Hey, I've been a Windows user since 3.1.1, and recently started using Win 7 64bit. Before 7 I had been using XP for six-ish years, and now, after using 7 for a month or so, I've come to realize that I love XP (compared to this one, at least), and I don't want to continue using Windows 7. If I want something pretty and glittery that thinks it knows better than me I'll buy a Mac, but alas, I don't. My question is: Should I go back to XP Pro (SP3) or not? If not, should I switch over to Vista, or a Linux even? The only reason why this is a question is because of my new computer, and whether XP works with all the new components. I'm running 920 i7 @ 3,8Ghz, HD 5870, 6GB's of 1600Mhz DDR3 (slightly oc'd as well, 6-7-7-16), 1,5TB HDD (SATA2) and a P6T Deluxe V2. Also, from what I've read DirecX 10 does not work on XP, which is a problem for me as I love gaming. Any known workaround for this? The reasons, in case anyone's interested, are numerous. First and foremost I'm not a big fan of the new look. Like I said, if I want something glittery I'll get a mac, and frankly my old Win XP was plenty pretty. My internet connection is also slow as ****, and I've tried every fix in the book. Nothing works. Then there's the fact that disabling auto arrange was removed - an idiotic decision by M$. And so on. As a side note, I cannot understand the way M$ ALWAYS finds a way to screw things up. It's unbelievable. Any regular Windows user could make better decisions than the smart guys at M$ offices. Thanks for help in advance!
Are you using the same PC which was running Windows XP? Just throwing some ideas at you, perhaps you are and you don't have sufficient resources to run it properly. To be honest, I don't see how your slow Internet connection can be caused by a different version of Windows. Most people actually really like Windows 7, including myself. I'd recommend you give it a chance and use for a while as it is a very good OS. Learn to tweak some settings/services/start-up programs and have the OS behave the way you want it to. If you miss XP so much, run it in a VM environment using VirtualBox or something similar. If you are still not satisfied then go back to XP. If you bought a PC with Windows 7 on it, go to the manufacturer's website and make sure it is Windows XP compatible before you format your HDD. Hope this helps.
Hi and thanks for the reply, I'm not using the same computer to run Win 7, and as you'll find out from my original message my hardware should be more than enough to run Win 7 smoothly. I have some-20 years (or so) worth of experience with computers, so I do know a tweak or two. Why it's slow is something I can't figure out, but I do know it is slower, mostly evident from some specific websites (youtube is nearly un-usable, for example), and download speeds. Hell, when I first installed it took me about three days to get the connection to stay up for more than five minutes at a time - That's some headache-less performance as one has come to expect from M$. I'm guessing it's because of the new 'security features' within Win 7 and I have turned most of them off and am relying solely on NOD32 & Ad-aware (well they kept my computer perfectly clean for six years in XP, at least...), but it doesn't seem to boost the performance all that much. I have no doubts that Win 7 is a great OS, but the thing that XP has over it is like 6-7 years of performance tweaks and third party tweaks, and thus it runs like a dream compared to 7. Maybe in a few years Win 7 will be a challenger, but for now.. Not so much. Not for me, at least. And well, the fact that M$ decided to not add the simple 'Turn off Auto-arrange' option is almost enough for me to switch. IF XP works with my new comp and IF I can get the newest DirectX's to work. Can I?
Just make an image backup of your win 7 and save it, next go ahead and install windows xp sp3. It should work as good if not better then win7. Windows xp is still the better OS, you won't have any regrets going back to it. I also couldn't get use to windows 7, it's just to different and not well organized. Most programs/software is still being made for XP, only some of the latest games might not run on XP because of the DX9.
Yeah that's the biggest problem for me :/ The thing I looked forward to most is playing everything my old comp couldn't run. Something I haven't been messing around with in the past is two OS'. How about I make two 50gb partitions, one with with Windows 7, for gaming purposes, and one with XP SP3, for everything else? But does XP support all 6GB's of RAM, for example? One very relevant questions since I use Photoshop a lot. And thanks for the suggestion
Unless you use a 64-bit flavor of XP you will only be able to use 3GB of RAM. Also, you can dual boot to both like you said earlier... that is probably your best bet but be sure to check your motherboard's manufacturer website for XP drivers. Good luck!
I plan on using the 64 bit version, or at least trying it (in case I still experience similar problems with some applications I'll probably install 32bit XP as my second OS). Using two OS' is something new for me, just some quick newbie questions: Let's assume I have Win 7 & XP SP3 installed on the same HDD, but on different partitions. Do all applications I have installed thus far on Win 7 (I've installed most things on partition D, Win 7 is on C) work on XP, or do I have to install everything I plan on using on XP again (things like Photoshop, NOD32, Irc client...)? Does dual OS' hinder with performance? Do I have to boot the whole computer every time I want to change the OS? And, most importantly, is there any way for me to screw this up? Installing, formatting and making new partitions comes from the back bone but like I said dual operating systems is a new thing for me and well.. you can never be too cautious with these things Big thanks for the help, I'll start the preparations tomorrow or later tonight, after Czech beats Finland.
Hello again, and sorry for the double post My main and only HDD (I've got two more but they are usb HDD's) is a 1,5TB one. I currently have a 50GB C partition, with Win 7 installed in it, 500GB D partition for games & software, and the rest of the space is E partition for music and personal files (yes, I've got quite a few personal files ). Using the Disk Management of Win 7 I took 60GB's out of the E partition, and I planned on installing Win XP on it. But, when I try formatting that 60GB of allocated space into a new partition, B, it gives me a warning message: From what I can figure out this means I wont be able to install XP on this partition, or this HDD for that matter, if I go ahead with this. Is that what it means, and if so then how come? And what do I need to do in order to have two operating systems on the same HDD? I've read several guides/articles regarding the issue, but I'm still baffled. All help appreciated, I'd really like to get XP working with Win 7 so I can get some work done (Things that used to work with XP flawlessly are hiccuping with 7 and I can't seem to resolve all of the issues).
Some of the latest motherboards have the virtual mode capability in them. That is something that windows seven can use to run windows xp. You might want to look into that that before you dual boot. http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/8247-windows-xp-mode-install-setup.html If you need to partition your drive it's best to use software that is dedicated for that type of use. I used easus free version with good results. http://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=264942
Hey and thanks for that one, never knew such a thing existed (god I feel like that 60 year old that can't install a damn digibox without the help from a 20 year old..) Anyways, just started the download, and will try the install once it's done (the inspection tool said it should work on my comp). Will edit in results later. Once more thanks! [Edit] Well I installed the virtual machine, and while it does fix some very minor things it doesn't really fix what I need fixed, unfortunately :/ Thanks for the suggestion anyways. So it seems dual booting is the only chance now. Bleh...
