Windows XP

stusy wrote on 2/15/2003, 11:35 AM
Can anyone really say that they are better off after having upgraded to XP from wherever..? and using the sofo apps...? I mean, I see 98SE is the bottom tier for support now, and it's shelf life is about up, but really, so what..! yeah, XP can handle more memory, etc., does it handle sofo products better..? smoother..? faster..? with less glitch..? I know there are other factors that will always contend here; my setup is fairly current: 1.7MHz AMD, 512DDRam, 98se, AW2 card (modest but almost free of errors for MME based stuff), 2 hard drives @7200...I mean, 98SE has been rock solid...if it's working then why change, right...?

Comments

drbam wrote on 2/15/2003, 11:54 AM
If you're happy with what you've got then its difficult to consider switching. As you noted however, the world of PC audio is moving quickly to XP and one SoFo tech posted here recently that he wished everyone would move to XP. Since I'm committed to using SoFo apps, that was the final event to motivate me to move from 98SE to XP. I'm stunned at the improvement in overall stability - XP actually "feels" more stable and there is very clear evidence of performance improvement. Its almost as if I picked up another 3-4 hundred mhz of processor speed (I'm using an AMD T-Bird 1.3). And, as you know, many new apps aren't even supporting 98 anymore and this trend will only increase. Obviously I'd encourage you to make the switch. If you do, be sure to follow optimizing guidelines. It will make a world of difference.

drbam
stusy wrote on 2/15/2003, 5:06 PM
Optimizing guidelines...? where is that..? I mean specifically for sofo stuff..? would that be on the site somewhere..thanks for the reply, I know I'm "old news"...
stakeoutstudios wrote on 2/15/2003, 5:11 PM
I recently switched to XP when I upgraded. with all the latest patches and drivers... it's solid as a rock. Much better than Win98 SE.

Looks better, feels better, behaves better...

Jason
Chienworks wrote on 2/15/2003, 5:45 PM
The majority of my XP anxiety is due to the new user interface, which i find to be terribly annoying. I don't want another layer of fluff between me and what the computer is doing. Fortunately, as i continue to use XP i'm finding ways to shut more and more of that stuff off and i now have XP looking very similar to the way 98SE did ... streamlined and functional.

I did the XP upgrade and Vegas 4 upgrade nearly simultaneously, so i'm not sure if these changes are due more to one or the other, but i have noticed a definate increase in speed. Most notably, the peak drawing function feels like it's twice as fast as before, and rendering times for MPEG and WMV have dropped 20 to 30%.

I also only need to reboot a couple of times a week now, instead of a couple of times a day. XP seems much better at handling and releasing system resources.
drbam wrote on 2/15/2003, 6:11 PM
Go to his site and follow the optimizing guidelines exactly. Everything you need to know is here. http://www.musicxp.net/

drbam

Geoff_Wood wrote on 2/15/2003, 6:47 PM
SF products have always been optimised for NT OSs, i've seen claimed.

XP new user interface, yeah ghastly - just switch to the 'Classic' one !

XP tips at :
http://www.blkviper.com/WinXP/servicecfg.htm
http://www.musicxp.net/installing_tips.htm
http://www.nemesysmusic.com/support/W2k_XP_Optimize.pdf
http://www.musicxp.net/installing_tips.htm

geoff