A legitimate complaint is Vista’s longer bootup times, but the OS’s power management features (sleep, hibernate) are so much better that I rarely reboot anyway.

Computer mfgs sometimes sell sluggish machines because they load them with all sorts of crapware. These you would want to uninstall. Some mfgs offer the option to buy a crapware free machines, unfortunately only on some models though. You may want to look into this option.

Vista today is not the same as it was just after its release. SP1 has improved the OS and hardware mfgs have caught up by releasing stable drivers.

It is sometimes said that Vista offers no new features over XP. This simply isn’t true. Please read this.

http://www.winsupersite.com/showcase/xpsp3_02.asp

Something else to consider. Be sure that the mfgs of your peripherals (e.g. printer) have released Vista-compatible drivers. Old third-party software? It may work on Vista, may not. You might have to pay for a Vista-compatible upgrade.

I noted your comment that you are retired and don’t know that much about computers. Perhaps the safe choice would be to stay with the familiar. Problem is, it won’t be that easy to find an XP laptop.

Frankly, I don’t think that you will find the Vista-learning curve that difficult. Maybe you will need a more tech-savvy friend or relative to help you get started, but I doubt that your brain is frozen. You will do just fine, I’m sure.

Mr. Mossbergs answer is only right for Windows users.

Silly Apple leaves their own Mac-users in the cold.
Itunes on the Mac is NOT able to convert WMA files to a format that iTunes understands.
Itunes on the Mac IGNORES WMA files completely.

Oh, Steve, how stupid can a Company be …?