I don't think I've ever heard a Mac user say he or she had to reformat their HD for the start of a new school semester. I think that can sum things up pretty well.
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Worst Things About Windows XP
- Thread starter Spock
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-PowerBook G5
Too true.
If bannedagain was joking, it is funny. If he's attempting to insert a serious item of defense for XP, we've just witnessed a classic pedodentism.
Too true.
If bannedagain was joking, it is funny. If he's attempting to insert a serious item of defense for XP, we've just witnessed a classic pedodentism.
XP xpierence
Reasons why I switched:
1. Windows update(s) over and over. It became obnoxious that I had to let it download and then reboot so often.
2. Virus Protection. Also obnoxious. Always downloading. Sometimes asking to restart sometimes not but always creating congestion on my bandwidth.
3. Nothing worked exactly right. You could never just "do" anything. Like burn a CD took several efforts - (sony vaio 2GHz) because the computer froze, had an error, etc...
It was a large, clunky, half perfected attempt at an operating system that became worse and worse the more you used it.
Chad Woodland
happy mac addict
Reasons why I switched:
1. Windows update(s) over and over. It became obnoxious that I had to let it download and then reboot so often.
2. Virus Protection. Also obnoxious. Always downloading. Sometimes asking to restart sometimes not but always creating congestion on my bandwidth.
3. Nothing worked exactly right. You could never just "do" anything. Like burn a CD took several efforts - (sony vaio 2GHz) because the computer froze, had an error, etc...
It was a large, clunky, half perfected attempt at an operating system that became worse and worse the more you used it.
Chad Woodland
happy mac addict
Hehe, #3 and 4 are solved by Mozilla Firebird and Spybot: Search And Destroy (which I installed right at the very beginning alongside with Windows XP).
If you don't use IE, you close off pretty much all the security leaks. Oh and of course i ran DCOMbobulator (closes DCOM).
Now here's probably the only reason i will respond to this thread. The "redraw" that MOST Mac users complain about is from either an old video driver or simply a bad installation.
*For example. I'm running a system (take a look at my sig). Decently fast...8500 is pretty fast as well. Well, one time in the past i was updating my Catalyst Drivers...After updating to 3.8, i realized that the screen was redrawing INCREDIBLY slow (running 2.23ghz AMD is basically 2.8-2.9 P4). I then ran "dxdiag" (in other words Direct X Diagnostics).
I realized DirectDraw Acceleration was DISABLED (in the Display Tab). And thus the reason fro the slowness--i installed 3.9 right after, and that problem went away.
*example #2. I was helping a friend install their Barton 2800+ Nforce2 HP Box (yes, HP surprisingly makes these things). Well it was slow as hell upon the first bootup. Quickly checking dxdiag revealed the SAME problem. Solution? Install the latest All-In-One Nvidia driver package (in this case, the Nforce2 board was an IGP, or in other words using integrated Graphics). That's why the all-in-one driver addressed this problem. The newer driver worked with DirectX--thus with DirectDraw Acceleration enabled, smooth as a baby.
*concerning the "format at the beginning of each semester"--ask how many of those people use IE? These people probably do not use SpyBot to close down all Active X security holes/cookies that lead to the security compromises that IE leaves at DEFAULT! (heck i'll never use IE unless a specific web page demands it--aka School related/HW/etc.)
Using Mozilla Firebird AND SpyBot means next to 0 spyware, and in the windows environment that is quite a rare thing.
I have used my computer for nearly 10 months now--and with those two programs alone, i have cut the frustration of dealing with popups/activex/spyware/registry problems CONSIDERABLY. Find the number of eople who use these two programs that have to reformat--that percentage is probably 80-90% less than the majority...alas we are in the minority...
(ending note: I have convinced 4 of my friends to switch to Mozilla Firebird which is great
)
Following up Mav451: I agree (almost) completely. We have to have a Windows box at home because my wife's sewing software is Windows-only. Well, it's also for games. I just made sure that I set her and my daughter up with Mozilla Firebird; showed them how to use tabs and do image blocking - and they love it.
The other BIG item, that Mav451 seems to have missed, is to give users a mail program other than Outlook. Seriously, Outlook + IE have probably been responsible for 85% of the huge honkin' holes in Windows. Well okay, we won't talk about Slammer and DCOM and ... - but those didn't hit us at home since we've got everything behind a firewalling D-Link 4-port router.
I still have a lot of gripes with Windows - heck that's why I'm using a Powerbook. But with some common sense you can have a reasonably secure Windows system.
Edit: Decided to add "almost" in the first paragraph.
I just made sure that I set her and my daughter up with Mozilla Firebird; showed them how to use tabs and do image blocking - and they love it.The other BIG item, that Mav451 seems to have missed, is to give users a mail program other than Outlook. Seriously, Outlook + IE have probably been responsible for 85% of the huge honkin' holes in Windows. Well okay, we won't talk about Slammer and DCOM and ...
- but those didn't hit us at home since we've got everything behind a firewalling D-Link 4-port router.I still have a lot of gripes with Windows - heck that's why I'm using a Powerbook.
But with some common sense you can have a reasonably secure Windows system.Edit: Decided to add "almost" in the first paragraph.
YEAH! I can't believe I forgot the mail part.
Fact is, I believe a few weeks ago, the supposedly "safer" email application Eudora, was found to have its OWN security problems.
Well...i'm still using Outlook for my school's mail--fortunately my school has developed a web-based alternative to using Outlook. (Umail or something along those lines). Additionally, I can route mail from the Outlook account to a yahoo one (not sure if this makes it any safer...probably not).
But--at least I'm not relying on Outlook.
Fact is, I believe a few weeks ago, the supposedly "safer" email application Eudora, was found to have its OWN security problems.
Well...i'm still using Outlook for my school's mail--fortunately my school has developed a web-based alternative to using Outlook. (Umail or something along those lines). Additionally, I can route mail from the Outlook account to a yahoo one (not sure if this makes it any safer...probably not).
But--at least I'm not relying on Outlook.
Yeah, it's already been a few months though =) There was a buffer overflow problem with long attachment suggested names, and a related spoofing possibility.
In fairness to Qualcomm, the spoofing problem was still caught internally by Eudora and (unless the user went in and tuned off the feature) it would issue appropriately scary warnings about executable attachments, and programs on virtually every platform have been plagued with C string disease.
Keeping the windows updates and virus definitions up-to-date is a full time job. It's just a constant struggle to keep an win XP box up-to-date, secured, virus-free, and "legal" on my university's network. EEgad man, my university would save MILLIONS in payroll and infrastructure upgrade costs if they switched to macs!
I hate PowerPoint!
PowerPoint for Windows has a most annoying bug that is related to Windows itself (including Windows XP) so I thought I'd mention it here. Other applications that can be switched into and out of full-screen mode sometimes do this too (except IE and Mozilla). Going into full screen works just fine. However, when I come out of full screen, especially if the screen resolution changes at the same time, the ENTIRE Windows interface may become completely black and I can no longer see where I'm clicking. The easiest fix is to press F5 to force a refresh, then hide and unhide the taskbar to refresh it as well (this only works in the main interface). It's a royal pain, but also something I've learned to live with.
PowerPoint for Windows has a most annoying bug that is related to Windows itself (including Windows XP) so I thought I'd mention it here. Other applications that can be switched into and out of full-screen mode sometimes do this too (except IE and Mozilla). Going into full screen works just fine. However, when I come out of full screen, especially if the screen resolution changes at the same time, the ENTIRE Windows interface may become completely black and I can no longer see where I'm clicking. The easiest fix is to press F5 to force a refresh, then hide and unhide the taskbar to refresh it as well (this only works in the main interface). It's a royal pain, but also something I've learned to live with.
not read the whole thread but heres my top 5
1 Popups
2 thos popups of the bubbles
3 Network card droping out
4 huge updates
5 icons chaning
6 the help things what use are they really
i know i said 5 but number 6 is a bonus.
one other thing that gets me is the backup thing for home why do i have to install it from the cd some one know that..
1 Popups
2 thos popups of the bubbles
3 Network card droping out
4 huge updates
5 icons chaning
6 the help things what use are they really
i know i said 5 but number 6 is a bonus.
one other thing that gets me is the backup thing for home why do i have to install it from the cd some one know that..
This is supposedly coming in service pack 2 (due Summer I think). Apparently it gives plenty of options (probably way more wizards and stuff as well!)
The problem is, once IE gets pop-up blocking, suddenly the amount of people viewing internet pop-up ads will go from 95% to 0 and they'll have to come up with more banner ads instead
There are a lot of things I hate about XP but the worst is probably that I have to teach people how to use it and other versions of Windows properly. When I do it usually takes a bit of time and is often repeated when the next problem occurs. I have done this for Mac users as well but it happens much less often. This makes XP and Windows in general a real waste of time for me.
desktop cleanup
I ABSOLUTLEY hate the desktop clean up feature that XP has. Every 30days, i get this bubble saying that i have unused items on my desktop. it wants to move them into a folder. I put the shortcut there. I want it there. I don't need my computer telling me that my desktop is messy.. its like having a mom telling you to clean your room.. so very annoying
I ABSOLUTLEY hate the desktop clean up feature that XP has. Every 30days, i get this bubble saying that i have unused items on my desktop. it wants to move them into a folder. I put the shortcut there. I want it there. I don't need my computer telling me that my desktop is messy.. its like having a mom telling you to clean your room.. so very annoying
You can disable that feature.
Here's how:
1. Right-Click Desktop, click Properties.
2. Go to Desktop Tab. Click Customize Desktop.
3. Uncheck Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard every x number of days. Mine says every 60 days...perhaps b/c you are using XP Home?
Nonetheless many of these "features" I have disabled.
I wonder why XP starts them as DEFAULT when they are actually not required...like Windows Update (I also have that disabled).
I have a registry entry that disables alot of these things -- I believe a few game sites used to post it up for better performance/less background processes but I find it is also extremely useful, if not necessary, for the everyday user, who 80-90% of the time will not NEED it.
It's called "Game Pro All Start", you can find it here:
http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/registry.htm
Basically, if you're going to build your OWN computer, run this RIGHT AFTER you have installed WinXP Pro (and disabled DCOM/security updates).
You can literally startup XP with only 10-12 services (compared to the typical 23-30 you might see at Best Buy); this also cuts the page file from 150mb to a paltry 50mb.
Here's how:
1. Right-Click Desktop, click Properties.
2. Go to Desktop Tab. Click Customize Desktop.
3. Uncheck Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard every x number of days. Mine says every 60 days...perhaps b/c you are using XP Home?
Nonetheless many of these "features" I have disabled.
I wonder why XP starts them as DEFAULT when they are actually not required...like Windows Update (I also have that disabled).
I have a registry entry that disables alot of these things -- I believe a few game sites used to post it up for better performance/less background processes but I find it is also extremely useful, if not necessary, for the everyday user, who 80-90% of the time will not NEED it.
It's called "Game Pro All Start", you can find it here:
http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/registry.htm
Basically, if you're going to build your OWN computer, run this RIGHT AFTER you have installed WinXP Pro (and disabled DCOM/security updates).
You can literally startup XP with only 10-12 services (compared to the typical 23-30 you might see at Best Buy); this also cuts the page file from 150mb to a paltry 50mb.
It's not a Mac, period, but the thing I think is ridiculous is CD's not mounting on the desktop so that you know it has enganged.
To quote from Steve Jobs from the TV Movie, "The Pirates of Silicon Valley",
"...ours is better..."
God I can only hope that he actually said that to Bill Gates, because it is so true!
To quote from Steve Jobs from the TV Movie, "The Pirates of Silicon Valley",
"...ours is better..."
God I can only hope that he actually said that to Bill Gates, because it is so true!
You've posted at least twice and each time you mention a 'feature' that you have found a way to disable or remove, you also mention removing IE and Outlook.
And that's what sucks about Windows XP, the computer comes with all sorts of screwed up features that get in your way, security flaws, and you need several extra programs just to make the computer work properly.
Furthermore, what happens when one of these programs (not necessarily the ones you described above, but maybe something like ZoneAlarm) screws up something in Windows, or the registry gets hosed after 6 months.
The basic PC is a good machine, but with that disaster of an OS it's hard to tell.
Hey that's an interesting point--but that is the Mac OS way of doing it.
The thing is rite now you can check it through My Computer, under "Devices with Removable Storage". If it simply says "CD Drive" instead of New Disc or whatever then you know there's nothing in there.
Not only that, most of the time, an Explorer window will pop up, showing the CD drive's contents a few moments after you insert the CD.
While the "mounted drive" is an interesting way to do it, i don't think it's necessary.
The thing is rite now you can check it through My Computer, under "Devices with Removable Storage". If it simply says "CD Drive" instead of New Disc or whatever then you know there's nothing in there.
Not only that, most of the time, an Explorer window will pop up, showing the CD drive's contents a few moments after you insert the CD.
While the "mounted drive" is an interesting way to do it, i don't think it's necessary.
Yep, you hit it on the dot. The need to tweak is not necessary on the Mac. Of course, since i do not have a Mac, i'm already familiar with these things, i guess out of necessity--if any of you guys HAVE to use a PC (home or work), you know who to ask fer help
The Registry
This is the worst thing ever created for a computer. I don't even think the people who wrote the registry understand it. I have tried over the years to understand the logic behind it, but I have failed.
Settings
There are probably 1000 different settings that each have to be reached a 100 different ways. Why can't all settings be set in the control panel, that's what it's there for isn't it??
This is the worst thing ever created for a computer. I don't even think the people who wrote the registry understand it. I have tried over the years to understand the logic behind it, but I have failed.
Settings
There are probably 1000 different settings that each have to be reached a 100 different ways. Why can't all settings be set in the control panel, that's what it's there for isn't it??
It takes a whole lot of work to keep Windows XP in good operating condition.
I spent a week setting up Windows XP with every setting exactly as I wanted, I installed my other software and made a copy of my partition. I then recopy this partition over every week to keep my windows "fresh".
I hate updates because I have to reinstall everything from scratch.
I spent a week setting up Windows XP with every setting exactly as I wanted, I installed my other software and made a copy of my partition. I then recopy this partition over every week to keep my windows "fresh".
I hate updates because I have to reinstall everything from scratch.