what operating system should I choose?

I am building a pc for my family (for my dad, mom and bro). I have found this pc in the trash and am rebuilding it.

I just bought a amd athlon x2 4850e and 4 sticks of 512mb ddr ram for it and it has integrated nvidia 6100 graphics using shared memory.

I have the choice of windows xp,windows vista or windows 7.

I have all but what should I choose,
-Tyler

 

Heh. Cue the OS wars.

My first answer? "None of the above". Break away from the abusive Microsoft monopoly lock-in if you can. You probably won't regret it in the long run. My newer clients are discovering just how much extra Microsoft has been costing them in support costs the last few years. Clients without Windows have saved thousands in comparison. Get with the TCO program - and not TCO as calculated by "consultants" with very profitable vested interests in keeping people locked in.

My second answer? Win XP is the most solid of the Microsoft OS (for loose definitions of "solid"). All my clients using Vista agree: Vista is a dog (and will be with only 2GB) that should have been drowned at birth. Meanwhile, Win7 is officially beta, unproven and untested. If you like paying Microsoft to be their beta tester go right ahead - they aren't going to give you a copy of the OS for doing their work for them. So WinXP it is, and it should perform quite well on your given hardware for the foreseeable future.

That's my opinion.

 

Go with Vista (64 bit if possible). Windows 7 is still in beta and what you have is only an evaluation copy. XP is OK but is is getting a bit old.

 

I'm not sure about your 6100 video but I had no issues with a 6200TC add-on using Vista, as long as you don't want to game with that machine you should be fine.

 

Vista 64 is excellent but at the moment software for it is limited,no doubt in the future it will catch up.
XP is proven and tested but it won't be long before they stop supporting it.
Windows 7 is new and in beta,i have it running as a duel boot and i do like it but i think it's in June that they close it until it's release.
Vista 32 i personally love it,it's safer and faster than XP but you do need to persevere and learn how to get the best out of it.
The problem with Vista haters is that they will not put in the time to learn and want it to work just like XP,what is the point of a new OS if it is just like the old one.

 

well I am currently running vista home premium 32 bit on my new hp tx2500z. I am talking about a value tablet that runs this os like a dream, ms paint, photoshop, comiclife, music, windows dreamscene video background, firefox, pidgin, and yahoo widgets all at the same time and uses around 2.5 gigs of ram and these programs run at full speed too.

may not be a lot to you but it's a ton for me

I think I'll choose vista but I'm still open to new or old ideas,
-Tyler

 

I don't see a limit there. It runs all my 32 bit software no problem and I have the benefit of a more responsive OS and more memory capacity.

 

The first question I would ask is what will the system be used for? Do you intend/own/desire windows software on the machine?

If you don't intend or require windows software and just need the machine for surfing, email etc, try Ubuntu Linux, it comes with open office for free and there are tons of free software available. The desktop looks similar to a mac and I've had it running on a couple of my machines and it has been flawless and very solid and stable. By-the-way it's free and worth a look. There are other distros you can try and find one you like.

Mine installed including a wireless card, found and installed my wireless printer and I did not have to manually install any drivers, it did everything for me.

Also, it is way less prone to virus/malware issues and did I mention it is FREE

 

What RuidosoPC says is, in my opinion, the most correct answer so far, including mine. The OS you choose should depend on what you want to run.

 

Well the computer will be for everyone in the house, including occasional guests for anything.

I am pretty good with windows xp and vista, and the last 2 times I tried ubuntu I can never figure out what to do. I would want to try some awesome software I found on the web, couldn't install it because the system wanted to update, the update tool wouldn't work... back to square one. rinse and repeat.

I could try vlite or something like that... at the cost of aero though... and the sidebar.

let's narrow it down to xp and vista,
-Tyler

 

Before you buy Vista, make sure the hardware can handle it. Vista works fine when it comes installed on a computer but there might be problems if the computer was designed for a lower windows OS.