More Vista talk coming in
While, I’m still waiting to get the Vista Beta download anyway… I’ve seen the first of what I expect will be many posts out and about complaining about the upcoming OS from Microsoft. Admittedly it’s a beta and after seeing a lot of beta-release candidate – final cycles from open source software, I’m sure much will change. However…. some good points are raised.
It warns me about everything. Warning stink, people just ignore them if they happen to often. This will prove to be effective security for about 2 weeks. After that, people will click OK without reading a thing. I got a security warning trying to show processes from all users in the task manager. Why? How can a Microsoft App not trust another Microsoft App? I’m guessing the next step is a CAPTCHA on each dialog.
Yes, I’ve heard this should improve by the release candidate stage, but there is a VERY good point above, too many warnings and people develop “blindness” to them, there needs to be a better balance struck from all I’ve heard.
It sounds like there are some user interface, ease of use, aggravation with how things have been laid out complaints as well. Personally, with XP I really came to the conclusion that Windows was making some BIG mistakes in user interface. On a default install an experienced user had to start hunting for things as if they’d never used the PC before. Apparently it tested well with new users and fortunately for many people’s sanity it was easily changed by going back to the “classic” look. Unfortunately, it appears that Vista may not have this capability (classic look).
Of course, at the rate the big features seem to be peeling off, it’s a good question just what will be around by the final. I’m interested to see firsthand now. (Although at the moment, I’ll only have a virtual machine to try in, which I’m seriously wondering if I can make that happen. I am NOT sacrificing a main working machine for that though.) Of course, that get’s me to thinking about the hardware requirements and, I know some have said that they are not abnormal for a new windows release if you look back to prior releases, however…. something tells me that many people are getting tired of the chasing the latest greatest just to keep up cycle. Most home users seem content running a machine as long as it has a spark of power left in it, while businesses may be more eager/likely to do routine replacements.
That much said, there are quite a few things that it sounds as though Vista could greatly improve from a security standpoint, I just wonder if they had to raise the hardware bar as high to do that. (BSD/linux based systems seem to do fine on older hardware (even old pentium/pentium II with light desktops and few services…)) I guess I just wonder if their effort to push the “churn” of replacement systems will work, or if people will yawn and say, “well, I upgraded my home PC 2 years ago and it does everything I need it to.”
What I’d really hope to see is a solid commitment to making SP3 for XP a real improvement in some of the default settings that give security loopholes. (Instead of expecting people will run out the door early next year to buy Vista + new pc to improve the security of their pc.)
By the way, I’m used to linux iso’s having an md5sum so you can check the integrity of an iso download – is there not such a thing for windows iso’s??? I don’t see any reference to one.