Preview Microsoft Office and Vista

Are you considering a transition to Vista or the new Microsoft Office suite and wondering if your current computer can handle it? Are you thinking about making the investment into a new computer and want to make sure that it can support the Vista and Office in six months? Are you wondering how long you can wait to make the change, and what you will have to deal with if you stay with the current operation system and applications? These top ten tips are designed to give you an informed perspective of the current step in the transition of technology.

1. Vista Minimum System Requirements

The minimum system requirements to be classified as Vista compatible is an 800 Megahertz processor and 512 megabytes of system memory. However, you will probably want to use your computer for more than running an operating system. If you plan on running multiple applications, and do not want time to run out for coffee while your computer opens email, your minimum requirements should meet the Vista Premium Ready designation requirements of a minimum 1 Gigahertz processor and 1 Gigabyte of system memory. To put is simply, if you are shopping for computer hardware in 2007, think "1 Giga x 1 Giga" Minimum. "More really is better."

2. The difference between Vista Capable and Vista Premium Ready

Vista capable computers have the absolute minimum system requirements. Unfortunately, 800 Megahertz and 512 megabytes will not support the "Aero" interface with glass tabs and see-through windows. You might not think that these slick features are important right now, but after six months you will experience computer envy as the person sitting next to you on the plane, train or coffee shop is using the new features to browse the web or layered applications. Vista Premium Ready requires the "1 Giga x 1 Giga" processor and system memory. Don't be lured by slightly lower cost systems that have inferior processor power or memory. It would be like putting bicycle tires on your new Mercedes, it might look good from the right angle but you aren't going to get anywhere very fast. Look for the Premium logo and fill your tank with a double dose of Giga power.

3. Vista Security

Microsoft Vista is the most secure operating system from Microsoft to date. It includes restrictive firewalls, tools to block spyware and phishing, and blocks some email scams intended to steal personal data. Internet Explorer 7 has three levels of warnings about potential phishing sites. The IE7 browser also quarantines malicious viruses. You can count on Microsoft to release updates and patches to continually maximize security and protection against new worms and viruses.

4. Vista Ease of Use

We have more access to data, images, music and files than ever before. As technology continues to advance, the access to information expands exponentially. This creates new challenges in finding the data, images, music and files that you have stored, and this is one of the benefits of Vista. Use your mouse to scroll through folders like flipping cards in a poker game, searching your hard drive, network and the Internet quickly and efficiently. Vista is a very visually stimulating environment, and as such it has special features for digital camera aficionados as well.

5. Vista Mobility

When Windows XP was released five years ago, most businesses used desktop computers. Now nearly two-thirds of US business workers use laptops, and nearly 750,000 laptops were lost or stolen last year. Mobility increases productivity and convenience, but it also requires greater security. Vista includes Windows Bit-Locker, which encrypts data on the hard drive in a manner that makes it extremely difficult for someone to access your valuable data if the laptop is lost or stolen. If you have customer contact data, sales forecasts, budget information, passwords, personnel files or even your personal banking information stored on your laptop, you can imagine how valuable this encryption could be for you.

Source: http://goo.gl/OG8K5