windows 7 or XP

[Andy™]

since my computer has died, and its probably going to be easier to re-install the OS than repair, what should i go for?

how reliable is windows 7? do many programs work well with it (i found a few dont work properly with vista when i tried it a few years ago)

 

[m4tty]

My 18 month old boy turned off my laptop xmas eve and it wouldnt turn back on so I had to go out and get a new laptop. Wanted XP as so many probs with Vista but had to get Windows 7 and am impressed with it. Had no probs adding programs to date. Sure someone who knows more than me will be along soon. Cheers

 

[revjames]

I bought a toshiba laptop with win 7 about 3 months ago. Not had any major problems or compatibility issues. I hated Vista and my old machine had XP which I did like. I installed the Office 07 I had on the old machine. No probs so far.

 

[Andy™]

think ill try windows 7. at least i can go back to XP if its no good

 

[spinlondon]

Does the 7 have compatibility mode for older programs?

 

[Dane]

spin london - Yes on the Ultimate version unfortunately the basic edition doesn't.

Im running windows 7 and will definitely not be returning to vista or XP much quicker than vista. and much better than XP in my eyes.

If you wanted to just trial it pm me

 

[ianmacd]

win7 over xp.

 

[Lurch]

7 is definitely worlds apart from Vista. I have not supplied any machines with Vista and don;t even bother supporting it. I've used and recommended 7 a couple of times and most reports seem encouraging.

I'd use 7 if I had a licence, all mine are XP so I'd stick with it unless 7 came on something, then I'd probably use it. If you're getting a laptop with 7 on it then I'd keep it on.

 

[Andy™]

7 is definitely worlds apart from Vista. I have not supplied any machines with Vista and don;t even bother supporting it. I've used and recommended 7 a couple of times and most reports seem encouraging. I'd use 7 if I had a licence, all mine are XP so I'd stick with it unless 7 came on something, then I'd probably use it. If you're getting a laptop with 7 on it then I'd keep it on.

probably best not go into where its coming from....

 

[bengie]

7 is vista with some tweeks and a better public perception. i ran vista for years(beta, RC and final on 3 machines) and always ran perfectly and far more stable than XP. the only real issue's with vista were actually caused by 3rd parties not creating drivers or at least decent drivers for hardware. i've been running 7 for the past year or so again in beta, rc and now final(home premium) and yes i prefer it to vista the changes aren't all that big.

but to answer the OP's question 7 everytime.

btw my home premium has compatability mode

 

[m4tty]

Does anyone know whether Windows 7 has any detection software to check if your using Pirated Software i.e copied Office or something like that. ??

Cheers

 

[Andy™]

quick question- can windows 7 be installed over XP, or does it need clean install?

 

[The Godfather]

http://www.betanews.com/article/Windows-XP-to-Windows-7-upgrades-Difficult-but-not-impossible/1235440384

The Godfather

 

[Andy™]

since ive just reinstalled XP today, wont really be hard to wait until i get windows 7 and start with a formatted drive for it

 

[Dane]

7 is vista with some tweeks and a better public perception.

Rubbish

Windows seven was written from scratch not like vista.

Window 7 was a complete new start operating system.

 

[extension15]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_7

Applaud Smiley

 

[jdmjrmdam]

I'd use 7 if I had a licence, all mine are XP so I'd stick with it unless 7 came on something, then I'd probably use it. If you're getting a laptop with 7 on it then I'd keep it on.

I agree with Lurch if you've got hardware running XP I'd stick with it, unless you want to upgrade for academic interest. But if you're buying a new PC or Laptop that comes with 7 go with it.

The real benefit of Windows 7 is that it provides the features of Vista at the performance level of XP on XP generation hardware.

 

[Cirrus]

I have a laptop on Vista and 2 Apple Macs running on OSX Snow Leopard. Must say, after 2 months of using the Macs there is now no way I will go back to anything related to a PC. My life is soooooooo much easier. So, laptop is up for sale just because I hate Windows that much. I just wish Gates would publicly admit that Apple outclass him and always have done on the OS stakes.

 

[ianmacd]

Yep OSX is far superior to windows in every way. OK not every way. Windows has a much bigger list of vulnerabilities and the price tag is much higher on windows too.

OSX also works well on laptops suspending correctly and recovering again. Other OS's could learn a lot from Steve's OS.

Ian.

 

[bengie]

i've found Mac os's to be nice and pretty and simple for everyday use but as soon as you need to do something a bit more technical they have driven me mad.

windows only has more vulnerabilites due to it being far more flexible for the end user and developers and being microsoft people attack it more.