Vista Month: Dispelling Vista Myths

Users concerned about upgrading to Windows Vista should have a look at Tech Republic's recent article dispelling Windows Vista myths. With the release of any new OS there's bound to be a certain amount of FUD percolating around the internet. In Vista's case the main rumors seem to be that it breaks all your software, it's just eye candy, and it requires a new computer.

That last item has been played up extensively in the mainstream press and no doubt gets encouraged by retail salesmen and hardware manufacturers, but the truth is Vista will probably run on your existing machine. You may need to upgrade your RAM and you may not get the Aero glass interface, but that is eye candy.

Deb Shinder's article does a good job of pulling together the top ten myths about Windows Vista and separating rumor from fact.

The article doesn't just dispel anti-Vista rumors though, it also takes Microsoft to task for propagating the myth that Vista will solve all your security worries.

Because much of operating system, including its networking technologies, has been redesigned and new code written, Vista is likely to present some vulnerabilities that weren't in older versions of the OS even as it fixes many that were. This is true of any new software and Vista, despite its focus on security and Microsoft's best efforts, is no exception.

In fact, Microsoft shipped the first critical security update for Vista over a year ago, when it was still in the beta testing stage. It will be just as important with Vista as with any other operating system to ensure that updates are installed regularly. The danger is that novice users, hearing that Vista is more secure, may let their guard down and fail to take the protective measures necessary to prevent attacks, virus infestations, etc.

Another popular rumor I've heard is that Vista won't run on dual core machines, which is not true, however here's something I didn't know:

In fact, all versions of Vista will run on a machine with multiple processors installed—but Home Basic and Premium will recognize and use only one of the processors.

If you've been hesitating to upgrade because of rumors you've been hearing/reading check out the article, it does a good job of dispelling the FUD and getting down to the facts.

[via Lifehacker]