Windows XP and Windows Vista for HTPC

[NavinS]

Hello all people.
Just a simple question, What is the best Operating System for my HTPC. Thank you.

[newtech]

I would definitely go with Vista for media centre. As a rule, Vista hasn't impressed me, but for a dedicated media centre VMC is a step forward from XP media centre.

1. XP will require you purchase a third party mpeg codec (Purevideo or PowerDVD) while Vista has a codec included

2. In XP the guide database will *regularly* crash after updates and will require a reboot or at least a restart of the media centre services. Vista's guide is stable.

3. Vista's media centre interface is better overall than XP's. OK, this is a personal taste thing, but I like it better.

4. Vista media centre is stable and reliable, in my experience.

One thing I would suggest is you install the Video Browser plugin, as Vista's Video Library is woeful showing just a lot of thumbnails. Video Browser gives you a list view which really fixes the one big bug I had with VMC.

[Expertz]

I've never had any tearing on XP(except on regular EVR), so I can't really tell.

Vista has 2 major advantages :

-Aero forces the VSYNC to behave, as the whole windows desktop is now D3D(it helps a lot with Haali's Renderer/EVR/VMR9 Renderless, that tend to behave poorly on XP)

-it supports HPET, that is far more accurate than the legacy timers supported by XP...it seems to help Reclock synchronising faster.

*BUT* Vista comes with tons of crapware, is n00b-friendly(for instance my ATI drivers keep asking me whether I'm sure each time I switch from one output to the other, it's VERY annoying...on XP it asks once and that's it!)

Vista is good...if you can cope with all the bloat that is

Reclock works amazingly well with VMR7/VMR9 Windowless in ZP6 on XP....and also w/ custom EVR in MPC HC on Vista I heard.

to make XP act a bit more nicely w/ Reclock, you can add this to your boot.ini :
/NOEXECUTE=ALWAYSOFF /FASTDETECT /USEPMTIMER /NODEBUG /TIMERES=9766

[nitesh mehta]

I'd stick to XP 32 and Media Portal. Microsofts own HTPC front end is a pile of dog doo-doo (XP MCE, Vista MCE) Although I don't use recording/tuner feature. Just video playback.

[Electro]

XP MCE too here.

Number one reason is that XP MCE have been around for a long time, and any problem you will encounter are likely encounter by many others and the solution is quickly find. If you go with Vista you will have to live with the fact that many new problem will jump out and that solution to them are yet to be find.