So far, outside of the winkey-tab "alt-tab" replacement, I haven't seen any enormous advantage to a 3d environment. Transparent windows(?) Hell, I could do that now with stardock if I wanted.
I somewhat get conceptually where they are trying to go. Part of the bigger problem I think they face is that what has changed (look/feel) will take a consumer relearn on some level, and in the end doesn't actually provide much in the way of functionality improvement. Ie, it's not more intuitive or saving people tons of time, it just seems like a change for change sake. Meanwhile, the real things under the hood that could change I haven't seen. Moving drivers is a neat issue, Greg, but when you're constantly using 3D rendering on a video card it means you are far more likely to have that video card throw an error out at you. Rendering 2d for your video card, as someone pointed out is child's play. Having it continuously in a 3D enabled mode means it's using more power; more heat; more chances for a nice graphics crash. Not sure what great benefit there is in that. The network functionality has improved "somewhat" but because of the new difficulties in re-configuring Windows Firewall and the integrated Windows Defender, network usage can now be an uber-annoyance. Continually prompting users to "allow" this or "allow" that. I get the idea, it basically lets them off the hook if a machine gets hosed "hey, you allowed for that to happen", but there should be an easier way to turn all of that crap off. And I don't mean "allowing" programs or websites; I mean start Windows Device Manager and before hand you get prompted every time "allow this program to run?" Hell, it's a freaking MS program! The layout of the start menu, which works as a swing-back design is fine for those who don't have a lot of programs they use on a frequent basis, but will become quickly infuriating to those who do. And instead of allowing for a flip back to an XP/2003 look start menu, classic flips you back to the traditional 98 menu. I could go on. But I have a feeling it's time to get serious about investigating other options. CW -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Greg Sevart Sent: Sunday, June 04, 2006 11:06 PM To: The Hardware List Subject: Re: [H] I'm convinced, Vista is garbage. > Areoglass's requirements are also a joke. I'm sorry, but I shouldn't > need to have a dedicated graphics controller with 128mb of RAM just to > get transparencies, the weird ALT-TAB replacement, etc. I'm running on a > 6 month old Dell Inspiron 700m laptop with an Intel 850 graphics > chipset. Granted, it's not the best, but I'm sorry, it should be enough > to run Vista with at least some of the 3D effects. > But the big claim to fame of Aero is a completely 3D rendered desktop. Gone is the 2D mode--your desktop is rendered just as any modern game is. This, naturally, consumes a lot more memory and GPU resources. I'm very curious to see what else can be done now that the interface is truly 3D... Honestly, I think one of the biggest advantages of Vista will be moving the audio driver out of kernel mode and into user mode. I can't tell you how many times I've had to reboot computers just because the sound driver hiccupped. Printing is also supposedly new, finally getting away from the old buggy spooler used for years. The new network stack is supposedly more responsive, too... I guess I'm just cautiously optimistic. Make no mistake, though: Vista probably won't be going on my machine until SP1. Greg
