While I delayed doing it as long as possible, I finally had to rebuild my laptop. Like all computers, after time, they begin to run slower and are more subject to problems. It was about 10 months along since my last rebuild, but I just couldn't wait any longer, I had to rebuild.
The hardest decision to make was to reinstall Windows XP Workstation, which I have been running for years, or to upgrade to Vista. It was a tough call, but I decided to upgrade to Vista Ultimate. Afterall, as a Microsoft MVP, I felt somewhat obligated to use Vista, or at least give it a try.
After backing up all my data (in three different places) I rebuilt my laptop with Vista, and to my surprise, everything went well. I had absolutely no problems reinstalling all of my old software, except for one: SQL Server 2005.
Yes, my best buddy (yes, I know I lead a lonely life), SQL Server 2005, would not install correctly. Of course, the RTM version had to be installed first (which is not Vista compatable). My problem was that whenever the SQL Server service would try to start, it locked up so bad that I couldn't even kill it without rebooting. After several uninstalls and reinstalls, it finally installed the RTM version. I didn't do anything different between install attempts, but the third one was a charm and installed. I then installed SP2, some hotfixes, and the SP2 SQL Server provisioning tool for Vista and SQL Server. After about 8 hours of work, it was finally running. See http://www.microsoft.com/technet/community/columns/sectip/st0807.mspx for more information on SQL Server 2005 and Vista.
This kind of surprised me. Generally, I fight with a lot of different software when rebuilding a new computer. But this time, it was only SQL Server 2005 that was the problem. Who would have guessed?
Overall, I like Vista. And if you haven't made the move yet to Vista, I suggest you give it a try. I was going to wait until SP1 for Vista came out, but I didn't want to wait until early 2008 to do so. But in any event, there were plenty of Vista drivers available for my hardware, and everything is much better now. My computer is faster and working without problems. I just hope this rebuild lasts at least another 10 months. Rebuilding your computer can be a big job, and I would rather spend my weekend at the beach instead of in front of my computer.
I'll be at PASS next week. If you see me, please stop me and say hello.