The latest operating system from windows is the Windows Vista operating system. This is the best operating system for a slow computer as it provides faster boot times to speed up your computer. This is all possible with its diagnostics, a feature that permits you to correct problematic issues on the computer immediately instead of depending on technicians.Windows Vista in fact is effective at speeding up your computer as your computer boots faster with the advanced handling of scripts and application loading by Windows Vista. With its built in diagnostics, errors on the system are easily located and repaired. In addition to this, it is also possible to locate disk failures through the backup process found in Windows Vista. The advanced features of Windows Vista allows the user to experience a more problem free PC.

On using Windows Vista, you find that it is more reliable than other operating systems like Windows XP, as it reduces user disruptions that exist and lead to a slow computer. Windows Vista helps manage crashes and computer hang ups and helps speed up computer usage. All this is possible because Windows Vista has a Startup Repair Tool (SRT) which is basically a step by step troubleshooter that works on the basis of diagnostics.

With this tool, it is possible for you to diagnose and recover an unbootable system to bring it to a usable state. It is possible for you to do all this with the help of the guided recovery process found in Windows Vista.

Basically, there are two levels of computers recommended for usage of Windows Vista operating system. These two versions are referred to as ‘vista-capable’ and ‘premium-ready’ levels of computers.

If you have a Windows Vista capable pc, it indicates that the hardware of the pc meets the minimum requirements for the installation and the running of Windows Vista on the computer. These minimum requirements you should have for running Windows Vista include a modern processor of at least 800MHz, system memory of at least 512 MB, and a graphic processor that is DirectX9 capable and with a minimum of 64 MB of RAM.

If you have a Windows Vista premium ready pc it means that the hardware in your computer is sufficient for you to use not only Windows Vista, but also additional features of Windows Vista for a better computing experience. With this additional hardware in the computer, it is possible to use the computer for running the new Aero user interface in the future.

The minimum requirements here include a processor of 1 GHz-bit (x86), a GB of RAM, DVD-ROM drive, 40 GB of hard drive capacity having a minimum of 15 GB of free space and support for DirectX 9 graphics through WDDM driver with 128MB graphics memory. In addition to this, the computer should have audio output and internet access capabilities.

Though Windows Vista will work with 1 GB and a minimum of 512 RAM, the ideal configuration for the use of a 64-bit Windows Vista system is 2 GB of RAM. Because Windows Vista is 64-bit, and it handles double sized data chunks, you need double the memory space for the effective functioning of the operating system.

Now that you have an idea of the requirements for the Windows Vista operating system, it is possible to make a comparison between Windows Vista and Windows XP. Basically, the greatest difference between the two lies in their system memory and video requirements.

It is possible to use Windows XP with only a 128 MB video card and a system RAM of 1 GB. With these requirements, Windows XP runs very well on your computer; however with these specifications, you find that it is the minimum requirements for installation of Windows Vista.

It is because Windows Vista is more graphic intensive than windows XP that at least 2 GB of RAM is recommended for its efficient functioning. This added RAM will provide you with a richer media experience. This will of course, increase the cost of the hardware that is required for running Windows Vista on the computer.

However like all operating systems, there are some flaws associated with Windows Vista. It will be possible for you to handle all these errors with the help of Windows Vista Service pack 1 that was released in the summer of 2007.  Over the course of time, it is expected to find Windows Vista replacing XP as users begin to update their computers and hardware. For more information on the Windows Vista Operating System please visit:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/features