Hate Vista? Join the club. Computer users have groused about the new Windows operating system ever since Microsoft introduced it last year. Some have taken matters into their own hands by removing Vista and installing XP, the operating system Vista was supposed to replace. Companies without in-house IT support are paying outside technicians to do it for them. Microsoft calls its downgrading. But small business owners like Nancy Masse who claims to be living in “a Vista nightmare,” say switching back to XP is the real upgrade. “I should have just kept my old computer,” Masse says. Tech support businesses expect to stay busy helping Windows users like Masse uninstall Vista at least until July. That’s when Microsoft expects to stop selling OEM and shrink-wrapped versions of XP. After that, computer shops and technicians who build custom machines will steer business customers to Linux or other alternatives. Companies are hanging onto XP as long as possible because of the associated costs of upgrading. Lots of applications that “just worked on XP do not automatically just work” on Vista, says Chris Benson, president of Geeks a Knockin, a Portland, Ore., computer reseller and service company. As a result, customers pay him to install a manufacturer’s free update, or pay for the Vista version of the software if it’s out, Benson says. For a program like QuickBooks “that might run $150 on the low end to several hundred dollars if you have multiple users or need premium or specialty applications,” he says. Multiply that by a couple applications and it quickly adds up, he says. Vista puts computer reseller in the spotlight A & D Computers, a Milford, N.H., computer reseller and repair shop, got its 15 minutes in the spotlight earlier this year helping business PC users with their Vista frustrations. The shop received national attention after a picture of a sign in the company’s window advertising its Vista removal service was posted on a popular blog about Microsoft. Aaron Kaplan, who runs the 20-year-old business with his dad, Ron Kaplan, says thousands of people looked at the picture online and he got phone calls from businesses as far away as Texas wanting to talk about it. A & D Computers put up the sign last year after Vista debuted and customers started asking how they could remove it. Requests have tapered off lately, but the computer shop is still helping customers switch. A & D builds custom computers for business customers, and as long as XP is available “we’ll give people the option between the two. It’s all up to the customer. We won’t force Vista on anyone,” Aaron Kaplan says. Some small businesses have resigned themselves to living in “Vista hell.” That’s what Masse calls what happened to her after she bought a HP Pavilion PC in July 2007. Masse, owner of a marketing and direct mail business in Tampa, Fla., says Vista looks good and has some nice features. But it makes her PC crash whenever she tries to upload updates for programs like Adobe. Initially Masse thought she’d wipe the PC’s hard drive and install XP. But she quickly realized it would take days to find and upload the XP drivers she’d need for all of the programs she uses, time she couldn’t afford to take away from work. So she’s stuck. “If you can get away with not having to upgrade, do it,” she advises. SIDEBAR: What Businesses Can Do What should businesses do? Here are some suggestions from business PC experts: Upgrade hardware. Vista has higher hardware requirements, so if you’re having problems, it could be because your current system isn’t beefy enough to handle it, says Benson, with Geeks a Knockin. Hang in there. Vista service pack 1, which includes updates that could fix some problems, is expected to be out this month and will be built into new PCs beginning in April. Replace Vista. If you don’t want to use Vista but switching to XP feels like going backwards, consider alternatives such as Ubuntu Linux, some computer resellers suggest. Plan ahead. Talk to your IT vendor. Companies like Geeks a Knockin are contacting business customers to see if they want to upgrade while they can still get new machines with XP. “That way we can get them new hardware with XP and see them through for a few more years,” Benson says. Protest. The momentum against Vista has propelled more than 94,500 Windows users to sign a Save XP.com online petition. Microsoft hasn’t responded to the petition but has publicly stated it is listening to feedback from partners and customers.
