The HUGE BIG-BIG Windows Vista Thread

[cull]

k if any one has any driver related issues, or anything like that, that this wonderful community cant figure out, id be glad to ask MS.

[soundx98]

Not to worry, I've changed the thread title and will be going through and deleting the "chat" posts. (Including yours and mine)

[soundx98]

Some really good info from member "Pyr0"

 

to prevent vista from requiring signed drivers:

1. launch BCDedit:

customize the start menu and enable the run command

in the run command box, type "cmd"

 

2. Execute the following command to disable driver signature checks:

bcdedit –set nointegritychecks ON

 

EDIT: If anyone out there is still trying to disable driver signing and its not working try replacing the -set with /set, -set didn't alway's work but /set seems to.

 

 

3. Reboot the computer

 

Programs:

Note: Many of these will require Driver Signing to be Diabled. See above.

 

x86

 

Works:

 

A64Info

A64 Tweaker v6.0 (with driver signing disabled)

Ad-aware SE Personal 1.06

Ad-Aware SE Plus 1.06

Adobe Acrobat 3D

Adobe Creative Suite 2 (Photoshop, Illustrator, etc.)

ATI Catalyst Control Center x86 - 2.0.2320.28349

Avant browser 10.02.52 (Latest build): Installs, works, BUT no glass AND unable to save anything to "Favorites"

BitComet 0.63

Bon Echo (Firefox) alpha 2

CCleaner

ClamWin Free AntiVirus

CHMOD-Win 2.3

Divx Codec/player

eTrust Antivirus (run in 2k3 compatiablity mode and install updates from website)

eTrust EZ antivirus

Everest 2.8

Filezilla

Flashpeak Slimbrowser 4.06.025(Latest build): Installs, works, BUT no glass

Guild Wars

Ipswitch WS_FTP Professional 9

IsoBuster

ITE SmartGuardian

Macromedia Dreamweaver 8

Macromedia Flash Player

Macromedia Studio 8

MBM5

McAfee's Virus Scan 8.5i Beta

MediaMonkey

Microsoft Expression Web Designer CTP1

Microsoft Math Beta 1 (16.0)

Microsoft Office 2007 Beta & TR1

Microsoft Office 2003

Microsoft Office 2007 Beta 2

Mozilla Firefox 1.5.0.3

Mozilla Thunderbird 1.5.0.2

Nero

Nero 7 (May not work for unknown reasons for some)

NOD32

Opera 9 Beta

PE Explorer 1.98

PHP (slow load)

Startup2Service Beta 2

Steam

Trend Micro PC-cillin Internet Security 14

Trillian 3.1 Pro/Basic

UltraISO

VistaBootPRO 1.0

Visual Studio .Net 2005

Visual Studio Express Edition

VLC

VMWare Workstation 5.5 (really slow initial start)

Winamp 5

WinRAR

Windows Live Messenger BETA (no glass)

Microsoft WGAPlugin (For Gecko Based Browsers)

Xitami

 

Doesn't Work:

 

Acronis True Image 9

AIM v5.9

Apache (Command line window closes after couple of seconds)

E Policy (disables sidebar and hogs cpu)

McAfee's Virus Scan 8.5i Beta (doesn't work with Office 07)

Norton Internet Security Suite (2003-2006)

ZoneAlarm

 

 

x64

 

Works:

 

3DMark 01, 03, 05 and 06

7-zip

A64Info

A64Tweaker (if Driver signing is disabled)

Adobe Acrobat Reader

Ad Aware version 1.06

Avast! AV 4.6 (disable driver verification)

Avery Label Pro

Battlefield2

Bryce 4

Call Of Duty 2

CPU-z (if Drive signing is disabled)

Day Of Defeat Source (worked, but textures were messed up)

eTrust Antivirus

Form Doc designer and filler version 7

F.E.A.R. - worked

F-prot Antivirus 3.16d

GTA San Andreas

Half Life 2 (worked, but textures were messed up)

Hitman: Blood Money Demo

ieSpell

K-Lite Mega Codec Pack 1.53

Logitech setpoint 2.60

Macromedia Flash Player

MagicISO 5

Motherboard Monitor 5

Mozilla Firefox 1.5.0.3

Mozilla Firefox 1.5.0.4

Mozilla Thunderbird 1.5.0.2

Motherboard monitor 5 (if driver signing is disabled)

Need For Speed: Most Wanted

Nero 6.6.14

Nvidia Purevideo 1.02-196

O&O Defrag 8.0

Office 2007 Beta 2

Omniform 5

Omni Page 12

Orca

Painter 8

Qimage Pro (serial input not working and no startup menu entry made)

Registry Mechanic 5.1.0.224

Skype

VistaBootPRO 1.0

WinRAR 3.60 beta 4

xvid codec

 

Doesn't Work:

 

A64Tweaker

Adobe Premiere Pro (Version 1.5)

CPU-Z

Daemon Tools 403x64

Diskeeper 10

Light wave 7.5

Nero 7.2.0.3

Nikon Capture 4.3

Nikon Capture 4.4

Peerguardian

Perfect Disk 7

PowerDVD 6.0

 

Big Hug to Pyro

[ReelFiles]

Good info,

 

Please make sure you guys read at least most of the posts, as there is valuable info on every page.

 

I've been working with Vista from the start (Yes, legally) and I am happy to provide any info I have. While I am not an expert (I don't think there are many), I will do my best to provide the most accurate info I can. I get instant notifications of new posts here, so you don't have to pm me if you prefer posting here. Also I am a stay-at-home dad, so I am usually around all sorts of hours. The mods and admins here have better things to do than try to resolve beta software issues.

 

This is pretty interesting;

 

 

Edited to avoid controversy by me

 

 

I will provide any links, for news articles, software downloads or drivers, but I will most likely redirect you to earlier posts containig the info, unless it is outdated.

[ReelFiles]

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/windowsvi.../tenthings.mspx

Resources for IT Professionals

 

Top 10 Things to Try with Windows Vista Beta 2

 

As soon you have Windows Vista Beta 2, here are just a few of the top things you can do to evaluate it for your organization, plan your deployment, and make yourself more productive. If you don't have Beta 2 yet you'll soon be able to get it here.

 

1.

Plan an Easier Deployment: Get the Business Desktop Deployment (BDD) solution (to be released a few weeks after Windows Vista Beta 2) and install the latest deployment tools. In the meantime, you can follow Microsoft's step-by-step guide. Our guidance will show you how to build an image using ImageX, configure it, and create an unattend.xml file using the Windows Image System Manager. Then, configure Windows Deployment Services to deploy the customized image to test machines in your organization. Explore the full range of innovations we've developed to make deployment simpler, including updating an image in an offline state and customizing the Windows preinstallation environment.

 

2.

Improve Security and Compliance: Encrypt your drive using BitLocker drive encryption. Take advantage of User Account Control and deploy a test group as standard users and see how much easier they are to support. Run as a standard user on your own PC. On Windows Vista, everyday activities like browsing the Web with Internet Explorer 7 will be more secure because of the built-in anti-phishing filter and Protected Mode.

 

3.

Manage Your PC: Explore more than 500 new group policies to see everything you can manage centrally. New policies include the ability to control installation of devices and power management settings, which can help you save energy costs on each PC. Use the Event Viewer to get a consolidated view of all of the events on your system. (Just type "Event Viewer" in the Quick Search menu to bring it up.) You can right-click any event to schedule a task that will start automatically the next time that event happens.

 

4.

Optimize Your Network: Restrict authorized use of the network by configure the new outbound blocking capabilities of the Windows Firewall. You can use the same integrated MMC Firewall snap-in to configure server and domain isolation using IPSec. See how Quality of Service policies can help you manage the use of precious bandwidth and define the priority of traffic for applications. If you ever have trouble connecting to a network, just right-click on the connection icon in your system tray and choose "Diagnose" and Windows Vista will help you identify the problem and guide you through the solution.

 

5.

Test Your Applications: Download and use the Microsoft Application Compatibility Toolkit 5.0 Beta. Inventory the applications in your environment, record any issues you find, and synchronize your findings with other testers using the Microsoft Compatibility Exchange. The tool will also find issues with Web sites you are visiting and applications that may not work well for standard users.

 

6.

Be More Productive: With the Windows Aero user experience, the windows feature a transparent glass effect that makes it is easier to manage your open windows with less distraction. Press Windows+Tab to experience the dynamic "Flip 3D" window management feature. Use Instant Search, which is built right into the Start menu to easily find your documents, e-mails, Web sites, and even applications. Insert a ReadyBoost-capable storage device, such as a USB 2.0 memory drive with at least 512 MB capacity. When prompted, click "Speed up my system" to get an extra boost of performance.

 

7.

Go Mobile: Windows Vista is designed to work especially well on mobile hardware, so install it on your laptop or Tablet PC, too. Press Windows+X to start the Windows Mobility Center, which puts the most frequently used mobile PC settings in a single location. With the Sync Center, it is easy to keep your files, data, and devices in sync and move seamlessly between online and offline states. You can also configure Folder Redirection so roaming users can access any folder, not just the five that could be roamed in Windows XP. If you are using a Tablet PC, you'll notice that improved handwriting recognition, cursors, visual feedback, and new Pen Flicks will make it even easier to use.

 

8.

Share Information and Collaborate: Try Windows Meeting Space (called Windows Collaboration in Beta 2) to collaborate with a co-worker who is using Windows Vista too. You can share your screen with others and take turns working on a file. Use Microsoft's new read-only XML-Paper Specification (XPS) archival file format to store and share documents in a more secure way. To create an XPS document, simply print it and chose "Microsoft XPS Document Writer" as the printer. You can share the XPS document with other Windows Vista users or with Windows XP users who have installed the WinFX beta.

 

9.

Use the Web More Effectively: With Internet Explorer 7 on Windows Vista, you can browse the Web more easily and securely. Right-click a link and chose "Open in New Tab" to experience the new tabbed browsing. Press Ctrl+Q to open the Quick Tabs (thumbnail view) of all your open tabs. Even printing is improved—select “Shrink to Fit” printing and the sides of your Web pages won't be cut off. You can use the built-in RSS reader to subscribe to the Windows Vista Blog or other feeds to get the latest information.

 

10.

Join the Community: Share your experiences in a blog, get and give help to other users, and report critical bugs—there are a number of ways you can interact with others around the world who are using Windows Vista. TechNet offers managed forums where you can ask questions and get support from your peers. On your Windows Vista desktop, you will also find links to download a bug-reporting tool and to provide feedback to Microsoft.

[cull]

Just to clear some stuff up, WE WERE NEVER, NEVER going to get the DL on torrent or anything, I made Patrick (a MS employee) get up at 1am to dispell this rumor. So dont believe that. And I have as well been on the beta from the start. Whoever said they were going to distribute on a torrent didnt read the post fully. One of the BTs was going to be distributing on a torrent made by himself. Considered? No, back in the Whistler days there was a torrent like distribution system thought up, but it never left the paper.

[ReelFiles]

If you reread my post, (which is an excerpt from an online source, not my creation) it clearly states that Microsoft will not release it on Bit Torrent, the main point I was trying to make was the world wide effect the release of Vista beta 2 has on the internet community, and that Microsoft discourages the use of Bit Torrent for a legitmate source of Vista.

 

Anyways, I will not provide sources for Torrent files, as I have been asked not to disclose that information in this thread. SO DON"T ASK.

 

Back on topic:

 

Vista Technet Webcasts

 

http://www.microsoft.com/events/series/technetvista.mspx

[Imgnryflgdotcom]

This is a really good thread an all... But One question.... again

 

I'm pretty much on the fence wether to use XP or Vista. I have both Vista x64 and x86 and XP Home. I like to game, and this is a new rig, so I want to know its full potential. I also like to chat with friends on AIM and such. That's pretty much all I do, and surf the web and Myspace.

 

Since it looks like some of you work at or for MS, what would you do? XP.... or Vista??

 

Thanks

[dr_bowtie]

I have Micromedia Flash Player installed on the 32bit version of Vista and it's working....

 

sure they got that right......

 

On the dont work either AVG 7.0...doesnt...

 

only real conflict I got so far is yahoo messenger...Vista told me (in a pop-up) that it has issues.... yes it does... It automatically ran it in compatability form...as what I dont know...

 

But if you have msn messenger and run it 1st then run yahoo you cant IM in yahoo....

 

I closed them both and re-opened yahoo then msn and it's fine....but as stated the window buttons are off...

[soundx98]

Not an MS guy here but XP definately.

You can always set up a 2nd Partiton to mess around with the Vista Betas.

[ReelFiles]

This is a really good thread an all... But One question.... again

 

I'm pretty much on the fence wether to use XP or Vista. I have both Vista x64 and x86 and XP Home. I like to game, and this is a new rig, so I want to know its full potential. I also like to chat with friends on AIM and such. That's pretty much all I do, and surf the web and Myspace.

 

Since it looks like some of you work at or for MS, what would you do? XP.... or Vista??

 

Thanks

 

XP Pro SP2 is my favorite everyday OS (besides Ubuntu)

or XP Home, since that's what you got

[Imgnryflgdotcom]

XP Pro SP2

or XP Home, since that's what you got

 

Ok, I had XP Pro.... but I lost the CD

 

If I wanted to make XP Home look like Vista, like with the UI changes, which one is the best one??