Microsoft Windows Vista Unveiled

We often wonder why our workaday computer chores seem to take just as long as they ever did, despite the fact that hardware is generally bigger, better, and faster than ever. The answer to this apparent riddle is related to Parkinson's Law of Data, which I mentioned back in Chapter 2, "Moving to Windows Vista." On a more general level, Parkinson's Law could be restated as follows: The increase in software system requirements is directly proportional to the increase in hardware system capabilities. For example, imagine that a slick new chip is released that promises a 30% speed boost; software designers, seeing the new chip gain wide acceptance, add 30% more features to their already bloated code to take advantage of the higher performance level. Then another new chip is released, followed by another software upgradeand the cycle continues ad nauseum as these twin engines of computer progress lurch codependently into the future.

So, how do you break out of the performance deadlock created by the immovable object of software code bloat meeting the irresistible force of hardware advancement? By optimizing your system to minimize the effects of overgrown applications and to maximize the native capabilities of your hardware. Of course, it helps if your operating system gives you a good set of tools to improve and monitor performance, diagnose problems, and keep your data safe. Windows XP came with a decent set of client tools, and Vista improves upon them, although not with anything radically new or earth-shattering. Vista's performance and maintenance improvements are evolutionary, not revolutionary, but they're definitely better than anything we've seen in a Microsoft client operating system.