Scott Tiberius Albig
February 2007
517-442-7209

Having only been a few weeks since the release of Windows Vista, the new operating system from Microsoft, there has been almost a tangible feeling of curiosity and apprehension from people confronted with it. Many questions regarding Vista surround it, such as:  What is Vista? Why is it so much better than XP? Can my computer run it?
Vista is the culmination of one of the most intensive projects in recent programming history. Starting from the ground up, and built on the premise that security is key in the minds of all users, it took five years of painstaking coding and beta testing to give the Personal Computer market the most advanced and accessible Operating System to date.  There have been hundreds of upgrades in programs, dozens of new tools and applications and a platform that will allow it to grow and adapt far easier to changing technology than XP ever could.
Everyone is familiar with the ill effects of mal-ware and viruses, the slowing of your computer and the never ending pop-ups, to name a few. Vista has incorporated not only new technologies (like BitLocker drive encryption) but many new programs such as the User Account Control (which is basically a new way to lock down on the users of your system, and provide stricter access guidelines) and a new variation of Windows Defender, that will alert the user to any and all malicious programs that try to run in the background, and stop automatic run programs until permission is granted. Remember, near everything about Vista has been optimized for security; this will eliminate a lot of trips to your local computer technician for costly repairs.
Security is not the only area where vast advancement has been made, though. Usability in general has been streamlined.  The new graphical interface called Aero Glass has made a great leap from all contemporary interfaces and has become almost science fiction-esque in appearance, although, some would say that it has been ripped off from Apple the jury is still out on that one. Translucent task panes, 3D transitions, a sidebar with gadgets (small useful applications that watch the weather, stock quotes, sports scores, etc) and a totally new way to view files and folders with live thumbnails and windows animations have made it more interesting, but also easier to find and interact with what you were looking for. Also, windows search has been integrated into all files and folders, making a search near instantaneous for any file that is stored on your system.
Finally, no cursory glance at Vista would be complete without an introduction to the networking components of this OS. First off, IPv6, to all the networking students, this will make you very happy, and I think you know why In the past, it has been often difficult, to say the least, to network Windows machines, but Vista has totally revamped that section of code. The new Windows Firewall features bi-directional filtering and advanced packet filter rules. A new graphical representation tool for network set-up makes it easier to find the cause of a disruption, and the Mobility task pane makes setting up wireless networks far simpler, establishing connections on the fly, so as you move from one wireless network to the next it automatically connects with minimal disruption. Further, preferences can be set for internet connection based on location or a myriad of other factors.
But it comes at a price, the OS can be run on a relatively new system, last year or so, but many of the services and Aero Glass interface will have to be shut off. For best performance of your system, Windows recommends for Vista Capable (this means that it will run on a limited scale) a 1.0 GHz processor, 512 MB of RAM, 15 GB of free space on your hard drive, DVD-Drive and at least 128 MB on your integrated video (on motherboard).  For Vista Premium Ready, 2.0 GHz processor, 1 GB of RAM, 15 GB free space on the hard drive, but with 40+ GB more left open after the installation, DVD-Drive, and a dedicated video card with at least 128 MB of Video memory, and pixel shader 2.0 or better, and DirectX 9 capability.
This barely scratches the surface of what Vista has to offer, so if you would like to learn more please check out the Microsoft Website, and if you think your system can handle Vista, try downloading the Vista Upgrade Advisor, it will tell you exactly what needs to be upgraded in order to run Vista.
