Old Programs on New Vista
 

A lot of people are wary to try out new operating systems for fear of losing their precious data and programs. It is a good thing that Microsoft has included the option to run the programs in compatibility mode, as you upgrade to the Vista operating system.

To run it in this mode, look for the main .exe file of the program you want to use.
Make a right click on the file and choose Properties.
Proceed to the Compatibility tab and choose the option to “Run this program in compatibility mode for”.
Click on the drop down list beside it to select the operating system you used for this program.
Then you are all set to using Windows Vista with your old programs.

That simply doesn't work with most legacy programs
 

The only way you can be sure to get them running, is to install Virtual Machine (a free Microsoft download) and install your old operating system on that. Alternatively there are a few other java virtual machines out there to download.

By the way, if you have Vista Home Premium, the virtual machine still works fine, even though Microsoft say it may not work and that it is unsupported, so go ahead, do it!