Guest Knouen Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five minutes or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does the same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a full-screen game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we have to do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such a bad OS.
Guest Alias Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had Knouen wrote: > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. > Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five minutes > or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does the > same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a full-screen > game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the > computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. > > Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we have to > do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such a bad > OS. Either you don't have enough memory or your hard drive is on its last legs. Alias
Guest Patrick Keenan Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had "Knouen" <Knouen@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:186A3743-212B-4E93-891F-4BFB9E62E619@microsoft.com... > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. > Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five > minutes > or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does the > same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a > full-screen > game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the > computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. > > Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we have > to > do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such a > bad > OS. Well, it works great on the systems I use and work on, so perhaps the problem is less with the OS itself than the hardware you've put it on and the software you've loaded - and the way it's maintained. There are normally ways to figure out what is slowing the system down, so if you cared to offer some useful details, help could be provided. HTH -pk
Guest Vanguard Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had "Knouen" wrote in message news:186A3743-212B-4E93-891F-4BFB9E62E619@microsoft.com... > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By > far. > Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five > minutes > or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does > the > same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a > full-screen > game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the > computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. > > Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we > have to > do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such > a bad > OS. Goes to prove that just because you can install an OS doesn't mean you have a clue of how to administer it. Stop loading so many fluff programs on Windows startup. Check memory usage and you'll probably find you are way undersized. Try not using an really old CPU with newer operating systems. Don't go by the minimal requirements for an OS. Consider the recommended requirements as the minimum. Usable is not the same as comfortable.
Guest Gordon Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had "Vanguard" <vanguard.x@comcast.net> wrote in message news:eqwftZ7yHHA.5484@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl... > Don't go by the minimal requirements for an OS. Consider the > recommended requirements as the minimum. Usable is not the same as > comfortable. I quite agree - so WHY does the MS website on hardware requirements for XP STILL say that the minimum is 128 MB for RAM? Everyone (obviously other than MS and the OP) knows that it won't run easily in under 256 MB and probably 512 or more is usually needed. Do they ever update these things?
Guest Bruce Chambers Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had Knouen wrote: > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. > Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five minutes > or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does the > same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a full-screen > game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the > computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. > > Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we have to > do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such a bad > OS. Do you have any specific problem(s) with which you need help, or are you just venting? What very little detail you included points towards an issue of incompatible/sub-standard/defective hardware, or device drivers, incompatible software, and defective/sub-standard wetware. -- Bruce Chambers Help us help you: http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrand Russell
Guest Mike Cawood, HND BIT Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had "Knouen" <Knouen@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:186A3743-212B-4E93-891F-4BFB9E62E619@microsoft.com... > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. > Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five > minutes > or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does the > same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a > full-screen > game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the > computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. > > Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we have > to > do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such a > bad > OS. I think that WinXP is a superb OS, it's very stable (unlike the WinME I used to have) and it uses NTFS. OK it takes a few seconds to boot up but that's due to the software I've got installed. I'm quite happy with XP. Regards Mike.
Guest Bob Harris Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had Try Vista, then you will probably think that XP is not so bad. More seriously, your experience with XP is NOT typical. I installed XP on an old Pentium II 450 MHz, and while not the worlds fastest PC, it was stable, far more stable than when I had win98 with the same mix of programs. On a 2.5GHz Pentium 4 (single) it is really pretty good, at least for what I do. But, having played with several XP machines I can state emphatically that XP loves RAM. If you do not provide it with enough, it will swap things to disk, and that will bring any PC to its knees. How much RAM it needs depends on what you are trying to do. To run XP, but nothing else other than maybe antivirus, 128 Meg might work. To run XP and WORD comfortable, raise that to 256 Meg. To run XP and a few non-graphic-intensive programs, try 512 Meg. If you edit digital images, or want WORD to work with a lot of graphics (e.g., tables and pictures), or edit video try 1 Gig (or more). If you are into 3D games, moives, other video be sure to have a separate video card with a lot of RAM of its own. Cheaper PCs often use part of the main RAM as video RAM, and such hardware will not work as well as a separate video card. Of course any RAM dedicated for video is not available for XP and programs. When you say "the hard drive goes crazy", you might be describing what happens when XP runs out of RAM and starts swapping to disk. Use the XP task manager (single CTRL-ALT-DEL) to view resources such as CPU, RAM, and pagefile. If pagefile is growing while the disk is going crazy, add RAM at least equal to the pagefile usage. If adding RAM is not possible (e.g., due to motherboard limitations), think seriously about getting a new PC, or resign yourself to change your usage of the PC. Beyond that, try to turn off unnecessary processes. See Black Viper's website for suggestions about required vs uncessary. http://www.blackviper.com/ Additionally, do not have multiple windows open to the internet with video streams, at least not while trying to do some intensive things. Finally, indepedent of RAM, processor speed, etc, there seem to be some things that can bring a PC to a near halt. These include whole-PC antivirus scans, windows searches, copy&paste of large volumes of files, performing a backup (copies a lot of files), etc. Never do any of these while you are attempting to do something else. For example, set the antivirus to scan while you are sleeping. Scan on usage is still OK, and recommended for safety. Write CDs and DVDs when the PC is not otherwise occupied. And, never play modern games while the PC is doing any of the above. Simple games like freecell are OK, but even they might respond slowly. Compared to LINUX (or win98 for that matter), XP will seem slower under many/most conditions. You might want to consider a dual boot of XP plus any LINUX (some free). Use LINUX except when required to do course assignments. Of course, most games designed for XP will not run direectly under LINUX. But, check into "WINE", or search gaming forums for advice. Finally, have you tested your hardware to see whether there are any physical problems (e.g., bad spots on disk, or in RAM)? If not, that might be useful to rule out hardware (or rule in and then paln on repairing). Check out the diagnostic tools available here (many free): http://www.majorgeeks.com/downloads7.html "Knouen" <Knouen@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:186A3743-212B-4E93-891F-4BFB9E62E619@microsoft.com... > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. > Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five > minutes > or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does the > same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a > full-screen > game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the > computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. > > Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we have > to > do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such a > bad > OS.
Guest PA Bear Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had Did it work OK when it was new and you first turned it on? -- ~Robear Dyer (PA Bear) MS MVP-Windows (IE, OE, Security, Shell/User) AumHa VSOP & Admin; DTS-L.org Knouen wrote: > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. > Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five > minutes > or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does the > same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a > full-screen > game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the > computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. > > Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we have > to > do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such a > bad > OS.
Guest Pegasus \(MVP\) Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had "Knouen" <Knouen@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:186A3743-212B-4E93-891F-4BFB9E62E619@microsoft.com... > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. > Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five > minutes > or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does the > same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a > full-screen > game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the > computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. > > Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we have > to > do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such a > bad > OS. If you're as casual with loading stuff on your PC as you are with your spelling then I'm not surprised that it's unstable.
Guest Doug W. Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had "Bruce Chambers" <bchambers@cable0ne.n3t> wrote in message news:uoU92n7yHHA.4476@TK2MSFTNGP06.phx.gbl... > Knouen wrote: >> Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever >> had. By far. Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard >> drive for a good five minutes or so before I can do anything. >> If I try to load ANY program, it does the same; more hard >> drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a full-screen >> game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and >> reboots the computer. And this is all AFTER getting every >> recommended update. >> >> Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course >> requriements (we have to do some .net garbage), but it's very >> annoying. I have never seen such a bad OS. > > > Do you have any specific problem(s) with which you need > help, or are you just venting? > > What very little detail you included points towards an > issue of incompatible/sub-standard/defective hardware, or > device drivers, incompatible software, and > defective/sub-standard wetware. > > > -- > > Bruce Chambers > > Help us help you: > http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm > http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html > > They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little > temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin > Franklin > > Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most > do. -Bertrand Russell - Most of the troubles experienced result from a "sub-standard" operator...IMHO. -
Guest Bruce Chambers Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had Doug W. wrote: > > > - > Most of the troubles experienced result from a "sub-standard" > operator...IMHO. > - > I don't know about "most," but a large portion, certainly. That would be the "wetware" portion of my response to the OP. -- Bruce Chambers Help us help you: http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrand Russell
Guest Ken Blake, MVP Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had On Sat, 21 Jul 2007 09:06:01 -0700, Knouen <Knouen@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote: > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. > Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five minutes > or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does the > same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a full-screen > game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the > computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. > > Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we have to > do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such a bad > OS. Thanks for sharing. I'm sure that the fact that millions of other people use it successfully every day without experiencing such problems is irrelevant. *You* have problems using it, therefore it's a POS. On the other, I wonder if it's just possible that that says more about *you* than about Windows XP. -- Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP Windows - Shell/User Please Reply to the Newsgroup
Guest HeyBub Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had Alias wrote: > > Either you don't have enough memory or your hard drive is on its last > legs. He could have visited one too many naughty sites that downloaded nasty stuff. The nasty stuff, in turn, is now communicating with the mother ship, or, more likely, sending out 200,000 spams.
Guest Newbie Coder Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had Knouen, When XP was released a spokesman for Microsoft was on the British news & also agreed that XP was the worst operating system ever released because of rushing it out I agree that XP is also the worst OS about. With Service Pack infinite it will still be not responding, error, send error report... because its instability compared to Windows 2000 which basically never crashes -- Newbie Coder (It's just a name) "Knouen" <Knouen@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:186A3743-212B-4E93-891F-4BFB9E62E619@microsoft.com... > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. > Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five minutes > or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does the > same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a full-screen > game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the > computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. > > Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we have to > do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such a bad > OS.
Guest Alias Posted July 21, 2007 Posted July 21, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had HeyBub wrote: > Alias wrote: >> Either you don't have enough memory or your hard drive is on its last >> legs. > > He could have visited one too many naughty sites that downloaded nasty > stuff. > > The nasty stuff, in turn, is now communicating with the mother ship, or, > more likely, sending out 200,000 spams. > > That's also possible. Alias
Guest Curt Christianson Posted July 22, 2007 Posted July 22, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had I'm sorry to hear of your recent frustrations and less than adequate quality of xp. I've run into dozens just like you, that dislike it too. What's really strange, is I'm constantly running into *thousands* who like xp, and what it can do The "wide" discrepancy " has me confused. Learning curves on every new OS is a PITA, but it's necessary of one wants to master it. I'll get some of our *best people* on this right away, and hopefully we can et to the bottom of this. -- HTH, Curt Windows Support Center http://www.aumha.org Practically Nerded,... http://dundats.mvps.org/Index.htm "Knouen" <Knouen@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:186A3743-212B-4E93-891F-4BFB9E62E619@microsoft.com... | Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. | Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good five minutes | or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY program, it does the | same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If I try to run a full-screen | game, the hard drive goes crazy, then Windows crashes and reboots the | computer. And this is all AFTER getting every recommended update. | | Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we have to | do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never seen such a bad | OS.
Guest Plato Posted July 22, 2007 Posted July 22, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had =?Utf-8?B?S25vdWVu?= wrote: > > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By far. Although I do really like and use win98SE every day. I must say that XP2 is really nice. Heck, even my kid has major trouble breaking it. He used to break XP2 all the time until I made him wait a week or so before I reinstalled and/or fixed it for him. Now, he has finally taken my advice and has avoided file sharing apps and downloading files from dodgy websites. Thus far, really good for him, and me of course. Currently, his XP2 PC has been running perfectly for over 6 months. He doesn't download any ware from dodgy websites and only gets his mp3s from legit sites. -- http://www.bootdisk.com/
Guest RA Posted July 23, 2007 Posted July 23, 2007 Re: The worst OS I've ever had Knouen wrote: > Yep, Windows XP. It's the worst operating system I've ever had. By > far. Upon start-up it sits there thrashign teh hard drive for a good > five minutes or so before I can do anything. If I try to load ANY > program, it does the same; more hard drive thrashing for a while. If > I try to run a full-screen game, the hard drive goes crazy, then > Windows crashes and reboots the computer. And this is all AFTER > getting every recommended update. > > Sadly I am forced to use this POS due to my course requriements (we > have to do some .net garbage), but it's very annoying. I have never > seen such a bad OS. This is definitely a PEBKAC issue.
Recommended Posts