Review of XP SP2 RC1

[MercenaryForHire]

... Great functionality - now can they please make it WORK after a reboot, damn it?

Seriously.

I've installed it on now three separate machines, and it has screwed each and every one over to the point of a "format required to make functional." Not even the Oh So Powerful System Restore can save this screwup.

Even off a fresh new install - SP2 installs fine, goes through the updates fine, works. Then as soon as I reboot - whammo. "Security Center" service fails to load. Hangs on "starting" in Services - thereby denying all access to the internet. Furthermore, a System Restore, while cleaning out SP2, failed to pull its barbed tentacles out of IE6 - leaving it in a state of flux somewhere around IE6 SP1.666 and making it unable to browse sites that don't start with "www" - otherwise, you would have seen this a LOT earlier.

It does look impressive on paper - defaulting to blocking ActiveX drive-by installs and popups, a better firewall, and decent WiFi controls - but until they can give me something I can actually run, screw it. I'll stick to a fully patched SP1.

- M4H

 

[Schadenfroh]

its great if you like nagware

 

[oldman420]

Originally posted by: MercenaryForHire
... Great functionality - now can they please make it WORK after a reboot, damn it?

Seriously.

I've installed it on now three separate machines, and it has screwed each and every one over to the point of a "format required to make functional." Not even the Oh So Powerful System Restore can save this screwup.

Even off a fresh new install - SP2 installs fine, goes through the updates fine, works. Then as soon as I reboot - whammo. "Security Center" service fails to load. Hangs on "starting" in Services - thereby denying all access to the internet. Furthermore, a System Restore, while cleaning out SP2, failed to pull its barbed tentacles out of IE6 - leaving it in a state of flux somewhere around IE6 SP1.666 and making it unable to browse sites that don't start with "www" - otherwise, you would have seen this a LOT earlier.

It does look impressive on paper - defaulting to blocking ActiveX drive-by installs and popups, a better firewall, and decent WiFi controls - but until they can give me something I can actually run, screw it. I'll stick to a fully patched SP1.

- M4H

i have killed all 3 machines that i put this on it is not time for this yet but ms thinks they have to so that they can have more complete controll over who computes whith what any app that uses axcive x "and there are many" wont run post sp2. dont do it sp2 is evil and a web to trap us

 

[stash]

^^
Nice rant.