XPHome Edition or Professional

[Indianhead]

I am planning on buying a new pc that comes with Home
Edition. In talking to a techie at my ISP, our
conversation drifted to Windows. He recommended that I
consider XP Professional, as in his experiemce, it is very
stable and he has very few problems compared to other
Windows products. He said that even though my pc would be
for general home use, he felt that it was worth the extra
money.
It would cost me $70.00 to upgrade.
Any thoughts out there, as to whether or not this upgrade
is recommended, even though I wouldn't be using all of the
features?

Thanks.

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

The tech seems highly uninformed.
There are differences between Home and Pro:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/howtobuy/choosing.asp
The major differences are in extra security and ability to join a
domain.
In both cases, the typical home user does not need the features and
would not use them.

Windows XP Home and Pro are identical in stability and performance.
Since Home and Pro are just as stable, one should wonder what the tech
may get out of the extra sale or is the tech just that ignorant.

In any event study the link above and determine which is right for
you.
It would be considerably cheaper to get Pro now as opposed to later.

--
Jupiter Jones [MVP]
An easier way to read newsgroup messages:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/using/newsgroups/setup.asp
http://dts-l.org/index.html


"Indianhead" > wrote in message
...
> I am planning on buying a new pc that comes with Home
> Edition. In talking to a techie at my ISP, our
> conversation drifted to Windows. He recommended that I
> consider XP Professional, as in his experiemce, it is very
> stable and he has very few problems compared to other
> Windows products. He said that even though my pc would be
> for general home use, he felt that it was worth the extra
> money.
> It would cost me $70.00 to upgrade.
> Any thoughts out there, as to whether or not this upgrade
> is recommended, even though I wouldn't be using all of the
> features?
>
> Thanks.

[Bruce Chambers]

Greetings --

The two versions are _identical_ when it comes to performance,
stability, and device driver and software application compatibility,
but are intended to meet different functionality, networking,
security, and ease-of-use needs, in different environments. The most
significant differences are that WinXP Pro allows up to 10
simultaneous inbound network connections while WinXP Home only allows
only 5, WinXP Pro is designed to join a Microsoft domain while WinXP
Home cannot, and only WinXP Pro supports file encryption and IIS.

Windows XP Comparison Guide
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/home/howtobuy/choosing2.asp

Which Edition Is Right for You
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/whichxp.asp

Windows XP Home Edition vs. Professional Edition
http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/windowsxp_home_pro.asp

"Which is better?" That depends entirely upon the uses to which
you put your computer, the network environment in which you'll operate
it, your specific security needs, and your level of computer
knowledge.


Bruce Chambers

--
Help us help you:
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You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. -- RAH


"Indianhead" > wrote in message
...
> I am planning on buying a new pc that comes with Home
> Edition. In talking to a techie at my ISP, our
> conversation drifted to Windows. He recommended that I
> consider XP Professional, as in his experiemce, it is very
> stable and he has very few problems compared to other
> Windows products. He said that even though my pc would be
> for general home use, he felt that it was worth the extra
> money.
> It would cost me $70.00 to upgrade.
> Any thoughts out there, as to whether or not this upgrade
> is recommended, even though I wouldn't be using all of the
> features?
>
> Thanks.