OS Choice: XP or Vista with MediaPortal (1 Viewer)

[bytor]

Hi,

I am looking into MediaPortal and I wanted to know the MediaPortal specific pros and cons between XP Pro and Vista Premium. An Important note is that I plan on using a Mitsubishi HDTV via component video cables.

Is there a comparison somewhere as I couldn't find any mention.

My HTPC:

Antec NSK2480 case
Gigabyte GA-MA69GM with onboard ATI 1250X graphics
AMD 4400+
500 Gig Samsung
2 Gigs A-Data PC2 6400 Ram
LiteOn 20X DVD writer

Thanks for any help,

bytor

 

[Spragleknas]

Since you have a 690G based mobo, I think you should give Vista a try - or be prepared to either: a) use old drivers (7.2) b) use modified skins

I started a thread a while ago about XP vs Vista: https://forum.team-mediaportal.com/...vista-vs-xp-please-post-your-pros-cons-31883/

 

[bytor]

Thank you for the info.

I tried doing some searches here before starting a thread, but I didn't find that one (using "OS" in my search strings).

I have bought an EVGA 8600GT as a backup which I will only use if needed (otherwise, it goes in my workstation). It's funny, nothing works out of the box. I bought my system with MythTV in mind, but the ATI drivers don't support the component video out capabilities of the MB plus I never used linux before (though I was catching on fast). I have Vista on my laptop, but Media Center doesn't show subchannels in the EPG and I hate the rigid lock on adding/changing features and it's proprietary code - I recorded a show to test it out and it took hours to convert it over to a DVD for playing on my TV.

MediaPortal looks great and I wouldn't have bothered with MythTV if I had done more initial research. I've loaded it up to preview it (without TV card as it's too far from the antenna) on my workstation and I like the layout and flow. But I do see it takes a good deal of tweaking to get good results. I'm sure to ask more questions elsewhere.

I don't like that Vista is such a hog, and I have a copy of XP available, but I want to be ready for the future. I haven't looked into MediaPortal 2 to see if it will have enhanced features with Vista.

I also read (quickly and can't relocate) that Vista has more restrictions on media and that it has problems with TV out (I may be way off base). These are some of the things I am wondering about that weren't covered in your earlier thread.

Thanks again,

Dan