What's the best way to revert from Windows Vista to run applications that don't work?

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many people have had luck in running older programs on Vista by setting the properties on the program to run in compatiblity mode for XP.

This is yet ANOTHER example of how out of touch Microsoft is with their customers. Our computer had security problems with THEIR O/s, and people attacking it from the outside. Vista makes it incredibly difficult to do everyday tasks, because Microsoft thinks that it is WE who are the security risks, and make us jump through hoops just to do basic things. Their IE solution is already getting patched, even though it was supposed to be almost impenetrable! Either way, I'll stick to XP for another year or so. My son had a problem installing Adobe on his new Vista laptop. We had to use the XP Compatibility settings. That Mac is looking MUCH better these days! :)

Your suggested solution of a virtual machine may be overkill.

Vista allows an application to run in compatibility mode.

1. In Windows Explorer right click on the application file. Select the Compatibility tab.
2. Select the run in compatibility mode checkbox.
3. Select the mode from the dropdown list.

Vista allows for compatibility with XP SP2 as well as modes going back to Windows 95 or forward to Windows Server 2003 SP1.

BTW, if Vista balks at allowing an installer to run, a similar option from the install file’s context menu - properties will let it install.

I suggest trying this before anything else.
Richard

Regarding the dual-boot idea, as I recall, XP must be installed BEFORE Vista. I don't think you can add XP to an existing Vista installation and dual-boot.

If you want to go virtual, VMware is by far the best answer today. I've used it on both Windows and Linux hosts to run a wide range of guests (Windows XP & 98, Linux, NetBSD, etc). You will pay a performance penalty, but if your new system has a rich memory and fast disks, the net effect should be fine for most applications.

How does Windows Genuine Advantage affect the dual-booting or Parallels Workstation idea? I thought the mantra has been "one XP, one computer".

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A fine question, and I think the specifics have yet to be determined.

Certainly you can have a licensed copy of Vista on the machine, AND a
separately licensed copy of XP on the same machine in either dual boot or VM.
You've paid for two operating systems, and can run them on a single machine -
nothing really new there. WGA will simply record the activation within the
environment it sees at the time.

Things get dicier with VM's. You could have more than one copy of XP running in
multiple VM's on Vista. Would that require more licenses? It's still the one
machine. But multiple OSs? It remains to be seen.

WGA's ability to detect piracy is also in question once you install XP in a VM.
The VM's hard disk can easily be copied to another machine and run on another
instance of parallels. Is that "legal"? Dunno. Will WGA catch it? Maybe, maybe
not.

Lots of open issues here. I don't think there are clear answers yet.

Leo
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Some good comments, but unfortunately, it is not as simple as loading the Windows XP disc and reformatting/reloading the software. Since I installed Vista, my computer no longer recognizes the hard drives UNLESS I am changing versions of Vista. XP reports that there are no hard drives....I have booted into the drives several times and so I know they are there....just XP no longer recognizes them.

VISTA=TRASH and a waste of time. Completely useless OS until more companies are willing to spend the time to write drivers and actually support this new OS.

It is by all means possible to install XP in a dual boot environment when Vista is already installed. It is also possible to do a clean install on top of Vista, though I would not recommend it if your machine came with Vista and has all hardware specifically designed for Vista. A virtual machine is a great option, but it seems kind of silly to use a virtual machine to run one version of windows on top of another. In my experience, however, 99% of the applications people say are not compatible with Vista will run under compatibility mode (see one of the above posts for more info on compatibility mode). So the most cost effective, simplest, and most all-around efficient option is to utilize the compatibility wizard.

Vista does not run these programs -- even with compatability options.
Quicken 2004
Microsoft Streets & Trips 2005
Those are just the ones I know about---there are also a bunch that it runs partially. For instance, if you choose to enlarge fonts in windows because you have a high-pitch LCD, most XP programs won't handle it well, and you end up with two sets of menus that overlap and created a jumbled mess.

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