How good are Vista drivers?

nathanlawliet · 06-18-2008, 07:24 AM

Someone told me in another thread that now drivers for Windows Vista are becoming a lot better, and gaming appears to be smoother than it used to be. I was wondering how much better is it? I want to play Gears of War in Vista 64-bit Edition, but I want it to be as good as is in XP.

Would it be a good idea to move right now, or leave it like it is? I have 2 Radeon X1950 Pro Cards, they work together using Crossfire, 4 GB of RAM, and Dual-Core Processors. When I last played Gears of War in Vista, I had to lower the graphics because memory usage was different than in XP, and it seemed to speed it up.

Thanks to anyone who helps,
nate

Locke · 06-21-2008, 02:37 PM

Driver issues aren't much a problem anymore. If the features of Vista appeal to you, and you plan to do any gaming and some new and improved programs, and the general shinyness, then it's probably worth the switch. I'll be getting a HP laptop with Vista Enterprise Edition when I go to college this year myself.

yensed · 06-21-2008, 07:48 PM

It really depends on the Hardware. Sometimes a random piece of hardware such as an older Ethernet card or cheap sound card will have crappy drivers or simply no vista drivers at all. But if thats the case just spend a lil money and buy a new one. Any major hardware from good companies will have solid drivers by now... Honistly though I don't see any reason for you to switch if all you want to play is Gears-Which works just fine in XP.

SilentWalrus · 06-21-2008, 07:50 PM

It's not Vista.
All of my programs and such work with it.
The hardware especially.

nathanlawliet · 06-22-2008, 06:12 AM

Read my other forum post, my dad has Windows XP 64-Bit Edition, and it's horrible. When it gets to the logon screen, it takes two minutes for all of the users to appear (Note: There are only 4). When you click one of them to logon, it takes another sixty seconds, then when it loads the desktop with nothing running, it takes another minute. I click the Start button to see the recent programs, that takes thirty-seconds or so to load up.

The one nice thing about Windows Vista 64-Bit Edition is that it's faster, not ****tier. Anyways, that's why I want my dad to switch to Vista. Other than the fact that I have 5GB free of my 40 GB partition, and can't do much else in it -_-

But thanks for the advice. Our computer is new so drivers should work good.

Dizzy · 06-22-2008, 08:11 AM

I have 64 bit vista and the drivers i have work dang near flawlessly.
It typically auto-prompts and once it installs works great.

jackluo923 · 06-22-2008, 11:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nathanlawliet

Read my other forum post, my dad has Windows XP 64-Bit Edition, and it's horrible. When it gets to the logon screen, it takes two minutes for all of the users to appear (Note: There are only 4). When you click one of them to logon, it takes another sixty seconds, then when it loads the desktop with nothing running, it takes another minute. I click the Start button to see the recent programs, that takes thirty-seconds or so to load up.

The one nice thing about Windows Vista 64-Bit Edition is that it's faster, not ****tier. Anyways, that's why I want my dad to switch to Vista. Other than the fact that I have 5GB free of my 40 GB partition, and can't do much else in it -_-

But thanks for the advice. Our computer is new so drivers should work good.

Did you dad happened to install a pirated windows xp 64bit edition on a 10 year old computer like mine and clustered with viruses with corrupted driver?

runtohell121 · 06-22-2008, 11:23 AM

lol he probably did...

vista drivers are fine.. nothing wrong with it...

lacrosse_man16 · 06-22-2008, 12:10 PM

It really depends, for the most part yes. The drivers of course are going to suck if you have outdated hardware. Why? because thats why Microsoft has minimum hardware requirements not just so it runs nicely but so they don't have to make drivers for old hardware. Most people that tell you that the drivers suck and Vista is buggy fit in two categories 1) They only tried it when it was in beta or its early phases and of course its going to be buggy. 2) They have old hardware.

LancerRevolution · 06-22-2008, 12:15 PM

nah drivers have little to do with it,all about ur hardware.if its up to date,and has the power to run the games.there is nothin wrong with vista,imo its better than xp all the way.make the switch,if ur pc has the recommended requirements,but id say go above that to have the full experience and no worries

Locke · 06-22-2008, 04:16 PM

I'm fairly certain you don't know what you're talking about, Lancer. The only reason why the hardware support used to be a problem was because of drivers incapable of running on Vista properly. And the recommended requirements? Bull. You need more than that to run a proper Vista. I know one good computer shop around here that ensures all of their computers are sold a bit better than the recommended specs-an extra gig of RAM here, and extra 0.6 GHz there-to keep people happy and to reduce the number of computers coming back for repairs or returns from unsatified customers. In short, and I mean no insult or disrespect by this, you added little to the topic. Perhaps if you had read the previous posts a little closer, you would have seen that. Just something to think about in the future, ya know?

AquaToad · 06-22-2008, 07:31 PM

vista drivers are great now. but ur compu will run it great

Tobososlow · 06-22-2008, 11:26 PM

Maybe this article will help you out if you haven't already decided. http://www.extremetech.com/article2/...2302495,00.asp

nathanlawliet · 06-23-2008, 04:56 AM

Nah, right now the latest drivers for my video cards are from May, so I might get that later (I'm running really old drivers from last year at the moment).

Gow616 · 06-23-2008, 08:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tobososlow

Maybe this article will help you out if you haven't already decided. http://www.extremetech.com/article2/...2302495,00.asp

Nice, I was looking for an article that compared the two with mature drivers.

Vista and XP are no different when it comes to gaming any more and the difference was the drivers.

/me goes back to playing Crysis, CoD 4, UT3 and Orange Box on his Vista Ultimate 64 machine.

Quote:

Originally Posted by nathanlawliet

Nah, right now the latest drivers for my video cards are from May, so I might get that later (I'm running really old drivers from last year at the moment).

You said something about your GPU went out on you. I would look into an AMD HD 4850 when you have the money.

nathanlawliet · 06-24-2008, 08:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jackluo923

Did you dad happened to install a pirated windows xp 64bit edition on a 10 year old computer like mine and clustered with viruses with corrupted driver?

Didn't you read anything above? He went out and PAID for a brand new unopened copy, on a computer with the following specs:

Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 x2 Dual Core Processor 4600+ 2.41 GHz
Memory (RAM): 4.00 GB
Video Card: 2 Radeon X1950s that work together with ATI Crossfire

I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not, so I'm not going to give you -Rep... yet.

EDIT: I saw this on Wikipedia. Kind of makes me more reluctant to use Vista 64 than my dad's Windows XP 64. Hooray for Vista.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wikipedia

Early in Vista's lifecycle many games showed a drop in frame rate compared to that experienced in Windows XP. These results were largely the consequence Vista's immature graphics processing units drivers, and higher system requirements for Vista Itself. Recent benchmarks suggest that, as of mid-2008, Vista SP1 is now on par with Windows XP in terms of game performance

06-18-2008, 07:24 AM	#1 (permalink)
nathanlawliet Super Zuner² Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Florida Posts: 3,684 Reputation: 125	How good are Vista drivers? Someone told me in another thread that now drivers for Windows Vista are becoming a lot better, and gaming appears to be smoother than it used to be. I was wondering how much better is it? I want to play Gears of War in Vista 64-bit Edition, but I want it to be as good as is in XP. Would it be a good idea to move right now, or leave it like it is? I have 2 Radeon X1950 Pro Cards, they work together using Crossfire, 4 GB of RAM, and Dual-Core Processors. When I last played Gears of War in Vista, I had to lower the graphics because memory usage was different than in XP, and it seemed to speed it up. Thanks to anyone who helps, nate

06-21-2008, 07:48 PM	#3 (permalink)
yensed Anti-Fanboy Retired Staff Zune Freak Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Coos Bay, Oregon. Posts: 1,089 Reputation: 46	It really depends on the Hardware. Sometimes a random piece of hardware such as an older Ethernet card or cheap sound card will have crappy drivers or simply no vista drivers at all. But if thats the case just spend a lil money and buy a new one. Any major hardware from good companies will have solid drivers by now... Honistly though I don't see any reason for you to switch if all you want to play is Gears-Which works just fine in XP. __________________ *To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.*

06-21-2008, 07:50 PM	#4 (permalink)
SilentWalrus Large Walrus Support Team Jr. Staff Premium Member Super Zuner Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Omaha, Nebraska Posts: 1,862 Reputation: 260 Awards Showcase Total Awards: 1	It's not Vista. All of my programs and such work with it. The hardware especially. __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. Thanks for the sig stkr. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

06-22-2008, 06:12 AM	#5 (permalink)
nathanlawliet Super Zuner² Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Florida Posts: 3,684 Reputation: 125	Read my other forum post, my dad has Windows XP 64-Bit Edition, and it's horrible. When it gets to the logon screen, it takes two minutes for all of the users to appear (Note: There are only 4). When you click one of them to logon, it takes another sixty seconds, then when it loads the desktop with nothing running, it takes another minute. I click the Start button to see the recent programs, that takes thirty-seconds or so to load up. The one nice thing about Windows Vista 64-Bit Edition is that it's faster, not ***tier. Anyways, that's why I want my dad to switch to Vista. Other than the fact that I have 5GB free of my 40 GB partition, and can't do much else in it -_- But thanks for the advice. Our computer is new so drivers should work good. __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.*

06-22-2008, 08:11 AM	#6 (permalink)
Dizzy Joe the Plumber Moderator Ultimate Zuner Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 6,732 Reputation: 357	I have 64 bit vista and the drivers i have work dang near flawlessly. It typically auto-prompts and once it installs works great. __________________ Stop activity immediately if you feel short of breath, faint or dizzy, experience chest pain, or profuse perspiration. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

06-21-2008, 02:37 PM	#2 (permalink)
Locke God of the Post Reports Support Team Section Staff Super Zuner² Join Date: May 2008 Location: In the kitchen, preparing a brand new batch of n00blets Posts: 3,861 Reputation: 545 Awards Showcase Total Awards: 3	Driver issues aren't much a problem anymore. If the features of Vista appeal to you, and you plan to do any gaming and some new and improved programs, and the general shinyness, then it's probably worth the switch. I'll be getting a HP laptop with Vista Enterprise Edition when I go to college this year myself.

06-22-2008, 12:10 PM	#9 (permalink)
lacrosse_man16 Drankn dat Jesus juice Retired Staff Jr. Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 360 Reputation: 163	It really depends, for the most part yes. The drivers of course are going to suck if you have outdated hardware. Why? because thats why Microsoft has minimum hardware requirements not just so it runs nicely but so they don't have to make drivers for old hardware. Most people that tell you that the drivers suck and Vista is buggy fit in two categories 1) They only tried it when it was in beta or its early phases and of course its going to be buggy. 2) They have old hardware.

06-22-2008, 07:31 PM	#12 (permalink)
AquaToad Experienced Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: South Carolina Posts: 854 Reputation: 39	vista drivers are great now. but ur compu will run it great __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. thx stkr

06-22-2008, 11:26 PM	#13 (permalink)
Tobososlow It's a trap! GFX Crew Graduate Zuner Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: In a hypocritical world Posts: 1,453 Reputation: 231	Maybe this article will help you out if you haven't already decided. http://www.extremetech.com/article2/...2302495,00.asp __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

06-23-2008, 04:56 AM	#14 (permalink)
nathanlawliet Super Zuner² Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Florida Posts: 3,684 Reputation: 125	Nah, right now the latest drivers for my video cards are from May, so I might get that later (I'm running really old drivers from last year at the moment). __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

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