Solved: Windows Me vs Windows XP

[John Burns]

I am probably opening up a "can of worms" here - but, I am curious - does anyone think it is worth the time and $ to upgrade from Windows ME to Windows XP Home Edition? I have Windows ME on my older computer, but I have XP on the newer computer. I am considering putting XP on the older computer just to have some consistency. Are there any other compelling reasons to do so? Just want to justify my time and money. LOL.

 

[Jtoast]

Yes.

Run far and fast from Windows ME. In my opinion ME is by far the worst OS that Microsoft ever sold.

XP is much more stable and makes much more efficient use of available memory, boots and shuts down faster, etc.

The only reasons NOT to upgrade in my opinion if your computer has older hardware that is not supported by XP (older scanners, printers, video cards, etc) or if you have some bit of software that absolutely will not run on xp.


You may also need to upgrade the amount of RAM in your older computer to run XP at a decent speed. I suggest having at least 256MB RAM and 512 is better. If you have only 64MB you may be better off waiting until you can upgrade the machine a little before you switch over.

EDIT:

If you havent bought a copy of XP for the new computer yet, I would suggest buying an OEM copy of XP home instead of the retail.

You will pay around $100.00 for it....about the price of the retail upgrade version.

 

[BTS '76]

I agree with Jtoast, ME is the worst o/s from microsoft. Definately upgrade to XP.

You may even wanna consider win 2000 or xp pro instead of xp home.

 

[Davey7549]

John
As you see you will get many that think WinME stinks and you will get others that have absolutely no problems with it as I. We are currently running many machines with WinME and not a one has had problems other than self inflicted by improper downloads and installs.
If your WinME machine has not had any problems and currently does not..... what is the point of upgrade other than your statement of continuity.

Dave

 

[ridgerunner]

John

I agree with Davey. Do what you feel like. I run XP on one machine and ME on another and really feel more comfortable with ME.

 

[John Burns]

Thanks for the replies - The computer which I am thinking about upgrading to XP does have plenty of resources - it is a Gateway Select 1200 megahertz AMD Athlon, with 512MB memory. The only area I am concerned about - is the CPU useage at the present time - PitStop tests indicate it is running anywhere from 35% to 85%. I haven't had problems, but someone suggested XP might help in this regard. Other than the test results, it is doing okay - I do regular virus scan, disk scan, defragment, spybot search, etc. which probably helps too. Think I will probably upgrade to XP - Amazon has it for $89 with free shipping. Thanks again.

 

[Davey7549]

John
Well then before you do, locate the system check utility Microsoft offers online that verifies the compatibility of system and peripherals to WinXP requirements and compatability. This will give you some idea if you are going to run into problems.

Dave

 

[Davey7549]

John
Took a bit but here is the compatability checker I mentioned.

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/howtobuy/upgrading/advisor.asp

Dave

 

[John Burns]

Thanks, Davey - I had already searched, found and ran the advisor - appreciate you bringing it to my attention. Per the Upgrade Report, it seems my printer, network adapter and jamcam may need some software updates. Also, seem to have a little software to remove (clock-in control panel, hpinfo-Windows folder, PC-Doctor for Windows 3.0, speech-in control panel and uninstallsoftware-on start menu). Also, have programs which will be disabled during set-up (Gateway Resource Assistant, Instant Wireless LAN Monitor and TxClockEx-all startup programs). And of course my Millennium back-up files should be copied since they will be removed during setup. Looks like pretty thorough report with good explanations and directions to follow. Thanks again for the suggestiion.

 

[Davey7549]

Good Luck then John and lets us know how it went.

Dave