jmorg said:
I'm having a lot of problems with Vista and 'Failed to start' issues
requiring automatic recovery over and over. I've worked directly with
Microsoft tech help for months reconfiguring, uninstalling, and
reinstalling software without any permenent results (the problem has been
going on for a year). We all agree that it is an unknown software
conflict. I love the look and feel of Vista, but I need the solid
reliability of XP. I'm considering purchasing a new laptop with XP Pro
start up OS and a Vista Business second OS. This sounds like the best of
both worlds. I would like some advice about how this works. Does it
require excessive memory? Can both systems be up at once? What happens
when Microsoft abandons XP to support vista and 7? Where can a novice
research this set up? Love Vista, can't deal with the constant failures.
Help please.
Without knowing anything about your computer, its hardware and software, and
what you've already done I can't give you specific advice about your
current machine. With these caveats, I'd definitely do some hardware
troubleshooting before continuing with software solutions. Here are some
suggestions. Obviously if you've already done them then just ignore those
suggestions!
1. Restore your computer to factory condition if you have that sort of
computer (OEM - Dell, HP, Sony, etc.). Run for a while without installing
anything the OEM didn't preinstall*. If problems continue with the machine
under these conditions, return the machine to the OEM for replacement. It
should work "out of the box".
*I would however uninstall Norton or McAfee if it came preinstalled and use
the free Avast for now.
2. If you don't have an OEM machine with a factory restore process, do a
clean install of Vista. Make sure you install all current drivers. Get
drivers from the OEM's website or from the various mftrs.' websites and not
Windows Update. Don't install any third-party software except an antivirus
like Avast Free right now. If you are still getting issues, then probably
this is hardware and not software unless you are trying to install Vista on
a machine whose hardware won't natively support this OS. You can also test
whether something is a hardware or software issue by running off a Linux
Live CD like Knoppix, but this won't help you determine if some program you
are running in Vista is the culprit.
Items #1 and 2 are meant to determine if:
a. You have hardware issues; and/or
b. If you have specialized software that is incompatible with Vista and that
is what is causing your problems.
While Vista isn't my favorite operating system, a healthy Vista installed on
sound hardware is completely solid. All my clients' machines run perfectly,
as do my own Vista machines.
3. Unless you are running a special third-party program, a new laptop
running Vista (with at least 2GB of RAM) should work well. If you must run
a special third-party program for your business that is known to not work
with Vista, then you might want to solve your issues by virtual computing.
Use virtualization software like Microsoft's Virtual PC (free) or VMware
Workstation (not free but IMO better than VPC) and create a virtual machine
("vm") running the OS which supports your special software. If this is your
situation, you must check with the special software's tech support to make
sure it will work in a vm. Most business software will; 3D applications may
not.
You can have a host OS of Vista and a guest OS of XP to run your special
software. You need a fast machine with a fair amount of RAM to do this
successfully and you must have licensed copies of both Microsoft operating
systems. I wouldn't run Vista in a vm on a machine with less than 3GB of
RAM.
I don't know whether a novice can deal with this. You are the only one who
knows your capabilities. We all have our areas of expertise. If you feel
you need outside help, then consult a competent local computer tech. If you
go this route, don't use a BigComputerStore/GeekSquad type of place.
Malke
