A few weeks ago I mentioned that I was thinking of buying or building a system built around a quad-core CPU. I had made a mental note to wait until the fall, until I looked in my RSS reader one day and saw that Dell was selling the Dimension 9200 with an Intel Core 2 Q6600 (quad-core, 2.4GHz), 2GB of RAM, and double-layer DVD burner for $649 (with shipping, $680).

After it arrived, I installed an extra 2GB of RAM ($70), replaced the default 80GB single drive with a 160GB Raptor (10,000 RPM) system drive and a 500GB data drive ($250 combined), and ditched the Nvidia 8300 GS video card in favor of a 512MB ATI Radeon HD2600XT ($95 $155). I also upgraded Vista Home Basic to Vista Ultimate x64 ($199).

Grand total: $1295 $1355. Here’s how it does on the Windows Experience Index:

Three observations:

1. This machine really does fly. It’s especially impressive to see a 1600 x 1200 screen full of thumbnails in Windows Photo Gallery draw itself instantly.

2. Vista x64 is working better than I imagined. I had tried it back in February and gave up because of driver and software compatibility problems. Those appear to be all fixed now. There are still a few missing pieces in the 64-bit puzzle (like no connector for Windows Home Server), but I can deal with those issues and will definitely keep using Vista x64.

3. VMWare Workstation 6 absolutely rocks on this machine. I have Ubuntu Linux 7.04, XP Pro, and Vista Enterprise Edition all running in virtual machines and this box isn’t even breaking a sweat. I’ll have more to say on this subject at ZDNet soon.

With the exception of a single test system running on a four-year-old P4, every system in this home/office is now dual-core or better, with most running some flavor of Vista (the exceptions being a hard-working Media Center Edition 2005 system, another running the final release of Windows Home Server, and a third running the latest beta of Windows Server 2008).

I really don’t think I’ll need any new hardware for at least another year!

Over the Christmas and New Year’s holidays at the end of last year and the beginning of this year, in between two-hour daily workouts with a snow shovel, I read a remarkable paper called A Cost Analysis of Windows Vista Content Protection. And I wasn’t the only one. According to Technorati, the paper has so far been linked by more than 250 blogs, and Google News finds more than 100 citations to the paper in mainstream online publications.

Too bad it’s just so wrong about so many things.

In fact, I read the whole paper – all 10,224 words of it – seven times that week, and lost count of the number of exaggerations, half-truths, unsupported statements, and flat-out errors in it. It’s a big steaming pile of FUD, with just enough truth sprinkled on top to make it seem like there’s some substance underneath it.

So why has it gotten so much circulation? Simple. Author Peter Gutmann managed to push not one but two hot buttons simultaneously, mixing an extreme anti-Microsoft rant with an extreme anti-DRM rant. It doesn’t hurt that Gutmann, an expert in cryptography who works in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Auckland, New Zealand (his home page lists his title as Professional Paranoid), has a razor-sharp wit and a flair for incendiary language.

Gutmann’s thesis is simple: It starts with the fact that Windows Vista contains a new set of operating system components designed to handle encrypted “premium content,” such as the output of a Blu-Ray or HD DVD drive or a CableCARD tuner. He then goes on to construct theoretical arguments based on information from anonymous sources and a few preliminary papers at Microsoft technical conferences for hardware developers.

He concluded:

Providing this protection incurs considerable costs in terms of system performance, system stability, technical support overhead, and hardware and software cost.

I started investigating Gutmann’s claims last January but gave up on the idea of publishing a rebuttal because I didn’t have the equipment to test his theories. Well, today I do, and I can say categorically that just about every alarmist conclusion in that paper is wrong.

The subject came up again after Gutmann was invited to deliver remarks at the Usenix Security Conference last week. When I read news accounts of his talk, I felt like I had landed in the Twilight Zone, because Gutmann isn’t describing the Windows Vista I use to watch high-definition broadcasts and listen to music. In fact, in his papers and his talks he keeps telling me that I can’t possible be doing all the things I do with Vista every day, which is confusing the hell out of me. That’s why I prepared five questions for Peter Gutmann, which I’ve posted at ZDNet:

Busting the FUD about Vista’s DRM

I’m also planning to put together a FAQ on the subject. So, if you’ve got questions about Vista, video, and DRM (especially questions based on the assertions in Gutmann’s paper), post them in the comments here.

I read every comment left on this site. If you have your own website or blog and you include that address with your comment, I’ll probably pay a visit. That’s how I found this illuminating Vista troubleshooting report by David Moisan:

For the past six months, I’d been scraping by with Vista.  Every few days, my machine would lock up.  I tried many combinations of hardware;  was it my cheap USB hub?  Remove it.  My Firewire?  Removed.  I wasn’t happy with the performance but it was never really bad enough for me to consider going back to XP.  (or going to Linux as some would think)  I added 2 gigs of Crucial memory to the box when I renovated my server, but the lockups didn’t go away.

Sometimes the machine would simply lock up, but other times, the symptoms were very interesting:  I’d wake the machine up from sleep for the morning, and over a minute or so, the computer would slowly grind to a halt.   Control-Alt-Delete would often yield an error message (a message about being unable to bring up the security dialog.)

I can hear the grumbling now: “Vista’s a train wreck. Not ready for prime time. How could Microsoft have released this dog?”

Except, in this case, the problem had nothing to do with software. It wasn’t caused by Microsoft or by a third-party driver. The solution was as simple as swapping a $4 SATA cable.

I’ve said it before, but it’s worth repeating: Whenever you begin experiencing instability problems with a PC, the very first thing to check is hardware:

• Most system and application failures are fairly easy to identify. Random failures often indicate hardware problems.
• Bad RAM, overheating, and defective hard disks, in order, are the most common hardware failures in my experience. A cheap or overtaxed power supply can cause grief as well.
• Hardware can fail over time. Most people assume that the problem is software because they haven’t changed any hardware lately.

Thanks for sharing the story, David!

I’m sure I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating: PCs are like snowflakes – no two are alike. Even identically branded machines from the same company can have subtle differences in firmware and configuration, or they might use different components because of a change on the manufacturing line.

Trying to keep track of drivers and firmware updates for every device in a computer can be tedious, especially if you can’t tell which devices are installed on a given machine. Through the years, I’ve devised a system that works for me. Maybe it will work for you, too. I do the following steps every time I set up a new Windows PC (or refurbish an old one). It takes very little time and can save hours of headaches later.

1. I create a folder called Drivers to serve as a storage area for downloaded drivers, links, and instructions. Using Windows Vista, I find it easiest to create this storage area as a subfolder in the Downloads folder. With XP, you can duplicate this folder hierarchy (Downloads\Drivers) in My Documents.
2. The first file that goes in the Drivers folder is a list of all the components on the current PC that require drivers. I start by taking inventory. If you purchase the PC from an online vendor like Dell, the job is a little easier because you can start with the invoice in electronic form. You can also use something like Belarc Advisor to create this inventory. In either case, I create a plain text file containing details of that system’s configuration. Knowing the exact model number of a particular device makes searching much easier. (And for internal PCI or PCI-Express devices, it’s a good idea to jot down these details while you’re holding the device in your hand, before you replace the cover on the PC.)
3. Because I’m managing multiple computers, most of them wildly different in configuration, I create a separate subfolder for each computer, giving it a descriptive name. If you just have one or two computers to keep track of, or if you have a fleet of essentially identical PCs, you can skip this step.
4. For every device (or group of devices, in the case of things like motherboard and chipset drivers), I create a subfolder and give it a descriptive name. Most of the time, I create these subfolders on the fly, when I first download a driver for a device. Within that subfolder, I save the driver file itself, any readme files or serial numbers or configuration notes, and (most importantly) a link to the download page for that driver. I never save a direct download link; instead, I always make sure to save a link to the page where I can check for a newer driver later.

And that’s it. If I ever need to reinstall a driver, or if I transplant a device from one machine to another, there’s no need for me to hunt for it. I know exactly where to find the most recent driver I downloaded. Having the link to the driver download page means I can usually check for an updated driver with just a click or two.

Every two or three months, I take a quick scan through the Drivers folder to purge downloads for any devices I’ve retired, and then I burn the collection to DVD for backup purposes.

And it should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway: there’s nothing Windows-centric about any of this. You can do the same with your favorite Linux distro or Mac.

Related:

The Vista Master Driver List

Hardware notebook: What I look for in a Vista PC

The Vista driver outlook gets a little brighter

I’ve been meaning to do this for a while and finally got around to it. I’ve created a directory of the blogs I read that are authored (officially or unofficially) by Microsoft employees. It doesn’t include MVPs, partners, or other third parties, and it definitely isn’t complete.

Microsoft Blog Directory

The current iteration is missing some excellent Office-related blogs. I’ll be adding them shortly. With that caveat, who am I missing?

Robert McLaws passes along the news that the two hotfix packages Microsoft has been testing for the past few weeks are now available for download. I’m linking to the Knowledge Base articles on the theory that you should read the instructions before you start downloading or installing either one.

Windows Vista Performance Update:

Windows Vista Reliability Update:

For what it’s worth, I’ve tested the beta versions of these hotfixes and experienced no problems. Your mileage may vary. I’ll install on a couple of other machines and see what happens.

And no, this is not SP1.

Adobe just published this TechNote yesterday:

Support Policy for Adobe Creative Suite 3 on Microsoft Vista Home Basic

Adobe Creative Suite 3 is not supported on Microsoft Vista Home Basic. The product was not tested on Vista Home Basic. If through the course of normal troubleshooting it is revealed that the problem is because of a limitation of the OS and not the application, then Adobe Technical Support may not be able to resolve the issue.

In other words, “Hey! You in the polyester pants with the fanny pack! We don’t serve your kind here.”

Seriously, this is a technically unjustifiable decision. Windows Vista Home Basic is exactly the same as Home Premium, minus some high-end digital media features. Media Center is not included, nor is DVD Maker. Of course, those features are missing in Vista Business as well, which is supported by Adobe. So that can’t be the problem. The version of Movie Maker in Home Basic doesn’t support HD content, and you can’t add themes to photo slide shows. Of course, Vista Business doesn’t have Movie Maker at all has the exact same limitations.

So what’s the single remaining technical difference between Home Basic and the rest of the Vista family? Ah. It doesn’t display advanced Aero effects such as transparent window borders and thumbnail previews on the taskbar. That’s it.

Now take a look at the system requirements for Photoshop CS3:

Microsoft® Windows® XP with Service Pack 2 or Windows Vista™ Home Premium, Business, Ultimate, or Enterprise (certified for 32-bit editions)

Let me get this straight. Any edition of Windows XP with Service Pack 2 is supported, including XP Home. None of them have Aero’s whizzy advanced effects, and Adobe is OK with that. But not Vista Home Basic? That makes no sense at all. As far as PhotoShop is concerned, the graphics engine in Vista is identical in every edition.

Joe at ITsVista has this analysis:

So let me get this straight, Adobe is saying that the problem is that they didn’t test CS3 on Vista Home Basic, but through troubleshooting, they may be able to reveal that a limitation of Vista Home Basic caused the lack of testing, and Adobe may therefore not be able to test it. It is because of this lack of testing, or the inability to test it if they wanted to, that prevents Adobe from supporting Creative Suite 3 on Windows Vista Home Basic. It’s all making sense now.

Adobe doesn’t consider Vista Home Basic to be a significant enough OS to test their product on. I would agree, Vista Home Basic shouldn’t have been released, and Microsoft is even being sued by others that feel the same way (Vista Home Basic capable does not equal Vista capable).

I think this has nothing to do with technical merits or with Adobe’s relationship with Microsoft. It has everything to do with keeping the riffraff out. Adobe is saying if you use Home Basic you’re a cheapskate, the kind of person who clips grocery coupons out of the Sunday paper and never buys anything unless it’s got a rebate or until it’s marked down at the end of the season. They figure you’re buying cut-rate hardware and you should expect cut-rate service.

If there’s a genuine technical reason not to use Vista Home Basic, Adobe should say so. If there isn’t a good reason, they should start supporting it.

I was pretty startled to see this ad at the top of a page on ITsVista:

I’m used to seeing the suffix -bot attached to just about everything, but it’s rare to see that extra t. But sure enough:

Meanwhile, the article at ITsVista was pretty good, so I’ll be back shortly with some thoughts on it.

A rare original post on Slashdot is from a computer user who just swapped his mouse for a trackball and is happy with the experience so far:

After ordering [a large Kensington trackball for $90] online and using it for a few days now, I don’t know how I ever lived with a mouse. The trackball has better precision, less wrist movement, and even gaming is pretty cool/easy with it (can spin it to whip around real quick, etc). All that said, it seems like trackballs have all but vanished except in medical fields (sonograms, etc) and perhaps graphic arts. I’m left insanely curious why trackballs haven’t resurfaced now that optical technologies have fixed the main problems of old trackballs (and mice).

I’m not all that thrilled with the design of the two trackballs on Kensington’s website. On my main desktop machine, I’ve been using a Microsoft Trackball Optical for a couple years and absolutely love it. (A pair of commenters in the original thread are also Microsoft Trackball fans, although they’re talking about a slightly different device than the one shown here.) My right palm rests on the end opposite the mouse cord, positioning the thumb perfectly for moving the ball.

Sadly, Microsoft no longer makes this device, and I’m not sure what I would do if this trackball gave up the ghost. I’ve got a couple of Bluetooth mice here and could swap one of them into full-time service . Or I might switch to a Logitech. Or maybe I should pick up a spare right now. It’s for sale here along with a bunch of others. Although the idea of spending $66 for something I might never use is pretty wasteful.

Any other trackball fans out there?

The latest Nvidia ForceWare drivers are out, along with 10 full pages of known issues. The show-stopper for me is a bug that causes the display to remain black after resuming from sleep. I read about this one back in February and it still hasn’t been fixed, nearly six months later.

Over the weekend, I yanked the Nvidia cards from two different systems, and the result was like a breath of fresh air. My Vista Media Center machine is now using an ATI X1300 Pro and is running perfectly. On my second desktop system, which I use for testing software, I’ve reverted to the onboard Intel GMA950 graphics. Guess what? Sleep works now.

I’ve got more details in this piece I just published at ZDNet:

Hasta la Vista, Nvidia