Gotcha: Future PC Vista Ready?

New computers must meet certain requirements to earn one of two official Microsoft logos.

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Gotcha: Future PC Vista Ready? #1
If you want to know whether the PC you're thinking about buying can handle Microsoft's upcoming Vista operating system, you'll first have to figure out the company's Byzantine logo-program structure. Microsoft has two different levels of Vista-readiness, each carrying its own logo: Windows Vista Capable and Windows Vista Premium Ready.
Vista Capable PCs need an 800-MHz (or faster) CPU, 512MB of RAM, a DirectX 9-capable graphics processor, and 15GB of free hard-drive space just to run the OS and its "core" features. Windows Vista Premium Ready machines will display the new interface and require a 1-GHz CPU, 1GB of RAM, and a DirectX 9-capable GPU that supports WDDM (Windows Display Driver Module), in-hardware Pixel Shader 2.0, and 32 bits per pixel.
For more Vista information, tips, and answers to frequently asked questions, subscribe to PC World's Windows Vista newsletter.


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