Datasheet

Although five versions may seem complicated, choosing the one you need
isn’t that difficult. And because Microsoft stuffed all the versions on your
Vista DVD, you can upgrade at any time simply by whipping out the credit
card and unlocking the features in a different version. Here are some guide-
lines for choosing the version you need:
 If your PC can’t display or record TV shows, and you don’t want to make
DVDs from your camcorder footage, then save a few bucks by sticking
with
Windows Vista Home Basic. It’s fine for word processing, e-mail,
and the Internet.
 If you want to burn DVDs and/or record TV shows on your PC, then pony
up the cash for
Windows Vista Home Premium.
 People who run Web servers on their PCs — and you’ll know if you’re
doing it — will want
Windows Vista Business.
 Dedicated gamers and computer industry professionals will want
Windows Vista Ultimate because it includes everything found in the
other versions.
 Computer techies who work for businesses will argue with their bosses
over whether they need
Windows Business or Windows Enterprise
versions. They’ll make their decision based on whether they’re a small
company (Windows Business) or a large company (Windows Enterprise).
That inexpensive Vista Starter version you may have heard about isn’t sold
in the United States. It’s sold at reduced prices in developing nations like
Malaysia. (It’s not really a goodwill gesture as much as it’s an attempt to
reduce software piracy.)
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Chapter 1: What Is Windows Vista?
Vista’s Service Pack 1
Whenever a problem pops up in Windows Vista,
Microsoft releases a small piece of software
called a
patch for a quick fix. After a long year of
patches, Microsoft rolled them all into one
megapatch called a Service Pack .
Vista’s Service Pack 1, automatically delivered
and installed on your PC by Windows Update,
doesn’t change the way Vista works on the sur-
face. But when the service pack arrived on your
PC in early 2008, it made Vista run more
smoothly under the hood. After Service Pack 1
is installed, the words Service Pack 1 appear in
Vista’s System window, shown in the following
figure. To see whether your PC has Service
Pack 1 installed, click the Start menu, right-click
Computer, choose Properties, and then look for
the words Service Pack 1 as shown.
For more information about Windows Update
and its automatic downloading of patches, visit
Chapter 10.
(continued)
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