The Trouble with Vista

It took a while to get out of the starting blocks, and when it did, Vista stumbled. Here are 12 reasons why its struggling, and five possible ways to get it back on its feet.

1) It is a resource pig that doesnt deliver enough bacon. With a new OS that got as much ink as Vista, youd expect to see a significant bump in things like PC sales. But according to most analysts, theres been no impact at all.

2) Promises of substantially better security were a lie. Microsoft promised enhanced security in Vista, but problems—such as the recent spat of driver vulnerabilities—continue to dog the operating system

3) Software application incompatibility. Its unfriendly to some VPNs. And it has trouble getting along with IE 7.

4) Too much dumb complexity. Shutdown is now a multi-step effort. User Account Control is a pain in the rump. The list goes on.

5) Hardware incompatibilities still abound. Microsoft rolled out the Vista Capable program in March 2006, but consumers found out that not all versions of Vista could run on the computers. Some sued. Microsoft was late issuing system requirements, and the

6) Cost. Microsoft went for what consumers would buy rather than what they needed, so in many instances, users are paying more for fewer features. Windows Vista Home Basic? It offers fewer capabilities for the same amount of money as Windows XP Home. Vist

7) Slow performance even on high-end systems. Gamers are disabling many features on Vista in order to improve the game performance.

8) No compelling reasons to upgrade from XP. XP is good enough, and Vista doesnt offer enough compelling enhancements.

9) Too much like Windows XP. Five years after its release, XP is rock-solid and has a large base of customers who feel it is good enough for them. Vista isnt enough of an improvement to make them crave the new OS.

10) People buy PCs, not operating systems.

11) Vista PCs are just like XP PCs. Why would users want to spend more money and make a change?

12) Most new Vista features can be gotten free for XP on the Web.

1) One version to rule them all. More than a dozen versions of Vista? Why not have one and make everyone happy?

2) Package all features for one reasonable price. Dont make the users have to work so hard to get Vista.

3) Advertise! iPhone ads are everywhere, even on late-night cable. Vista was there, and then was gone.

4) Release Service Pack 1. Please, as soon as possible.

5) Give the software away, to some people, anyway. Get people working with it, and let them be your voice to the rest of the population.

So, what is the bottom line, according to two of our bloggers who follow the space?

Microsoft cant fix the problem. Windows Vista is labeled a lemon and no amount of marketing is going to fix that. -Joe Wilcox, Microsoft Watch

See more slideshows like this one!

• Dos and Donts for Vista and Office 2007