N
Norman Diamond
We've seen a few of the ways in which Vista can be Excellent at mathematical
computations even when Excel isn't installed. Here are a few more.
Since a 30GB partition isn't big enough for the 64-bit version of Vista to
install SP1 after installing Vista, I thought I would prepare myself this
time. I created a few 64GB partitions. And then I thought I'd install
Vista into one of them. Silly me. I should have known that 64GB == 0GB.
Oh wow, Microsoft already knows.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/939727/en-us
While waiting to see if Microsoft will deliver the hotfixes, I tried a
simpler workaround. I deleted the 64GB partitions and created some 63GB
partitions. Vista installed into one of them and I used it a bit.
Then, silly me, I thought that lightning might strike twice in the same
location. I tried to install Vista into another of those 63GB partitions.
(I have an MSDN subscription and I'm not planning to keep any of these
installations longer than 30 days. Or maybe not longer than 120 days, but
probably 30. That is, if I find a computer that can compute comparisons
when Vista's running...)
Well, Vista needs at least 440MB of free space on any partition for
temporary files.
http://www.geocities.jp/hitotsubishi/more_vista_excellence/vista_diskmanager_0.png
I only had 7GB of free space on one partition, 50GB of free space on another
partition, 63GB of free space on another partition, and 63GB of free space
on another partition. Since all of these numbers are smaller than 440MB, I
tried to think of what to do. The 8GB partition with 7GB free is the Vista
system drive which contains the bootmgr and boot directory (and formerly
would have contained ntldr etc.). The 63GB partition with 50GB of free
space is the Vista boot drive which contains the Vista system files (kernel,
system32 because 32 == 64, etc.). So I can't shrink those two. Let's try
shrinking one of the 63GB partitions which had 63GB of free space, and maybe
we can make it small enough so that it will be bigger than 440MB. Well,
Vista let me shrink it to 31.5GB, once. The result was still smaller than
440MB so I still couldn't do another Vista installation.
I tried to shrink it again. Nope. 31.5GB == 0GB. Can't be shrunk any
further.
http://www.geocities.jp/hitotsubishi/more_vista_excellence/vista_diskmanager_1.png
http://www.geocities.jp/hitotsubishi/more_vista_excellence/vista_diskmanager_2.png
Hmm, let's do something weird, let's double check the boot partition
(containing the system files).
http://www.geocities.jp/hitotsubishi/more_vista_excellence/vista_diskmanager_3.png
Yup. Free spaces of 7GB, 50GB, 63GB, and 31.5GB are all less than the 440MB
that Vista's installer needs for temporary files.
Oh wait. Microsoft knows about the space for temporary files too.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928232/en-us
It's true! The active partition is no longer the little 8GB partition that
I had originally set active. Vista's installer changed the active partition
to be the Dell recovery partition. Now I wonder how this thing even booted
its single existing installation of Vista. Anyway, I used Disk Manager to
change the active partition back to the system partition (the one with the
boot files). It worked. What a way to larn Vista some 'rithmetic.
Lightning did strike twice.
Well, time's up for math class, so let's move on. Time to do linguistics.
http://www.geocities.jp/hitotsubishi/more_vista_excellence/vista_hidden_menu.png
Well of course. If I wrote a program as Excellent as Vista, I'd want to
hide my menus too.
computations even when Excel isn't installed. Here are a few more.
Since a 30GB partition isn't big enough for the 64-bit version of Vista to
install SP1 after installing Vista, I thought I would prepare myself this
time. I created a few 64GB partitions. And then I thought I'd install
Vista into one of them. Silly me. I should have known that 64GB == 0GB.
Oh wow, Microsoft already knows.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/939727/en-us
While waiting to see if Microsoft will deliver the hotfixes, I tried a
simpler workaround. I deleted the 64GB partitions and created some 63GB
partitions. Vista installed into one of them and I used it a bit.
Then, silly me, I thought that lightning might strike twice in the same
location. I tried to install Vista into another of those 63GB partitions.
(I have an MSDN subscription and I'm not planning to keep any of these
installations longer than 30 days. Or maybe not longer than 120 days, but
probably 30. That is, if I find a computer that can compute comparisons
when Vista's running...)
Well, Vista needs at least 440MB of free space on any partition for
temporary files.
http://www.geocities.jp/hitotsubishi/more_vista_excellence/vista_diskmanager_0.png
I only had 7GB of free space on one partition, 50GB of free space on another
partition, 63GB of free space on another partition, and 63GB of free space
on another partition. Since all of these numbers are smaller than 440MB, I
tried to think of what to do. The 8GB partition with 7GB free is the Vista
system drive which contains the bootmgr and boot directory (and formerly
would have contained ntldr etc.). The 63GB partition with 50GB of free
space is the Vista boot drive which contains the Vista system files (kernel,
system32 because 32 == 64, etc.). So I can't shrink those two. Let's try
shrinking one of the 63GB partitions which had 63GB of free space, and maybe
we can make it small enough so that it will be bigger than 440MB. Well,
Vista let me shrink it to 31.5GB, once. The result was still smaller than
440MB so I still couldn't do another Vista installation.
I tried to shrink it again. Nope. 31.5GB == 0GB. Can't be shrunk any
further.
http://www.geocities.jp/hitotsubishi/more_vista_excellence/vista_diskmanager_1.png
http://www.geocities.jp/hitotsubishi/more_vista_excellence/vista_diskmanager_2.png
Hmm, let's do something weird, let's double check the boot partition
(containing the system files).
http://www.geocities.jp/hitotsubishi/more_vista_excellence/vista_diskmanager_3.png
Yup. Free spaces of 7GB, 50GB, 63GB, and 31.5GB are all less than the 440MB
that Vista's installer needs for temporary files.
Oh wait. Microsoft knows about the space for temporary files too.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928232/en-us
It's true! The active partition is no longer the little 8GB partition that
I had originally set active. Vista's installer changed the active partition
to be the Dell recovery partition. Now I wonder how this thing even booted
its single existing installation of Vista. Anyway, I used Disk Manager to
change the active partition back to the system partition (the one with the
boot files). It worked. What a way to larn Vista some 'rithmetic.
Lightning did strike twice.
Well, time's up for math class, so let's move on. Time to do linguistics.
http://www.geocities.jp/hitotsubishi/more_vista_excellence/vista_hidden_menu.png
Well of course. If I wrote a program as Excellent as Vista, I'd want to
hide my menus too.