Features

Imagine upgrading your PC so that it ran slower and was no longer able to do what it used to. Some upgrade, eh? Yet many people claim to have had just such an experience when upgrading from Windows 98 or XP to Vista. So what exactly is the problem? Would Microsoft really release a less capable successor to the venerable Windows XP?

We've examined closely the most common problems that you're likely to face if (or, let's be honest, when) you make the move to Windows Vista. We'll show you how to predict what will happen when your PC meets Vista, and how to reduce the chances that there'll be serious problems.

It's not all troubleshooting, though. There are some good reasons to upgrade, and we'll explain exactly why Vista is more stable and secure than previous versions of Windows.

Hardware capability

Vista needs a more powerful PC than you could get away with comfortably to run Windows XP. For a start, it requires a minimum of 512MB RAM; any less and it will simply refuse to install. However, if you want a fully usable PC you'll need at least 1GB RAM. Fortunately, memory is relatively cheap at the moment, so it may not be too painful if you need to upgrade. Consult your PC's manual.

Even with adequate memory, you may still be disappointed if you want to use the shiny new graphical interface. A moderately posh graphics card is the price you have to pay to gain access to semi-transparent windows and a clever new way of switching between applications. Even some of the latest laptop PCs can't cope with Aero, Vista's tarted-up appearance, which won't

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be available as an option unless you have a graphics card that's compatible with DirectX 9 and has at least 128MB of its own memory. PCs that use shared memory for graphics will get the plainer, non-Aero interface, more like XP.

Software drivers

Sadly, it's not enough to have the right hardware. To have a trouble-free Vista experience you'll also need Vista-compatible drivers - the bits of software that allow Windows to interact with specific hardware such as sound cards, printers, scanners and pretty much any other add-on.

Notable exceptions include USB flash drives, USB keyboards and USB mice (those that use the older PS/2 or serial ports are different), which are usually 'class compliant', meaning Windows automatically supports all devices of that type - as long as they don't have clever extra features that require drivers.

In most cases these driver programs are provided by the manufacturers of each piece of hardware. If you have a Samsung printer, for example, it's up to Samsung to write new drivers for Windows Vista. Until it does, you're stuck with, at best, a very limited printer capable of only a subset of its features. At worst, it simply won't work at all.

Microsoft provides some drivers directly, either including them with Windows Vista or making new ones available using the Windows Update system. This allows Microsoft's website to scan your computer for the type of hardware you have. It can then recommend that you download specific programs that will either enable the hardware or make it work better.

Sometimes things get more complicated, and hardware manufacturers pass the buck. For example, if you have a Samsung notebook PC that contains an Nvidia GeForce 440 Go graphics chipset, you'd normally expect Nvidia to provide the new graphics drivers. However, in this case Nvidia claims that the drivers have to come from Samsung, which hasn't yet provided them. The only way you can predict this situation is to try to download drivers from the manufacturers' websites before upgrading. If you discover a complication, you'll have to think twice about changing from Windows XP, at least until the situation is resolved.