When Microsoft introduced Windows XP it took them over three years to get it mostly bug free. So, the short answer is NO. I would wait until at least a year and several upgrades before considering it.

Microsoft has extended retail sales of XP for five more months until June 2008. The new end-of-availability pushed back to June 30, 2010. Shows what the market is demanding.

Sales of Vista have been lackluster, so maybe the buying public is making a statement? Only time will tell.

– Price. Very expensive. $399 new, or $299 for the upgrade to Windows Ultimate? The cheapest version, Basic ($199 full, $100 upgrade), isn't worth the trouble. The extra hardware needed is even more daunting. You need to check first which version you intend on upgrading to? You might need 2GB RAM, a very, very fast CPU and even an integrated graphics chip with it's own onboard RAM (not found in many laptops).

– Not much new. It looks pretty, but do you care about photo tagging and 3-D window flipping? Not me!

– It's annoying. Most Vista users have turned off User Account Control, which nags you with an "Are you sure?" prompt every time you try to do anything beyond run the calculator.

– Many, many missing drivers. Who wants their scanner or printer to stop working? Lots of software won't run on Vista, so one of your important applications might not run.

– It's confusing. Everything that XP could do, Vista can do… only it's buried under a different menu and it has a new name. Sigh!

– It's doesn't work that well. There are many bugs and flaws with the design of Vista and it needs a Service Pack. So, you should wait for one or maybe two.

On the other side I expect over time Microsoft with it's vast resources will fix the problems and you will get to the good stuff. AERO: Transparent windows, tasteful animation, elegant design. 2. SEARCH: Fast, smart, and you can create virtual search folders to revisit your searches with a single click. 3. NETWORK MAP: Finally, Microsoft gets networking right; it's a great way to get an overview of your network and its devices. 4. WIRELESS NETWORKING: Connecting to multiple wireless networks and hotspots is a simple affair. 5. SECURITY: You get a firewall with outbound filtering, a better browser, and a lot under the hood offering better protection. Maybe in 2008 or 2009 Vista will be something worth considering.

If you have decided to upgrade it is not simple a matter analizing your computing habits and then figuring out which of the seven versions of Vista meets your needs. Windows 9X, ME and 2000 cannot be upgraded without performing a clean installation. Various versions of XP can be only upgraded to various versions of Vista per the following article:

You should also note that Micrsoft has set up the Vista Upgrade to install only if your hard drive already has Windows XP or Windows 2000 already loaded. According to Microsoft, only the full retail license of Windows Vista can be transferred to new devices. OEM versions are ostensibly tied to motherboards, and upgrade versions are now technically tied to previous installations.

Pricing for full retail versions of the software will be Windows Vista Ultimate, $399; Windows Vista Business, $299; Windows Vista Home Premium, $239; and Windows Vista Home Basic, $199.

Upgrades from Windows XP are priced at Windows Vista Ultimate, $259; Windows Vista Business, $199; Windows Vista Home Premium, $159; and Windows Vista Home Basic, $99.

As is typical of Microsoft pricing, expensive, more expensive and most expensive. Only a monopoly could price a software product at these prices.

We are getting close to release of Vista, so I thought an update would be in order.

If you are thinking of buying a new laptop before Vista ships you should seriously consider waiting. Although Microsoft is offering an upgrade path I would not count on upgrading being smooth, based upon past upgrades. Why take a chance? Wait until it ships the end of January 2007.

However, if there is some compeling reason to upgrade now … Vista requires Microsoft DirectX 9, different versions of Vista have differing hardware requirements, a stripped down version requires at least a P3-800MHz CPU and at least a 60GB HD. My rule of thumb with new software is to wait at least six months after it has been released to buy. So, if possible wait until the dust settles and don't be in a rush.

Pricing for full retail versions of the software will be Windows Vista Ultimate, $399; Windows Vista Business, $299; Windows Vista Home Premium, $239; and Windows Vista Home Basic, $199.

Upgrades from Windows XP are priced at Windows Vista Ultimate, $259; Windows Vista Business, $199; Windows Vista Home Premium, $159; and Windows Vista Home Basic, $99.

So, you have been reading about the new Vista OS and you wish to upgrade.

Whoa, take a deep breath!

If you already have XP then Microsoft plans on supporting it until 2012. Another six years. What's the rush! The typical cost of more RAM, upgraded CPU (might not be easy to do) and the license fee is estimated at $900.

Many people are still using Windows 98, even though Microsoft support is due to expire July 2006. If it isn't broke then maybe you should leave well enough alone and stick with your current OS as long as you can.

Windows 95 was introduced in August 1995 and Microsoft stopped selling it in December 2000 and supporting it the end of 2001.

Microsoft intended on ending support for Windows 98 in March 2004 and I suspect due to an outcry from Win98 users have extended it through June 30, 2006 with online support available until June 2007.

Windows 98 Support Extended

How to preserve your copy of Windows 98

Windows 98 and Windows XP are two of Microsoft's biggest successes in terms of what they were intended to do as an operating system. Both are fairly stable. Windows 98 has modest system requirements and is quite possible still the most widely used Microsoft operating system.

In many cases Win 98 S/E (latest version) is still a very viable operating system. The major bugs have been been fixed. It is a very stable operating system and tends to run faster than Windows XP, unless you are running the latest and greatest hardware and have lots and lots of fast RAM.

The only major problem with Win 98 S/E that has been fixed in XP is it's ability to manage "resource" memory, where Windows keeps its pointers to what's going on. When that memory area gets full (only 64MB), Windows loses control. Your mouse might stop responding or you'll find that you can't close a window on your screen. You'll be stymied just trying to close programs, and your Windows PC will freeze. You'll lose what you were working on. The 64K limit in Windows 95, 98 and Me is a barrier that can't be taken down. No program can change this. Adding more regular memory (adding RAM, in other words) won't fix it. Rebooting (shutting down and starting up again) can help by clearing out resource memory. When resource memory runs low again, reboot again.

Discussion about Win 98 memory problem

Most people won't don't even notice this memory manegement problem found in Win 98. It is typically more an annoyance than a major issue.

I have a Win 98 computer at home loaded with the latest Win 98 S/E upgrades and I have not seen this problem for over a year. I usually run my browser (using Firefox these days) and the Google blogger.com or my Eudora e-mail program. I sometimes run Excel.

I have no plans to upgrade to a newer OS or faster laptop. The old Pentium II 400 MHz Toshiba I have been running for 3+ years on our kitchen counter runs fine. What if the kids dump a heavy soup can on it! I would be bummed if it was a new P4 laptop. Besides XP would cost at least $159.99 from the discounters.

July 11, 2006 Microsoft will officially end support of Win 98, although online self-help support will be available until July 11, 2007. Microsoft planned to end support in January 2004, but extended that to June 30, 2006.

Windows XP is the best all-around operating system that Microsoft has yet produced. It built on Windows 2000's idea of integrating Microsoft's stable NT operating system with some of the user-friendly features of the Windows 9x operating systems. The resulting product is an extremely stable and mostly user-friendly hybrid combining ease of use with advanced features for businesses. Its only major drawback is its steep system requirements. So, you should plan on having at least a P3-700 MHz or faster CPU and at least 256MB RAM if you want to run XP in a reasonable manner.

The latest computers don't get the best out of Windows 98. If you are playing games and using the latest software they have started the transition to being 2000/XP compatible only.

I am updating this post in June 2006. The end of Microsoft support for Win 98 is finally here. Microsoft claims it is not secure, as if it ever was! Microsoft recommends that people who still use Windows 98 protect their PCs by using a network firewall that filters traffic on TCP Port 139. "Such a firewall will block attacks attempting to exploit this vulnerability from outside of the firewall," it said.

The software maker even had trouble with its fix for Windows XP. It had to revise the update and release it a second time because the patch caused problems for people who used Hewlett-Packard Share-to-Web software or older Nvidia graphics drivers.

Microsoft is phasing out support for Windows 98 Microsoft has been providing fixes for only "critical" flaws the past couple of years and is ending support altogether next month, after its planned July 11 patch release. Windows XP with Service Pack 1 reaches its end of support on Oct. 10, 2006. Many people will still continue to use it for years. I expect the release of VISA will hasten it's demise should there be a version that supports older hardware?