Vista now + SP1 + SP2 = Vista in two years?

Let’s say I buy Vista now. Compare this with someone who buys Vista two years from now, two service packs later. Will my version be identical to theirs once I download the service packs online and install them?

 

Yes...but you'll had to have gone through all the troubles and bugs that the other person did not

Seriously, don't get Vista until you need it...XP is perfectly fine.

 

Yes.

Seriously, if you are interested in Vista, don't bother waiting...its perfectly fine.

 

Exactly my plan; I find there's no real need for me to switch to Vista unless absolutely necessary to do so (and at the moment, there's no absolutely necessary features that warrant me switching, not even DX10 does it for me).

 

Yes. Although I'd recommend sticking with XP, simply because your computer will almost certainly perform better under the same specs with XP than with Vista. But if you've got at least 1 gig of RAM and cash to burn for the sake of having the newest beta on the block, go for it. Just remember that Home Basic is like a dumbed-down version of XP Home, and Aero only comes with the other versions.

 

I wasn't very clear in my original post: I meant if I'm going to buy a new laptop now, will the current version of Vista be essentially identical to the version of Vista two years down the road?

 

Ah, yes then. After downloads, they would be identical.

 

Thanks! I appreciate it.

 

That's not true. You're right, if someone is interested in running Vista, they should, and there's no point in waiting.
But it is not "perfectly fine". not even Microsoft would make that claim. That's why they're working on a SP1, after all.

It work acceptably for some people, yes. But a lot of people run into major problems with it, so it is not "perfectly fine". It might be good *enough*, and you might get lucky and not experience problems with it, but that's still not the same.

 

But Vista works perfectly on my computer, therefore it must work perfectly on every computer!!!

;^)

 

Yeah, in all honestly it really depends on the hardware and current quality of drivers. Every experience is going to be VERY different.