Stick with Windows XP on gaming computer?

N

nighthawk101

Limp Gawd
Joined
Feb 20, 2004
Messages
137
Im currently in Afghanistan, but will be home in a little over three months. I use Windows 7on my laptop and have had no issues with it at all. However, before coming over, I had been running XP x64 on my gaming computer. Is there any reason at all now NOT to upgrade that to W7? The reason I ask is that I still (not often, but some) get a few compatability issues with some programs on W7 (most recent issue is Empire: Total War had some issues installing. I finally got it and now it randomly crashes. I had no problems on xp x64) and I dont want that to be a problem with games.
 
some games [shattered horizon and just cause 2 and possibly a few other games] don't support XP and requires to have either vista or 7.
 
I would switch unless there is some old game you play that isn't compatible. There is an xp mode (like a virtual machine) for win 7 professional, but I don't know if you can play games in it.
 
Windows 7 64 Bit has been bullet proof for me so far, no problems whatsoever with any games.
 
Windows 7 x64 has far greater support than XP x64. It's based on Server 2003 x64 SP1 (when it went RTM) & will never see any further updates beyond security patches. I highly recommend that you switch to 7 due to better software & hardware support.
 
DeaconFrost said:
Dual booting is a dead tech. There's no reason to avoid Windows 7 for a gaming system.
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I know of one; Civ 4. I haven't been able to play it since I went 7x64.

It's highly dependent on the game you play. Any modern game will work under 7, but if you like some of the older ones it'll be hit or miss.
 
windows 7 without a doubt :) you'll be glad that you did


keep your head down and stay safe my friend
 
I have been using Win7 Ultimate 64 since beta, and have had no issue with any of the games I have installed to include TW: Empire. I have installed and played several "older" games with no issues also; installing the game under administrator and xp compatibility is a must on some games however.
Some of the “older” games include Max Payne 1&2, TW: Rome and Freelancer.
 
ZodaEX said:
Not true. Postal 2 and Starcraft 1 only run properly for me under XP.
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Dual-booting is still a dead tech. I was playing StarCraft 1 to get ready for StarCraft 2 earlier this summer. Virtualization has pretty much killed dual-booting...or duel-booting as you called it...which is actually more appropriate, because they duel with each other.
 
XOR != OR said:
I know of one; Civ 4. I haven't been able to play it since I went 7x64.

It's highly dependent on the game you play. Any modern game will work under 7, but if you like some of the older ones it'll be hit or miss.
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Strange, because I've been playing the heck out of Civ 4 on my Win 7 x64 install, including using mods. What kind of errors are you getting?
 
On several forums, I see people complaining about certain games not working, and then others claiming to have the same game running just fine, with workarounds posted.
 
Forceman said:
Strange, because I've been playing the heck out of Civ 4 on my Win 7 x64 install, including using mods. What kind of errors are you getting?
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Me too, I got it off of steam for $10 or so and it works fine on win7 x64 pro.
 
DeaconFrost said:
On several forums, I see people complaining about certain games not working, and then others claiming to have the same game running just fine, with workarounds posted.
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That's generally how it works. However, if you don't want the headache and you play older games ( an admittedly small "niche" ), then why go through the hassle of work arounds that may or may not work?

Use the right tool for the job.
 
XOR != OR said:
That's generally how it works. However, if you don't want the headache and you play older games ( an admittedly small "niche" ), then why go through the hassle of work arounds that may or may not work?

Use the right tool for the job.
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The biggest reason is because Win 7 is soooo much more secure than XP, the increased security is worth some small workaround hassles.
 
Forceman said:
The biggest reason is because Win 7 is soooo much more secure than XP, the increased security is worth some small workaround hassles.
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This.

I groan whenever someone who's still running XP calls me for help. About the only way it can get worse is if they're running Norton.
 
XOR != OR said:
I know of one; Civ 4. I haven't been able to play it since I went 7x64.

It's highly dependent on the game you play. Any modern game will work under 7, but if you like some of the older ones it'll be hit or miss.
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I've been able to play Civ4 since pre-beta on 7, not sure what the issues are. I'm also able to play starcraft. It seems odd that these two are called out, starcraft especially, as they are highly-played games.
 
Windows 7 64-bit, without a doubt. XP is a dinosaur and there is absolutely no reason to run it on a modern machine. I don't know why a few people still think it's somehow better, but then I guess there are people out there who still cling on to 98 or 2k and think it's still the best.
 
Jon55 said:
Windows 7 64-bit, without a doubt. XP is a dinosaur and there is absolutely no reason to run it on a modern machine. I don't know why a few people still think it's somehow better, but then I guess there are people out there who still cling on to 98 or 2k and think it's still the best.
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Well Dinosaurs are awesome so I don't understand your point. The people who cling to windows 98 are probably doing it for compatibility reasons. I doubt anyone thinks it's the best like you claim because win98 has memory leaks and isn't stable. With XP vs. 7, at least xp it's stable and if you know what your doing you rarely have to restart your pc for stability or spend hours attempting to get gaming fixes working. (i've been there.)
 
I run XP64 on most of my rigs. XP64 is not the same deal as the 32-bit version - it is a workstation version of Server 2003. I've found it rock solid, with the exception of a handful of GFWL titles - Dirt2 specifically, iTunes, and Borderlands. I've found that I've got drivers for all of my devices - and the same hardware runs better (faster and more stable) than the same rig with Win7. Go figure. You can't do DX10, so there are a few titles there you would probably miss out on too. For older games - especially stuff done for XP, XP is also more compatible. As for the security... all the tricks that work on Server 2003 work on XP64.

Win7 does have some smurfy stuff... but if all you are looking for is an OS to run your apps, it is a pretty disappointing upgrade from XP64. 32-bit XP... worth making the upgrade. Win7's drivers still feel a bit wonky to me - much like the early wonkyness that XP64 had initially.
 
I've only had two games not work: Republic Commando and StarCraft Brood War. The former crashes immediately and the latter crashes randomly in the middle of games.

My advice would be to make a list of games you play, then look to see if any of them have compatibility issues. Win7 is a should upgrade unless there's something that doesn't work at all. Also, Windows Virtual PC's 3D acceleration is nearly non-existent. Use something free like VirtualBox (I use that to play the original StarCraft and it runs fine).
 
ZodaEX said:
Well Dinosaurs are awesome so I don't understand your point. The people who cling to windows 98 are probably doing it for compatibility reasons. I doubt anyone thinks it's the best like you claim because win98 has memory leaks and isn't stable. With XP vs. 7, at least xp it's stable and if you know what your doing you rarely have to restart your pc for stability or spend hours attempting to get gaming fixes working. (i've been there.)
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You are doing it way, way wrong if W7 is not stable for you.
 
get w7, nothing like half the drivers needed preinstalled already and stuff

pluss the look it good too
 
ZodaEX said:
Well Dinosaurs are awesome so I don't understand your point. The people who cling to windows 98 are probably doing it for compatibility reasons. I doubt anyone thinks it's the best like you claim because win98 has memory leaks and isn't stable. With XP vs. 7, at least xp it's stable and if you know what your doing you rarely have to restart your pc for stability or spend hours attempting to get gaming fixes working. (i've been there.)
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Sorry bro but that sounds like user error to me. I think you need to quit telling the OP to not switch just because you have trouble with Win7 because everyone else will tell you (and the OP) that Windows 7 is the only Windows OS that should be running on a non-server computer.
 
munkle said:
I would switch unless there is some old game you play that isn't compatible. There is an xp mode (like a virtual machine) for win 7 professional, but I don't know if you can play games in it.
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When I setup XP Mode, it specifically stated that it would not work on 3D applications as the video driver installed is for a generic 4 or 8 MB card.

However, you should be able to play games on an XP VM if you install it of a win xp disk using VMware or other suitable VM software.

As far as me playing older games in Win 7 64bit, I have no problems whatsoever. I even play Unreal Tournament on it without issue.
 
if this was talking strictly about windows xp and you really had lot of old games i would say stick with windows xp. But from my experience running windows xp X64, I remember having a buttload of compatibility issues switching to xp x64 from xp (video-game wise).

so, if you're talking about:
xp -> win7 x64 , I would consider it for old games
xp x64 -> win7 x64 , no, just go with win7
 
Shadowssong said:
Sorry bro but that sounds like user error to me. I think you need to quit telling the OP to not switch just because you have trouble with Win7 because everyone else will tell you (and the OP) that Windows 7 is the only Windows OS that should be running on a non-server computer.
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User error with what? I'm not telling the OP to do anything.
 
Jon55 said:
You're right, it was even worse. XP64 was a joke from day 1. Why cling to an old, crappy OS?
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XP64 didn't have a good amount of support from vendors but I don't think its a bad OS.
 
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