I’ve quietly been testing Microsoft Windows Vista Service Pack 1 since it was in its very early days of development. The update that is determined to “save Vista” is finally out, but I’ve been using it long enough to give you an informed opinion on it.
Many fear Service Pack releases. I don’t know why. Some claim they horribly ruin their Windows experience each time, only to upgrade months later and act like nothing bad happened. It’s that kind of perpetual fear of service packs that I won’t ever understand.
However, I will say that Vista SP1 is rock-solid in the stability department. This is one area that folks really didn’t have much to complain about in regards to the XP-vs-Vista debate. Performance? Better. Does everything feel as snappy as XP? No, but the big gripes have been addressed. File transfers are up to speed, as is deleting files.
So, what’s new? Well, not much you’ll see. There’s a lot of under-the-hood stuff like EFI support, major networking improvements, and all those hotfixes you weren’t given access to. But, in terms of sweeping user interface changes, sorry… the changes are so subtle, most won’t notice them (and that’s coming from a perfectionist myself).
Should you update Vista to SP1? Absolutely, the moment it gets released… update to SP1. Should you upgrade from XP? I can’t answer that for you. I will say that I find Vista to be an acceptable upgrade to XP, and this service pack takes out most of the complaints. Still, Vista is a glossy version of XP with Media Center, DirectX 10, and all those Ultimate Extras… which will come out some time before Windows 7… hopefully.
The state of Windows got a little bit better, but I suspect SP1 won’t woo over those who have already pledged loyalty to XP over Vista. Microsoft still should take action to win those users over. SP1 still doesn’t have an XP-style interface (the basic interface is designed to pressure people to upgrade to Aero, and Aero is bloated and un-friendly to the XP loyalists). SP1 still doesn’t have Live integration (even XP allowed you to associate a Passport with an account). SP1′s under-the-hood improvements will have to be demonstrated to those already bitter to Vista, not a winning proposition.
My personal favorite feature in Vista SP1? No more forced activation! Granted, I have a black-screen-of-unactivatedness until I do activate Windows, but never again will I be locked out of my computer. That may be the start to win back some of those that have found Microsoft in violation of the law, for locking them out of their computer on the eve of an important deadline… like me.
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Hello,
I wanted to let you know that I installed Service Pack 1 for Windows Vista Last night, upon rebooting my computer crashed. So, that is the exact reason that individuals fear service packs! Now I have to reformat my computer because The repair service can not fix it!
Usually if a service pack fails, it will be reversed by the service pack installer.
Now, in your case, even that failed… which indicates an underlying problem with your original Windows install. In short, your SP1 install probably failed because you had major issues with your existing Windows install… they just didn’t resonate to you directly pre-update.
My suggestion would be to do a new install of Windows (your old one will be moved to Windows.old) and update that to SP1 right off the bat.
I downloaded the Windows Vista Service Pack 1 and have not been able to boot my computer with any commands. I called Microsoft but Best Buy never gave me the Windows Vista DVD, so I can do nothing about the problem.
thank you once again, Microsoft. My next computer will definitely be a Mac.
Marjorie, I would contact who made your computer… not Best Buy.
I had my computer for an entire year before I even thought about going online with it. I used it to make music. I decide to go on line to download my music to my page, low and behold automatic update starts to download a service pack 1 I restart my computer and it never worked again. I don;t know about anybody else but it looks like a scam to me. My pc will not boot in any mode with or with out recovery disc and it keps telling me that no reinstall is possible do to the outcome of some sort of transaction. It worked pefect before I wen online with it.