Full Review

The Good

With the release of Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP2 the operating system runs stable and with a decent laptop. I have used this operating system on my Sony Vaio Gr300p and it works great. There is rarely any problems. My original o/s did not have the service packs so I downloaded the two service packs from the Microsoft website.

The high compatibility with many programs is very useful. Older programs such as Office 97 still run very well and most of the time without problems. Even with only a Pentium III 1.0Ghz processor and 512mb of RAM bootup time is only about 35 seconds.

The driver database included thousands of hard-ware drivers and most of the time is plug and play. If the driver is not found usually items produced within the last 12 years will have a website with a free download of the driver. To find the driver it is easy as a search on yahoo for the model of the product and the words "driver download".

Reinstallation of the system takes usually less than 45 minutes. If you know or how to make a ISO image of your hard-drive you can customize a clean install of your system and save it on a set of cd's or a dvd or on a portable drive or on other partition of the hard drive. This can be used for later use.

There is no requirement for activation which makes one less hassle for users.

The Bad

Well in my experience Windows XP Pro it does not have a lot of downsides. The compatibility among programs is among the highest and the resources it uses is low. I would say that the backup utility has its share of problems for it doesn't backup all the customization you have done. An ISO image of the hard drive is much more effective.

The cost is probably its biggest downfall. It is a bargain if you get this operating system with a system including installation disk. Note if you have a dell version of the disk it can only be installed on dell computers. But it retails usually for over 120 dollars.