Windows is one of the major computer software brands that compete with the likes of apple with their Mac's. I find Windows to be more so for office work where lots of work processing is done, and Apple's for the more design savvy people such as architects. Windows Vista was released Jan 2007, as the newer version of Windows following Windows XP.

* 800 megahertz (MHz) processor and 512 MB of system memory
* 20 GB hard drive with at least 15 GB of available space
* Support for Super VGA graphics

I find that most people prefer Windows XP to Windows Vista, and I am
one of those people. Windows XP had quite a long life span in terms of how long it was on the market before a newer version was released, unlike Vista, which has now had a newer version of Windows 7 released too.

Windows Vista runs quite slowly on start up. My laptop which has a 250GB hard drive and 3GB takes two and a half minutes to load, compared to a new windows 7 installed laptop that only takes 20 seconds. Vista also takes a lot of processing and software space, which will lead to a n increase in electricity consumption.

Advantages of Vista:

- A new GUI (Graphical User Interface) including the appearance of windows, the start button, the start menu and taskbars etc. When windows are minimized, if the mouse is over the bar at the bottom of the page, it will appear as a small screen. The start menu no longer has the word 'start'; simply a small windows icon.

- The latest version of Windows Media Player is included in the Vista package.

- Date and time from around the world can be displayed at the same time as where the user is.

- An in built program called Photo Gallery. Previews of movies can also be shown whereas they could not on XP.

Disadvantages of Vista:

- High software requirements - minimum of 128 MB graphics card. For better performance, graphics memory must be of 256 MB. 20 GB space on the hard drive needed.

- Some people don't like the difference between XP and Vista

Overall, most people would chose XP over vista, and I am one of them. I am not looking to upgrade from Vista to the new Windows 7 as I have never liked this. I would give Vista 6 out of 10 and would not really recommend it.