So if not Vista what can I do?

If you have been following this blog from the beginning you understand my loathing for the Vista operating system. Buy hey it's not just me. Almost every independent (read not in Microsoft's pocket) PC journalist has called it a bloated disaster. My favorite technology pundit John Dvorak called the Vista project a "botch". The king of PC alliteration, Sascha Segan called Vista a "bulging bag of bloatware" Well you know that story. What you may not know is what are your choices in 2008?

Windows XP will be around, at least until June 2008. I question whether Microsoft will pull the plug on XP then, it will almost be like corporate Hari Kari. XP, though superior to Vista in so many ways, is not a real answer. It picks up viruses and spyware like black velvet pants in a pet shop picks up hair. It will run the software you have and it will run the hardware you have. If you never went to the Internet, it would be a fine operating system. Unfortunately we all go to the Internet.

Mac's are all the rage and we have had a Mac Mini for about 3 years. No complaints, no slowdowns, almost no issues. It doesn't run alot of software and it is more expensive then almost any PC on a comparison basis. You can come to the PCSS training center to take a peak or go to the Covington Library and take a spin on their fabulous iMac. They both have Microsoft Office 2004{Word, Excel, Powerpoint} (compatible with all Office versions but Office 2007). It doesn't have Access or Outlook. It won't work with all hardware and I recommend adding Firefox for Mac as your Internet Browser. The Safari browser that comes with Macs is just OK in my opinion. Firefox is a much more robust and feature laden browser. Macs also run iTunes and iPods better.

The last and cheapest alternative is to go to Linix. We will be setting up a PC at our Training Center that will run the free Ubuntu version of Linix. It comes with Office compatible Word Processor, spreadsheet, and presentation programs. It also has Firefox as a browser and several other programs to do calendars, email, music, burning CDs/DVDs and other necessary PC tasks. It doesn't run Quickbooks, iTunes or Peachtree. It may not run your printer. It is different and takes some time to get used to. But if you are a wee bit tight, this is the operating system for you, cuz its free.

It really depends on what you do with your PC. Many home users can changed to Macs or Linix with little problem. Others are stuck at the Microsoft trough and will have to tough it out.

Happy New Year!