Another Win XP SP2 Topic

[aleph_null1]

Originally posted by Bozos of Bones: ... don't bother installing this for atleast 6 months untill they clean out all the bugs on compatibility and such.

Uuummm... they've not cleaned out the bugs & such on SP1 yet

Bozo's advice earlier up is as sound as it gets, though, everyone. The major problems with SP2 that I've run into with my people (I'm in something of a tech support position currently) have been with device driver corruption. The NIC is the first thing to go, followed by video & then storage media.

Put SP2 on a CLEAN Windows install -- if there is such a thing -- and then redo all your hardware & software device drivers, and you should be OK. (Yes, it does sound like a lot of work; it is; consider doing nothing, as SP2 really isn't that cool...)

[Animal]

I'm not sure why all the paranoia regarding SP2, it works fine.

[WillowIX]

I thought I'd give SP2 a go this weekend. At least I have a computer expert to help me when I start to cry and rage when things go bad.

Will be a clean install with SP2 integrated. If things should get out of hand there's always reliable old Windows 2000 to install instead.

[Bahamut]

Okay... Animal care to explain..?

[shamrock_uk]

Damn, I love Windows 2000. Would never have left it, but XP adds a nice few touches like driver rollback etc and once you disable all the cartoon crap it still looks respectable. Don't touch XP Home edition though if you can avoid it.

And Animal is quite correct, the majority of users do not experience problems with SP2. But a significant minority (and when considering Microsoft market share, read millions) do experience problems - the internet is full of page after page of them.

I can add two more SP2 grumbles since my last post. 1) When you uninstall it, in typical Microsoft fashion it's by no means a complete uninstall. 2) I had real problems getting bluetooth devices to work, and judging by the wealth of posts on the matter, it is not an isolated problem.

[Animal]

Originally posted by Bahamut: Okay... Animal care to explain..?

If you're running XP or any variation on a sub-par machine, it's your own fault.
If you're using old hardware, it's your own fault.
If you don't set up your computer properly, by installing the correct drivers in the correct order, it's your own fault.
If you don't know what you're doing, it's your own fault.

I've set up SP2 on various different machines with different hardware configurations and have had absolutely no problems, however, all the machines have hardware built in the last 2-3 years.

SP2 has not increased boot times and I've had absolutely no compatibility problems with any software.

If you're running anything less than a 1GHZ CPU with 512MB DDR and a 7200rpm HD then you either go play with the kids using 9x, or step up to the plate and buy some hardware.

EDIT: After installing any Service Pack, immediately re-install your motherboard drivers followed by your video card drivers. DO NOT install your video card drivers before your motherboard drivers. Install XP first, followed by SP2 and any updates, then your motherboard drivers followed lastly by your video card drivers. Install whatever you want after that.

[ 11-04-2004, 08:13 PM: Message edited by: Animal ]

[Animal]

I will admit that a limited few have experienced minor problems but the majority of these issues can be traced to either old or outdated hardware, cutting edge hardware, or improper installation procedures.

[aleph_null1]

Originally posted by Animal: I will admit that a limited few have experienced minor problems but the majority of these issues can be traced to either old or outdated hardware, cutting edge hardware, or improper installation procedures.

All very true, Animal. The video cards my people have suck -- nothing to be done about it, I'm afraid; government contracts are great -- and installation was in early August and haphazard at best.

Now, that said, there's no excuse for a fairly simple OS update to cause machines to die horribly because of shoddy hardware, nor any reason to reinstall every device driver on every box after a group migration.

[Animal]

Originally posted by aleph_null1: quote: Originally posted by Animal: I will admit that a limited few have experienced minor problems but the majority of these issues can be traced to either old or outdated hardware, cutting edge hardware, or improper installation procedures.

All very true, Animal. The video cards my people have suck -- nothing to be done about it, I'm afraid; government contracts are great -- and installation was in early August and haphazard at best.

Now, that said, there's no excuse for a fairly simple OS update to cause machines to die horribly because of shoddy hardware, nor any reason to reinstall every device driver on every box after a group migration. [/QUOTE]True, however MS can't be held responsible for EVERY single possible hardware configuration out there. They must program for the most common, or the most current. Chances are SP2, won't over-write any existing drivers, however if they are dated prior to SP2, chances are they will. If people don't keep drivers up to date, it's hardly MS's fault. [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Bozos of Bones]

Well that's just stupid. Not everyone lives in a pink little world where you can buy new top-of-the-line computer just to install a damned patch, as that is what it really is! M$ should have built a reliable update, even if that meant holding it from release for another few months or even a year. But that's what you get when you allow someone to monopolize the market.