Devoted to hardware, software, IT issues, and information technology management

Well, I ran into an issue that I assume is becoming more commonplace; you just can't buy a PC without Microsoft's Windows Vista pre-loaded.  The thing is, I DON'T WANT IT.  I thought the four-year old motherboard in my home-built system was fried by a lightning strike, Florida (I live in Orlando) is known as the "Lightning Capital of the World" and even though I'm using a surge suppressor, I assumed I still took a critical hit.

I could have replaced the motherboard, but finding it would have been time-consuming, the replacement would most likely have been refurbished and my wife really needed to work on her book.  What was I to do at 9:00 PM during the week, but look at a "superstore" to find a new PC.

I found a reasonably priced system from HP (NYSE: HPQ), the Compaq Presario SR5113WM Desktop PC, but it comes pre-loaded with Windows Vista and based on all the bad things I've been hearing, I'd rather have Windows XP pre-loaded.  Also, much of the application software I'm still using may or may not be compatible with the new Vista operating system.

I could always reinstall my copy of Windows XP Home Edition, but that's more work for me.  Fortunately I didn't have to do anything in the end except have an electrician address a grounding problem we were having on the circuit where my computer equipment was connected.  Microsoft, if you're looking at any online content:  Give me a choice between XP and Vista until you get all the kinks worked out and SP1 is available for Vista okay?