Can you opt OUT of Vista if you just want XP?

"The wait is over!" ... I wasn't waiting.

"I wasn't waiting!" ... We didn't care. Bah, to be honest, neither was I.

Yeah when I think of good computers, I think of Dell...note the sarcasm

heh. "The wait is over" has to got to be the worst slogan ever. Almost as bad as Cingular's "fewest dropped calls".

so if Dell is a bad brand, can you tell me whats the best PC brand out there? Aside from "build your own!"?

Mark my words: after the super bowl, TIVO will reduce thier Series 3 prices, they know they can get many more new subscribers and keep many series 2 subscribers by doing that, 799 will drop to below 500, I hope for 400...

Saadinator:

Answer: "Build Your Own Inc.". That's the only answer.... Used to be Alienware, but they got bought by Dell, so don't know about them anymore (though haven't bought a ready-made PC since 1993...)

I was certainly surprised by the quality hit Alienware took when they were absorbed into the dell "hive"... I'm not sure I've seen an Aurora, etc., hit the top benchies for a while now. I guess what it boils down to is that if you're in the mood for mediocre performance for your hard-earned top dollar, I would HIGHLY recommend going Dell/Alienware and Vista. Preferably Vista Basic just so you get even more mediocrity for your buck...

Available on most HP too !!!

Honestly, if you want a machine that doesnt crash, no virus, no spyware and you won't have to deal with a lot of crap,,, apple if you are going to buy an already made box. But for me, I build my own PC's thats the only way to get quality parts and you won't have to worry about all the crap you will have to uninstall once you get the box.

Yes, I know there are not many apple fans out there, but I tell you what. They are a solid machine. The only issues are these: no gaming on the box and some of the software you may want will not work.

If you use your computer for a multimedia box such as I do, movies and music, ripping and burning DVD's, surfing the net...... spend the money and get an apple. You can also get MS Office for the machine if you wish, but open office works just fine and its free.

As for Vista, I am in the middle of a massive upgrade at work, I'm one of the I.T guys. It has become a real pain in the behind. Upgrading all the machines video cards, memory just for starters. Present versions of some software apps will not work properly because MS refuses to release the info. Flash doesn't work, Adobe products in general are having an issue, no Citrix VPN, the VPN clients won't work. And this is just the beginning. Is it worth the upgrade ? You be the judge. In time the drivers will be out for the fixes, yes, but having to spend money for video and memory upgrades are part of the deal it seems.

I don't care what MS says this is what you must have: at least 1 gig of memory. I would suggest 1.5 gig. Video card memory, you had better have a 512mb at a min.

We are having some machine blue screen on the Enterprise version with only 256mb.

Personally on my home PC I only have 256mb and its peggin it out to the max. Good luck to all thats going to upgrade to Vista.

Not many Apple fans? It always seems the opposite!

"Video card memory, you had better have a 512mb at a min."

I disagree. Aero glass runs flawlessly on 128mb on my computer with a 1920x1200 and a 1440x900 screen, and dozens of windows open.

Aero glass will run on a 64mb FX5200 card, and run relatively well, in my experience.

I agree that you should absolutely have 1gb of memory, though.

"We are having some machine blue screen on the Enterprise version with only 256mb."

A lack of memory will _never_ make a machine blue screen. Seriously. You're an IT guy and you think that a lack of video memory will make a machine bsod? More likely, it's bad hardware or shitty drivers. Since Vista pushes a lot of the video drivers out of kernel space, I'm more inclined to say its the former, rather than the latter. Most video card errors will no longer BSOD the system. Instead, the display system will go down for a moment, your screen will flicker for about 2 seconds, and you'll get a friendly balloon message informing you that the driver crashed, and had to be restarted.

Now! Getting Vista to work properly with wired 802.1x. _That_ is a bitch, and is still haunting me after weeks of trying to get it to work properly.

Can you guys ever stop complaining about the Comcast Motorola DVR? No one ever said you have to use it.

As for Vista, I am in the middle of a massive upgrade at work, I'm one of the I.T guys. It has become a real pain in the behind. Upgrading all the machines video cards, memory just for starters. Present versions of some software apps will not work properly because MS refuses to release the info.

Honestly, what company is dumb enough to upgrade to Vista right now? Are they insane?

As far as ordering pre-made PCs I'd suggest looking at the reviews on hardocp.com. They anonymously order PCs and cover more in their reviews than I would even think of. Good stuff.

Dell makes decent boxes FOR THE PRICE. I have been building my own boxes since 1986 or so. I still build my own boxes sometimes because I enjoy it, but I have several Dells too. Dell makes capable systems at a good price. The best thing to do if you want to save some cash is to buy a Dell. Take the free monitor and that cheap copy of Vista. Buy your own memory, hard drive and video cards to upgrade it yourself. Then wipe it and reinstall the OS without all of their crap.

If you're an "overclocker" who expects a Dell motherboard to handle a CPU running at ten times the rated clock speed, or you're one of those ten year olds who like your PC to look like an episode of "Pimp My Ride", then my advice won't be of any value. You must be the same people who think stickers add horsepower to your Dodge Neons... Good luck with that. For those I just offended... I welcome the flood of error laden replies. God bless the public school system.