Which Windows OS?

Win XP
Win XP Pro
Win XP Media Center

I run XP Pro on my desktop and I know it adds some networking features which the 'regular' version of XP lacks but I honestly don't know what those features do or how to access them. Due to that I assume the plain jane version ought to suffice.

Media Center intrigues me though. I know it might be useful in a desktop home theater application but I don't know if any of those benefits would really be usefull in a notebook. I'd appreciate any experience with the use of Media Center features and a notebook.

Thanks.

 

Well, I do know that Win XP MCE has everything Win XP Pro does. Personally, I feel that XP MCE belongs more in home living rooms than notebooks, plenty of people enjoy MCE with their notebooks, which are mostly desktop replacements anyways. I'd suggest that if you get it, to get a large, speedy hard drive/drives and a high quality LCD.

 

I would go for XP Pro..It comes with office XP which is really handy. I think Home Edition is just a waste of money; buy I don't understand the point of getting Media Edition....It's more expensve I think and those extra features in Media Edition are rather useless. You can just do everything in XP Pro....but I wouldn't recommend you upgrade or buy XP now as Windows Vista will be on the shelves of stores quite soon!

 

by the way I think this should be in the software section....A moderator shouls move it for you soon enough....

 

I would go for XP Pro. I have not used media center (dell likes to offer this on their notebooks) but it sounds like another Windows "ME"

 

The following helps show the differences between XP Home and XP Pro:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/howtobuy/choosing2.mspx


This link explains XP Media Center features:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/mediacenter/evaluation/features.mspx

 

bmwrob,

Good links/explanation.

Moving thread to software section. You will get more responses there.

 

I think the Media Center Edition will just add a bunch of hardware bloat and extra security issues. Stick with XP Pro.

 

Not so - XP MCE doesn't have the key networking/security features that XP Pro has, even though it's based off that and not XP Home. Therefore, XP MCE is more closely releated to XP Home than XP Pro, as it cannot be used effectively in a workplace environment.

 

I don't think that's accurate. At least I've never heard of Microsoft bundling Office with XP Pro.

Thanks for the thoughts so far everyone. (and sorry for posting this in the wrong place)

I'm leaning toward regular XP just because it doesn't appear that the extra features in Pro would matter much to me.

 

For most users Home is sufficient. Unless you are using it in a heavily networked environment I wouldn't pay the extra. Camp is right, Pro does not come with Office. You may want to try OpenOffice. It is free and Office compatible. Good Luck.