Computer Tips Hello March!!!! Now that winter is over, and Canada has reinstated itself as a hockey powerhouse, we can get back to things like meeting Des' deadlines. This month, I had promised to cover operating systems, I've decided to digress, for a month. We've been receiving a lot of questions about Windows XP and thought that we could help clear up some of the muddle over this operating system. There are two versions of XP, XP home and XP pro. One is meant for the technical user and one for the home user. (I'l Tet you guess which one is which.) The have achieved this through a chain of two different operating system, one developed for home use and one for business. If you have used windows 95, 98, ME then the XP home version is for you, if you have worked with Windows NT or 2000, then XP pro is the right choice. Why the difference? Home users have traditionally enjoyed an operating system with little configuration. The "just let it work" crowd likes this. There is very little need for the basic home user to know how to configure his or her system, thus windows 95 and 98 were very popular. In business, a more technical operating system was required to be configurable to particular business needs. Windows NT and 2000 fit this bill. XP home and XP pro are a blend of NT and windows 9x, producing an operating system that is both configurable and easy to use. XP home's limitations are in it's configurability and it's inability to be able to log onto an NT domain. If you don't have an NT domain or don't know what one is, don't sweat it. You're not missing anything. Suffice to say, XP home is a great choice for the home user. It's ability to handle multimedia files is excellent. Many people will find its tools to be much more powerful than it's predecessors. You will also find that the operating systems look has changed, but navigating through it is very similar to windows 9x. The help system is excellent and boot times have been drastically cut. Sorry, no more cups of coffee Continued on page 1 Does Your Computer make you feel like this? If so, call us at Debug Computers. We help ease frustration with existing systems, and can help with upgrades, purchasing new systems, in house training, maintenance and repair, virus removal, and most things computer related ag services {= (613) 476-8721 Open 9-5 Mon-Fri Ask for Pat or Steve debugcomputers@hotmail.com