Windows Vista In The Chicopee Public School System

Hypothesis Would using Windows Vista on new computers benefit the Chicopee Public School System?

Background Vista is the newest operating system since Windows XP which was released over 5 years ago. Originally Vista was scheduled to be released in 2003, but was pushed back to tighten the software’s security.

Background Cont. It was then rescheduled to be released in late 2006, but to give Microsoft and their software and hardware vendors more time to prepare for launch, it was yet again pushed back till January 30 th Vista has been in “beta” testing for a few years now and has been tested by Telecom over the last several months using the Release Candidate 1 (RC1) version.

System Requirements

Features - Appearance Aero – New graphical user interface Flip/Flip3D – Updated Alt/Tab Live Taskbar Thumbnails New Start Menu Updated Explorer Window Windows Sidebar

Features - Performance Sleep – Fast startup and shutdown ReadyBoost – Flash memory increases cache size ReadyDrive – Hybrid HDDs help performance and battery life SuperFetch – Memory management

Features - Security Windows Defender – Antispyware User Account Control Firewall Internet Explorer 7 Protected Mode Windows Service Hardening Backup and Restore Center

Features - Mobility Windows Mobility Center Three Power Plans Improved Battery Meter Multiple Monitor Support Presentation Settings Tablet PC support built in Sync Center Sleep – combines hibernate and standby

Features - Other Desktop Search Windows Media Player 11 Speech Recognition Windows Calendar Windows Mail Windows Photo Gallery

Vista Advantages Improved Security Find and Use Information Effectively Better Hardware Compatibility Increased Performance and Reliability Enhanced Mobile Computing Convenient New Features

Vista Problems Software Compatibility High System Requirements Higher Computer System Cost Steep Learning Curve