I installed SP3 successfully but after the reboot my pc wouldn't get past the boot screen, it would shut down and restart again. It repeated that for about 30 times. I tried to go into safe mode and managed to get to the desktop only for it to shut down again back to the boot up phase. I have had NO problems with SP2, nor vista. I, luckily, have a second drive with my back up on it and was successfully able to restore my drive and keep all of my data. Any opinions on why this happened or if anyone else experienced that, I would defininately like to read about them.

HP Media Center PC m7470n
AMD 64x2 Dual Core
300 GB Sata Drive

Installed SP3, no problems thus far *crosses fingers*.

Yeah, MS better not make this avaialable via Automatic Update.
First Service Pack EVER to hang and not complete for me.
Machine is currently being rolled back to SP2.
Whew, am I glad I'm using Vista Ultimate for my main work machine ;-)

ok here is an off-topic question which is nothing new to Bn and I mean this in all sincerity. I have been using FF but want to transfer my bookmarks to Opera and IE and (it's probably something simple and I feel stupid) I have not figured out how to do this.

So b****-slapped if you want but at least help out then:)

Opera:
http://www.opera.com/sup...als/opera/using/hotlist/

IE:
http://kb.iu.edu/data/ahau.html

By the way, I did a google search for:
opera import bookmarks
ie import bookmarks

Amazing this intarnat thing!

Thanks but no help. I'm sure it something simple and I'll figure it out but thanks again.

Have a nice day:)

LOL. File import too hard, or something not work right? I love people that ask for tech support and give spurious amount of detail.

http://bookmarkbridge.sourceforge.net/

Should do what you're asking for.

I have to admit, I was a bit nervous after RC1 caused me to format and reinstall, and RC2 gave me 2 days of BSOD. But this one seemed to go flawlessly. It even cleared up issues with svchost.exe using 100% of resources and my networked HP Printer device monitor from not allowing my PC or Laptop to shut down.

Seems fine on my rigs, I've even slipstreamed it and used the SP3 CD and it installs fine, no more huge updates after installing, although IE7 and MP11 would have been nice.

(duplicate)

Well again I have now got major problems after yet another SP update. So much for the "first software in history to be bug free upon it's release." Yeah that's what the M$ tech rep actually said when I tried reporting the first couple dozen XP bugs shortly after it's original release.

Now after SP3, my anti-virus program will not load, my security program freezes the computer if I let it load, and my defrag program says that ntfs autocheck could not be found so it won't run the boot time defrag.

Basically my XP is fried, I will now have to reformat. Chalk up another one for M$.

Bitter at being called the most unsecure bug ridden software ever forced upon modern society they have deactivated everything that would have protected and sped up my computer. Besides reinstalling the things that are the cause of most security problems. Messenger, and Outlook Express. (At least they didn't force I.E. to be the default browser, that's the largest security hole in the world.)

Thanks for nothing M$.

And they want me to upgrade to the next generation of blotware. I don't think so!!!!! And look at that one. It is supposed to be the next generation "most secure software" ever released and it already has SP1.

I think it's time for another round of DOJ hearings, while I rummage around for my recovery cd. Yeah, toshiba wouldn't even provide a true os install disk. So I will have to spend the next couple of weeks uninstalling useless preinstalled software and tweaking and patching security leaks. That's of course besides reinstalling truly useful software like Wordperfect, Firefox and Avast. Guess I won't see the light of day for a while.

I wouldn't blame it on MS, I'd blame it on a misconfigured OS, Microsoft didn't install those third party apps.

I installed SP3 on an older machine and a newer laptop, all the normal tweaks one would apply to XP, both flawless installs.

"Bitter at being called the most unsecure bug ridden software ever forced upon modern society they have deactivated everything that would have protected and sped up my computer."

By deactivating your antivirus software it probably made your computer faster if anything.

My 1st couple of questions would be what security programs are you using. 2nd- I did noticed that when I 1st tried to download, I used FF and got an error message. When I switched to IE, the d/led and install went fine. If you are using Kaspersky or Outpost, I suspect this is where the problem is. I had used Kaspersky and I had noticed even before the d/l that it doesn't play nice with IE.
MY final point and then I am done (Cue applause sign) is that more often than not if there is a problem, it is because of driver conflict or a bad d/load or some change the user has made.

Everyone have a nice day a life and use whatever system you feel comfortable with:)

oh.. one final jab- I still think Fulton is a creep who intentionally skews the news.

Note to all:

Before installing *any* SP or major update:

Start - Run - msconfig - startup

Disable *everything* (Don't worry, you'll be able to re-enable it all)

Reboot.

Exit completely out of any 3rd party security programs you may be running (msconfig *should* have taken care of most of them, but some start as services).

Install SP or upgrade.

Restart.

Start - Run - msconfig - startup

Re-enable the start-up applications one by one, rebooting in between each. (If one fails, go into safe mode and remove it)

This will stop 90% of upgrade/SP install failures.

"It is supposed to be the next generation "most secure software" ever released and it already has SP1."

Yah and it improves upon and fixes various features. Who said that a SP was only for security reasons?

Rather cumbersome process and if people stop and think they have no need to do this silly approach.

*laughs*

and if people stop and think

Riiiight... That'll happen.

"People", dear tscar13, are complete imbeciles. Mentally retarded to the point they can not "think" about any particular subject for more than 13 seconds without being distracted by something shiny.

Laughing..Well we do agree on some things. Your approach is a good approach for someone that know a little about what they are doing. my fear is that if someone has messed up their system to the extent they need to go into msconfig then I would rather see them have someone that knows something about computers do that.

I do think that most of the problems tend to be driver conflicts plus ignorance. One of the interesting things that I have noticed over the years is that once highly rated security software like Kaspersky or Outpost now do not get very good reviews. Some would complain about "bloatware" and, to some degree, this is true but I think the problem lies in these security programs creating driver conflicts.

On most d/loads, they advise you to turn off your security and their is a reason which includes possibility of files being corrupted to driver conflicts.

So yes, if a person has a problem, your approach will work if that person has enough knowledge otherwise I think they will just make things worse.

I've lost track of how many security fixes Apple has had to release since their new OS has come out. Could someone enlighten me.

if someone has messed up their system to the extent they need to go into msconfig then I would rather see them have someone that knows something about computers do that.


I use msconfig or similar (more functional) alternatives very frequently. It's quite handy, actually.

I do think that most of the problems tend to be driver conflicts plus ignorance.

I would add to that AV software and other third-party, badly programmed apps running in the background, which my solution above would mostly take care of.

On most d/loads, they advise you to turn off your security and their is a reason which includes possibility of files being corrupted to driver conflicts.

The question is how many people actually follow that advice....

Dear All

I tried to install SP3 yesterday 29.04.08 but it failed displaying an error referring to the kernel using some third party software, I cannot describe it exactly now. Nothing obvious occurred then. I think that as a result of the failed installation this morning 30.04.08 when I turned on the computer all my settings were gone. The desktop looks as if I just fresh installed XP. I tried to restore it to two points before SP3 without success. Anyone can help? Where are all my settings? Thanks.

Yeah I tried that on my friends computer yesterday which I built from scratch with at "genuine" M$ XP home edition full setup disk, and SP3 gave the same error. I guess M$ recognises that it isn't a true OS but rather nothing more than 3rd party malware and bloatware.

Oh great, now you can keep this stone age OS for another 6 years. ^__^

Yup, we can.

Works fine for me.

/shrug

Not sure what all the whining and complaining is about.

Service pack - bah. Every new service pack seems to screw things up worse, and returns my previously smooth running system (minus the Microsoft bullcrap "enhancements") to crud again.

With all due respect, since many of us have installed it and had no problems, I would say the problem is with you and the crud is with you.

Have a nice evening:)

tscar even though I agree with you, it is a known fact what when any major "service pack" comes out, it can break some things. Usually, and hopefully not the more common items for the mass people, but I'm sure it broke something. Same goes for Mac, Linux and so on. It is called change, and that is why they test it so much (to minimize what it breaks). On that, I'll support SP3, but on two machines at work (same specs, different software), one did well, one blue screened. I'm not upset though, and I had a ghost image of it (6 minutes) before installing it.
(Update): Wednesday. Did a clean install on the PC and it works fine - like I thought it would. Must have been a driver issues (different version or something).

I tend to agree with you but when you are basically talking about a Sp which is basically all updates to date then there is less of an issue unless someone has uniquely configured their machine.
For example, I didn't have Messenger installed but Sp3 reinstalled it. No big deal- I just uninstalled it again.

The one machine that blue screen I suspect was "played" around with by the user-just a guess.

Keep in mind this really doesn't add a lot of new things just brings XP up to date on security and other options. If the machines had been kept up to date on this, then there would be no need to install SP3. I would not have installed it if I had known this because I keep my system up to date and even though I did install it and have configured my machine the way I want, nothing broke and no BSOD. I also have many different software on my system.

Now in a business setting, people tend to get carried away with what they add and this can create problems but is that SP3's fault or the user?

Added note- I have many very different types of software on my system- everything from ms products to open source to 3 different browsers. I have also changed some of the settings in MSCONFIG. Finally, since I like a clean desktop with no icons and a nice photo background and XP is a tad stingy on photos, I have over 300 photos in that folder. I also have USGS software on my system. No problem with install- everything worked fine and the adjusted settings in msconfig held. As I said, the only thing I had to do was uninstall Messenger.

I agree with you both.

Optimally, to figure out if a SP is real crap, simply install it on a fresh system. If the install goes well and there are no issues then the problems, mainstream or not, are obviously due to what resides on peoples machines.
For one, the SP is really no biggie - if you've kept your system up to date, it will I'd say, 99% go well I'd think.

Software is the culprit for breaking some of these service packs - old drivers too, but moreso software. There are many 'security' software packages that patch kernels and system files that don't tend to do well with any update install. Then there are people with pirated p2p/torrent downloaed copies that expect it to work.

Anyway, my installations went well. I did 2 upgrades, 1 VM and 1 computer in my home and the rest I did, 3 other VM installs were fresh ones. Not a single hiccup in 1. I thought for sure my home PC may be in trouble since it's the wifey's crowded machine - alas, went fine.

It really makes a big difference on a fresh install though - no more downloaded 100 updates after your fresh install of SP2, though you DO still have to get WMP11 and the frameworks.

Thanks for your oh so kind and thoughtful remarks, but you obviously don't know what you're talking about.

Anyone pushing this out at work :) Mainly a company with over 1000 PC's or just staying with SP2?

If install is centralized, I would suggest waiting for the official release and just make sure everyone's computer is up to date.

I've been testing on my own test fleet (VM's and hardware.) And no issues. Average install time is about 15 minutes on modern hardware to 40 on older.

We won't push it out.

By the time we'd get done with testing and such, we'll have moved to Vista.

I already installed it and I am sure most have. It works fine and I expected no magic bullet, it is what it is, nothing more than a upgrade. But I think a good upgrade. XP is good for another 5 years at least, do not let anyone fool you and by that time, another OS or two will be out. Why some are using win 98 yet and it works fine.. I have a friend in my home town that uses win 95 and it works fine. I have no idea what some of you expected as far as a upgrade is concerned.. Maybe a OS Miracle, from Microsoft? lol

As for their delay, all I can say is, it figures, that is good old Microsoft...

Installed the french language version of the Service Pack 3 without any hassle on french localised OS. Stuff DRMS, wont lose kip over that; shame no change in colour with progression bars on System Load.
Scotty on WinPatrol very pleased with new patrol items and Mamutu had a field day.
Did WGA update before starting SP3 install.

Kinda funny how you point out mmc 3.0, which has been available for two years now.

true.

I am always baffled by people expecting something magical in these SPs. Sp, by their very nature are all of the updates to date and maybe some additional features. So SP3, which I have installed and had no problem ( I guess that creep Fulton doesn't really know much) mainly re-installed all updates plus a few additional features just as I expected.

For example, it re-installed windows messenger and .net 3.0. Now I got rid of messenger.

My point is that SP3 is not going to be loaded with a bunch of new features and, to be honest, if you keep your system updated, there is no real need for it.

Finally, if you mess around with any system, you are going to run into problems. And if you "hacked uxtheme.dll (to allow for non-MS themes) was replaced." of course it is going to be replace. That isn't rocket science. I found none of the problem that BN sees and that, once again, says more about BN than MS.

So, everyone just relax and understand what SPs are for and you live another day.

Or I suppose you could buy that "bell bottoms" new Imac and have a nice piece of furniture for 1000 more than it's worth.

Have a nice day:)

Added note- Automatic updates is really a 2 step process. If you set to automatic updates then when an update is ready it is d/led but that's it. It takes the user to bring up the icon and choose either express or custom. I always choose custom because there will be things that I don't want. This same thing applies to Macs.

Only problem I had when i updated was that my hacked uxtheme.dll (to allow for non-MS themes) was replaced. Don't use existing uxtheme.dll patchers... they won't work, a new DLL hack is needed. Just google "XP SP3 uxtheme.dll" and you'll find it.

Strangely I couldn't replace it using the pending moves registry key, I had to boot into Linux and replace it by hand. Not sure what that was about.

Hey Scott Fulton,

I saw your screenshot from your Windows XP core 2 duo computer. Please get some more RAM for your computer. 512MB are you nuts? Especially since your motherboard undoubtedly takes DDR2 which is dirt cheap. Windows XP won't run optimally without at least 1 GB of RAM, you might as well just get 4 GB and never have to do it again (before you wind up buying a new system).

Cheers,
Christian

Did you ever come across this new technology called Virtual Machine? It's quite amazing really...

Made so much worse by the fact that they said:
BetaNews will be testing the integrity of the cabinet file against our virtual XP-based systems throughout the morning.

Heh. Comment of the day.

It's a VM. It doesn't need more RAM.

Hi Guys,

Sorry I missed the bit about the virtual machine. As far as have I ever heard of one, I've personally used on numerous occasions VMWare, Virtual PC, Bochs, DosBOX, Cygwin, and WINE. So yes, I've heard of them.

Cheers,
Christian Blackburn

Wine is not a virtual machine...

nor are all the kinks worked out yet on VM.
Have a nice day:)

Neither is Cygwin

Come on, give the guy a break... ;-)

That made no sense.

None.

http://stopgeek.com/wp-c...loads/2007/07/sense.jpg

Wait...I thought Wine was not an emulator. :p

I guess since his lord Pc says it it must be true. I stand corrected and beg his lord's forgiveness:)

Did you ever stop and think your arrogant attitude makes you a less effective advocate of anything. My sense is that just as your an a** here ,you are also an a**in your real life. Arrogance here is a reflection of real life. At least I have the humility to admit when I am wrong.

The sad thing is your a mirror fanboy of the people you have put down and you could add more constructiveness to the discussions by being civil and not arrogant and a Know-it-all. Isn't that the problem with the people on the opposite side of the fence that you torch?

Wow.

It was a joke. Lighten up, bud.

Did you ever stop and think your arrogant attitude makes you a less effective advocate of anything.

...now ask me if I care.

My sense is that just as your an a** here ,you are also an a**in your real life.

Only to close friends IRL. Those who can take it and give it, anyway.

Arrogance here is a reflection of real life. At least I have the humility to admit when I am wrong.

I've done that. Even on this site. Several times, in fact.

The sad thing is your a mirror fanboy of the people you have put down

By definition, the object of a fanboy's attentions can do no wrong. Who am I a fanboy of? MSFT? They've screwed up more times than I can count. (WHS file errors, Vista upgrade SKU, etc..) Apple? I've both defended (the iPhone rebate) and crucified them.

Fanboy's don't admit when the object of their attention screws up. I admit it when MSFT screws up, I just don't happen to agree that every time they do it's the "last nail in the coffin" or "the worlds going to end".

Isn't that the problem with the people on the opposite side of the fence that you torch?

Not at all. They claim to know, but can never back any of their claims up. Ever. I can and do.

I even add a little humor. I'd say I'm sorry you don't get the humor... ...but I'm not. :)

Since we're discussing the problems of others...*your* problem is that you take everything posted concerning you that could possibly be construed negative manner (no matter how much of a stretch) as a personal insult. Some advice? *NOTHING* on the internet is personal by it's very nature of being anonymous. Nothing. Don't take it as such. Ever. Laugh it off, or, if it suits you, give it right back.

If you mean things as a joke then indicate that. As far as you admitting you have been wrong I have never seen that.

But I will take it as a joke. As far as insults..sometimes i deserve them sometimes I don't just like everyone else but it's not a stretch to see an insult. for example, If I insult someone I usually end by saying have a nice day.

The tendency on this site is for some people to act in an arrogant manner (I include myself in that) and that doesn't help expand all of our understanding of the world. Whether online or in real life, I think we can judge people by how they act. The anonymous nature of the net is like a drunk- it removes inhibitions and people attack and demean (and I am just as guilty) so we come back to how do we make this site and other interactive sites more civil and therefore more informative to everyone. That is why I want some sort of legal framework on the net that places the same restraints in public discourse on anonymous discourse here and elsewhere. Yes, I am just as guilty as others and can learn from my own and others mistakes.

I would ask you if you care what people think of you in your life and I think if you are honest you would answer yes. Where we may disagree is that I would like to see both from everyone and myself more of that same type of caring on the net. I am not arrogant enough to know what the answer is but one needs to be found. So to all those that feel that I have insulted them I am sorry. I sometimes need to practice what I preach.

Finally PC, your knowledge of computers is much greater than mine but is it perfect no. No one has perfect knowledge about anything and that is where humility comes in.

I will say that the insults about Fulton and BN I don't feel bad about so sue me if you can find me:)

Have a nice Day:)

I don't know. I personally like Australian Red wines. Give me a few bottles and I emulate for ya:)

I agree but that is the nature of this site is that some seem ready to pounce on the slightest mistake. Sort of like vultures circling a dying animal:)

And I should know, I have b**** slapped to many times to count and probably deserved it:) but this guy is sincere unlike me who is cynical:)

First off:

If I insult someone I usually end by saying have a nice day.
Have a nice Day:)

Jerk. (That was a joke)

Second:

Follow the link in my first reply, the one you blew up over. That was the indication that it was a joke. I'd say "WOOOSH!", but you might take offense. (Another joke)

That is why I want some sort of legal framework on the net that places the same restraints in public discourse on anonymous discourse here and elsewhere.

Why? You don't *ever* want to be able to make a complete a** out of yourself again like you did with that "hack BN" nonsense? A large part of the appeal of the internet is the ability to every once in a while go "off the deep end" with no consequences.

...and you totally threw that entire bit out the window with:

I will say that the insults about Fulton and BN I don't feel bad about so sue me if you can find me:)

I would ask you if you care what people think of you in your life and I think if you are honest you would answer yes.

I do care what people think of me. Just not what people think of what they *assume* is me based on my online activities.

As far as being corrected, Fewt has corercted me several times, as has terminalx (or myself, if you go by El Dingo's suspicion that Term and I are the same). I fully admit when I am wrong, it's not my fault it's such a rare occurrence (another joke...kinda).

Update went flawless.
XP MCE SP2

I only wish MS had decided to revamp and streamline XP and waited on Vista.

Just wait art,

It should turn to sludge in two months like XP always does.

Hey artfuldodga. I know off topic. But I am a huge Media Center fan. Our MCE's in the house were good, and mostly stable. But I took them to VMC (added 1 gig more RAM) and WOW - they just work - never need restarts, I can now just trust my Media Center to get my shows. We couldn't do that with XP Media Center.

I had it up from last March. As we all know an OS is only has stable as the drivers. That took a couple more months. But really nice once Nvidia and Creative woke up in October, it has been incredible. SP1 helped with streaming HD from room to room (as it fixed the slow networking issue). I even forget about the VMC in the bedroom is even there as it is hidden (no keyboard or mouse connected either).

Junk ....... Vista is the future.

No pitdingo comments? His s*** at Panera Bread must not be over yet.

"Vista is the future."

If nothing else this has convinced me to dump XP for Vista. We migrate this afternoon!

Vista ..... Capture the Dream.

Jimmy - "Capture the dream? That's awesome, where did you get that?"

Chazz - "I dont know, it just came to me"

Blades of Glory.

Go back to Hollywood - they do nothing intelligent there anyway (other than contract out to Vancouver up here in Canada - THAT'S one faint spark of intelligence). :)

Given that you're patently bereft of said spark, that makes Hollywood right up your alley, so your choice of nym is MOST apropos...

Funny, all that testing and they are still having issues with it? Big issues that causes filtering to be in effect? Wow, guess they didn't figure that out in rc2.

And just how many retail businesses do you think beta tested SP3? My guess would be none.

XP Looks Boring?, a OS isn't suppose to be entertaining, hehehe RLOL

surprised how this problem slipped through, but i hope it gets fixed soon, doing system installs and having to download 300MB worth of updates is a killer,

"XP Looks Boring?, a OS isn't suppose to be entertaining, hehehe RLOL"

I seriously wished OS makers had the same attitude as you!

Boring doesn't mean entertaining. People like things that are easy on the eyes. And I bet if you did a survey, people would be more prone to sit at their work desk if the OS just simply looks nicer. I can back that up too, when I worked at AT&T in college, they made everything gray, but your chair was a dark red color, why, because sadly the brain said hey, nice..color, must sit..might as well do work. So an OS should look nice, and be functional (which most people agree Vista looks nice, Start menu is better, breadcrumbs are awesome).

That's funny. I think I agree with you too much :/....damnit post stuff I don't agree with!

Anyway, on a personal level I have to say that I've been caught in this trap. I've been dabbling with Linux since XP was released so I'm still a newbie but Heron has made it SO difficult for me to 'dabble'. I now have it installed and dual booting on my laptop and another PC in my home as well as on a VM on my machine (and possibly very soon triple booting it) just because of the super eye candy and the one clickiness of it now.

Function and form def. need to be high points of an OS. I'm almost upset that MS didn't integrate all that bouncy, 3D action into Vista (since they totally could have!).

I'm almost upset that MS didn't integrate all that bouncy, 3D action into Vista (since they totally could have!).

I'm waiting for someone else to do it, or Stardock to release an app for it. The WPF is there, and it can handle all of that, someone just needs to code it.

and the one clickiness of it now.

Vista can be made "one clicky". Control Panel - Folder Options - Single-click.

Good stuff.

I admit, I boot into Ubuntu sometimes just to bounce "jell-o" windows. Don't ask why, it's entertaining. They need to make a "Jell-O Fruit Salad" theme for ubuntu. *laughs*

Great, but damn XP looks so boring. I just use it to test my applications and use Vista most of the time.

You are the prime reason not to upgrade to Vista.

You choose "Pretty" over "Working"

Vita is nothing more then th 10 Year Anniversary Edition of Windows ME. With Windows 7 coming in 2010, Microsoft Cashed in on those who choose to buy Vista.

I am not saying that Vista does not have some functionality, but for an OS, their plan was to keep it only 3 years which under OS rules is a short time. The fact that they planned Windows 7 to be out by 2010 is simply proof that they really only released Vista to have a new Product on the market rather then a fully working OS.

Microsoft has always played the "Release it now and we'll band-aid it later..." The Band-Aid for Vista is a New OS, just like Windows 2000 was for ME. And what a Coincidences... They had the same timeline out on the market.

slink,

You are like a balding middle aged man who's hanging on to a few scraps of badly combed over hair on top.

XP is like a band-aid, you have to rip it off in one quick motion. Actually, you have to buya new computer as upgrading to Vista from XP is suicide.

ALL MS releases have had a life cycle of 2-3 years XP was the exception to the rule, it has nothing to do with what you perceive ; that MS believes that Vista is a failure.

They began work on Windows 7 to get back into the 2-3 year timeline they had previously

Under OS rules? what OS do you speak of as Linux, and Apple do not follow this rule you are yammering about

Me was not a band-aid for 2000 as 2000 is a business product and ME was the consumer product for the ending of 9.x code.

Your whole comment was one long epic fail, try again?

Hate to break it to you but most of the products we buy we want it to be aesthetically pleasing as well as working, it works for him and works for others as well. He never said its not working, he likes the way it looks and obviously he doesn't just stare at the screen like its a painting.

ALL MS releases have had a life cycle of 2-3 years XP was the exception to the rule

Sorry. had to fix that for ya. XP, not Vista had the exceptionally long life-cycle.

heh thanks I fixed it :)

How ever you look at it, Vista just looks cleaner, XP does look out dated, and it should, it's 6 years old (plus 2+ years in beta). It's the same when new cars come out, eye candy baby. Some might not like it, most do.

"You choose "Pretty" over "Working""

Hmmm, sounds like a soon to be Appleite is in our midst.

jajajaja! I keed, I keed...don't hurt me.

But seriously. There's absolutely nothing wrong with Vista. It's as hardy as XP and it's all around better, especially the 64bit version. It demands better hardware - to some, unnecessarily. But i've seen firsthand the kind of protections and the advanatages of all the 'monitors' running in the background, and it's underhandedly impressive. I have no doubt that if treated with respect (ie: use only signed and certified drivers and software), a Vista 64bit PC can stay online for months, maybe years.

I don't agree with saying that it's a 3 year OS so they made it, hmm..ME-ish?. MS stated before Vista that their OS roadmap would be entitle shorter dates between releases.
They promised less time between OSes and we're getting that. What I DON'T agree with is releasing versions that are $400 at release date.

They need to release 2 OSes....1 for home users and 1 for business/enterprise. The differences should be obvious and necessary, which is NOT the case for home premium and business where certain features are removed or not provided with each for NO REASON. So enterprise should have, well, enterprisey/businessy things that home users 100% don't need - and I don't mean bitlocker, because home users can use that. I also think that the biggest difference between them should be that business allows the installation of 32 or 64bit software whereas home should be forced over to 64bit. It's ridiculous that what, 3 or 4 years after 64bit hardware and software has gone mainstream that PC sellers are still providing people with 32bit as the main flavor/only flavor usually.

Hopefully that will happen with 7.

Finally....to hell with tiptoeing and helping companies sell shi%. MS BIGGEST Vista messup was due to the whole Vista 'Capable'/Certified crap....and while they're both accountable, we've found out that that was mainly due to helping out Intel. So fu%^ that. Next time around, if it doesn't allow the OS to run PERFECTLY, don't allow manuf. to put the stickers on. Let them deal with their sales.

Nah, *I* fixed it. We're the same person, remember?

(At least, according to El Dingo, so it *must* be true)

Windows XPSP3 is actually available from MS to MSDN / IT Professionals: (http://technet.microsoft...-8d3c-0077c953a761.aspx).

It was RTM’d (Released to Manufacturing) on April 19th and is scheduled to go Public either by April 29th, 2008 or May 1st, 2008. Will be available to order on CD by Mid-May. They generally release it to the IT guys a week or two before putting it out to the main public.

I installed this “Final” and it is nothing more than a cleanup (Most SP's are). If you keep your PC pretty much up to date, it won't take long to install. In fact, you will spend more time downloading it then installing it.

For those expecting a new Speed Burst or number of new features, this is not it. There are no new features to speak of, but again I noticed it cleaned up all the KB Installs and went really quick (But that is what a SP does anyway)

This is more recommended for anyone who is unaware that MS has an Update Site or you don't update your PC to frequently.

Although it does not install WGA, when you go ti Windows Update after you are done, guess what Windows Update installs... WGA!

Also note, I read some people were hoping IE 7 would be in it. Well, it won't for the simply reason, IE 7 was not part of Windows XP in the first place, and forcing people to install IE7 without warning breaks a user agreement.

Really? NAP is not new? Black Hole Router detection is not new? How about WAP2 support? New cryptographic API's...I can post a full list but I'm sure you can do a simple google search to find that list....

All four new features...?

# New Windows Product Activation model: no need to enter product key during setup. Thank God for that!

# Network Access Protection modules and policies have been brought to XP after being one of the more-well-received features in Windows Vista. You can read more about NAP here.

# New Microsoft Kernel Mode Cryptographic Module - the Windows XP SP3 kernel now includes an entire module that provides easy access to multiple cryptographic algorithms and is available for use in kernel-mode drivers and services.

# New "Black Hole Router" detection - Windows XP SP3 can detect and protect against rogue routers that are discarding data.

330MB for four New things??? You are jumping through hoops about FOUR new Features? I really don't call then new Features or Programs, more like 4 new .DLL's to improve a previously flawed DLL.

The chunck of the SP is the 1,073 updates, 114 are for security-related updates that had posted over the course of Windows XP's life. So, like I said, if you have kept your PC pretty much up to date, all you are downloading is a Cleanup.

Those security features alone are completely worth the update.

What's wrong with downloading 330 MB? Don't tell me you're stuck with RTC. Last time I used a 56 kbps modem was, like, 500 years ago.

Ok, two of you so far can't read. I said in no way that it was not worth getting if you were someone that did not update a lot. It is nothing more then the "Complete" XP Update pack if anything else.

Lets put it this way, if you install it and it take 30 Minutes to run the install process, then that is a sign that you rarely downloaded updates and you really needed it, but if you are like me and have kept your PC up to date and the install literally took 2 Minutes, that means it really did nothing more then clean up the KB Libraries which is it supposed to do anyway.

330MB is not an issue for me, but if you are going to download a 330MB file, it better have a good use.

It did not fix anything that did not already get patched on my system. It will be put to use when I SlipStream it into an XP Install CD / DVD.

As for your reference to a 56k Modem, at least I know the hardship of what that is like. I have been a Tech / IT guy for 12 Years and downloading a 3MB Driver 10 years ago was like watching paint dry on my 56K v90 Modem.

So before you A$$ume anything again, it was 10 years... NOT 500!

PS. I probably still have my 14.4 and 28.8 Modems somewhere, did you want them to see what that was like?

All that new XP bloatware comes with Vista, which is pre-bloated, so it doesn't seem so bad.

14.4kbps? Come on, I remember switching from 110 to 300bps.

+++ATH0

$%#^GBY&^UJI^
NOCARRIER

Hey, that's my line. I copyrighted it. :p

Thank you Mr. Hayes^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^HPC_Tool.

heh

finally :P!

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Open, open, open. . . .

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