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Topic: Win2k or XP ? (Read 17181 times) previous topic - next topic
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Win2k or XP ?

Reply #25 –
If you want unnecessary things to be truly gone instead of merely disabled or hidden, use nLite. It will generate a pared down installer of Windows XP (according to your preference) based on the original installer.

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #26 –
Quote from: amano on
XP themes can easily be disabled
Please clear this up. Aren't you all just talking about replacing eye candy themes with w2k/nt4 theme? But not "disabling themes"? There's a service, AFAIR?

Unclear to me,
(w2k user)

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #27 –
Quote from: music_man_mpc on
Just don't use the m$ player.


If this was a big Microsoft-bashing frenzy on some other forum, believe me, I'd be with you, but for now please refrain from Microsoft/dollar sign thing.  I tried it once myself and it impresses no one here at least.

Quote from: pika2000 on
What are the differences between pro and home in terms of audio? Nothing. Unless you are pirating, use home. It's cheaper. What XP pro exclusive feature that a regular home user needs? Probably none. No wonder MS keeps charging premium prices for their OS, people just keep buying the expensive version even though MS provides a cheaper version. And yet people are complaining about price.  Go figure.

win2k is old. Unless you have an older system, use XP. Hardware features like Intel's hyper-threading is not supported properly in 2k.


How some people will actually pay that much for that OS (Home or Pro) just blows my mind...
Just freakin' blows my mind...
It's due for a good DEGAUSSIN'

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #28 –
Quote from: HotshotGG on
How about a Linux kernel instead?  . I would go with Win2K. I refuse to use XP. It's way to bloated IMO.


Lol, I was expecting to find at least one post saying "Linux!" when I clicked this thread for viewing... you made my day

IIRC, even if you get WinXP, the license allows you to run Win2000 instead (but maybe this only applies to OEM licenses?). So buy WinXP, and if you really need to have Win2k, just borrow someone's CD and install that. Apart from a "slightly" larger memory footprint (I would guess the difference is somewhere near 50MB in standard config without apps running?), I don't see any downsides to XP, never noticed performance differences anyway. Driver support for Win2k will typically be bad nowadays.

Quote from: ff123 on
It may seem like the OS has nothing to do with basic audio quality, and everything to do with "features," but it actually can make a difference. ... --about IRQ sharing and ACPI--


I would say that this quality difference has its cause in your hardware. IRQ sharing is a completely standard feature, so a proper soundcard should deal with that correctly. Also, a motherboard should not cause to much EM-noise when switching. Disabling ACPI and such is a perfectly valid workaround ofcourse, but I think it wouldn't really be fair to say that the OS has anything to do with the problem.

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #29 –
Well, drivers can be a reason for choosing one above the other.
I know of a buggy XP-driver for a soundcard, and no further support from the company, so you are pissed if you use XP.

Besides that, who needs XP if the computer is used offline?

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #30 –
the only feature i like in XP is the build in firewall,
but i still have win2k - no need to change.
I would probably change everything to look like win2k anyway

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #31 –
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/how.../choosing2.mspx

I'd get Pro atleast for these 3 reasons/differences -

Scalable processor support – up to two-way multi-processor support.
Encrypting File System - protects sensitive data in files that are stored on disk using the NTFS file system.
Access Control – restrict access to selected files, applications, and other resources.

About asking how an OS would matter for audio related work - I was trying to find out if there were any quirks in either (win2k or xp) like kmixer, or lack of native wdm or kernel streaming support, etc...

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #32 –
WinXP has the distinct advantage of working well & using over 2GB of memory.  Win2K uses up to 384MB intelligently but add more and you don't get much benefit.
WinXP is a bloated turd in its default state, use nLite and you can get the 2k speed with a couple extra nice features of XP.
You can also strip away WiMP with impunity.  VLC will still work regardless, as will WinAmp.  Or you can opt to leave WiMP v6.4 and just ditch WiMP v9 (the egregious one)
When you use nLite be very careful NOT to install the RyanVM update pack; it contains the spyware WGA from Microsoft.  There's a fixed version of that update floating around, you'll want that one instead if you care about security.

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #33 –
Quote from: lazka on
... I would probably change everything to look like win2k anyway

Guess we're always more comfortable with the familiar. I've used both and started off like that, gradually XP had it's way and I wouldn't go back now 

I found XP a lot easier to use on a network, if that's important to you.

UJ

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #34 –
Quote
Lol, I was expecting to find at least one post saying "Linux!" when I clicked this thread for viewing... you made my day


I like an operating system that let's me use my bare hands to type in commands swiftly and effciently. The GUI in certain scenarios is overrated. I was taught how to code on Emacs anyway, hell of a lot easier once you learn the ropes. 
budding I.T professional

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #35 –
Quote from: riggits on
When you use nLite be very careful NOT to install the RyanVM update pack; it contains the spyware WGA from Microsoft.


And that, ladies and gentelmen, is the most recent thing to bash Microsoft about.
Link 1
Link 2
And, seriously, who didn't see this coming eventually.

Quote from: HotshotGG on
I like an operating system that let's me use my bare hands to type in commands swiftly and effciently. The GUI in certain scenarios is overrated. I was taught how to code on Emacs anyway, hell of a lot easier once you learn the ropes. 


I have a dirty little secret of being able to use DOS.  It's a secret because most places don't like you knowing how.  I've been dropped out of a high-school computer class for using DOS and the company my dad works for will fire you on the spot for using DOS.
It's due for a good DEGAUSSIN'

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #36 –
Well, nobody stops you from using the command line in 2k or XP.

XP has some advantages over 2000, such as much faster networking stack, lower memory footprint of the kernel, and better handling of hotplugging USB and wireless devices. The downside is that it comes with a lot more services enabled by default which take the memory usage up again, so some tweaking is needed if you're going for a lean system. And indeed, disabling the Themes service helps a lot (not to mention Indexing).

WMP9 is a resource-gobbling POS (although not as bad as the Windows version of iTunes in that respect), but 10 is actually a pretty useful and quick allround player/manager. And I'm impressed with the improvements in the WMP11 beta, which has probably the best library UI of any player yet and has surprising speed for very large (40.000+) libraries. Still not nearly as customizable as Winamp or foobar2000 though.

But I'd actually recommend you work backwards from the applications you want to use: if they recommend the Windows 2000 platform over XP, go for that and vice versa.

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #37 –
Quote from: OmniCbex on
I've been dropped out of a high-school computer class for using DOS and the company my dad works for will fire you on the spot for using DOS.


Are you joking, or this is for real ?!
DOS is still my favourite OS, altough i don't use it too often since i switched from W98 to W2K and have to boot it from a CD now. I'm too lazy to create a multi-boot system...
I really liked how i could repair a damaged W98 system from DOS, and i'm still using it to perform system diagnostics and other tasks. Recently i was even able to set up an internet connection through UBCD, but Arachne seemed to be not enough to view HA

So could you give me some explanation why is DOS disliked there?

(Sorry for the off-topicness)

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #38 –
Quote from: Fandango on
But a thing you'd want to do is type these things into the command prompt:
regsvr32 /u wmpshell.dll (removes the WMP Shell extensions, like "Add to playlist" etc on audio files)
regsvr32 /u shimgvw.dll (removes Image preview)
regsvr32 /u shmedia.dll (removes Media - AVI - preview)

Thanks for these! Every time I'd had to go through manually and delete every WMPAddtoPlaylist, WMPBurn whatever in the registry... not fun! I'll keep the image preview though because I actually find it pretty useful rather than having to load up image editing software every time.

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #39 –
Quote
company my dad works for will fire you on the spot for using DOS.


I was referring to Unix, not just DOS. I do use the command-line quite often though.  If your a programmer you should know the command line the back of your hand. This is especially true if you are going to write simple data algorithms. 
budding I.T professional

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #40 –
Quote from: goodsound on
Scalable processor support – up to two-way multi-processor support.

Don't mix this up with dual core.

Quote
Encrypting File System - protects sensitive data in files that are stored on disk using the NTFS file system.
Access Control – restrict access to selected files, applications, and other resources.

Some combination of ACL, Policy, or other privilege-related thing. If you need them, then surely Pro has an edge.

Quote
About asking how an OS would matter for audio related work - I was trying to find out if there were any quirks in either (win2k or xp) like kmixer, or lack of native wdm or kernel streaming support, etc...

There is not much difference between XP and 2K in this area afaik. Your sound card matters more imo.

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #41 –
Quote from: molnart on
So could you give me some explanation why is DOS disliked there?


The teacher just knew the point-and click side of computers and thought I was somewhere that I wasn't supposed to be.  When she threw me out of class and I went to the office, the principal said somthing about the teacher thinking I hacked the Pentagon or somthing.  So I got in trouble with my parents and took choir insead and they told me I was never to use another computer in school again, but through all that I still get a good laugh with my friends about the Pentagon thing.

Also twords the end of my senoir year (after the thing I first mentioned) somone stole all the internal parts from one of their computers and I got blamed for it somehow and some police officer threatened to use a polygraph test (lie-detector) on me.  They never did and it turned out that someone I knew did it, but I wasn't mad at him as much as I was mad at the people who wrongfully blamed me.  (they're just lucky no one dropped their names)  During all this, my friend was caught by the police officers with a burned copy of MS Office and they told him that he should never own a computer again in his life.

The year before, me and the friend mentioned above got around the security on the computers and put a bunch of games on the server.  We called it Project ROM.

Sorry about being off-topic, but I wanted to share some high-school shenanigans with you and besides, the OS matters not for sound quality as I've mentioned before.
It's due for a good DEGAUSSIN'

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #42 –
Quote from: Jebus on
Windows 2000 has been end-of-life'd by Microsoft, which means it will receive no more security updates. This makes it an unusable operating system for anyone not on a corporate network, IMO. It's 6 years old - let it die!


sorry, but this is wrong.
windows 2000 is now in the extended support phase and still receives security updates, just like any newer windows version, until 2010.

see here: http://support.microsoft.com/gp/lifeselect

-andy-
 

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #43 –
XP. I still use 2K on one machine, but that one is going away soon.

Under most circumstances, XP is actually faster than 2K due to improvements in the recognition of file permissions. Plus, 2K looks like butt-ugly Win98 - flat, stupid and rather uninspiring.

Of course, Vista is coming eventually. Perhaps 2007, with a little luck :-)

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #44 –
Quote from: goodsound on
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/how.../choosing2.mspx

I'd get Pro atleast for these 3 reasons/differences -

Scalable processor support – up to two-way multi-processor support.
Encrypting File System - protects sensitive data in files that are stored on disk using the NTFS file system.
Access Control – restrict access to selected files, applications, and other resources.

1. Multi-core processors (including hyper-threading) are supported in XP home. XP pro is only useful if you have more than 1 actual physical processor, which IMO extremely rare in the consumer market.
2. I wouldn't bother with XP's encryption. Use Truecrypt instead for true powerful encryption. It's freeware and works on XP home just fine.
3. Most Windows programs require administrator rights to work properly/be functional, nullifying the need for different access controls. This is 1 flaw that hopefully will be fixed in Vista.
twitter.com/pika2000

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #45 –
Quote from: BradPDX on
Of course, Vista is coming eventually. Perhaps 2007, with a little luck :-)


I would rather wait than have them speed it up to ship.  I found it was a good thing they pushed back the release a year and from the looks of the current Vista beta 2...things are looking mighty nice.  Hopefully, they don't pull an Apple and create some programs that kill off 3rd Party Software makers.  Microsoft should just stick to the OS and Office in my opinion.  Leave room for others to make applications...unlike a certain other company....

--------------------------

Vista is 

- Gow
Zune 80, Tak -p4 audio library, Lossless=Choice

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #46 –
Quote from: ff123 on
It may seem like the OS has nothing to do with basic audio quality, and everything to do with "features," but it actually can make a difference.

When I first set up my home win2k system, I would notice barely audible clicking noises which I tracked down to the OS's default use of ACPI and its sharing of IRQ's.  After I reinstalled win2k in standard mode, removed as many IRQ devices as possible, and assigned each device its own IRQ (especially my audio card), the noises went away.


Thats not really an OS problem, its a driver and/or firmware problem.  If your motherboard doesn't properly support ACPI, you will get issues with PCI bus traffic, which can cause weird sound glitches.  I'm guessing this is an older system you're running?

Quote from: ff123 on
I have heard that XP is better than win2k at sharing IRQ's.  Just another reason to move away from win2k (although I still use win2k!)


Modern systems don't have IRQs, they (mostly) went out with ISA.  What Windows reports to you is just for legacy support so that software written with them in mind can still function.  Thats why on modern systems you might see 20+ IRQs even though x86 only supports 15.

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #47 –
Quote
Quote
Get XP. It still gets updates, is easy to get help for, and has software that works exclusively on it.

Quote
Could you mention some?


Adobe Audition 2.0 only works on XP and beyond

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #48 –
Quote from: pika2000 on
3. Most Windows programs require administrator rights to work properly/be functional, nullifying the need for different access controls. This is 1 flaw that hopefully will be fixed in Vista.

Sorry but I disagree. I am currently running as LUA at both office and home, and ALL my programs work. Some may need modifications in ACL, but all work.

It would be good if you tell us what programs do not work in LUA.

Win2k or XP ?

Reply #49 –
Quote from: Mike Giacomelli on
Modern systems don't have IRQs, they (mostly) went out with ISA.  What Windows reports to you is just for legacy support so that software written with them in mind can still function.  Thats why on modern systems you might see 20+ IRQs even though x86 only supports 15.

I thought the 20+ IRQs were made available by APIC? I don't think there's no such thing as "interrupts" any more. It's just that APIC supports more.

Quote from: William on
Sorry but I disagree. I am currently running as LUA at both office and home, and ALL my programs work. Some may need modifications in ACL, but all work.

It would be good if you tell us what programs do not work in LUA.

My parents have this HP printer, the accompanying software of which apparently doesn't by default have access rights in it's own installation dir  Was very annoying, got all these untractable error messages, until I realized that the Admin account didn't get the error messages.... I guess they never noticed the problem before since most of their customers run the standard account with admin rights...