Not very sure with the problem. But, you might want to try turning off IE7's protected mode to see whether the problem still persists.

Currently, forceware version 101.41 is the most stable version. And, do not expect too much as the driver is still in its beta stages. Besides, i'm also experiencing some reduction in framerates while running NFS:Carbon on Windows Vista as opposed to on Windows XP. I think this is mainly attributed by Windows Vista's management of memory usage through the SuperFetch feature. With that, Windows Vista uses more memory to enhance user's experience by caching recently used applications. Therefore, there is not much memory left to be allocated for games. Thus, resulting in lower performance on games.

Really?



Anyway, i just found out that by disabling Desktop Composition specifically through the compatibility options does give a significant boost on 3D intensive applications. Doing this will disable Aero while you are running let's say NFS:Carbon. Leaving you behind with a temporary GUI of Windows Vista Basic. And, when NFS:Carbon is close, Desktop Composition (Aero) will be enabled again. Hence, this could give you a temporary boost in performance while you are running a game.

This is what you could do:

1. Click on the Vista Start button and at the search box, type in the filename of the executable that you would want to run under a non-Aero environment.
2. Right-click on the selected file and select "Properties".
3. Click on the "Compatibility" tab. At the "Settings" section, place a checkmark on the "Disable desktop composition" checkbox.
4. Click "OK".
5. Now, whenever you run the selected application, Aero will be disabled.

Since the index files is saved in the "<systemdrive>:\ProgramData\Microsoft" directory, you could check the size of the indexed files by enumerating the size of the "ProgramData" folder. Note that the "ProgramData" folder is hidden by default, thus you need to enable Windows to show hidden files and folders in order to view it.

IMO, it is normal for your drive's available capacity to change dynamically over time since Windows Vista index files dynamically.

Anyway, there are more options about indexing available through control panel. Just navigate to "System and Maintenance -> Indexing Options" and you could customize the indexing option that suits you.

How do you defined downgrade? You mean removing Vista completely and using your existing Windows XP as the default OS?

If that's what you mean, then take a look here.

As for your second question, you can install Windows XP and Windows Vista on the same HDD provided you install them on different partitions. And, note that the partition in which Windows Vista is going to be installed must not be a partition labeled as dynamic disk and also, it must be a primary partition, not an extended partition. Else, errors will occur during installation.

There is no problem running foobar itself on windows vista. But, should you use any foobar plugins, please download all the latest version instead. Else, there may be errors causing foobar to crash.

Since that's the case, go "Start" and type cmd at the search box. Press <Enter>. At the prompt, type in netsh wlan show networks. <Enter>. Verify whether there is any SSID detected in the output. Else, at the command prompt, type in netsh wlan show all > "%userprofile%\Desktop\test.txt"&"%userprofile%\Desktop\test.txt". Press <Enter>. You will be presented with a text file. Post the output here.

Nope. You can enable the internet activity indication. All you need to do is right-click on the internet connection tray icon and select "Turn on activity animation".

An update from winhec:


Source: http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=447

Snapshot :http://www.winfuture.de/news,31801.html


Just wondering why Vista SP1 has the same build number (6001) as that of Windows Longhorn Server. Besides, if you have not noticed, previous service pack that Microsoft released does not increase the prefix build number if it is being installed. But, for Vista, it is increase from 6000(RTM) to 6001(SP1). Itching to know the reasons, I did some research.

Maybe this could be the reason?
Source

I am currently using this visual style by Jemaho. Just download it. It is not the visual style alone that is included, it also includes the modified uxtheme.dll and full instructions on how to get your uxtheme.dll patched (manually). Too bad it is not a patcher. Hence, you have to do it manually.

Yeah. I have been using Vista's voice recognition for quite a while. I thought that it is worthwhile trying since i have a microphone connected to my pc. Everything went well during the initial steps. But, when it comes to giving commands, it is painfully hard. I have to speak really loud and yet, Vista still fails to recognise what i'm trying to say. For example, i wanted to say 'cmd' at the search box and for no reason, Vista output the words as 'camd'. Since you can correct words by saying "Correct <the wrong word or letter>", i said "Correct am" and it add some words to the existing 'camd'. It makes me look like an idiot shouting at the computer and the results are really disappointing. If i were to continue doing that for months, i think my throat will be a goner. However, what Microsoft claims is that you have to speak more frequently to your pc so that Vista could adapt to the way you speak which in turn could boost voice recognition.

Shadow copies are copies of previous version of files that Vista made so that you could restore them in an event the new version has problem.



Go to "Start" and type cleanmgr at the search box. Press <Enter>. Then, select "Files from all users on this computer" and select the volume which you want to clean up the restore points or shadow copies from. Once you are being presented by the disk cleanup window, click on the "More Options" tab. Under the "System Restore and Shadow Copies" section, click the "Clean up..." button. Then, click "Delete" on the confirmation dialog box.

Yes. Disabling system restore will effectively disable shadow copy as well.



You can do that only by using the vssadmin command line tool under an elevated command prompt. It also lets you set the storage allocated for system restore too. Strangely, there is no option for you to change it through the GUI as opposed to in Windows XP.

The only option would be to enable physical address extension in Vista if several conditions to do so are met. However, there are known issues with drivers as shown here.

By typing the following command in an elevated command prompt, PAE will be enabled.

bcdedit /set pae forceenable

This post has been edited by mystical zero: Jun 14 2007, 04:23 PM

Indeed, it is more secure as compared to its predecessor, Windows XP. I would say this is mainly attributed by Microsoft's adoption of SDL which prioritize the integrity of software development. But, still, no matter how secure is Windows Vista, one should note that there are many applications and device drivers out there which contain exploitable vulnerabilities. Therefore, i would say that even though Vista is less likely to be targeted directly, these attacks could still be directed through common software applications such as Microsoft Office. Worse, since Windows have a large base of software applications, I can foresee that such attacks are becoming more prominent.

There's no such thing as Vista Scanning Wizard. But, there is one very useful application namely Windows Fax and Scan. It came preinstalled with Vista but only available for Ultimate, Business or Corporate Edition. It is accessible from the Start Menu. If you are using other versions of Vista, fear not. You could import images from your scanner by using Windows Photo Gallery. Just fire up Windows Photo Gallery and click on "File" --> "Import from Camera or Scanner...".

Opps. My mistake.

This post has been edited by mystical zero: Oct 8 2007, 02:44 PM

Is the "Remember each folder's view settings" option checked under Folder Options's View tab?

Yes for your first question. There will be an option during boot.

As for games, most of the time you will need to install it again in Vista since both OSes are independent and they don't share the same registry information for the games to run. Besides, most games store their settings and user configuration data in %appdata%. Because %appdata% in Vista and XP refers to the different location and they don't share the same structure, there are surely some discrepancies in which the game will fail to load from its previous playing state. Well, I can't say all games are the same as some games like Counter Strike do let you run directly from another OS's installation path. Nevertheless, the best bet is still to install it again in Vista.

On the other hand, audio and video files can be played regardless of where the files resides on as long as you have the appropriate permission to read them.

Open Control Panel --> Programs and Features --> Turn Windows features on or off --> Tick 'Games' --> 'OK'.