dacs.doc electric

On November 6th, Microsoft’s John Stroiney returned to DACS for a presentation of Windows XP. John does not try to sell DACS members anything. He presents the product and the facts and lets viewers make up their mind. After his third visit at DACS, he seems to have grown much more comfortable in his presentation. John’s appearances are to the point and he does not exceed his allotted time. He handles some questions from the audience and makes himself available for additional input afterwards to those who need specifics.

John emphasized that XP is primarily very stable and reliable, and according to what I read, even though John did not say it, more stable and reliable than previous editions of Windows. There are three versions of Windows XP: one for home users, Windows XP Home edition, which will replace Windows ME; Windows XP Professional, intended to replace NT or 2000; and the third for higher end CAD and other similar types of programs.

XP has profiles that different users in the household can customize to their liking, such as wall paper, cursor type and favorites. Up to 100 profiles are available, but who wants so many on one computer? The mainuser can limit the type of profile available. In my case I would choose to not grant administrative duty to my kids. Even a guest account is a possibility, if you have someone visiting your house and that person would like to check e-mail or browse the web.

The desktop can be totally uncluttered is this is the choice of a user. Microsoft claims that it is easier to find files and be better organized to find files or recently used folders. New backgrounds and new screensavers are available in the latest version. When the aquarium was shown, it drew ahs! and ohs! from the audience. The new screensavers require, however, at least a 16 meg video card. By the way, more fishes for the aquarium are available online to download.
John did a demonstration of a video clip which was impressive. Before XP this would have required another software to run this type of video. Videos can have voice over, music and the length of clips can be adjusted.

In the latest issue of Windows Media Player, the cover of a CD like a real CD is shown, making it easier to sort the music on the hard drive.

The "My Pictures" folder makes slide shows available. In addition, prints can be ordered online. XP has a photo printing wizard from which photos can be selected to be printed on printer or e-mail. Pictures can asily be reduced from a large bitmap file in to a much smaller .jpg file for e-mailing.

XP also includes basic CD burning functions. John did not do a demonstration of this, but mentioned it during his presentation.

Another function of Windows XP is the messenger. With the proper equipment such as microphone and web cam, voice conversations can be conducted, and even video conferencing.

While installing, Windows XP will check for the latest update of drivers online. This function, however, is reversible; the driver can be rolled back to its previous state or the computer online connection can be turned off, to prevent the updating of drivers. Windows XP has a built-in firewall.

John Stroiney gave us the web address www.microsoft.com/windowsxp for additional details. This page contains information about pricing for upgrades or for purchasing full versions.