What is Windows Vista?
Windows Vista is the successor to 
Windows XP and is introducing a slew of new features some of the more notable are Windows Aero, Windows Sidebar and the new Windows Shell structure.
Windows Vista is based on the codebase of Windows Server 2003 and is a new major version (6.0) of the NT systems.
Windows XP and is introducing a slew of new features some of the more notable are Windows Aero, Windows Sidebar and the new Windows Shell structure. Windows Vista is based on the codebase of Windows Server 2003 and is a new major version (6.0) of the NT systems.
Discontinued
Mainstream support ended on 10 April 2012. Extended support ended on 11 April 2017.
Recent user activities on Windows Vista
- Xure added Windows Vista as alternative(s) to Windows 7
- backuptabletinfo added Windows Vista as alternative(s) to Alpine Linux
- Guest suggestion to remove {0} was denied
Quick summary:
OS is not as bad as people say it is. Speed is OK, it's very usable, and it's simply Windows. It is though slower than XP in some areas, and will slow down (much like any other OS) once it gets clustered.
Pros:
More secure from those 2006 and older malware than XP
Working OS
Stable (at least with SP2)
DirectX 10 and 11
Large compatibility to Windows software, not too many incompatibilities
Looks WAY nicer than XP
Cons:
Driver compatibility is not great with 2006 or older hardware/devices
Slightly slower than XP (not too notable)
Slows down dramatically once clustered
Vista after a couple of service packs is definitely better then XP. But i don't really see any reason not to spend some money on Windows 7 that i think is pretty awesome.
Reply written over 10 years ago
Really fast and Virtualbox friendly useful for running Windows Programs on Linux through Virtualbox. Just get the .NET Framework 4.0 or above and you are good to go! Oh and a web browser like Opera or Firefox because internet explorer is annoying to use.
Does a one-star rating even require an explanation for this commercial disaster?
it is failure windows, it is heavy and bloated
Although Windows Vista is not as terrible as some make it out to be, it still uses RAM inefficiently (hence the "slowness"), and is not worth any compatibility that might come with it... just use Windows XP Mode for Win7.
Use Windows 7. That is the best advice I can give... Unless you want to use a Linux distro.
It would be a good alternative to try Windows Vista SP2 if support does not end this year. The version is lighter than Windows 7 and booting is faster.
Reply written about 4 years ago
Vista is horrible. the only decent features, start menu search and aero, have been in various linux distros for years. it slows down your coumpter, installs spyware, and pesters you with a half-baked permission control that prevents you from installing software and burning a cd, but not destroying your hard drive with incorrect partitioning. get windows 7 or kubuntu if you want a nice ui.
I don't see why everyone hates it. It's pretty fast on my laptop and has a load of new useful features over XP like search and the Aero feature is very good.