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Service Pack 1 for Vista
Well for those of you running your PCs on windows Vista and haven't yet recieved SP1 (service Pack 1) via Windows Update you'll be pleased to know it's not far away (If you're a TechNet subscriber, you'll have it already)
What's it all about? Read more...
Once installed, you'll not see the major changes that we saw with Windows XP SP2, but the subtle changes that are in the service pack turn out to be quite major indeed. One point to make up-front is that service packs aren't supposed to be major flashy upgrades. What users saw with XPSP2 was something unlike any other service pack and since then there's been a lot of expectation that every service pack should add extra features and applications, change the user interface and shift all your tasks into friendly wizards like the Wireless Connection Wizard.
Service packs in the real sense is more of a reliability update roll-up. All the fixes to bugs not nothing added.
Most of the Service pack has been geared around tweaking the UAC (User Account Control) - That box that asks your permission to do anything that could effect the reliability of your PC. Most people seem to switch it off at their earliest opportunity. With the tweaks in SP1 the need to do this has become less and so to have the issues the user will face if they do... have you tried to add a network printer with UAC turned off?
So what will you get when it's installed? On the outside, almost nothing. But under the bonnet, there are many changes.
- Improves the progress estimation when copying files by using Windows Explorer so that the time estimate in the progress window appears within two seconds.
- Improves the speed of adding files to and extracting files from compressed folders.
- Improves the performance of power transitions (for example, resuming from hibernation and standby mode).
- Improves the performance of domain-joined computers when operating off the domain. Before Windows Vista SP1, users would experience long delays when opening the File dialog box.
- Improves battery life on some computers by reducing CPU use and redrawing the screen less frequently.
- Improves the logon experience by removing the occasional 10-second delay between pressing CTRL-ALT-DELETE and the password prompt appearing.
- Reduces the time to return to a user’s session when using the Photo screensaver.
- Improves overall media performance by reducing many glitches.
- In internal testing, reduction by approximately 75 percent the time to start Event Viewer.
If you want to read what Microsoft have to say about it, you can download the SP1 overview here.
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written by Max Walford, March 09, 2008
