MS guide to speeding up Vista

Rik · Jan 31, 2008, 00:45:15

Arthix · Jan 31, 2008, 05:51:40

I was expecting to see "Upgrade to Windows XP" when I opened this thread.

nazuk · Jan 31, 2008, 06:59:26

I say: dump Windoze, and switch to Macs! I did several years ago, and never regretted it. Best move I ever made. Wish I had done it sooner.

Naz

Rik · Jan 31, 2008, 09:08:22

I'd do it if it wasn't for the massive investment I have in PC software and, especially, fonts, Naz. Even with a 40% platform discount, moving the entire Adobe Font Folio to a Mac would cost me a minimum of an arm and a leg.

somanyholes · Jan 31, 2008, 11:24:07

Think this might be of interest to some, have not used it myself, but a lot of people seem to like it. Does look pretty cool.

some blurb from the site

vLite - Vista Lite

vLite is a tool for customizing the Windows Vista installation before actually installing it.

Main features are:

* hotfix, language pack and driver integration
* component removal
* unattended setup
* tweaks
* split/merge Vista installation CDs
* create ISO and burn bootable CD/DVD

Windows Vista from Microsoft takes a lot of resources, we all know that. vLite provides you with an easy removal of the unwanted components in order to make Vista run faster and to your liking.

This tool doesn't use any kind of hacking, all files and registry entries are protected as they would be if you install the unedited version only with the changes you select.

It configures the installation directly before the installation, meaning you'll have to remake the ISO and reinstall it. This method is much cleaner, not to mention easier and more logical than doing it after installation on every reinstall.

more info here

http://www.vlite.net/

Rik · Jan 31, 2008, 11:27:53

Interesting post, thanks.

Sebby · Jan 31, 2008, 12:43:55

Thanks for the link, Rik. The problem with Vista is you can't really speed it up. Even on quite a powerful system, it's not as quick as XP. Microsoft's suggestions are, not surprisingly, quite generic, and are all things I do/have done anyway.

I might add another gig of RAM to my system (boosting the total to 3GB) and will perform a clean install with SP1 slipstreamed once it's available. Whether or not this will help remains to be seen.

Rik · Jan 31, 2008, 12:46:16

Or you could just go straight to Linux.

Sebby · Jan 31, 2008, 13:05:59

I have tried Linux, although that was on my old VAIO notebook (1.86GHz Centrino-M with 512MB RAM) and it was painfully slow (slower than Vista). I've been meaning to give Ubuntu another go on my new system, but I ran into trouble when I tried to install it. Because of my RAID 0 configuration, it's unhappy and there's a lot of fiddling to do before it will install. I have found a guide but I just have to find time, or rather find a time when I can be bothered.

Rik · Jan 31, 2008, 13:10:31

Quote from: Sebby on Jan 31, 2008, 13:05:59
or rather find a time when I can be bothered.

I know just what you mean.

JB · Jan 31, 2008, 14:03:42

Quote from: Sebby on Jan 31, 2008, 13:05:59
there's a lot of fiddling to do before it will install. I have found a guide but I just have to find time, or rather find a time when I can be bothered.

You're completely right. Linux is an excellent system but despite having the advantage of a computer background, on many occasions whilst trying to make something work, I find myself muttering "Bill Gates has got nothing to be worried about".

When correctly set up, Linux IMHO is first rate, secure, fast and stable. The problem for the average guy is the time and heartache getting it to that stage takes.

I love the system, but on many occasions it has caused untold frustration. It's not for everyone.

Regards,

JB.

Sebby · Jan 31, 2008, 14:51:16

I think that it's come a long way towards being user friendly in the last couple of years. For example, Ubuntu now boots like the Live CD and you can launch the installer from the desktop, a lot of which is graphical.

The problem is when you have something like RAID 0, which the Windows installation can just deal with. That said, if you're technical enough to have a RAID setup, I think you're technical enough to work out how to install Linux on such a setup.

Rik · Jan 31, 2008, 15:36:48

So, who's going to volunteer to write the forum sticky on setting up a Linux box?

Sebby · Jan 31, 2008, 15:47:30

I think the actual installation of something like Ubuntu is completely self-explanatory these days, but once installed, a good guide of things to do would be fantastic.

JB · Jan 31, 2008, 16:51:00

Quote from: Sebby on Jan 31, 2008, 15:47:30
I think the actual installation of something like Ubuntu is completely self-explanatory these days, but once installed, a good guide of things to do would be fantastic.

It sure would. Certainly Ubuntu usually installs fine and it is much rarer now to find a driver missing especially for popular hardware.

I find the hard part is when you try to do something a bit different, like setting up video or audio conversion. All the software is out there but maybe it's my age that makes the understanding difficult for me.

Right now I am struggling with trying to convert MPEG files downloaded from my TV card into XVID or DIVX files to view on a portable player. I am trying a program called 'transcode' but the manual pages are numerous and the optional parameters almost countless.

BTW a good source of useful information for when the system is up and running can be found at http://doc.gwos.org/doku.php/doc:ubuntu

Regards,

JB.

colirv · Jan 31, 2008, 17:25:31

Quote from: 6jb on Jan 31, 2008, 16:51:00
it is much rarer now to find a driver missing especially for popular hardware.

The only time I tried Ubuntu off a live CD (I didn't want to install it, just try it) it opened the desktop just fine, but neither keyboard nor mouse worked. They're both wireless (Dell), and presumably the relevant drivers were missing. Is there an easy way to get round this? You'll gather I'm not an expert!