Service Pack 2 for Windows XP

[2scoops0406]

Just a heads up for those of you that might be considering installing this, it is not quite the usual MS service pack, it quite fundamentally changes the way XP operates, and you may experience some "anomalies" I would strongly advise that you back your system up before installing. Also, to down load its between 75 and 250 Mb so if you haven't got broadband forget it.

 

[AdamW]

Is this from experience or advice?

I will not be bothering with SP2 until plenty of other people have tried it.

it quite fundamentally changes the way XP operates, and you may experience some "anomalies"

In what ways? Have they included the vital addition where the Tellytubbies pop their heads up behind the grassy hills on the backdrop and say "eh-oh!"

 

[2scoops0406]

Is this from experience or advice?

I will not be bothering with SP2 until plenty of other people have tried it.

it quite fundamentally changes the way XP operates, and you may experience some "anomalies"

In what ways? Have they included the vital addition where the Tellytubbies pop their heads up behind the grassy hills on the backdrop and say "eh-oh!"

Yes been extensively involved with it at work (we are on the early adopter programme, so we get to screw up our systems earlier than most ), it's mainly to do with the default security settings, which are now much tighter, this effects things like pop up's (disabled), activeX controls, COM objects, Cookie acceptance, Firewall settings (now automatically on so can bu**er up your VPN usage if you use one) and a whole raft of other security clampdowns.

The reason that this is different from other service packs is that normally they are simply a list of bug fixes. I'll put some links to comprehensive info about SP2 when I get a chance, they'll be far more detailed than anything I can post here.

 

[AdamW]

Yes been extensively involved with it at work (we are on the early adopter programme, so we get to screw up our systems earlier than most )

Oh dear oh dear! That surprises me, I thought that most corporations like to play it safe. Usually having major updates thoroughly examined, tested and assessed by their IT departments before they unleash it on the core businesses.

Unless you happen to be working in that IT department...

Stupidest thing I heard about XP. A colleague at work who believes herself to be an authority on all things computing, bought a new PC, obviously it came with XP. "I'm not having XP, it's unreliable and unstable" says she. So, she bought a copy of Windows ME, reformatted her HD (because obviously ME won't install on an NTFS disc!) and had that put on instead. Seriously. Windows ME, the most bug-prone, crashable, pointless release of Windows EVER, and she prefers it to XP, arguably the most reliable and best release ever.

I wanted to try some kind of aversion therapy on her, but then I figured ME pretty much is anyway

 

[kevplumb]

you can turn the sp2 firewall off if you right click on the red sheild and pick security centre

got sp2 havent really noticed any difference apart from it screwed my anti virus up cos i forgot to disable it while installing

 

[2scoops0406]

Yes, you can relax the security anyway you want, BUT the way it comes out of the box, locks your PC down much more heavily than some users would like / require. Yes of course we test things like SP2 before releasing to the core business, this is essential when you have an estate of 80,000 desktops, 10,000 laptops and 1000 tablet PC's, not to do so would be suicidal. Re the firewall, again yes you can turn it off, where I work, we MANDATE that a firewall is used on laptops that connect to the corporate network via a VPN, unfortunately out of the box SP2 kills VPN access (for our VPN anyway) this is down to closing IP ports that need to be opened. The point is how much hassle is this going to cause the average user?

 

[pipme]

Yes been extensively involved with it at work (we are on the early adopter programme, so we get to screw up our systems earlier than most )

....... Unless you happen to be working in that IT department...

Guess Ed manages IT for a Bank (must have noticed he navigates a dual fuel armoured car ?) ... So we'll take the hammer anyway !!

Short-horn due soon - 2006? - aint it ? Suppose M$ will cut it down to enable timely(ish) launch ? Will this be another collander job !

P

 

[AdamW]

Guess Ed manages IT for a Bank

Hmmmm, I am intrigued to try and figure out what company he works for now... I am guessing around 90,000 employees (What a Sherlock I am!)

Well, some of the big international banks are 200,000+... but the national operations are only 20,000 or so. So I am thinking "no" to a bank.

However, the big consultants, again, are only 10-20,000 employees each in the UK.

Which makes me think, perhaps he works for one of the big computer services corporations, e.g. CSC? That way the "real estate" bears no relation to how many employees the company has. And would also explain the title of consultant.

Am I near the mark? Tell me to s*d off if you would rather not say.

 

[2scoops0406]

One of the big four high street banks, probably best not to say which. The company employs about 90,000 people.

 

[kevplumb]

hope its not the one that just eat my card

 

[2scoops0406]

hope its not the one that just eat my card

Which one was that then

 

[AdamW]

hope its not the one that just eat my card

Oh, things can be worse: my brother's bank issued him with a switch card where the colour is best described as "screamingly gay pink". He assures me he ordered the blue one (you get a choice) but they sent him a pink one.

So it turns out I was toooooootally wrong. Well, there's a first time for everything.

 

[pipme]

Sorry Ed ..... I let the dogs out ... me.. me !!

P

 

[2scoops0406]

Well, some of the big international banks are 200,000+... but the national operations are only 20,000 or so.

I don't think any of the "big" UK four are this small, maybe 20,000 branch staff, but they need a little support behind the scenes

 

[pipme]

Edward, How do you find your way past all the stacks of dosh which must be piled around the offices ?
Any free samples going ?
P