I’m getting a new laptop next week. YIPPPPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! I’m so excited, because its my first out-of-the-box new computer that’s actually mine in YEARS. Its an Acer 5520. Its a basic machine, but with enough power to get me by for a few years. I’ve got an extra gig of RAM to put in it, so it’ll have 2gb…that makes everything better!

Here’s my quandry: It comes with Vista installed, but I do have the option to back it down to XP. I can’t decide which OS to use. I’m not thrilled with Vista, but I have not minded using it the times that I have. It really does have its quirks though. I actually like XP, I understand XP and know how to set it up so it works really well. On the other hand, as Vista gets more and more market saturation, I am having to support it more and more, so its a good idea for me to have a working knowledge of it.

See where I just can’t decide?

The internet rumor mill says that Vista is headed the way of Windows ME. Most people I know who are looking for a computer are hoping to find one with XP on it. They are specifically avoiding Vista, instead of just accepting the new OS with a system upgrade. That’s pretty significant to me. Makes me think Vista may really go away.

But what if it doesn’t? And where does the OS go from here? I think the next Windows OS will still be Vista-like more than XP-like. There is stuff about Vista that I do like more. The file-management system in Vista is a lot more intuitive than XP and past Windows. Vista has a more modern feel than XP. XP can sometimes feel like early Windows if you end up in the right place. Now if only there weren’t issues with things that I use the most in Vista.

I have a Palm TX. From the chatter on the lists I’m on, Vista does not play well with a Palm. I’m not surprised as Palm pretty much stopped development after they released the TX. I am disappointed though. I really like my Palm, and cannot afford a smartphone, so I need it to work. It can be massaged enough to limp by, but its not the same experience as syncing on an XP machine.

FireFox 3.0 does not play well with Vista. **sigh** I JUST upgraded to FF3.0 on my computers and have already fallen in love with it. SO i really don’t want to have to run 2.0 in Vista. Not to mention the host of extensions that I run (and can’t live without), making problems in Vista even MORE likely.

Those 2 problems alone make me really hesitant to run Vista. Is there a true advantage to running Vista over XP? Are there awesome features that I just don’t know about in Vista that I must have? Are you avoiding Vista? Do you have it? What do you think?