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Screen shots: Experts give Vista advice

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    Caveat, dual-booter!

    Ask nine Windows experts for advice they’d give a user ready to make the jump to Windows Vista, and you get nine different pieces of advice. Here is a collection of Vista “gotchas” and tips from some of the most savvy Microsoft watchers out there.\r\n\r\n

    ZDNet Blogger and Windows Book Author Ed Bott: If you decide to go the dual-boot route, realize that XP and Vista use different formats for System Restore checkpoints.\r\n\r\n

    Credit: Ed Bott

  • Signed-driver error messages create confusion

    .Net Developer and 64-bit Expert Ryan Hoffman: “Instead of simply stopping the user from installing the driver in the first place, Vista’s otherwise improved error messages and diagnostics fail to help the user.”

    \r\n\r\nCredit: Ryan Hoffman

  • Backing up can be tricky

    .Net Developer and Windows-Now Founder Robert McLaws: If you are an NTBackup user, you need to take care in how you do your Vista backups.

    \r\n\r\nCredit: Robert McLaws

  • Vista Search interface is far from intuitive

    Tech Pundit Chris Pirillo: “The (Vista) search tool is a mess,” from a user-interface perspective.

    \r\n\r\nCredit: Chris Pirillo

  • First things first: Run Upgrade Advisor

    Houston Chronicle Tech Blogger Dwight Silverman: Don’t skip the important first step of running Microsoft’s Upgrade Advisor tool before moving your current system to Vista.

    \r\n\r\nCredit: Dwight Silverman

  • Fix Hibernate after running disk cleanup

    MVP and Windows Book Author Steve Sinchak: Running disk cleanup can play havoc with your “Hibernate” settings in Vista.

    \r\n\r\nCredit: Steve Sinchak

  • Go the dual-boot route to check for compatibility issues

    SuperSite for Windows Editor and Book Author Paul Thurrott: “Make sure everything will work (by setting up a) dual-boot between XP and Vista before committing your entire PC to the new OS.”

    \r\n\r\nCredit: Paul Thurrott

  • Vista drains batteries like a madman

    MVP and Windows Book Author Sandro Villinger: If you’re running Vista on a laptop, beware of battery-life issues.

    \r\n\r\nCredit: Sandro Villinger

  • Make sure you are running the very latest video drivers

    MVP and CEO of Stardock Brad Wardell: Watch for updates from video-driver makers, who’ve been having trouble with Vista compatibility.

    \r\n\r\nCredit: Brad Wardell

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Mary Jo Foley

Mary Jo Foley has covered the tech industry for 30 years for a variety of publications, including ZDNet, eWeek and Baseline. She is the author of Microsoft 2.0: How Microsoft plans to stay relevant in the post-Gates era (John Wiley & Sons, 2008). She also is the cohost of the "Windows Weekly" podcast on the TWiT network.