Upgrading to Vista? Don't delete XP

Vista is almost in consumers' hands, but techies don't have to wait for the official launch to find things to complain about.

The latest concern is the requirement that users installing an upgrade version of Microsoft's new operating system have an older version of Windows working on their computer. Earlier Windows upgrades simply required users to have an old installation disk on hand as a proof of ownership.

Microsoft says it made the change because Vista, which goes on sale first thing Tuesday, does not check upgrade compliance. But the new requirement has irked many users who prefer "clean installs"--formatting the hard drive before installing the upgrade.

Blog community response:

"This annoys the hell out of me because clean installs simply make for better performing machines. Why is Microsoft making our lives difficult?"
--Gizmodo

"One again, Microsoft appears to have made licensing decisions without considering how people actually use their products. Last fall the company trotted out changes to its retail licensing that would have punished users who frequently upgrade their PC hardware had the company not relented. Now Microsoft seeks to complicate our ability to start a crisp, new install with an upgrade version. Why?"
--Ars Technica

"Many may say, what's wrong with that? But when switching OSes like this, you should really have a clean install. Otherwise you're going to have a system full of unused files and garbage. I realize that most users will just go with the direct upgrade, without starting from scratch, but I wouldn't be one of them."
--Real Tech News