Well, a free copy of Vista through my membership of the MSDNAA (Microsoft Developers Network Academic Alliance), Windows isn't my favourite operating system but I like trying new OS's all the same. So here's a quick run down of Vista.

Three days ago I took the plunge and upgraded my XP partition to Vista. Tri-boot (XP, Linux and Vista) was not an option. I was not keen on letting the HD hungry Vista eat away at my Linux home partition.

So first impressions? XP with a shiny skin. Second impressions? XP with a shiny skin and some GUI reordering Third impressions? XP with a shiny skin, some GUI reordering and possibly a more secure system.

Don't get excited. Whilst 6 months in the Linux community can mean huge leaps forward 5 years for Microsoft has produce a few short bursts of improvement. I do think Vista is better than XP though this opinion lies heavily on how secure Vista is which remains to be seen.

Performance wise it appears to be on par with XP. To be honest I haven't run any checks. I'm not that bothered about things like that any more but it certainly "feels" as quick and perhaps quicker than XP when using the OS. I don't think games perform as well, a few FPS are missing but it's next to nothing. My biggest gripe is the total lack of 3D sound for games. Well at least that would be my biggest gripe if I was much of a gamer anyway

On to the eye candy. I like the new Aero Vista theme a lot, it's perhaps a bit too shiny for my liking but it's still very nice, it's smart and I don't think I'd get tired of it which is what's important. As for the new 3D desktop effects, well what a let down lol. They are nice and subtle and perhaps add to the usability somewhat but having come from Linux/Beryl it feels like I have entered the dark ages of 3D desktop effects! For the Windows user however these 3D effects should be pleasing to the eye

Unfortunately two days after installing Vista I was back in Linux. I was hoping to be able to use Vista longer but it got on my nerves too much due to lack of control/configurability. Stupid things like not being able to set the font size. Sure I can change the font size for window titles icons and menus but many apps seem to ignore my desire to use my eyes for as long as possible before they wear out.

Final thoughts? It's better, but not better than Linux

P.S. The title for this post "Vista Sprinkles" comes from Microsoft's rather unusual description of rain or perhaps snow? When it was snowing the MS weather gadget reported "sprinkles". Odd.

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