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Windows Vista Incapable
Microsoft Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) is shipping and what we know so far is that it is incapable of running on many types of machines. In fact, Microsoft is being sued for putting stickers all over machines claiming that Vista could run on them, when in fact, it cannot. We recommend correcting this problem by covering up such stickers with a "GNU/Linux Inside!" sticker—if you make a purchase at our store or become an associate member we will send you some of these stickers.
If you were able to run Vista, you would find that it takes your general-purpose computer and makes it incapable of doing a lot of things you might want to do. In particular, it does not allow you control over your multimedia; it is incapable of allowing you to access your hardware, such as certain types of video cards, without restriction; and it is incapable of allowing you to control the third-party applications, data, and other files you download onto your machine.
Service Pack 1 does not change any of these facts about Vista, and it is in fact part and parcel of the same kind of behavior from Microsoft.
If you "upgrade" from Windows Vista to SP1, many of your third-party programs will just stop working. Furthermore, the updates only come from Microsoft, who gets to decide, without defining it, what terms like "spyware" used in their licenses mean. Even if you think you may have turned auto-updating off, Microsoft has made the decision, in the past, to decide that this is still at their discretion and will perform updates and deletions without asking you. Using Vista literally means handing over the keys to your computer.
If you don't want to continue running an "unsupported" Microsoft distribution and don't want to let the SP1 Trojan Horse into your home, then consider installing gNewSense or another all free software GNU/Linux distribution. It doesn't have to be time to discard your old computer and purchase a new one with a false sticker on it. Your current machine can likely run a free software GNU/Linux distribution, and you only have to make the switch once.
If you intend to make the switch, let others know by signing our petition to support free software for a free society.
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The concern is not about Vista itself but about freedom, read some more about what free software is about, and what fsf is about and you'll understand.
I believe the licensing terms for Windows 7 (known later as Windows Paltrow or Windows Shatner) should permit the users to do with their software without restrictions, and updating should be decided by the users themselves, not Microsoft.