extra 64 MB RAM for each additional user logged on at the same time. Even my three-month-old Pentium 4 computer has trouble when more than one user tries to log on.
The only improvement I can find is that when a program crashes (which it does frequently) Microsoft genuinely wants to sort out the problem, and Windows offers to send an error report. Although, for all I know, this may just be a way for Microsoft to get its hands on still more of my confidential data
In short, the system does not live up to its high expectations, and falls short of the razzamatazz and fanfare of its release. I would recommend that you steer well clear of this, and buy a nice, cheap, well written UNIX system. XP might look pretty, but looks aren’t everything.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
(+) Faster, good networking with other Windows machine, so far it has not crashed. (-) price, best to do a fresh install which will involve backup & restore of information
Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003, Microsoft Windows Small Business Server 2003 Premium SP1 - for PC - English - Quantity: 1 - 1 server, 5 clients, 5 CAL - CD-ROM, CD / DVD
Although I enjoyed the opinion I can't agree with it I've been running xp for nearly a year now without any real problems, certainly no lock ups or blue screens. I agree it is a bit bright but I just set mine back to the classic look.
carolscotland 02.10.2002 00:19
Well explained, I was advised not to touch this with a barge pole. I stuck to 98. Carol:)
SusanLesley 30.09.2002 07:06
This came as standard on my new PC and I have been very impressed with it. Maybe it's because I only use my PC for spreadsheets, word processing, mail and working on the Internet. Susan
Advantages: Pretty new interface, rock solid stability, runs MOST old Windows 98 applications Disadvantages: Compatibility problems with some hardware, new look not to the taste of some, requires a fairly high spec system (with lots of memory), has problems running A FEW old Windows 98 applications
Advantages: Pretty new interface, rock solid stability, runs MOST old Windows 98 applications Disadvantages: Compatibility problems with some hardware, new look not to the taste of some, requires a fairly high spec system (with lots of memory), has problems running A FEW old Windows 98 applications
Advantages: internet Explorer 6, Windows Media Player 8, More Reliable, Compatible with nearly everything, it looks and feels great, Totally Customizible Disadvantages: Costs around £75
Sep 29th, 2002
very helpful by (100%):
