[FallenDeku]

If you’re reading this on a Windows machine odds are it is running Windows XP, thanks to a five year reign XP has found its way into pretty much every computer and those that can’t support it are considered well and truly past their use-by date.
But now there’s Vista, but despite Microsoft’s best efforts people aren’t rushing out to upgrade, some opting to buy new computers with XP instead. And who could blame them, XP works, and they know exactly how to do what they want to, unfortunately this attitude isn’t going to get you the advanced features only Vista can offer, many of which are more useful than you think.

Reasons to stay put:
I’m going to start with why you shouldn’t upgrade to Vista, as odds are these will be the deciding factors in anybody’s choice and some factors may mean your computer and Vista just won’t mix even if you want them to.

• Hardware Requirements
  The first thing a lot of people notice is that Vista is pretty, much more so than XP and infinitely more than 98. Unless your computer has at least some graphical power then you may find yourself looking at the rather bland and ugly interface which Vista reverts to if it can’t load Aero (the glassy look). My computer is equipped with a Radeon 9600 Pro, and it handles Aero with ease, but I wouldn’t want to try anything much older and integrated graphics are a no-go.
  Even behind the graphics Vista is very hardware intensive, especially when it comes to RAM. XP will run on 128MB of RAM and 512MB makes it fly; conversely the installer won’t even allow you to try and put Vista on your system if you have less than 512MB of RAM and with good reason, Vista takes up a hefty 400MB or so by itself. If you’re going to be using Vista seriously you’d want to have at least 1GB under the bonnet, with 2-3GB covering future needs, be warned however that the 32-bit version of Vista won’t recognise any more than 3GB of RAM due to compatibility reasons.
  Back in the days of Windows 95 people resorted to drive compression similar to putting everything in one big .zip file to squeeze the new operating system onto their old hard drives. Luckily today’s drives mean we don’t have to resort to those kinds of measures but that doesn’t mean Vista won’t take a chunk out of your drive. You need at least a solid 10GB to house Vista, and it is very possible that patches, extras and basic backup will use another 10GB or more during Vista’s lifetime.
  
• Performance
  Because Vista takes more out of your hardware this translates to a performance hit compared to XP, especially when it comes to games. Granted this is mostly at the lower end of the scale when you’re dealing with 512MB of RAM or less, but if you’re aiming to get the highest frame rates possible then Vista isn’t going to help any.
  
• Compatibility
  Some older pieces of hardware won’t work with Vista, in most cases this is because a lot of older hardware has had support removed, one such example is the game port. Also while Vista does have the largest collection of in-built drivers there are things that have been missed, especially for obscure devices and small brand names.
  Similarly some older software, and even recent anti-virus and security software, won’t run under Vista; a lot of the time this is because they were designed to take advantage of something which has been removed, usually for security reasons or discouraging use of obsolete software. The 64-bit editions of Vista, like the 64-bit edition of XP before them, don’t support older 16-bit programs (mostly from DOS/Win3.1 era) but unless you depend on one of these you shouldn’t worry too much.
  
• Cost
  Windows Vista is expensive; luckily there are many different editions for every budget. At entry level Vista Home Basic is too under-featured to be worth considering, with Home Premium and Business being the cheapest viable options. The best of the lost though is the Ultimate edition, containing everything in both Home Premium and Business and then some, but at US$400 for a fresh install or US$260 upgrade it is a serious investment.

Reasons to Upgrade:
There is a lot to like about Vista, and it is only if you can find no reason to upgrade that you really should stick with what you’ve got.

• Security
  Vista is significantly more secure than any other version of Windows, especially when it comes to home use. It includes Windows Defender by default for out-of-the-box spyware protection, which is updated alongside Windows through the Windows Update tool. Vista also takes things one step further with Use Account Control, which stops programs making system changes without the user knowing, and won’t allow programs full administrator privileges unless the user explicitly allows it (even if the user is an admin).
  
• Search
  One of the things that will change the way you use your computer is Vista’s search feature. While XP’s required you to enter the entire search before it started looking, and even then took its time, Vista searches while you type providing near instant results. Windows Desktop Search provides similar functionality for XP but it is significantly more limited as it can’t integrate with Windows. If you often need to find one file out of many, especially if you need to search file contents, then this feature alone is reason to upgrade.
  
• Explorer
  Windows Explorer has undergone a major upgrade.
  The old fashioned address bar (Drive:\Folder\Folder\) is now much more functional (Drive>Folder>Folder>), clicking the arrow after any folder’s name will provide a list of folders within that folder, meaning that if you have a large number of folders you can quickly and easily move between them instead of repeatedly returning to the main folder. It also features a shortcut bar on the right side, the user can easily add shortcuts to this bar, making it much more useful than XP’s “Other Places”.
  Across the bottom of the Explorer window is a special area which displays the selected file’s information. In the case of music this includes the song title, album, artist, album art and more as would normally be seen in iTunes or Media Player. Information can also be added to music files and many other file types through this area by entering it in the required space.
  On the right is a preview pane, capable of playing audio and even opening Office files (i.e. Word and Excel), saving you the need to open the full programs.
  The new user folder gives you easy access to all your files as well as a default location to store almost everything. Unfortunately some programs don’t take advantage of these locations yet (especially games which still throw save game folders in with your documents) but software designed for Vista should keep things orderly. The new Games Explorer gives you a single location for all your games, and integrates well with the new Parental Controls system.
  
• Aero
  A lot of us have replaced Windows XP’s default skin with something more tasteful, but that doesn’t stop Vista’s glassy Aero look from being nice to look at. However on top of a fancy border Vista has several practical uses for Aero; mousing over taskbar items shows a thumbnail if the window and its current contents, these thumbnails also appear in the classic Alt-Tab box, however for those that still aren’t satisfied you can press WinKey-Tab to see your windows in a 3D arrangement allowing you to cycle through them or return to a blank desktop.
  
• DirectX 10
  Vista includes native support for DirectX 10, while not a big deal now soon enough the next generation of games will be taking advantage of this making Vista the gaming choice. Granted you’ll need a graphics card up to scratch and DirectX 10 games aren’t going to flood the shelves for a while, but the important thing is that you will need it eventually.

Common criticisms:

• User Account Control Prompts
  As mentioned before, UAC is a security feature of Vista. However if you’re like me and tend to mess around with system settings or install a lot you’ll quickly become very familiar with this little box. Now it is nowhere near as bad as a particular Apple ad would have you believe, but if you really can’t stand it you can easily turn it off (ironically, a UAC prompt will confirm you do want to do so).
  
• Bugs
  Microsoft is somewhat notorious for their bugs; XP itself was very far from perfect on initial release. However after using it for some time without issue I can safely say that Vista is bug free as an average user could want it to be. For those still wary Vista’s first service pack is slated for release this year which will fix any outstanding bugs. Before anybody mentions this Vista much be bad requiring a service pack in the first year, SP1 is set to be released alongside Windows Server 2008 so its main purpose will be to bring the two products to the same level.
  
• Speed
  While Vista is inherently slower than XP on the same hardware one must remember that XP is somewhat slower than 98 which in turn is slower than Windows 3.1 (all on the same hardware of course). The performance hit is just the cost of Vista’s new features and functionality; personally I think this is a fair trade.
  
• *Insert feature* was already in Mac OS X
  I think the only people who really care about this are Mac users, and seeing as Vista won’t run on a Mac it doesn’t really matter anyway.

[ailj168]

Read the following passages. Underline the important viewpoints while reading.

1. Wealth Led to Disaster

In all American history, there is no story stranger than that of John A. Sutter. We have read about the early history of San Francisco. When the independence of California was declared in 1846, San Francisco was a small town of some 800 inhabitants. Then, in 1848, gold was discovered on land not far away. This land was owned by John A. Sutter.

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Sutter was never able to recover from these last and final blows. wedding dresses He went back east and, in the courts of Washington, again brought a suit to recover what he claimed had been stolen from him, He spent the last fifteen years of his life in this sad manner. Tirelessly, he went from senator to congressman, from one government office to another. Friends tried to heip him, ahd he received various honpurs in recognition of his early work in C.alifornia. But delay followed delay, hoth in Congress and in the government courts. The "General" as he came to be called, died alone in a small Washington hotel room, a broken and bitter man.



2. What Did Qi Gong Do with His Money?

Everyone knows how important money is in the world today. But what did Qi Gong do with his hard-earned one and a half million yuan?
Mr Qi Gong, aged 79, is a well-known calligrapher in China. He became famous the hard way. Born in a poor family, he did not have much schooling until his talent attracted the attention of Professor Chen Yuan, the president of Furen University. For years Professor Chen took him under his personal care and taught him'literature and calligraphy. Professor Chen thought highly of Qi Gong and helped him to find jobs of teaching at several institutions.

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Years of hard work made Qi Gong an excellent teacher and outstanding calligrapher and painter.wow Power Leveling
In memory of his teacher Professor Chen Yuan, Qi Gong decided in 1991 to set up a foundation to give awards to both teachers and students who excel in their work. Qi Gong worked day after day at his desk and produced more than 100 works of calligraphy, which he sold for 1, 630, 000 yuan. All this money went into the foundation which was namled after his teacher. He did not leave a penny for himself!
What do you think money means to Qi Gong?



3. Pop Stars I,ive Like the Royalty

Pop stars today enjoy a style of living which was once the prerogative only of Royalty. Wherever they go, people turn out in their thousands to greet them. The crowds go wild trying to catch a brief glimpse of,their smiling, colourfully-dressed idols. The stars are transported in their chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royces, private helicopters or executive aeroplanes. They are surrounded by a permanent entourage of managers, press-agents and bodyguards.

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And why not? ffxi gil Society has always rewarded its top entertainers lavishly. The great days of Hollywood have become legendary: famous stars enjoyed fame, wealth and adulation on an unprecedented scale. By today's standards, the excesses of Hollywood do not seem quite so spectacular. A single gramophone record nowadays may earn much more in royalties than the films of the past ever did. The competition for the title "Top of the Pops" is fierce, but the rewards are truly colossal.

4. "Pop Stars Certainly Earn Their Money"

It is only right that the stars should be paid in this way. Don't the top men in industry earn enormous salaries for the services they perform to their companies and their countries'? Pop stars. earn vast sums in foreign currency-often more than large industrial concerns-and the taxman can only be grateful for their massive annual contributions to the exchequer. So who would begrudge them their rewards?

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It's all very well for people in humdrum jobs to moan about the successes and rewards of others. wow power leveling People who make envious remarks should remember that the most famous stars represent only the tip of the iceberg. For every famous star, there are hundreds of others struggling to earn. a living. A man working in a steady job and looking forward to a pension at the end of it has no right to expect very high rewards.


5. Decent Beggars in Shanghai

It was getting dark when the plane landed at Hongqiao Airport in Shanghai. A woman stepped out into a driving rain.
"Madam, you must be from Beijing," a voice behind her said.
Taking luggage from the woman' s hand, the man said, "The weather in the south is unpleasant, and it rains all the time. The rainy season is coming." He accompanied her out of the airport.

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Then they began to flatter the.children, wow power leveling saying they were so beautiful and would be promising in the future. They predicated that the parents would enjoy a very happy life with wealthy and devoted sons and daughters. They did not stop talking until the mother gave them a 10yuan note. The mother did not feel sorry for giving the money. She said that she had bought good fortune with the money. Some people say it is this psychology that the "decent beggars" cater to in making money.



6. Nobel Prizes
wedding dress designers,
Once a year, wedding dress designers at a special ceremony a few dist.inguished people are awarded Nobel Prizes. The founder of these prizes was Alfred Bernhard Nobel (1833-1896), a Swedish scientist.
Nobel discovered the explosive called dynamite. This was much safer to use than earlier explosives. He made a large fortune from this and other di.scoveries and inventions. However, it saddened him that his explosives were so widely used for warfare.
Nobel left mosi of his money. to establish five prizes. They are warded for services to physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace. It is considered a very great honour to win one of these prizes.

Is Money the Most Important Thing in Life?