im going to by a new computer , but hard to find name brand models that still carry xp. Question is , is vista really that bad as some say or should i really search for an xp model?

Vista has become pretty decent after it's 50+ updates. SP1 is right around the corner which improves Vista even further.

XP is good for if you still run a lot of older programs that aren't compatible with Vista.

XP even after Vista SP1 still performs better overall, but Vista SP1 has tighten the performance gap between the two OSes.

So the choice is up to you. Dell still sales brand new computer with XP installed on them.

I hated Vista when I first installed it but I've grown to sort of like it once I disabled the annoying features (constant security reminders, administrator permissions, etc).

The experience between Vista and XP hasn't been that different for me because the software I use is very mainstream (and Vista compatible) - my biggest concern is Vista runs a little slow, but that should improve once service packs from Microsoft start coming out over the next few months.

If you get a decent PC with 2GB of RAM, performance shouldn't be a problem anyhow. (I only have 1 GB and even that is enough - but definitely the minimum.)

Really, it's all about personal preference and everyone will give you a different opinion.

Although I was not plagued with hardly any of the majority of the issues that Vista *allegedly* had when it debuted, I couldn't agree any more with Cobra's response from above. The Vista part of this machine is even more zippier than ever with SP1 installed.

With the prior RC releases of the SP, I couldn't really see any performance or lag with the Vista installation & the XP installation on this machine. But Vista is definitely a tad faster now in terms of response & general application processing vs the observation on the XP side. How much of the improvement had to do with my now running x64 Vista (SP1) vs x32 Vista? .... I don't know.

what I'm wondering is will MS send future updates that would eventually make vista better than xp.. cause if that the case i might as well get a computer with a Vista OS.

I predict by Vista SP2, Vista will be as good if not surpass XP in performance. XP became really good after SP2 and people were kind of being unfair including myself to Vista when comparing it to an OS that had been out for 5 years. I mean, even Windows Me turned out to be decent after 150+ patch updates near the end of its lifespan. You can beta test an OS out for 5 years, but the only way it's going to become really good is when it has to address and fix real world problems.

okay I built my own at dell(didn't purchase yet) but the price seems very high. I choose not to get a monitor cause I hear dells aren't that great. and i have my own speakers. Doesn't this seem top high for an older computer or is it worth it? keep in mind the 3 year warranty was two hundred and change so really I'm paying about 800 for the computer.

Intel® Core™2 Duo Processor E4500 (2MB L2 Cache,2.20GHz,800 FSB)

Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition - English

2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz- 2DIMMs

Dell USB Keyboard and Dell Optical USB Mouse

No Monitor

ATI Radeon HD 2400 PRO 128MB

320GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache™

Dell 19 in 1 Media Card Reader

Integrated 10/100 Ethernet

56K PCI Data Fax Modem

Adobe® Acrobat® Reader 8.1

16x DVD+/-RW Drive

Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio

No speakers (Speakers are required to hear audio from your system)

Microsoft® Office Home and Student 2007

Adobe Photoshop Elements + Adobe Premiere Elements

Dell Care 3yr in home warranty

1,072 Total charge with delivery.