Vista Cost question???

[brasscorpion]

Very easy.

Will Vista become more expensive as service pack versions are released???

If I want to run Vista, should I buy it now and then just install the service pack when they become available???

I thought XP pro was like 400.00 when it first came out. Why is vista only like 139.00 on newegg for the OEM version.

Seems pretty cheap to me? Also if I buy the OEM version that is a 1 shot install...does that mean I can't put it on my childs computer and mine. What if I just buy straight retail...how many comps can I install it on???

Thanks in advance.

Brass

 

[zacdl]

Very easy.

Will Vista become more expensive as service pack versions are released???

No, but it won't get cheaper until next year, either.

If I want to run Vista, should I buy it now and then just install the service pack when they become available???

If everything you have will work They won't add SP1 to the Vista Install Disc, so either way you will end up having to install it.
Did you run the compatibility advisor?
The main things to look for are printers and other external devices. If you have a mid-higher end card of some sort, the driver issues may be a, well, issue.

I thought XP pro was like 400.00 when it first came out. Why is vista only like 139.00 on newegg for the OEM version.

I suggest doing some reading about OEM versions. Vista also has way more options as far as what version you get.

Seems pretty cheap to me? Also if I buy the OEM version that is a 1 shot install...does that mean I can't put it on my childs computer and mine. What if I just buy straight retail...how many comps can I install it on???

Legally, only one at a time.

Technically OEM can only work with your current hardware. There have been other stories, though- there is a rather long OEM thread floating around here somewhere you may want to check out as well.

 

[Catweazle]

...They won't add SP1 to the Vista Install Disc, so either way you will end up having to install it....

Got any basis for that assumption, or is it just your own? If Microsoft don't end up producing an updated installation DVD later on, after Service Packs have been released, it'd be the first time they've taken that path for any Windows release.



In response to the original question:

Will Vista become more expensive as service pack versions are released???

No. Official 'recommended price' remains rather constant, even after the next version is released. It'll become easier to find good prices from retailers as time goes by, though.

If I want to run Vista, should I buy it now and then just install the service pack when they become available???

As mentioned, run the Vista Upgrade Advisor] to determine compatibility with your system and software library. Check the results closely, and do a bit of homework to ensure that suitable device drivers and/or software program updates are available to meet your requirements. Don't assume that everything you currently have will work seamlessly under Vista.

There's nothing major about Vista which requires a 'Service Pack', but there are numerous hardware/software compatibility issues which are still being addressed. Most of the "wait until the Service Pack' advice you see really relates to that. By the time Service Pack release comes around most of those compatibility issues will have been addressed. It's a 'timing' thing more than anything else. If you don't have any major compatibility issues you can make the jump now with a fair degree of confidence. If you have some reservations you could install Vista alongside XP as a dual-boot, use it for most of your activity and gain proficiency with it, and reboot into XP only for those tasks in which you encounter compatibility issues still.

It's your choice, and there are a number of ways you could approach it.

I thought XP pro was like 400.00 when it first came out. Why is vista only like 139.00 on newegg for the OEM version.

There are numerous versions and pricing structures. Try reading [url=http://www.techwrighter.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=53&Itemid=27]this article, which I wrote some time back to explain it all. That article is now a tad outdated in that:

• Vista doesn't include the Upgrade CD check for earlier versions in the way XP and earlier Windows versions did. You can still do a clean install with an upgrade disk, though, by using one workaround or another!
• The eventual asking prices for Vista were a bit higher than was earlier anticipated.

Other than that, though, the information in the article should give you a clearer understanding of purchase alternatives and how they impact on cost.

Seems pretty cheap to me? Also if I buy the OEM version that is a 1 shot install...does that mean I can't put it on my childs computer and mine. What if I just buy straight retail...how many comps can I install it on???

All Windows licenses are "one machine at a time only" arrangements, other than 'Volume licensing' arrangements. You've never been legally allowed to do that, even back in the Windows 3.1/Windows 95/Windows 98 etc days, when no checks were included to ensure that you didn't do it. One license per machine is the arrangement you pay for.

 

[zacdl]

Got any basis for that assumption, or is it just your own? If Microsoft don't end up producing an updated installation DVD later on, after Service Packs have been released, it'd be the first time they've taken that path for any Windows release.

I guess I should have re-worded that. The key of what you say is "later on", which is what I was talking about.

It took MS a bit to start shipping SPs on install disks. I just wasn't going to let the OP think as soon as it comes out he could go run out and buy it so quickly.


The bottom line with Vista:
If everything you have works, upgrade.

All the FUD that gets spread around is just designed to sway you, thus the whole definition and purpose of FUD.
When I first started using Vista, I was scared- lemme tell you. All the junk I heard that was wrong with it, I made darn sure I still had my XP disc ready before I installed Vista.
So much of it is unfounded lies (I'm not saying Vista is perfect by any means)... All I can say, is try it and see for yourself. Don't beleive anyone, just try it.

Run the Upgrade Advisor as well as searching online for your printer, etc (Search for like Dell A920 Vista, and see what people are saying about it working under Vista).
As well as your scanner and other external devices, as they seem to be the most troublesome.

 

[l3ender]

I thought Service Packs were always free.

 

[LhasaCM]

I thought Service Packs were always free.

They are free downloads. What is being discussed here is the availability of a commercially pressed slipstreamed installation CD/DVD of Windows, typically made for OEMs. (For example, you can buy Windows XP w/SP2 OEM from NewEgg.)