dual boot
 

I have a business program that is geared to xp, will not work in vista, would it work with a dual boot xp/vista that you are talking about?

Hello bddl, unfortunately not, on a dual boot system you simply get a choice at the boot time on which OS you want to load, either XP or Vista.

Regards

Martin

Hey bddl,

Well if you have a dual boot Vista/XP computer you can boot into XP and install the program and use it there. If not you can also try using compatibility mode. First make sure you are an admin then right click on the app and then go to properties go to the compatibility tab and check Run this program in compatibility mode for Windows XP. Usually most applications will still not work even if it is being run in compatibility mode, so the best thing to do is either use XP itself or perhaps a VM if its a small light-weight application.

I would say that going to the extent of setting up and running a virtual machine is a little overkill for the sake of one application. It's also a little unsatisfactory to have to partition your drive and install a whole new operating system, though unfortunately it is becoming quite commonplace with an increasing number of people finding limitations with Vista.

Like Risherz suggested, your first port of call is to try the application in Vista and if it fails to work use compatibility mode. There are no guarantees and I've had mixed success with it, but it is definitely a more elegant option than a second operating system.

Is there a newer version of the application available for Vista or not out of pure interest?