Windows XP...any opinions??

Memnoch · 01-03-2002, 09:35 AM

I just upgraded my system and by and large everything seems to work ok EXCEPT:

My Canon digital camera doesn't work and the updated Canon drivers don't seem to do anything.
My printer doesn't work (dammit!)
My firewall doesn't work (BlackIce). I had to get ZoneAlarm which is the most neurotic, anal firewall EVER.

Aside from that all *seem* to be working well...BG2 slowed down a lot and I had to switch off 3D to get it back to where it was. Overall it seems a hell of a lot more resource-hungry, and I'm not seeing that vaunted stability it supposedly has. Twice now my system has hung while trying to log off - I don't think XP likes it if two users are logged on at the same time.

Also, my virtual memory seems to get used up a lot more quickly. FYI I have a P4 1.5Ghz, 128Mb of RAM, 20Gb HD, 32Mb Video RAM.

I guess I'll get used to it.

Zeeke75 · 01-03-2002, 12:31 PM

Memnoch,

Which version of XP are you using - Home or Professional? I'm currently using Professional on about a half-dozen machines, and I have had little or no problems on any of them. I've heard that Home is a little less stable that Pro, but I haven't used Home that much yet.

My system is a P3 733, 384 MB RAM, and a 32 MB video card, and all of my applications seem faster than they were under Win 98, Win ME or Win2k.

Memnoch · 01-03-2002, 01:17 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Zeeke75:
Memnoch,

Which version of XP are you using - Home or Professional? I'm currently using Professional on about a half-dozen machines, and I have had little or no problems on any of them. I've heard that Home is a little less stable that Pro, but I haven't used Home that much yet.

My system is a P3 733, 384 MB RAM, and a 32 MB video card, and all of my applications seem faster than they were under Win 98, Win ME or Win2k.

I'm using Home. What's annoying is that there seems to be NO information on how to fix these problems. I must've tried to reinstall the HP drivers about 15 times, and the Canon ones about 10 times. I finally gave up because I got sick of it. I hope I don't have to deinstall and reinstall it!

Zeeke75 · 01-03-2002, 01:21 PM

I think you should upgrade to Pro!

As for the drivers, I would recommend completely uninstalling and removing the device from the system, get the latest drivers, then reconnecting the device. When it detects new hardware, update the drives then. But, you've prolly already tried that.

I've heard several people complain about the Home edition. Not as stable, not as functional, etc. If there is some way to "try out" a cope of Pro, I would highly recommend it.

MILAMBER · 01-03-2002, 01:26 PM

One thing you might want to watch out for is how many users you have on at the same time. Especially with only 128 megs or ram. Having multiple users on at a time really sucks up system resources. Say user1 has 3 programs open then logs off then user2 comes on and surfs the web you then have a total of 4 programs open. XP doesn't close out programs like previous versions of Windows have when you log off. It just keeps them running in a standby mode in the background. Have you got the latest drivers for you video card? All of my games scream on XP. I have also had no problems with stability either.

One thing you might want to think about is wiping your drive and doing a clean install. Just back up your stuff and do a fresh install. Upgrading is never the same. I'd bet a bunch of your problems go away if you do.

Memnoch · 01-03-2002, 01:33 PM

quote:
Originally posted by MILAMBER:
Have you got the latest drivers for you video card? All of my games scream on XP. I have also had no problems with stability either.

No...wasn't that meant to come with the XP upgrade? I thought Dell was supposed to sort all this out for me. [img]graemlins/wow.gif[/img]

quote:

One thing you might want to think about is wiping your drive and doing a clean install. Just back up your stuff and do a fresh install. Upgrading is never the same. I'd bet a bunch of your problems go away if you do.

Damn...I was hoping you wouldn't say that.

Zeeke75 · 01-03-2002, 01:37 PM

Sorry Mem, I have to agree. Upgrading with XP has caused more problems than it's worth. Doing a fresh install of XP seems to be the best way to get everything working.

Zeeke75 · 01-03-2002, 01:49 PM

Just out of curiosity, what model camera and printer do you have?

MILAMBER · 01-03-2002, 02:02 PM

XP gives you drivers that will give you full color and OK resolution for most video cards, but they are never as good as the manufacturers drivers. With me for example, on one PC I had an All-in-wonder Radeon, and windows booted for the first time with drivers that gave me full color and resolution, but the drivers XP gave me had no 3d support. You had to go download drivers that had OGL and D3D support.

I'm sure you will be able to get it all working, you just need to find newer drivers. What OS did you upgrade from? If you upgraded from any of the 9x systems, that will explain why you are having driver issues.

Memnoch · 01-03-2002, 02:09 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Zeeke75:
Just out of curiosity, what model camera and printer do you have?

Canon IXUS 300. I downloaded the drivers but either I've installed them incorrectly, or they are in the wrong place because it won't detect new hardware (it did when I FIRST plugged in the camera - before I had downloaded the drivers). Now it just beeps.

The printer is an HP Laserjet 5L Xtra. I'm dumbfounded as to why that one isn't working. It won't even print out a test page.

Do you have to physically disconnect and reconnect the connections from the computer?

01-03-2002, 09:35 AM	#1
Memnoch Ironworks Moderator Join Date: February 28, 2001 Location: Boston/Sydney Posts: 11,771	I just upgraded my system and by and large everything seems to work ok EXCEPT: My Canon digital camera doesn't work and the updated Canon drivers don't seem to do anything. My printer doesn't work (dammit!) My firewall doesn't work (BlackIce). I had to get ZoneAlarm which is the most neurotic, anal firewall EVER. Aside from that all seem to be working well...BG2 slowed down a lot and I had to switch off 3D to get it back to where it was. Overall it seems a hell of a lot more resource-hungry, and I'm not seeing that vaunted stability it supposedly has. Twice now my system has hung while trying to log off - I don't think XP likes it if two users are logged on at the same time. Also, my virtual memory seems to get used up a lot more quickly. FYI I have a P4 1.5Ghz, 128Mb of RAM, 20Gb HD, 32Mb Video RAM. I guess I'll get used to it. __________________

01-03-2002, 12:31 PM	#2
Zeeke75 Baaz Draconian Join Date: March 26, 2001 Location: Minnesota Age: 48 Posts: 740	Memnoch, Which version of XP are you using - Home or Professional? I'm currently using Professional on about a half-dozen machines, and I have had little or no problems on any of them. I've heard that Home is a little less stable that Pro, but I haven't used Home that much yet. My system is a P3 733, 384 MB RAM, and a 32 MB video card, and all of my applications seem faster than they were under Win 98, Win ME or Win2k. __________________ Always listen to your heart, for it will never lead you astray. The path may not be the easiest, but in the end, you will find happiness!

01-03-2002, 01:17 PM	#3
Memnoch Ironworks Moderator Join Date: February 28, 2001 Location: Boston/Sydney Posts: 11,771	quote: Originally posted by Zeeke75: Memnoch, Which version of XP are you using - Home or Professional? I'm currently using Professional on about a half-dozen machines, and I have had little or no problems on any of them. I've heard that Home is a little less stable that Pro, but I haven't used Home that much yet. My system is a P3 733, 384 MB RAM, and a 32 MB video card, and all of my applications seem faster than they were under Win 98, Win ME or Win2k. I'm using Home. What's annoying is that there seems to be NO information on how to fix these problems. I must've tried to reinstall the HP drivers about 15 times, and the Canon ones about 10 times. I finally gave up because I got sick of it. I hope I don't have to deinstall and reinstall it! __________________

01-03-2002, 01:21 PM	#4
Zeeke75 Baaz Draconian Join Date: March 26, 2001 Location: Minnesota Age: 48 Posts: 740	I think you should upgrade to Pro! As for the drivers, I would recommend completely uninstalling and removing the device from the system, get the latest drivers, then reconnecting the device. When it detects new hardware, update the drives then. But, you've prolly already tried that. I've heard several people complain about the Home edition. Not as stable, not as functional, etc. If there is some way to "try out" a cope of Pro, I would highly recommend it. __________________ Always listen to your heart, for it will never lead you astray. The path may not be the easiest, but in the end, you will find happiness!

01-03-2002, 01:26 PM	#5
MILAMBER Lord Soth Join Date: March 5, 2001 Location: Southern California Posts: 1,948	One thing you might want to watch out for is how many users you have on at the same time. Especially with only 128 megs or ram. Having multiple users on at a time really sucks up system resources. Say user1 has 3 programs open then logs off then user2 comes on and surfs the web you then have a total of 4 programs open. XP doesn't close out programs like previous versions of Windows have when you log off. It just keeps them running in a standby mode in the background. Have you got the latest drivers for you video card? All of my games scream on XP. I have also had no problems with stability either. One thing you might want to think about is wiping your drive and doing a clean install. Just back up your stuff and do a fresh install. Upgrading is never the same. I'd bet a bunch of your problems go away if you do. __________________ \"The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.\"<br />-General George Patton (1885-1945)<br /> <br />Member of CLAN HADB<br />Founder of The Anti Clan Coalition

01-03-2002, 01:33 PM	#6
Memnoch Ironworks Moderator Join Date: February 28, 2001 Location: Boston/Sydney Posts: 11,771	quote: Originally posted by MILAMBER: Have you got the latest drivers for you video card? All of my games scream on XP. I have also had no problems with stability either. No...wasn't that meant to come with the XP upgrade? I thought Dell was supposed to sort all this out for me. [img]graemlins/wow.gif[/img] quote: One thing you might want to think about is wiping your drive and doing a clean install. Just back up your stuff and do a fresh install. Upgrading is never the same. I'd bet a bunch of your problems go away if you do. Damn...I was hoping you wouldn't say that. __________________

01-03-2002, 01:37 PM	#7
Zeeke75 Baaz Draconian Join Date: March 26, 2001 Location: Minnesota Age: 48 Posts: 740	Sorry Mem, I have to agree. Upgrading with XP has caused more problems than it's worth. Doing a fresh install of XP seems to be the best way to get everything working. __________________ Always listen to your heart, for it will never lead you astray. The path may not be the easiest, but in the end, you will find happiness!

01-03-2002, 01:49 PM	#8
Zeeke75 Baaz Draconian Join Date: March 26, 2001 Location: Minnesota Age: 48 Posts: 740	Just out of curiosity, what model camera and printer do you have? __________________ Always listen to your heart, for it will never lead you astray. The path may not be the easiest, but in the end, you will find happiness!

01-03-2002, 02:02 PM	#9
MILAMBER Lord Soth Join Date: March 5, 2001 Location: Southern California Posts: 1,948	XP gives you drivers that will give you full color and OK resolution for most video cards, but they are never as good as the manufacturers drivers. With me for example, on one PC I had an All-in-wonder Radeon, and windows booted for the first time with drivers that gave me full color and resolution, but the drivers XP gave me had no 3d support. You had to go download drivers that had OGL and D3D support. I'm sure you will be able to get it all working, you just need to find newer drivers. What OS did you upgrade from? If you upgraded from any of the 9x systems, that will explain why you are having driver issues. __________________ \"The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other bastard die for his.\"<br />-General George Patton (1885-1945)<br /> <br />Member of CLAN HADB<br />Founder of The Anti Clan Coalition

01-03-2002, 02:09 PM	#10
Memnoch Ironworks Moderator Join Date: February 28, 2001 Location: Boston/Sydney Posts: 11,771	quote: Originally posted by Zeeke75: Just out of curiosity, what model camera and printer do you have? Canon IXUS 300. I downloaded the drivers but either I've installed them incorrectly, or they are in the wrong place because it won't detect new hardware (it did when I FIRST plugged in the camera - before I had downloaded the drivers). Now it just beeps. The printer is an HP Laserjet 5L Xtra. I'm dumbfounded as to why that one isn't working. It won't even print out a test page. Do you have to physically disconnect and reconnect the connections from the computer? __________________

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