Vista 64 bit host?

[terran.priest]

i'm a little surprised that some folks have said Vista is stable.

Either the 32 or 64 bit versions.

They are both quite un-stable, and ironically, they even have trouble running some of Microsoft's own software.

I was thinking about getting the 64 bit OEM version of Vista myself, since I have 64 bit cpu.

That's not going to happen for a long time, if at all. Not since I decided to try and install the 32 bit version on my system. I got tried of rebuilding RAID arrays just because Vista didn't like them even though I was using the correct 32bit Vista drivers.

I do tech support for Dell for a living, for XPS notebook & desktop systems, my office only does XPS support.

The point being, I've had Dell customers call up & ask me if I can help them wipe their Vista OS off & help them put XP back on.

The only Vista Dell ships is the 32 bit version, and the majority of the time someone has asked to help them downgrade is due to software in-compatibilities, even with Microsoft's own software.

Vista is stable if the only thing you run is the software that's pre-installed, and sometimes that's a stretch. Just try running some raid arrays and/or some 3d games; oh, like MS Flight Sim X.

Unfortunately, Dell doesn't 'officially' support any OS other than the one that originally shipped w/the original system. Unless it's an OEM version of XP from another Dell you own, even then it's 'iffy' unless you get a tech that's knows what they are doing.

MS won't come out w/a DirectX 10 for XP, just one of their many exploits to force an upgrade.

Once Linux has better game support, I won't need windows anymore.

If you bought an OEM version of Vista, from an OEM or on your own; switch out your motherboard and see what happens.