My trusty PC crashed yesterday. Drives totalled. It just refused to boot.

That was strange, considering I was using genuine Windows XP patched to the latest security updates. McAfee Internet Security 2006 and Spyware Doctor ran in the background- fully online with the newest databases.

That’s not all. My PC undergoes regular defragging with DiskKeeper 9. I clear all crud and trash files once a week.

And YET, it crashed.

I attempted a reinstall with my original XP discs, but no matter what, I get an error messge

“NTLDR not found”

What the ^@#&*!(@#

Oh well. That finally forced me to give a run with a demo copy Windows Vista.

My buds who run one of those software testing centers lent me an eval copy of Windows Vista Ultimate. Yep. I know I’ll have to purchase my own soon enough, but that doesn’t matter.

I loved it!

Unlike my XP discs, the Vista installed on my corrupted harddrive. The “NTLDR” error disappeared and Vista installed within 11 minutes. That’s fast, considering my laptop is only a core duo 1.83Mhz with 1.5GB ram.

I don’t know why all those techboys at anandtech etc say you’ll need a very fast PC to make the most of Vista. My PC practically screamed through installation and the subsequent software additions I made.

The pros:
Startup and Shutdown came in fast. Really fast.
Interface is damned slick. It’s like the laptop reads my mind by giving me access to everything without clutter; that Gadget bar is a dream! Better than google’s. XP, in contrast is clunky and creepy.
Everything appears automated- from system maintenance to security. I loved that Windows Defender thang.
Oh and about security: you get a whole slew that can frustrate a hacker. Everything from crippling admin rights, to Explorer protected mode and spyware protection. I got zero popups and hangs from browsing the cracker sites like astalavista! WOW!
Every peripheral, from USB thumb drive to DVD burner enjoys native support. No clunky third party interfaces. Just copy docs to where you want- and go!

Cons:
Aside from the price tag… none!

I must hand it to Bill. Finally: the first windows since 3.11 that actually got me my mojoes