I've heard the lament that Vista is bad for years. It really isn't - it's just that it's different, a major step forward from XP, and it had some compatibility issues.
When I was running XP I had many unexplained crashes. Vista cleared those up. You do need more memory to run it (which is where many of the issues show up, I believe, as it can be slow otherwise). However, Vista also supports multiple processors (and cores) natively, but vanilla XP does not. If you're running a dual core or more processor, there's no point in using XP.
I actually experienced an increase in speed using Vista on a dual core machine - prior to that, XP running Zara, stream generation, etc. was stuttering. Now it works just fine, as Vista can take full advantage of the dual core architecture.
You need at least 8 GB RAM to run Vista preferably 16. I had two machines that had Vista and they both were horrile for running Radio software. NextKast was not out yet however. But SAM Broadcaster had so many issues with Vista. Now I did notice that if you ran 16 GB RAM it was pretty fast booting up. But Windows 8 and 7 are pretty quick now. My Laptop runs pretty good on Windows 8 running 8GB RAM and using Classic Shell made to look like Windows 7. I do notice a crash issue once a week or so with Windows 8 but I think it has something to do with updates or something. It prety much runs smooth. I have noticed when running Teamspeak that if I open many web pages once in a while it locks up my computer. It could be a memory dump issue as well. Like I said its usually once a week or every two weeks which tells me it has something to do with an auto update check.
If Windows says you need 6 GB then you need 12 GB.
It all depends on what you are doing. My production computer runs Vista - it has 4 GB memory. I'm running Icecast Server (to stream out to listeners), Edcast (to generate the stream), Zara, VSTHost + plug-ins for audio processing, including a compressor, equalizer and mono generator, Virtual Cable, a Text to Speech generator... you get the picture. And it all works flawlessly. I even don't have any issues with response when I run Firefox occasionally (I try not to, but sometimes I need Internet access on that machine).
Now, if I was going to use it for general purpose computing as well (running Firefox all the time, multiple windows, etc.), then I'd get more memory.
The reason most computers need huge amounts of memory is all the clutter that they have lying around, including extraneous processes that you might not even know are running.
I try to check things with Task Manager too. Also do a Spybot Search and Destroy check and CC Cleaner as well as run Combo Fix at least once per month. Some apps like to try and sneak stuff in that sniff your Internet to supply ads. AV software can make a mess out of Internet Streaming as well. SAM Broadcaster recommends you not run one while you broadcast. Yea I know it is a little dangerous. I do use the browser at the same time due to the fact I take requests online although I try and get my listeners to call or text the Rockline because of issues this can cause it can't be avoided unless you use your smartphone to access the chat room and that will free up memory on your computer. I've always said get as much RAM as you can afford. Windows likes RAM anything past XP takes RAM to really do what you want it to do although 7 and 8 take less. I bet 10 takes more than 8 or 7 does and with all the spyware on 10 the first thing I'd run is don't spy 10.
Actually, Windows 10 runs perfectly on just 2 GB of RAM. It is noticeably faster than 8, about the same as 7 if not slightly faster. XP runs on dirt, we have a machine at the full power that takes transmitter readings running XP on 128 MB.
Also, where the hell are ya'll getting these Asinine RAM guesstimates? Our on air machine at the full power runs Win 7 @ 4 GB. My part 15s run on XP @ 512.
Anything over 4 is super overkill unless you're running video production. Audio and automation don't take much.
Edit: Its also super foolish not to run AV on a networked automation machine. At bare minimum run Windows Defender, personally I use Avast.
In the pro radio world the on air computer is strictly for automation only.
I upgraded my Windows 7 on-air machine with Windows 10. I've had no issues to speak of, as it still goes without a hiccup. The only discernable difference I can find is that some of my audio files (usually .mp3 files I've made from vinyl record transfers) sound somewhat degraded, but not entirely unlistenable.
Ken you will want to disable automatic updates or you will find yourself off the air one morning! I highly recommend you revert back to Win 7 for the on-air machine.
Agreed that if you're using a PC for a specific purpose, you can get by with less memory.
But for general purpose computing, the more memory the better. Windows attempts to keep everything running in memory - the less it has to page out to disk because it needs it for some other purpose, the faster it will be.
If you're in doubt, you can always look for the amount of paging in
Task Manager - if it's continuously going up, you might want to consider investing in more memory.
Good advice. Cram as much memory in as your PC can use. RAM is cheap.
Has anyone per chance tried installing ZaraRadio 1.4 on Windows 10? (It wont work in Windows 7)