Source: Tom's Guide US | Keywords: preboot, quickstart, hyperspace | Themes: Windows Tech Talk, Laptops and Notebooks
- 1. Don't Wait For Windows
- 2. HP QuickLook 2
- 3. Sony’s Fast Forward to Media
- 4. Voodoo IOS: Which Interface Do You Want?
- 5. Express Gate: Almost an OS?
- 6. Phoenix HyperSpace
- 7. How Quick is “Quick Start”?
- 8. Pre-Boot Speed Table
- 9. Manufacturers’ Power-Saving Claims
- 10. From Quick-Start to Quick-Boot
- 11. More on this topic
10. From Quick-Start to Quick-Boot
None of these quick start systems offer anything like the computing power of Windows (or even Linux). HyperSpace will come closest when the promised applications eventually arrive, but this will still be a much more limited environment than Windows. It will be similar to the locked-down Linux environments on early netbooks, and it’s notable that Windows netbooks far outsell Linux models (and the return rate for Linux netbooks are substantially higher than for Windows models as well). At this stage, a limited Linux system doesn’t seem to suit mainstream
Many people would prefer to simply have a computer that makes Windows start up faster. Resume from sleep is fast, but staying in sleep runs your battery down. Resuming from hibernate is much faster than a cold boot and preserves your battery life. Switching to a solid-state drive would speed up boot times significantly, especially the newer, faster drives. Being mindful of how many applications launch on startup with Windows, and which services are running, makes a big difference. But the best way to boot faster might be to upgrade to Windows 7 when it comes out.
Even in the beta, the boot time is significantly reduced. Why? Services don't start up until you actually need them, drivers load in parallel, and the boot process itself is now more finely tuned. Combine those improvements with a fast solid-state drive, as in the Asus S101, and you won't be waiting around for Windows. Despite having put the effort into designing Voodoo IOS, Rahul Sood said Windows 7 will be fast enough to replace Voodoo IOS in future machines. “We do have high hopes for Windows 7,” Sood said. “ Early indication is that the performance is scalable, and so we may not need to add quick boot operating systems in the future. We’ll see, but so far it looks like Microsoft may deliver.”
- Previous page Manufacturers’ Power-Saving Claims
- Next page More on this topic
I could see this being very useful for one or 2 things..like a special purpose media player that will play all movie/audio formats and allow more of the hardware power to go to the actual content instead of supporting a bloated OS.
Many years ago I wondered if it would be possible to have an "OS Chip" that was exponentially faster than a stardard hard drive for storing your OS on...it looks like we're getting there!
At the very least it will push Microsoft harder to improve boot times. I think microsoft is working hard to improve boot times, but harder works for me. Really it will all be moot once they perfect one of the super fast static memory technologies, as then the whole system can go from off to on almost instantly... measure in 10s of ms.
I think these options will be less attractive once SSDs go mainstream. Intel SSDs boot Vista in < 10 seconds. Windows 7 should be even quicker.
this is what i am wondering too. right now these SSD's are just too small and the speeds are still trivial. i see if SSD don't make it then the motherboard makers will in the future just put and expansion port on there motherboards for a flashchip just for the OS
One important thing you seem to have forgotten: Windows XP, a full-sized OS that can boot in ~20 seconds (from bootloader screen to login screen, at least on my Athlon 64 X2 system with old Barracuda 7200.7). Newer hardware should improve it and possibly break 10 sec barrier.
Shame that XP wasn't included in this Speed Table...
Conclusion: you don't need to choose between beefy Vista or crippled quickstart os'es. Just use XP (or some light Linux distro).
WTF?
Have you ever used a Mac? Open it up and it wakes up from sleep immediately! None of this boot sillyness. This has been how Mac OS X has been working since 2001. Why keep eating the MS dog food when you can eat subway???
@fuser: see the boot speed table for how fast Windows 7 can boot on a fast SSD like the one in the S101; even the team at Phoenix were impressed by it.
@Anonymous: a Windows system wakes from sleep just as quickly and has done for many years. However many people choose to hibernate or shut down to save power. The first time I shut the lid on a Mac and left it unplugged for a few days and expected it to still have power when I came back to it, I was infuriated that it had stayed in sleep and run down the battery. You're comparing apples and oranges (and I wouldn't personally call Subway a premium brand either!)
Mary Branscombe
Why not have the option to boot into Windows Mobile: that takes only a few seconds, and there are lots of apps (like MS Office compatible word processor) that open in another second or two; and the interface to WM is familiar to many PDA/smartphone users. The discontinued NEC MobilePro 900 and Psion Netbook Pro boot instantly, and Open Office's word processor or MS Word reader open instantly.
Does anyone know where to download Quicklook2