Vista on a Laptop, Part 2

Not long ago, I asked Mobile Computing readers for their input on Windows Vista--and they responded in droves.

Last week, I shared some responses from readers who upgraded to Vista from older Microsoft operating systems and lived to tell the tale. This week, I'm reporting some of the things that laptop users love about their new OS. Next week, I'll focus on why some Vista users pine for the old days of Windows XP.

By the way, I'm now using Vista Home Premium on my desktop PC--though I've yet to upgrade my notebook.

Love It All

"Personally, I love Vista," writes Gerald Branch of Dallas, Pennsylvania.

He loves the "ease of network connections, better security, the interface, and the search ability is just great (once the indexing is done)." From the moment you first launch Vista, the OS indexes the contents of your hard drive. Subsequently, Vista automatically indexes all new files you create or download. The indexing enables Vista to look inside files--including e-mail messages, PDF documents, and so on--when you do a search.

"Would I go back to XP?" Gerald asks rhetorically. "No. We use XP in the office on two of our desktops, and Vista is head and shoulders better. We're upgrading in the very near future to Vista on all three computers."

(Mostly) Easier Wireless Connections

The wireless network connection wizard is "much improved from Windows XP," writes Mike Kulik of Macomb, Michigan. "I found it much easier to locate wireless networks around me."

Some readers believe that Vista's User Account Control function--which gives the OS a higher level of security than Windows XP--can make it a wee bit more difficult to connect to new Wi-Fi and other networks. Once you tell Vista the new network is okay, however, it remembers your settings and won't bug you again later.

Slick 3D Interface

Several readers expressed appreciation for the Vista interface. "Aero [the 3D interface in some Vista versions] works great," writes Bob Liptrot of Clinton, Connecticut.

He particularly likes the thumbnails of open applications on the taskbar, and I concur. As you roll the cursor along the taskbar that runs horizontally across the bottom of your screen, thumbnails pop up for each open application, providing a preview of the applications' open files. For instance, if you place the cursor over a Microsoft Word icon on the taskbar, you'll see a thumbnail preview of the open Word document. It's a nice touch, and it has saved me a few seconds here and there. The taskbar thumbnails are available in versions of Windows Vista with the Aero interface.

The Sidebar is another Vista interface element earning high fives. Dave Bittner of Denver appreciates having gadgets--little Web-enabled applets that live in the Vista Sidebar--available for easy reference on the desktop. Among the gadgets Dave appreciates are the calendar, calculator, and CPU Meter. I run multiple weather gadgets in my Sidebar, each of which tells me current conditions in a different city.

You can download and install additional gadgets at no charge; here are some of particular interest to travelers and laptop users:

• Traffic by Live Search Maps displays current traffic conditions for a given area
• Battery displays your notebook battery's status
• WiFi HotSpot Locator 1.0 sniffs out hotspots

Read "Downloads for Getting the Most out of Vista" for more goodies.

Power Management: Pretty Powerful

Bob Liptrot's Dell latitude notebook now goes to sleep in about 10 seconds and awakens in about 3 to 5 seconds. When the notebook ran Windows XP, going to sleep and waking up took noticeably longer, he says: "This feature was worth the price of the upgrade alone."

Speech Recognition Worth Talking About

Vista includes a Speech Recognition feature that lets you dictate text and perform commands using a microphone. Howard Cohen of Denver says he uses voice commands in Vista to browse the Web, compose Word documents, and compose e-mail.

I mention speech recognition here because notebook users need to be particularly mindful of ergonomics. With smaller keyboards and screens, laptops are often harder on a user's hands and neck than desktop PCs. Vista's Speech Recognition or a program such as Dragon NaturallySpeaking 9 can reduce your typing.

I've been using Vista's Speech Recognition for several weeks now. While it's a vast improvement over the speech recognition in Windows XP, it's not as accurate as NaturallySpeaking 9. I have to correct Vista's Speech Recognition about every other sentence; but with NaturallySpeaking 9, I make corrections about every other paragraph.

Check back next week for the things readers dislike about Vista.