Steph,

There are a couple of reasons for this, and they both revolve around the fact that Microsoft is a marketing company, not a software company.

First, the poor design of Windows allows for viruses and spyware. Instead of fixing the design problems, they chose to put a "Cancel or Allow" dialog in the way of doing anything productive. (To be fair, this isn't completely Microsoft's fault. Many software companies chose to use the features of Windows that are insecure. In order for Microsoft to continue their monopoly by preventing choice in the marketplace, each version of Windows needs to be compatible with the previous versions. If the new versions weren't compatible, then the software companies, who have to re-write their apps anyway, would have a reason to look at platforms that aren't so fraught with problems. Likewise for the end-users; if their apps are available on a platform that doesn't have such problems, they have a high incentive to migrate.)

Second, Microsoft has to pander to the wants and desires of the media companies. Each time you perform any action - from backing up your system to creating an invoice in your accounting system - Windows Vista has to check to make sure that you aren't uploading the latest action flick to the Internet, watching a movie on your HDTV that the movie companies don't want you to, or listening to a song with unapproved high-def headphones. It does this even if you don't own a HTDV, watch movies on VHS, and have an 8-Track tape player. All of this extra work means that you have to purchase an extra-powerful computer and use more electricity just to get the same amount of stuff done.

Of course, all this helps the media companies, and the hardware companies, and Microsoft, because you the customer has to buy all this other stuff. But on the other hand, you the customer waste thousands buying things you don't really need.

Linux and Macintosh don't suffer from these problems, but they don't yet have the vertical market apps that Windows does. I predict they will in the next year or so; there are already a handful of excellent accounting applications for those platforms.

I am happily productive on a computer I purchased in 1998. The computer has 1/10 the power of today's machines yet I am still able to do my accounting, spreadsheets, and business documents. And I have zero problems with viruses or spyware.

My advice to you is to re-install XP; and in the meantime, take a look at Ubuntu Linux. You can get a free CD and take a look at it here:

http://www.ubuntu.com

Cheers,
-J