FreeComputerConsultant.com said:
So, you don't think years of installing and uninstalling misbehaved
software, not to mention effects of malware, leaves behind garbage -
in the registry, on the drive, etc., that is best done without by way
of a clean install?
No, only rarely is any of that an issue. Again, because Windows XP replaces
almost everything.
However, since you mention malware, I'll add one other point--that the time
when an upgrade is least likely to work successfully is when you have a
problem-ridden system. Those people who contemplate doing an upgrade as a
means of solving problems (and there are unfortunately many) are likely to
find that the upgrade exacerbates the problems rather than solving them.
Certainly you know what happens to the size of the registry over the
course of a couple of years; and that a larger registry loads more
slowly? And that an upgrade doesn't fix that, but a clean install
does?
Come on, Ken.
I'd love to hear the other MVP's chime in. But google it and you'll
find I'm far from alone on this one.
I never suggested that you were alone. It's actually a common viewpoint.
It's one that I used to have myself, back in the days of Windows 9x, when it
was largely correct. But things have changed with Windows XP, and those many
people who still believe it just don't realize how significantly they have
changed.
And by the way, how many people believe something is completely irrelevant
to whether it's true or not. As a single Windows-related example, I'll point
out that that the great majority of Windows XP users mistakenly believe that
it's not possible to do a clean installation with an Upgrade version of
Windows XP.
And BTW, as long as it's a free country (maybe not much longer) I can
prefer what I want, even though it's "essentially" the same as
something else, in your opinion.
You are absolutely correct. You may prefer whatever you want, and you may
even recommend to others what you prefer and believe, on any subject. I have
no quarrel with that; you are certainly free to express your opinions. Each
of us (you, I, and anyone else here with an opinion) may present different
opinions and recommendations. Others may assess each of our opinions and
choose who to believe.
However, just as you are free to advise and recommend, others are too. So
don't be surprised, when you recommend something that I (or anyone else)
disagree with, that a contrary opinion is expressed.
And for the record, this is not a free country, or any country at all. This
is an *international* newsgroup, where people who live in *many* different
countries participate.
