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How to keep the goods on your CPU when switching OS's

Discussion in 'Off Topic [BG]' started by Andrew.Glose, Jul 3, 2008.

  1. Jul 3, 2008 #1
    Andrew.Glose

    Andrew.Glose

    Sep 7, 2007
    Hattiesburg, Mississippi
    I'm probably going to have to switch from Vista to XP in the near future. What I'd like to know is:

    When you switch OS's, do you lose your ability to do some things that your computer was set up to do with the current OS, such as:

    Using the built in microphone and digital camera
    Playing DVD's/Blu-Rays (on an equipped machine)
    Use the quick keys (play/stop/ff/rvrs)

    Would I have to download new drivers to be able to use Firewire/HDMI out? Etc...

    All that stuff I'd like to know ahead of time. The reason I'm asking, is because I had a laptop in which the OS was reinstalled and when I got it back, I couldn't play DVD's...

    I don't want to lose any capability.

    Andrew
     
  2. Jul 3, 2008 #2
    john turner

    john turner You don't want to do that. Trust me. Staff Member

    Mar 14, 2000
    atlanta ga
    most of the stuff you are describing is natively supported in the opperating system (i.e. it will automatically detect these things and install the drivers it needs without your intervention).

    the issue with dvds is that you need to have installed a softward dvd decoder/codec to play the dvds. the folks that reinstalled your os probably didn't realize, or were too ignorant to realize, that they needed to reinstall the codecs you had previously.
     
  3. Jul 3, 2008 #3
    Transverz

    Transverz believer of the Low End Theory

    May 3, 2004
    Los Angeles, CA
    What I get from what you are describing is mostly driver issues. Yes, generally speaking, if you switch OS's, even re-installing the same OS, if you don't install the right drivers, the hardware won't function the same or even at all. Before installing XP in place of Vista, read up on or contact the manufacturer to make sure there are XP compatible drivers (if needed) for all the hardware that is on your computer. Chances are, there wont' be hardly any problems. Problems you faced in the past sounds like the drivers weren't properly installed to gain the functionality back.

    Built in microphone - XP drivers
    Built in digital camera - XP drivers and necessary software (check to see if XP software available which is 99% likely)
    DVD / BluRay - XP drivers, software, and proper updated codecs
    Quick keys - check for XP drivers and compatibility, and if necessary software

    Again, check with manufacturer for most correct answers for your situation. You have an excellent chance for success though. Best of luck.
     
  4. Jul 3, 2008 #4
    Andrew.Glose

    Andrew.Glose

    Sep 7, 2007
    Hattiesburg, Mississippi
    Thank you.
     
  5. Jul 3, 2008 #5
    BetterBottomEnd

    BetterBottomEnd <- Not me I just like looking at her

    Jan 9, 2007
    Cable Wi
    +1 to what they all said. Check on drivers before you make the change. I replace Vista with XP on my gateway laptop and it was a royal pain to get everything to work again but it is doable on pretty much any newish hardware out there.
     
  6. Jul 3, 2008 #6
    gdthomas

    gdthomas

    Oct 26, 2007
    Smyrna, Ga
    First thing is to back up your data.
    Second thing back up your data.
    After you have backed up your data, make sure you can still access it correctly from another system.
    The best way to do this, if you have another drive you can use to install the new OS on. That way if you run into any issues you can just swap the drives and boot to a working system. If you can tell us a little more about your system it might help out. Is it a custom built, or a pre-made like a HP, Compaq etc.
     
  7. Jul 3, 2008 #7
    gdthomas

    gdthomas

    Oct 26, 2007
    Smyrna, Ga
    Drivers are a big thing. When I switched from Vista to XP, the SATA drivers were the biggest problem I came across.
     
  8. Jul 3, 2008 #8
    Andrew.Glose

    Andrew.Glose

    Sep 7, 2007
    Hattiesburg, Mississippi
    I have a Sony Vaio AR series.

    Model is: VGP-AR730E

    I've done a lot of looking, and nothing seems to come up for this model. This particular model was only shipped with Vista installed on it, so I have a feeling that if I call Sony support, I'm only going to get a half-a$$ed response about "we can't guarantee you'll be able to get (insert any function) working with XP."

    The thing is, I'm going to create a DAW, and with Vista being on this machine, it could potentially be a royal pain to get anything done without facing problems due to the OS. This is a fantastic machine and fully capable of handling a DAW setup. The problem is the OS.

    If I could afford a Mac... I'd do it in a heartbeat.
     
  9. Jul 4, 2008 #9
    gdthomas

    gdthomas

    Oct 26, 2007
    Smyrna, Ga
    That seems to be the general line from vendors right now.

    I had good results when I was running Vista. The biggest thing that I noticed was that the idle memory in Vista was much higher that XP. The system under Vista would idle at a little over 400 Megs of ram. XP idles at 220 megs. Using Reaper to record never pushed the memory usage over 512 on either OS.

    The setup I am/was using is a dual core 2.8 proc, 1 gig ram, 250 gig sata drive, and a M-Audio 2496. The M-Audio software for Vista is not as complete when compared to XP. So that was part of the reason I switched.

    When I switched back to XP I found that it would not install unless I used a disk that was XP service pack 2. The SATA controllers just would not be picked up. It took longer to get all the correct drivers than it took to install XP and all the apps that I use.

    I found that the device manager in Vista was the best resource for finding the correct drivers for XP.
     
  10. Jul 4, 2008 #10
    Jonyak

    Jonyak

    Oct 2, 2007
    Ottawa, Ont
    you are trying to keep the goods on your HARDDRIVE, not your cpu... which is a chip inside your computer.