About Windows XP
An operating system introduced in 2001 from Microsoft’s Windows family of operating systems, the previous version of Windows being Windows Me. Microsoft called the release its most important product since Windows 95. Along with a redesigned look and feel to the user interface, the new operating system is built on the Windows 2000 kernel, giving the user a more stable and reliable environment than previous versions of Windows. Windows XP comes in two versions, Home and Professional. The company has focused on mobility for both editions, including plug and play features for connecting to wireless networks. The operating system also utilizes the 802.11x wireless security standard.
Features of Windows XP
There can be little doubt that Windows XP
is Microsoft’s best OS yet. While it has a few disadvantages in terms of unnecessary bloat, its balance of performance, stability and outward user-friendliness is hard to match.
As WindowsXP is based on Microsoft’s line of server operating systems, it is undoubtedly that which provides it with a rather pleasing lack of crashes. Compare WindowsXP to Windows 98, where the daily reboot has pretty much been accepted as a feature of the operating system, and you can see why it has been embraced so well. This same sever-OS-origin also provides XP with a deep layer of configurability. Not necessarily tweaks as such, but tricks to getting a grip on what is happening behind the scenes for those with an interest.
Comparison between Windows XP with Windows Vista
With the introduction of Windows Vista, Microsoft has surged ahead in bringing out new features to old operating system Windows XP. In Windows Vista, Microsoft revamped several features which were present in Windows XP! If you are moving from XP to Vista, it’s time to compare Vista Vs XP.
Comparing installation phase
Let us start discussion on comparison from the process of installation itself. In Windows XP, the system prompts for user information, CD-Key, and other information etc. after the process of copying files is done. In Windows Vista, it will ask for information such as computer name, CD-Key before the copying process. One cannot install Windows Vista in drives formatted using FAT32 file systems! One need to have NTFS formatted partition for installation of Windows Vista, which aims at secured future operating systems. Security in FAT32 is less compared to NTFS. Installation process was also fast, compared to Windows XP.
Booting process
Next significant change is in the booting process. The NT Boot Loader which was present in the other older operating system has been replaced by Windows Boot Manager. Windows Vista does not allow storing our own or application files in Windows installed boot drives such as ‘C:’ for security reasons, for users including administrator.
Start Menu
Microsoft redesigned the desktop items, such as start menu. The task bar which consist of start button, which is similar in look of Windows XP start button. But, the default color of the task bar has been changed. Instead of classic blue, the default color has been changed to coffee black.
Aero & 3D Effect
There is a new feature called “Aero” which is enabled for use if the system contains a high graphics card, which supports DirectX 9.0 and higher. This feature which is not present in Windows XP enables one to view the open windows as 3D windows. The task bar and open windows can be given translucent, which means semi-transparent effect, through “Aero” option.
Larger Icons on Desktop
The address bar of the Windows Vista Explorer is redesigned to show path as “Computer > Local Disk (C:) > My Folder > My Next Level Folder >” instead of “C:My FolderMy Next Level Folder” which was in Windows XP. The icons appearing on the desktop has been made larger compared to Windows XP. Microsoft has done away with word “My” in the terms such as My Computer, My Document, in Windows Vista.
Sidebar to save time
Microsoft brought a side bar similar to the side bar of MS-Office 97. Programs can be quickly accessed, through customizable buttons provided for the purpose. We need not navigate through Start > Programs > Program Group > Program Name” to run a program. Instead, we can create a short cut on the side bar such that Program Name can be directly accessed.
Adding an old hardware device have a problem in Windows Vista too, similar to Windows XP. It is said that Windows XP Compatible hardware doesn’t have any problems. Hardware devices which are not detected by Windows XP have problems in Vista too. So, look for a logo “Windows Vista or XP compatible” before buying the hardware. Some old devices can be made to work, if the manufacturer of the device can provide the needed XP or Vista compatible drivers. But, some old devices or the system itself may start to behave differently when we install a XP or Vista compatible drivers which are provided by the manufacturers.
Parental Control- Lets you control your Kid’s activity
Vista on the other hand, has a new feature called Parental Control, which is not present in Windows XP. Parents can control their children who make use of the computer for playing their popular games. Parents can now deny access to the computer, deny playing games, and deny even surfing internet. Parents now even can check the status of guessing passwords.
Better Gaming performance
Performance wise, vista surges ahead compared to Windows XP. The various tests such as iTunes encoding, Photoshop CS2 image-processing, 3D games testing using F.E.A.R., has shown that better performance can be achieved in Windows Vista, than Windows XP.
Additional cost to computer user
But, with Windows Vista, it is hard time for people with old systems, as they need to burn some of their extra energy, in purchasing hardware. The RAM needed to be at least 256 MB. One cannot run Vista Aero feature, without a good 3D graphics card that too should support Direct X 9.0. Performance will be slow, if the processor speed is lower than 2.0 GHz.
Final Thoughts
One thing is sure, Windows Vista surely will be a replacement for Windows XP, in terms of performance, number of rich features, the way it manages the computer resources etc. As Vista is in beta phase, we can expect decent performance when it finally comes put. Let us wait & watch.
Recovering Windows XP password
Please see the video before moving on
There is a far better way to get into Windows XP. It is easy and it does not reset the password. Hack into a computer running Windows XP without changing the password and find out all and any passwords on the machine (including admin accounts). You do not need access to any accounts to do this. Of course, do not do this on anyone elses computer without proper authorization.
1. Get physical access to the machine. Remember that it must have a CD or DVD drive.
3. Unzip the downloaded dpl.zip and you’ll get dpl.ISO.
4. Use any burning program that can burn ISO images.
5. After you have the disk, boot from the CD or DVD drive. You will see Windows 2000 Setup and it will load some files.
6. Press “R” to install DreamPackPL.
7. Press “C” to install DreamPackPL by using the recovery console.
8. Select the Windows installation that is currently on the computer (Normally is “1″ if you only have one Windows installed)
9. Backup your original sfcfiles.dll by typing:
“ren C:\Windows\System32\sfcfiles.dll sfcfiles.lld” (without quotes)
10. Copy the hacked file from CD to system32 folder. Type:
“copy D:\i386\pinball.ex_ C:\Windows\System32\sfcfiles.dll” (without quotes and assuming your CD drive is D:)
11. Type “exit”, take out disk and reboot.
12. In the password field, type “dreamon” (without quotes) and DreamPack menu will appear.
13. Click the top graphic on the DreamPack menu and you will get a menu popup.
14. Go to commands and enable the options and enable the god command
.
15. Type “god” in the password field to get in Windows.
You can also go to Passwords and select “Logon with wrong password and hash”. This option allows you to login with ANY password.
