Windows Vista

[usy]

I have the Windows Longhorn (codename) beta CD, It's the same as Vista but It says Longhorn, I think it was first called Longhorn then changed to Windows Vista.

 

[Ritwik]

Longhorn was the code name(name used during development) for Vista, just like Project Chicago was the code name for Win95.

 

[taimurasad]

are the beta's any good?
should i have xp or the beta on my comp? Im going to try out the beta anyway

I wont recommend running Beta versions of Vista as your primary OS. The main reason behind this is the lack of hardware drivers support in these beta versions. Every new build of Vista is getting bigger & better than the previous ones. Maybe a feature complete Beta2(when its out) could be used as your main OS but then again it would have its own limitations.

 

[taimurasad]

I installed the latest build(5365) yesterday. Thought i should update you guys on whats new in this build.

so here is a quick mini review from me of Build 5365. (im no Paul Throttle )

INSTALLATION:
The previous build (5342) took 65min to install on my machine which is running 2.8 GHz P4 with 1GB DDR ram. I was surprised to see the current build 5365 being installed in only 42 minutes (from booting DVD to Login Window) . Just for a reminder that previous builds such as Dec CTP & Feb CTP took 5-6 hrs to install.

WINDOWS BOOTING TIME:
Build5342 took approx. 1min to boot but this build (5365) is much quicker. It takes around 35sec to boot on my PC.

INTERFACE:
The interface in this build is similar to 5342. However it has been polished further & looks almost perfect now.

PERFORMANCE:
This build is much more stable and quicker than 5342. It is almost as quick as XP mce with sp2 but XP mce with sp2 is still more stable & comfortable to work with than this build. 5365 also eats lesser ram when compared to 5342. 5342 used around 600mb in normal (no extra app. running) conditions but this build only uses around 450mb in similar conditions.

DRIVERS SUPPORT:
This is the first build in which i have been actually able to install my soundcard. Before this build Vista always refused to install my built-in soundcard. All of my hardware is now installed & working without any problems.

BUGS:
I haven?t found much time to play around with this build but in my short stint of testing, I found this build less buggy than 5342 but its still v.buggy & it seems like there is still long way to go. Microsoft needs to spend more time fixing these bugs because some of these bugs are just so damn annoying.
Good to see Microsoft fixing the 2 bugs which i reported them using last build.

Conclusion:
I am really impressed with this build, the performance is really great compared to 5342.

Screenshots of Vista Build 5365:

Login Window
http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/9496/loginscreen4ww.jpg

Desktop
http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/9977/desktop7vp.jpg

StartMenu
http://img130.imageshack.us/img130/1941/startmenu9eg.jpg

Gadgets Gallery (Nice new Gadgets for Windows Sidebar are added)
http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/6058/gadgetsa5by.jpg
http://img136.imageshack.us/img136/5007/gadgetsb8dh.jpg

Windows Media Player 11 (Album View)
http://img112.imageshack.us/img112/6905/wmpalbumview7bx.jpg

Windows Media Player 11 (Playing Music)
http://img108.imageshack.us/img108/3748/wmpplaying7bf.jpg

MyComputer
http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/4554/mycomputer0co.jpg

MyMusic
http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/3776/mymusic4zi.jpg

Welcome Center (Notice Media Player minimized on the taskbar at the bottom)
http://img106.imageshack.us/img106/2333/welcomecenter8jj.jpg

Media Center (Music Library)
http://img107.imageshack.us/img107/1931/mcemusiclibrary0co.jpg

Media Center (Pictures Library)
http://img123.imageshack.us/img123/8871/mcepicturelibrary0uz.jpg

Media Center (Recorded TV\Videos Library)
http://img125.imageshack.us/img125/9290/mcerecordedtvvideoslibrary7kh.jpg

Media Center (Playing Music)
http://img119.imageshack.us/img119/9029/mceplayingmusic3cl.jpg

If you want more screens then do let me know.

That's all for now.

 

[usy]

Thanks for the screenz, man looks good.

 

[Brett_Lee]

taimurasad since you are using the evauluation have you noticed any errors with it?

 

[stevenr1230]

i had some trouble installing 5365. It doing memory dumps while 'initiating windows'

any advice?

 

[taimurasad]

taimurasad since you are using the evauluation have you noticed any errors with it?

There are lots of bugs in it. Beta software is still a work in progress so naturally it will have bugs. Read my mini review of 5365 posted above..

i had some trouble installing 5365. It doing memory dumps while 'initiating windows'

any advice?

This could be due to many reasons, check if the following isnt a issue for you.

1. If your memory is below 512mb than there could be many memory issues during install. Upgrade your memory & install again.

2. The partition on which you are installing Vista must be Formatted as NTFS & it should have atleast 20GB free disk space.

3. If you are installing Vista through Windows XP then try installing it by booting the DVD.

4. Check whether the ISO which you downloaded is corrupt or not by checking CRC values. If the ISO isnt corrupt then there could be a problem with the DVD if burned at a high speed. Try burning it on a slow speed and then try installing Vista again.

If this doesn?t help then I suggest you put your query on newsgroups at microsoft connect. I am sure their experts would find a solution for you.

 

[Brett_Lee]

Howd you become a beta tester? I heard to beta test XP 64 bit you needed to send like $10 to Microsoft and they would mail you a copy back is it like that?

 

[aussie1st]

For XP 64 you just need a 64 bit platform. Then you can download XP 64.

Definitely you can't just pay to test Microsoft product as that would just be stupid.

 

[Brett_Lee]

lol well i heard it somewhere. i think you just payed them because they had to mail you out the cd. (musta been wrong) yeh we have 64 bit platform on the computer

 

[aussie1st]

Yea it's the CD price. I take not much has changed in XP 64 given the next Windows is Vista.

 

[taimurasad]

Howd you become a beta tester? I heard to beta test XP 64 bit you needed to send like $10 to Microsoft and they would mail you a copy back is it like that?

goto http://connect.microsoft.com and signup(thats how i did) for beta programs which are given under "Available Programs" option. Another way to get into Vista testing is by subscribing at msdn or by getting an invite through an employ at microsoft.
You need to pay a small fees only if you order the physical media(DVD). Its free if you download it directly from microsoft connect.

from Build 5365 FAQ:

Q: Who should install and use beta software?
A: Beta versions of our software are available to both beta customers and MSDN subscribers. There are also some technical beta programs which release software to the general public, for the purpose of end-users and developers testing out the software to see if it works with their current projects and applications. Generally, anyone can install beta software as long as you're legally able to obtain and use the software. We heavily rely on and appreciate the work and results that our beta users perform. One important thing to remember with beta software is: Do not install it on production servers or on machines which you can't afford to lose data, because beta software is still a "work in progress." Also, using System Restore to create a Restore Point prior to installing software or hardware inside of an OS can help to prevent and resolve problems down the road.

 

[taimurasad]

I hope they fix up their IE broswer, IE 7 doesn't look that great. It's missing the usual file,edit, view menu. Oh well Firefox will be around to save us.

Classic Menu is still there in IE7 but it is not enabled by default. We have to enabled it through toolbar options. Check the following screens for a clear idea. I think it looks better without the usual Classic Menu.

IE7 for Windows XP without Classic Menu:
http://img269.imageshack.us/img269/3190/ie7wocm9sm.jpg

IE7 for Windows XP with Classic Menu:
http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/2319/ie7wcm9bj.jpg

 

[las_faiz]

have tried any software or games on windows vista. If u hav was thr any problem coz i hav the beta but i never installed it to save disk space. I use a lot of softwares n obviously play a lot of games