Yes, u can now download the beta and rc1 versions of Vista operating system.

It IS a limited time issue, but it would allow u to play before u pay!

This is a FREE LEGAL download so have fun.

BTW, if you r not interested in this-fine-but please don't just piss and moan about it. Yhis is clearly ONLY for those who really want it.

I will be downloading the 64 bit version, BUT, a 32 bit version IS available to those who want/need it.

Honestly, as of this time 060806 8:35 am pacific time, there servers were being hammered so i could not start the download...yet. You may not be able to either-now.

********warning***************************************************


this IS a 4-6 gig download, however you can order up to 5 dvd's of the os @$6 US each plus $5-10 shipping and handling.

Originally posted by mrmonsoon
Yes, u can now download the beta and rc1 versions of Vista operating system.

I only got XP a little while ago and it seems to be working just fine, thank you.

Originally posted by mrmonsoon

BTW, if you r not interested in this-fine-but please don't just piss and moan about it.

I am sure there will be plenty of other, like myself, who are interested in what this new os has to offer.

Actally what i would really like "PLEASE" is that for every successful download, you post a responce in this thread.
I don't want or care about points.

What i wnat to know is just how many people from ats took M$ up on their offer. I am willing to bet it will be a VERY large number, especially considering the cost.

[edit on 6/8/2006 by mrmonsoon]

People, this is BETA softwear!..

I strongly recomend you load a spare harddrive with is new os.

Don't load it over your main rigs os!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I got the Beta iso image from a colleague. I'm going to configure it in a 2003 staging environment, just to see how it would work for practical applications. I haven't done it yet, but I'm very curious.

OK, here is my first update.

I was able to load the OS with no issues.
That said, it is a kinda long load time considering (athlon 4000/NF4,7800GT,2gigsddr400).

There were 2 times that a "black" screen appeared and nothing appeared to happen for several min.
Depending on how powerful a system you have these "black" screens could take 5 or more min to do whatever it is doing.
Point is, don't stop an install untill it has done nothing for 15 min.

I discovered ccleaner, adawear se, spybot search and distroy all work on Vista 64bit!!!!
There is a version of avast antivirus that is Vista 64bit compadable also.
There is a version of firefox that works.
There are nvidia mb and video drivers on manufacturers website.
there IS an x-fi driver available from blaster
Sygate has a free firewall the works well

Now something that I found very amusing-Windows one care does not yet work with Vista-only XP.

The basic controls i have looked at do pretty much the same thing, if looking different while doing so.

More updates as i do and discover more.

Is this another not-backwards-compatible Windows OS? So you'd have to load all your exes apps and files and everything else back on the HD from the actual sites you downloaded them from in the app and exe cases, & re-intsall from CDs. Mmmmmyea what fun if so........

dialup download update...


So far it's at 248 MB out of 3.13 GB.

or around 8 %.

At this rate maybe 3 Days total.

Well ive been running Vista Exclusively for 2 days now on my main rig, dual booting on my TV Machine and it runs great. It had an issue on my laptop tho. Actually gave me a BSOD during final portion of install. I coulda swore those were being written out for a RedScreenOfDeath...lol. Other than that. i havent had a single issue except for little things internet based. Updates not being let through firewall, stuff like that, no biggie, easily rectified. Creative already has Audigy4 Drivers, Nvidia and ATI have drivers available also.

Teamspeak, Ventrillo, WOW, Steam, Autocadd, Adobe and macromedia Products all run flawlessly as does firefox. The Sidebar seems to hog up alotta resources so i turned it off. The security features are very nice. It wont even delete an icon without pausing the OS and asking if its ok to allow access to this type of system action.

For all you that provided a link directly to the download, that wont be very helpful since they will need a KEY to install it. Use the Link that Mechanic provided and sign up for it to get ur key. As others mentioned, i would recommed using a resizing software to make a chunk on ur main hard drive for it and dual boot your system. if you do an upgrade(dont recommend it, do clean install) and the install fraks up, there is a rollback setup choice in the boot options, it uninstalls itself and goes right back to xp, the uninstall worked on my laptop flawlessly.

You may get a busy page for their akamai download manager, just use the links on the right of the download page for the straight ISO. For some reason, IE and Avant would only pull it at 29k and i knew Microsoft had faster connections then that. I installed Firefox and pulled it in 35mins @ 1045kB/s. I now have a new browser i like called Firefox(with the black japan theme) Cya avant.

The iso for the DVD is 3.31 gigabytes and will need to be burned to a disk. DVDBurning Software and DVD burner is needed for that job.

One of the things i read on the Vista page is for Parents, there will be a setting for allowing your children access to certain RATED Games, websites and programs. Will also create a big GUI window that shows exactly what programs they launched, what sites they visited and chat logs for most chat programs.

THIS IS A BETA which means you are being a guniea pig for Microsoft. It isnt complete by any meaning of the word but its way better than whats been leaked in the private installs, ive been runnin 5071 for a couple months now, this is 5384!!! private leaked betas SUK, this one is way way better. They are hoping that they will recieve feedback about it. I for one will help as much as possible, cuz i really like the way its put together, they took alot of pages from the linux boys on its build and this is how i feel about it.

Are you using the 32 bit version? I am assuming this is the case.

btw - I put my download on hold til later. It was slowing down my ats time...

By midweek next week, I should have it finally downloaded and installed though, and I'll give a report on this thread when I do.

I hope at least that with the download manager, that it won't get broken into pieces during the stop and go downloading.

I think they use something akin to bit torrent to accomplish the download with the download manager, but as I do not know 100% how it really works, please don't quote me on that.


screen cap...



[edit on 6/10/2006 by Mechanic 32]

Sorry yes i am running the 32bit version, my MCE athlon 64 is still down from the fire and i havent touched it. so felt no need for the 64bit as of yet, when i build my new dual core Intel Next month, ill check it out. The download manager is exactly for that such an occasion, so u can stop and start the download at will. You shouldnt have a problem with the chunks gettin put together into one good file. Good Luck.

12k on a Dialup aint half bad mechanic.

edited for dialup comment.

[edit on 10-6-2006 by S1LV3R4D0]

If you only have 1 computer and you have important data on it, by all means do not install this software. Its a beta and as such you can lose you entire drive. If you have a spare machine or can afford to possibly lose data then go right ahead. Don't be a guinea pig for Billy boy if its not necessary. He has people he can afford to pay to be guinea pigs.

Thanks for the info, S1LV3R4D0.


And ThePieMaN, no worries here.

I'm already planning on doing a clean install of XP, any way.

Everything is backed up on a portable drive. But thanks for the advice.

Why?!

Total rip from OSX and Linux. It's all Windows can do now. Vista has nothing new that I've seen that I haven't already seen on linux or OSX. Maybe the sidebar, but that's ugly and useless as all hell.

I had relative ease with the download - I let it start late at night and just let it run while I slept - Vista was ready in the morning before my coffee

I've been having problems burning the ISO to DVD though - For some reason DVD Decrypter didn't work for me....Tried Nero too - DVD discs aren't exactly cheap, so I'm holding off on try 3 until I can figure out what the problem is...

Just to echo the advice though - Don't do this unless you know enough about computers to sally forth into the unknown And definitely back up all your files on an external drive, or as was suggested - Install Vista on a spare drive...

I've been itching to put my Athlon 64 to use - Can't wait to see how everything runs...

For those who've had success....Two questions:

Did installing XP software on Vista suffice or was there some kind of plug-in or vista-only software you used?

Do you plan on keeping it until 2007? Haha....

I think it's worth a shot, but like Mechanic 32 mentioned, I'm already planning on doing a fresh install of XP - So I figured I'd try Vista for a few days and see where that took me...

I'll update once I've got the DVD thing figured out - The one I burned with DVD Decrpyter just says "Not a valid win32 application"....And the Nero version opens as the .rar with just the readme.txt available.....

Enron, Do you have the 32bit, or 64bit version?

If it is 32bit, S1LV3R4D0 listed a bunch of programs that so far run well.

If you have the 64bit version, that may be where your problem burning the iso to disc lies.

If you are having trouble burning the 32bit version, it may be that the settings you are using might be wrong.

It's been a while since I have had the opportunity to burn an iso disc, but if I remember correctly, it was not exactly a sraightforward task.





dialup download update - The last time I wanted to pause the download, I shut down the download manager by hitting 'cancel', instead of 'exit'. Now back to square one. It started downloading from zero.

Now for sure, by the time the download finishes, it will probably be in stores, on release number three.

[edit on 6/11/2006 by Mechanic 32]

**UPDATE** Signed up for CA Etrust antivirus free 1yr that the MS security alerts recommended. Brought my system to a screeching halt. major lag opening any program, heck even booting the operating system. Uninstalled it and it went back to workin fine. My system is a 3.4gig Prescott P4 overclocked to 3.7ghz, 2gig of Corsair ProSeries ddr500 Ram running on a 74gig Raptor hard drive so its not for lack of a fast system. I wouldnt recommend that installation recommendation from the Security Alert. I just installed AVAST free home AV and it runs fine. they also make a 64bit version for those that are planning on running that format. and btw it didnt bring vista to a slow crawl. I sent feedback about it to microsoft, one for their lists of "crap gotta fix it".


Enron i used a program called alcohol to make my dvd. I also might consider running it till release since i manage a computer store and build and design all the new pc's. I gotta know all i can for my customers. Proton just for that very reason, i need to know whats going to be MAINSTREAM for my majority of pc users and be proficient in it, i have a box that runs linux and i made reference to it. i enjoy linux but its not the genre that i exist in so its not practical for my applications. But why wouldnt they borrow from a format that has worked so well for so long, lord knows they havent been gettin right.

Heres a analogy that i use for my customers that helps them understand it. Take your home, i could build you the most secure home but it would be 6ft under ground with a 2ft thick steel door and no windows...but people dont want that, they want their little breakfast nook and french doors and all the goodies. Same for their operating systems, if they used the most secure OS in the world it would be a black screen with white text, no gui nothin, but thats not want the typical end user wants. they want the big gui buttons and the walk me through it wizard.

No Enron i didnt have to use some sort of secondary program for installs. All of those programs that i installed were running on my load of xp. the nvidia and creative sound card drivers were Vista specific.

Good Goin on hittin that cancel button Mechanic...DeeDeeDeeeee
Just kiddin man, that does suck tho cuz it takes sooooo frakin long on dialup. Just keep pluggin away at it, youll have it finished b4 u know it.