My review of WinXP SP2 RC1

I formatted my HD today and I thought maybe I should try out the new Windows XP service pack because I was lazy and didn't want to install SP1 plus like twenty other updates. Here's the deal so far.

Pros:
1. All current updates in one file.
2. Speed improvement over SP1. Bootup time on my machine has been cut by maybe 10-15 seconds. Without any service pack Windows loads up for me in about 15 seconds. SP1 adds about 30 seconds to that. SP2 adds only 15-20 seconds.
3. A decent built-in firewall.

Cons:
1. One BIG file (255mb). Unpacked and installed the update takes up 1gb of space.
2. No express install as of now. You have to dl and run the network install (big package).
3. A MICROSOFT built-in firewall. :(

Um... my question, I guess is, do you like to wait for big updates (once or twice a year) or dl small updates all the time? This can apply to any piece of software.

If anyone wants to check out SP2 you can find it here. Be warned though, it's only a release candidate and most likely will contain bugs, but what MS product doesn't, right? :p

EDIT: I forgot to give my review. :D I'd only get it if you're behind on your updates or have just formatted. I wouldn't be updating if I knew Windows was safe to use. Of course I have a feeling that from now on all updates will be security related.

I dislike SP2 solely for the "trusted computing" stuff in it, although it's called security enhancements and memory protection on the MS site. I guess the idea is good for the vast majority of users though that think they know what they're doing but don't, but I hope there are options to disable it (at the very least in the BIOS as I think it needs hardware support too). Also, would you also trust the built-in Microsoft firewall to stop the OS phoning home? :p

I dunno if your speed improvement measurements are legitimate comparisons - did you test SP1 and SP2 both out on clean machines, or comparing SP2 on a clean installation against SP1 on the old installation you just formatted?


Anyway, I prefer small updates all the time, so I can index them and know exactly what each patch does, so only have to apply patches I think are important.

Yeah, I tested both on clean installs. And yes, you can disable the firewall. Eh, if I end up not liking it I can uninstall the service pack. This time around you can't opt to not make a backup of your previous settings.

I also like little updates all the time.

Security patches, eh? Might fix the 17 bugs people complained loudly enough about, but probably creates 23 more bugs in the process, and ignores 47,000 other bugs at the same time. I honestly don't even patch Windows any longer for security reasons. What's the point? It's like welding a rusty iron patch onto a cardboard box. It takes 1 gig of space? Why in God's name should a patch be that big? I don't even have enough room on my HD to install that patch then. But maybe it's because it's just a release candidate and they'll shrink it down to .9 gigs for the official release. MS built-in firewall? Yeah, I wouldn't touch that with a 10-foot pole.

I prefer incrimental updates, because it's easier to fix if you break something, and it's easier to remember what you just did. If you install 20 patches / bugfixes at once, and one breaks, it can be hard to know which one just caused the problem. Talking about Linux here though. In Windows if something breaks you're screwed, so who cares.

Windows isn't remotely that bad. I'm willing to wager that at least some of the problems needed to make it that bad are inferior user caused.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Moo Moo the Ner Cow
Windows isn't remotely that bad. I'm willing to wager that at least some of the problems needed to make it that bad are inferior user caused.

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They are, like opening viruses in attachments or downloading dodgy software :p At the same time though, some aren't, like the RPC buffer overflow thing, which is a bad thing, or Windows itself connecting out to the internet without telling you - how many users know there's a time sync service which is on by default in Windows, or how many use Windows Media Player and know that by default it sends data over the internet which uniquely identifies you? :p