Bugs and lack of apps plague 64-bit users

[rKAnjEL]

Vista boosters say that the 64-bit edition of the operating system runs applications faster and can address a lot more system memory than its 32-bit counterpart.

Just don't tell that to Vince Heiker, a retired IT executive in the Dallas area who has used 64-bit Vista for some time — and hates the OS.

All versions of Vista have serious compatibility glitches, including problems with Office 2007, but the 64-bit release also suffers from a lack of applications written to take advantage of that version's ability to address more than 4GB of RAM.

In fact, Heiker and several other Windows Secrets readers begged to differ with my Sept. 25 story, which discussed the transition of desktop computing to 64-bit hardware and software.

"Plain, simple, and clear: Vista-64 is junkware. It is absolutely the worst, the buggiest software Microsoft has ever released," Heiker tells Windows Secrets.

What's worse, he said, is that Microsoft has no fixes for the vast majority of Vista's problems.

Early adopters vent their Vista-64 frustration

Many potential users of the 64-bit version of Vista are reluctant to make any OS changes after getting burned previously by 32-bit Vista.

"We're not using 64-bit Vista due to all the problems we've had with 32-bit Vista," says J.C. Warren, a systems engineer at a Seattle-based asset-management company.

Other users' complaints include what they view as important software that doesn't run under 64-bit Vista.

"ACT, a fairly popular contact-management program, will not work in 64-bit, and currently Sage has no plans to support it," reader Frank Boecherer said in an e-mail.

Also on the list of software that readers say is missing in action is a 64-bit version of Adobe's popular Flash player. And don't forget Office 2007, which comes only in a 32-bit edition.

To be sure, many 32-bit applications that were not written specifically to run on Vista-64 will in fact run on that OS. Microsoft maintains a listing of applications and hardware that are "compatible" with Vista, including 64-bit Vista. This listing consists primarily of 32-bit programs that Vista-64 runs in a 32-bit window.

Many 32-bit Microsoft apps, including Office 2007, are listed as working with 64-bit Windows, but some readers who run Vista-64 complain that bugs and incompatibilities abound. In addition, many popular third-party applications, such as Yahoo Music Jukebox Plus, are labeled with a big red "X," meaning they have problems with 64-bit Vista.

Heiker's list of Vista-64 bugs and application incompatibilities is a long one.

Among the problems Heiker cites is "a jerky mouse cursor" that interprets mouse clicks in one spot on the screen as an action on a different spot.

That's not OK, particularly if you're a day trader like those Heiker supports for TradeStation.com, where a click on the wrong spot can cost serious money. Heiker says he's experienced the mouse-location problem with three different mice, all relatively new purchases.

Heiker finally isolated the cause: the 64-bit version of Vista Ultimate failed to remove old device drivers. He discussed the problem with Microsoft support staff, but he says they could provide no solution. Heiker finally resorted to his time-tested standby.

"The only way to get rid of the hardware drivers was to reinstall Vista," Heiker said.

A second problem Heiker points out involves Outlook 2007, which fails to shut down properly. Other Outlook 2007 problems include unexplained freezes and the mysterious disappearance of the preview pane.

Did you say 'millions' of Registry entries?

Another glitch Heiker continues to confront is a real doozy: with no explanation in sight, his 64-bit Vista PC has accumulated some 23 million Registry entries. No, that's not a typo — 23 million.

"I brought this to Microsoft's attention and there's no solution to it," he said. "Apparently, a Registry entry is made each time a 32-bit application tries to update the Vista-64 Registry ... duplicating Registry entries a huge number of times."

Despite Heiker's long list of complaints and multiple contacts with Microsoft support, little has changed. "They haven't fixed a single problem that I've reported," he adds.

Complaints such as those of early Vista-64 users don't bode well for the OS in general or 64-bit editions specifically. Still, 64-bit PCs are in the cards for many current Windows users a year or two down the road. By then, the smattering of 64-bit PCs now appearing on the market will likely become a groundswell.

Today, there are 64-bit editions of both Windows XP and Vista — and there will also be 64-bit editions of Windows 7 when it ships in 2009 or 2010. The question is: When 64-bit computers become the norm for desktops, will all the software pieces be in place?

Many people are waiting for Windows 7's debut

It's looking more and more likely that 64-bit desktop computing won't go mainstream until long after Windows 7 ships.

Unfortunately, there's no information on how well 64-bit Vista is doing in the marketplace. The overall figures for Vista are less than stellar: Microsoft claims it has sold 180 million licenses for all versions of Vista, but take that number with a grain of salt — or perhaps the whole shaker.

Many of those licenses can be deployed as either Vista or XP; analysts state that many of these "Vista" licenses are actually being used for XP.

In fact, according to a Gartner report issued last spring, fewer than 1% of PCs in the U.S. and Europe were running Vista by the end of 2007 — a full year into Vista's lifecycle. Compare that figure with the 80% that, according to the report, are running XP.

Confirming the molasses-in-January adoption rate of Vista is the Gartner study's finding that 55% of European companies and 40% of U.S. firms aren't planning to begin serious Vista deployments (whether the 32- or 64-bit edition) until the first quarter of 2009 or later.

That's awfully close to Microsoft's planned delivery date for Windows 7, which is expected to be significantly faster and more svelte than Vista. Indeed, a Sept. 12 report by Andy Patrizio of Internet News.com states that Microsoft is shooting to ship Windows 7 in time for the 2009 holiday season.

Microsoft wouldn't comment on when it will release a 64-bit version of Office, although analysts predict the next major Office release — code-named "Office 14" — will ship in late 2009 or early 2010. That puts it on a similar track to Windows 7.

Microsoft's impending delivery of Windows 7 and Office 14 could further undercut Vista's viability in the marketplace.

Reader Roger Shuttleworth summed it up in an e-mail:

* "For me, and I suspect for many readers, the major question is not 'Do I want this hardware, increased speed, yadda yadda?' It's 'Will my existing software run on Vista-64, or will I have to fork out huge amounts of cash for new editions?'

"If the answer is, 'Yes, I will have to buy all new software,' then I'm sticking with XP until my machine dies and I can't find something else to run it."

The uncertainty of Microsoft's plans has left more than a few Windows users waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"I've been involved with OS migrations since Windows 95. None of them was as difficult as Vista to deal with," Warren said. "I can't wait to get my hands on an early beta version of Windows 7."

Source: Windows Secrets, Issue 170

[shought]

~Topic moved~

[Algalord]

My question is: Will people love Vista so much when Windows 7 comes out as they're doing with XP now?

People ALWAYS complained about XP. But when Vista came out, XP suddenly became the best OS in the world.

These same people (including Companies) insisted in sticking to Windows 98/2K when XP was released until seeing that the new OS was far better than the others.

What is happening to Vista is exactly the same that happened to XP by the time of its release.

In my opinion, here are the two things that will happen:

1) Vista will become popular only when its SP2 comes out, exactly as XP did;

2) Vista will become "perfect" when Windows 7 comes out, exactly as XP did.

It ALWAYS happens.

(P.s.: Forget Windows ME when I say "ALWAYS"... :-})

[myidisbb]

My question is: Will people love Vista so much when Windows 7 comes out as they're doing with XP now?

People ALWAYS complained about XP. But when Vista came out, XP suddenly became the best OS in the world.

These same people (including Companies) insisted in sticking to Windows 98/2K when XP was released until seeing that the new OS was far better than the others.

What is happening to Vista is exactly the same that happened to XP by the time of its release.

In my opinion, here are the two things that will happen:

1) Vista will become popular only when its SP2 comes out, exactly as XP did;

2) Vista will become "perfect" when Windows 7 comes out, exactly as XP did.

It ALWAYS happens.

(P.s.: Forget Windows ME when I say "ALWAYS"... :-})

hey... there are some games that require "run as" a WIN ME to work right :dance2:

[JessicaLeigh]

Wow, that's interesting. I'm not a gamer, so I had no idea there is actually gaming software out there specifically designed for the WinME OS. I'm not really sure that "perfect" is the operative word to use there, since there hasn't been a "perfect" Microsoft OS released ever, or even one that had eventually reached perfection, after SP revisions. I'm in full agreement that x86 Win XP is the closest thing to OS perfection that we've seen so far.

A good rule of thumb I've always used with Microsoft OS releases is to be optimistic the new OS will be a viable candidate for sending XP into retirement on all the levels it holds presently. It's foolish to believe any OS will be the "end-all be-all" right out of the box, or even after one or two revisions. Remember that Win 2K is on SP4.

Finally, please remember that new OSes are "bleeding-edge technology", and if you decide to jump on that bandwagon on Day One, you risk all the same hard repercussions that those folks did who jumped on Win ME and Vista when they were released to retail.

[irefay]

Its funny, I dont see the same resentment with MAC or Linux users. Maybe Microsoft will take a page out of Googles play book and release Windows 7 as "beta" for the first 5 years+. Plausible deniability.

[JessicaLeigh]

I believe it makes no sense to try and compare apples to oranges, and so therefore, I think it's futile to compare Linux or the Mac OS to Windows. I'm strictly talking Windows OS here. Your comment regarding Google's inability to "walk the walk" is shared by many other large enterprises, as well. One of them which immediately comes to mind is Yahoo.

I really don't think the future of Microsoft's stronghold on the majority of the corporate world will ever really come to an end. Businesses perpetuate their dependencies on the Microsoft OS every time they pour millions upon millions of dollars into home-grown software development. Financial institutions in particular, seem to lead the masses and expect to see a returned profit from funding their software development to continually do so. It is too much of a stretch for such companies to take a miscalculated risk by adopting a lesser-used platform as their basis for business. Keep in mind they have to think not only about themselves, but whether or not their partnership companies would continue to seamlessly interface with such a risky platform change.

[PsychoticxBloodxLust]

another note, how many apple computer owners right now are dual booted with windows, when comes down 2 it apple and linux user don't bitch because Malicious Software makers don't give a rats ass about the two OS's its all windows. I mean in the end linux and mac have more flaws and bugs then windows does because they are not top rated sercuity flaws which brings us back to saqure one. not bashing either of the 3. I love Macs for video, picture and music editing. I love playing with Ubuntu linux and redhat. and I love Gaming on Vista x64