I have to buy a home PC just when a whole new platform is on the horizon. Should I wait until January and jump in right at the opening wave of Vista? Tracy Marks
Vista is prettier, easier to use and more secure, but Windows XP is going to be around for a long time, and Microsoft plans to make many of Vista's features available for XP as well. I'd buy now rather than wait 10 months. If you do, then consider getting a PC that is capable of exploiting all Vista's features, rather than running it in an "XP comparable" mode. Unfortunately, Microsoft has not released the specifications yet, but further information will be available at the end of this month following discussions with PC manufacturers at the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHEC) in Seattle. There should also be "Vista ready" and "Vista capable" stickers to attach to current PCs.
At the moment, there is some information on Microsoft's TechNet site under Windows Vista Capable PC Hardware Guidelines. This suggests a recent processor, at least 512MB of memory (1GB is better), and a graphics card that supports DirectX 9 and the WDDM driver model. (Actually, you want DirectX 10, but that isn't out yet.) It must also have enough graphics memory, which depends on your screen size: 64MB for a 1280 x 1024 pixel screen, 128MB for 1920 x 1200 and so on, with at least 32 bits per pixel. Gamers will want 256MB. Vista includes an XP-compatible program called the System Assessment Tool (WinSAT.exe), which evaluates a PC to see if it meets the various requirements.
The new graphics system, developed under the codename Avalon, is needed to run the new 3D interface, Aero Glass. You can get a good idea whether you will like that by watching the 10-minute video presentation at Microsoft's 10 website (http://on10.net/TheShow/2601). You can download the video as a 35MB file.
If seduced by Vista, you could buy a cheap PC now and replace it with something better in 18-24 months, when any teething troubles have been sorted out.
