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Windows

The Vista license “loophole” that isn’t

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Ed Bott discusses the issue of using a Vista upgrade disk when doing a non-upgrade install.

Look, you can argue that Microsoft’s prices are inconsistent and illogical, but that has nothing to do with the issue at hand here. An upgrade license is intended to replace a previous license, period. Advising readers to violate the terms of a license agreement is pure sensationalism, and it’s wrong.

I know it isn’t a popular stance but I agree with him 100%. I pretty much said the same thing February of last year in my Installing Windows Vista guide.

3 – Do I need an Upgrade or Full version?
If you intend on installing Vista on a machine that already has a Windows operating system, and you intend to upgrade (install over it) then get an upgrade version. Otherwise the license requirement says you need a full version. Yes you can do a clean install using an upgrade disk (instructions below). Please note, the Vista license agreement states that if you use an upgrade version then the OS you installed Vista over is no longer valid. This may or may not be a technicality based on your own set of morals. Example, I recently got a new laptop from Dell which came with XP installed and a free upgrade to Vista when available. Since I wanted to dual-boot (run both OS’s) XP and Vista I could not legally use the upgrade disk so I had to buy the full version.
(please do not write to me and whine about how expensive Vista is to justify your using an upgrade disk. Vista is not a “must have”. Stick with XP or try Linux, it’s free.)

Microsoft's Vista Blogger Quits…

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Nick White, Microsoft’s in-house blogger who wrote about all things related to the Windows Vista operating system, has resigned. It’s the latest in a series of key departures from the software maker.

Geeze, whatever the reason he left it doesn’t look good image wise for Microsoft and Vista. I don’t care what you think about Vista as an OS, it’s karma just seems awful.
Microsoft’s Vista Blogger Quits As Redmond Exodus Builds

SIW 2008-04-02 is available

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SIW – System Information for Windows is a free tool that gives you detailed system specs.

4/1/2008
* Added “Security” module.
* Added WinPE 2.1 Support.
* Added U3 Support.
* Enhanced “Updates” module. It shows “Installed Updated” and “Missing Updates”. The “Missing Updates” module will connect to windowsupdate.microsoft.com
* Enhanced “Ports” module.
* Added detection of Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2007. Thanks to Jan Romanowski.
* Fixed “/silent” option.
* Support for new hardware and software.
* Support for the latest Intel and AMD CPUs.
* Updated device database.
* Minor improvements.
* Bugfixes.

Download & Info

Vista-capable lawsuit paints picture of buggy NVIDIA drivers

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This article revels an interesting Microsoft memo. There is a chart with the breakdown of Vista’s crashes. The main problem? Yes, you already know, DRIVERS.
Vista-capable lawsuit paints picture of buggy NVIDIA drivers

NVIDIA drivers were identified as the cause of over 479,000 crashes, or just under 29 percent of all the crashes Microsoft logged. Microsoft’s own drivers follow, at 17.9 percent, and the “Unknown” category takes third place at 17 percent. ATI is in fourth place (9.3 percent) and Intel in fifth place (8.83 percent).

Random Musings, 19 March, 2008

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I’ve installed the official Vista SP1 via Windows Update on 4 machines in the last 2 days. All installs went fine. My vote for SP1 is Thumbs Up.
I’m working on a revision of the Vista tweak guide. Updated for SP1 of course, and a few additions and clarifications. Got any tips you think should be in there? Please post it in this post’s comments.
Here are some articles on Vista SP1 from around the web:
It’s Here! Windows Vista Service Pack 1 Arrives (Paul Thurrott)
Want Vista SP1? Here’s what to expect (Ed Bott)
Seems like some folks are having issues:
Vista SP1 horror stories start to appear (pcpro)
Windows Vista SP1 Wreaks Havoc On Some PCs, Users Complain (infoweek)
Windows Vista SP1 Meeting Sour Reception In Places (where microsoft can never do anything right)

A lot of you guys that stop by here are Geeks and I’m continually impressed by your knowledge and contributions. If you’ve ever wanted to get involved in a tech site, Neowin is looking for help: Write for Neowin 2008

Vista SP1 Cleanup

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Just thought I would offer this tip. Once you’ve installed SP1 and everything is running well, AND you are absolutely 100% sure you do not want to uninstall it, AND you have backed up your system…
You can run this command vsp1cln.exe. This will allow you to reclaim significant disk space.
To do this press the Windows + R keys and type vsp1cln.exe in the run box.
or if you prefer using the command line:
press the Windows + R keys and type cmd then type vsp1cln.exe.

More info from Microsoft:

Windows Vista SP1 File Removal tool (Vsp1cln.exe). Vsp1cln.exe is an optional tool that you can run after you install SP1. This tool removes older versions of components that have been updated in SP1, which are stored during the installation in case you need to uninstall SP1 later. Saving these older components increases the amount of disk space that is used. Typically, you should run Vsp1cln.exe if you want to reclaim this disk space after applying SP1 and if you will not need to uninstall SP1. Note, however, that you cannot uninstall SP1 after you run this tool. You can use this tool both online and offline, but you must have SP1 installed and you must use the correct version of the tool. If you are running this file on an offline image, you should use the Vsp1cln.exe included in the Windows OPK or AIK. However, if you are running this file online (on a computer that you are booted into), you should use the Vsp1cln.exe file located at %windir%\system32\vsp1cln.exe.

Please do not whine at me if you run into problems and you haven’t backed up your computer!