It’s been a challenging year for my computers and thus, me. First my desktop decided to go to the computer graveyard. Fortunately I had enough time and warning to transfer all of my files onto my laptop.

Unfortunately, within two months, the laptop developed a short, so I decided to get a new laptop with max RAM, better video card and more multimedia capability.

The decision I am regretting everyday is buying a computer with VISTA, the new Microsoft (non)operating system. My opinion – Microsoft has done it again – created a system that is as jam-packed with bugs and aggravation as everything else it has put on the market.

I was giving serious consideration to switching over to an Apple MAC, but I have been using PC’s for over 20 years and all my software runs on a PC - we're talking thousands of dollars to switch. There is also the issue of familiarity. So, yes, I freely admit – what stopped me was fear and not wanting to add another learning curve to the mix of an already busy schedule.

Half of my software won’t work on VISTA. New products that say they are VISTA ready don’t work or need tweaking. The system won’t start properly 20% of the time. This is a new HP 6000 series VISTA machine off the shelf.

It would have been a better decision to buy the new PC with Windows XP. At least then my software would work. At this point, I am seeing that the better decision would probably have been to buy the MAC.

Since more and more of my work is going to involve multimedia and with Intel chips available in MAC’s, I am already planning on passing this latest Microsoft lesson in frustration along to my son, who is much more tech savvy and getting a MAC.

I thought that given all the bad press in the last few years, Microsoft might actually release a product that exceeded their past benchmarks of mediocrity, but I was wrong.

My advice – DO NOT BUY VISTA. If you must have a PC, wait a year or so until they get this system duct taped and chicken-wired together to meet their historic levels of acceptable aggravation.