I’ve just published the latest installment in my Fixing Windows Vista series over at ZDNet.
Fixing Windows Vista, Part 3: Top Troubleshooting Tools
I’ve been working on this piece for weeks. Here’s a sample:
Today’s conventional wisdom, based on more than a year’s worth of relentless negative publicity, says Vista is hopelessly broken. In fact, my experience says the exact opposite is true. I proved the point in the first installment of this series, where I restored a sluggish $2500 Sony Vaio notebook to peak performance in a few hours. And I think anyone with a modicum of PC smarts can do the same.
In 2008, there is no excuse for a PC maker to ship a Vista-based system that is anything less than fast and reliable. Sadly, many of them still do a terrible job, loading new PCs (especially notebooks) with outdated drivers, crapware, and overbearing security software that can result in a terrible Vista experience.
If you unbox a new PC and it performs like a slug, you’re likely to just live with the frustration (and maybe even blog about it), because everyone knows that Vista sucks. Right?
Wrong.
I believe you have every right to expect excellent performance from Windows Vista, and I’m going to back that conclusion in today’s post, the latest in my Fixing Vista series, with details on how to use Vista’s built-in tools to find and fix the problems that stand between you and an excellent Vista experience.
I’ve also put together a screenshot gallery illustrating all the tools and techniques I discuss:
The Ultimate Vista Troubleshooting Toolkit
If you’ve got comments or questions, leave them here and I’ll try to answer them as soon as I can.
FredsRead, you make no sense at all.
I have dozens of thumb drives here. They all work in Vista. So I don’t get that at all.
Any WiFi router will work with Vista, because they use a web-based interface. Again, what on earth are you talking about?
Most printers have drivers for Vista. All-in-ones are a major exception, because they contain scanners. If you don’t need that function, then a generic printer driver should work. If I had an AIO device or a scanner, I would investigate the driver situation before choosing to upgrade.
But otherwise the objections you’re raising don’t match up with my real-world experience.
Thanks for the heads up to check for misbehaving drivers. I got the old “Drinvers are interferring with sleep…” thingy. Turns out there are two different dates listed for the drivers. One in Device Manager and the other date is in the drop down dialog in the troubleshooter. Then, the driver from Lenovo has yet a third date! Oh well…the only problem I’ve ever had is my ThinkPad will go back into hibernate unless I show some sort of activity with the computer within a few seconds. Always been that way.
Also, a Canon camera driver misbehaved till I removed the driver and then had Vista plant it again.
My point is….Vista is doing pretty well, but not well enough to “walk on water”.
Hibernate has always taken a long time in and out with Vista. I can only attribute that to all the toys Vista has to put on the shelf before it can hibernate vs. fewer things to stash in XP.
Ed:
I got Vista with a new laptop. Love the new search feature on the Start button; I just type the name of the program I want, and I get a list of options. Quick and painless. Now when applications ask where in the Start menu to put their shortcuts, I ignore the question and accept the defaults. (In 95 through XP, I would, whenever possible, force the shortcuts into subcategories, like Hardware or Research or Internet — and then cuss out programmers like the Google team who assume each program must be one click under All Programs.)
One huge pet peeve already, and I’ve had this new system for just a couple of weeks: How the dickens are you supposed to update older copies of files?
In XP, select the files to be copied, press Ctrl+C. Switch to the folder to put them in and press Ctrl+V. When asked whether to overwrite, choose “y” or “a” for “yes” or “all.” (Or choose “n” or “N” for “no” or “None.” And the Space bar is the same as Yes.) Done. Don’t even have to look at the screen if I’ve designated hot keys for folders.
In Vista, select the files, copy them with Ctrl+C, switch to the destination, and press Ctrl+V. So far, so good. But now you’re asked three questions, and you have to tick a check box if you’re copying more than one file. As far as I can tell, the shortest way to answer the prompt with the keyboard is Shift+Tab, Shift+Tab, Space, Shift+Tab, Shift+Tab, Shift+Tab, Space.
Vista requires seven keystrokes to XP’s single keystroke.
Is there something obvious I’m missing here? I mean, granted, the dialog is much more clear to the newbie user, but for those of us who know what we’re doing, this is awful.
Frankly, I suspect this dialog was created by the same keybo-phobes who designed the Shutdown options in Millennium. “Shutdown” and “Standby” both start with S, and if one is selected, then pressing S toggles the choice for you, so you can’t simply choose one from habit as you could in 95 and 98.
Sorry to rant, but I really despise programmers who despise keyboarders.
So anyway, other than creating a boatload of batch files or a command prompt, what’s the best way around this antiuser obstacle?
– Tim
Any WiFi router will work with Vista, because they use a web-based interface.
Well, except Apple’s at least. Apple uses an application to set its router settings, and of course, unless you have the newest “Airport” Wifi router (the one with 802.11n support), the application won’t install or run in Vista. (Even more obnoxious is that the new application with the new router can control the older routers as well, but Apple doesn’t post that application on their website. Unless you can hack it out of one of their updates, you have to buy a new router. That is the near opposite of user/customer friendly image Apple tries to cultivate in its marketing.)
Yes, I had Apple’s old router. I wound up buying a new one — from Linksys.
I think too many times people blame bad hardware or bad software on the OS. I use XP Pro at work on my laptop and Vista Ultimate at home. I’m a firm believer that anyone who buys a new personal PC should get Vista. The features and benefits are evident (security, reliability, updated apps). If you have XP and you’re happy, it’s fine to stay with it but it doesn’t justify you bashing Vista. My wife wouldn’t give up Vista MCE for the world.
Ben
@Joe:
> For example, I can tab into the address bar of explorer and type the path I want to go to, which I can not do in Vista.
As Ed pointed out, you can press Tab until the focus is in the address bar and then press Space, but there’s an even easier way: Press Alt+D.
That jumps directly to the address bar (you don’t need to press Tab multiple times) and selects the entire address, which you can type over or edit. This also works in Internet Explorer — and it works in XP.
>>”Microsoft gave us Vista with no rhyme or reason to changes. They are basically just for the sake of change.”
>
> I emphatically disagree. I have met with many of the people who designed Windows Vista. I understand why they did what they did, and to say they did it for no reason implied they are stupid.
Well, they and their employer bear that burden of proof to the rest of us then, don’t they?
When Microsoft make UI/OS changes–e.g., MS-Office 2007’s “ribbon” interface–without taking the initiative to explain why in clear and unequivocal language (like, say, a company which actually had respect for their customers would), what other conclusion should we draw from that fact than “Oh, here are these changes which we unilaterally made because we can; you have no choice; resistance is futile“? If that’s not the impression Microsoft wish to convey, then Microsoft–and no others–bear the burden of correcting it.
Think of it as a test of character.
“When Microsoft make UI/OS changes–e.g., MS-Office 2007’s “ribbon” interface–without taking the initiative to explain why in clear and unequivocal language…”
The director of that project, Jensen Harris, wrote dozens of blog posts explaining the process and rationale of the Ribbon design. Just the way a company that respects its customers should.
There is a Windows Media version here, as well as a PowerPoint presentation, and a PDF file:
http://blogs.msdn.com/jensenh/archive/2008/03/12/the-story-of-the-ribbon.aspx
Here is an index of all the posts:
http://blogs.msdn.com/jensenh/pages/table-of-contents.aspx
Honestly, the level of discussion and transparency about this redesign is extraordinary, far beyond any project I’ve ever seen from any software company. That you pick this example is ironic.
Ed,
I just upgraded from vista basic to vista premium hoping for a faster laptop. Well, lately my computer is slower than before and my home computer has the same vista but it runs faster and it’s loaded with more programs! I love to play games and use online ones too so i need a computer that supports them. Is there anyway that I can make my windows vista premium faster?
Sorry, I really don’t have an easy answer for that question. You need to find the thing that’s slowing you down and remove it. Simple to day, perhaps hard to do.