I just installed Windows XP yesterday

[cascade9]

I have Windows Vista RC2 installed on my new Gateway laptop and I'm trying to install Windows XP on it. However, when I insert the CD and open the setup it says that I cannot install an older version of Windows over Windows Vista. When I boot from the Windows XP install disc, it says that It cannot locate my hard drive. My hard drive is a Western Digital WD1200BEVS. I don't know what to do. Have any ideas?

Boot a liveCD, gparted, delete the current partitions. At least, I'm pretty sure thats how I fixed this problem when I install XP over the abomination called 'vista'

[Meep3D]

a: It will easily scale to the number of quality software currently available for Windows. 98% of the apps available on the net are crap.

Who decides this? Sounds like the much loathed 'app store' guidelines, with the key difference that it is the distro's that check the software for updates and then update the repo. Once this list has accumulated potentially millions of items you'll need rooms with hundreds of people who's sole job is to check if something has been updated and then put it in the repo. It simply won't work.

Expecting developers to submit it to the repo won't work either as every distro has it's own, requiring a software developer to repeatedly package and distribute their work to dozens of platforms - something they commonly won't be willing to do.

b: Why not?

It's not legal? You still need permission to distribute no-cost closed source software most of the time. Also it'd be entirely unverified, effectively losing the security-through-limited-choice system you have now.

[Meep3D]

I have Windows Vista RC2 installed on my new Gateway laptop and I'm trying to install Windows XP on it. However, when I insert the CD and open the setup it says that I cannot install an older version of Windows over Windows Vista. When I boot from the Windows XP install disc, it says that It cannot locate my hard drive. My hard drive is a Western Digital WD1200BEVS. I don't know what to do. Have any ideas?

Sounds like you need a SATA driver disk for Windows XP to see your hard drive.

[Khakilang]

I don't know whether it is the hardware drivers that are giving problem. A lot of hardware does support Window XP unless it is service pack 3 you are installing. Especially the audio HD drivers. But once you get the network card install I think you can download most of the drivers from the internet. Lastly you have 4 years to go until they totally stop supporting the Window XP. So enjoy it while you can. If not go for Window 7.

[HappinessNow]

I just built a new computer for the wife, and installed Windows on it as she needs it to be fully compatible with her work environment.

Installing Windows XP is just about the worst computer experience you can possibly have. Ugh! I started yesterday afternoon and it's still not done. I'd almost forgotten how horrible it was to install.

I found an XP install rather straight forward and simple, not that bad at all...not as pleasurable as a Linux or BSD install but not that bad.

[Maupertus]

The only thing that is really annoying about installing Windows XP is the lack of support for things like SATA (and if you want to be very modern, usb installation of drivers etc)

I wouldn't let my mother try her hand at it, but then again, with partitioning a standard part of the process, I wouldn't let my mother install Ubuntu as well.

I have installed 3.1, XP, Vista and 7, and have to say that where Vista was a very strange experience, 7 works great and that is in part because it's back to the no-options-no-frills simplicity of XP. Now, for me...the nerd...that's exactly what I hate, but I think it suits most.

Then again, I've never got what everybody's problem is with the whole "Installation Experience" I didn't have any problems with Warty of Hoary, and I didn't have any with Lucid.

[Paqman]

Ubuntu forces me to upgrade every 6 months

Ain't nobody forcing you. LTS releases are supported for three years on the desktop. Hopping onto the six monthly cycle is totally optional.

[clanky]

Installing any OS from scratch can be a pain depending on your hardware, installing an old OS on new hardware is not going to be an easy ride, any OS which outdates the hardware it is being installed on is unlikely to have drivers for hardware which didn't exist when the OS was made.

[julio_cortez]

I found an XP install rather straight forward and simple, not that bad at all...not as pleasurable as a Linux or BSD install but not that bad.

That's true. Kubuntu can be installed and configured even by a child, but also XP is quite as much as easy to install.
I find Windows 7's installer even simplier to be honest, apart from the fact it's slow as hell and I don't know why.
The main difference is that once done the install, setting up the system in Linux is just a series of apt-get calls, while setting up Windows to be fully functional requires drivers, software (even the basics like an office suite or burning software) and various additional things.

Installing any OS from scratch can be a pain depending on your hardware, installing an old OS on new hardware is not going to be an easy ride, any OS which outdates the hardware it is being installed on is unlikely to have drivers for hardware which didn't exist when the OS was made.

Spot on. If you install XP SP2 on a 5-years-old machine it will probably auto-recognize a good 2/3 of the hardware. Try installing it on a brand new machine and you'll struggle a lot more.
it's sad to say, but XP has got old.

[Johnsie]

Installing Windows is easy. Installing non-included drivers in Windows is alot easier than doing it in Linux. Just double clicking an icon is pretty simple compared to messing around with config files or the linux kernel.