The best CFS2 machine I have is one that I purchased just a couple of months before everybody went to dual-core processors. It came with XP, but XP works fine with CFS2. It has a single processor 3.4 GHz. It was (and probably still is) the fastest computer you could get with a single processor, and it came with 1Gig of RAM to boot. This may be one of the best machines ever built to run CFS2 on. If I upgraded the memory to 2Gigs and installed a better video card it would be even better. Maybe I should do just that. However, it is hard for me to justify spending money on an older machine that already works quite well for gaming.
I usually mess around with CFS2 on my one-year-old laptop that runs Vista. Specs:
HP Pavilion dv6700 Notebook PC
Intel Core2 Duo CPU T9300, 2.5GHz, L1 Cache 64 KB, L2 6,144
[FONT="]Installed memory 3.072 GB ; 1-2GB module + 1-1GB module[/FONT].
Even though it is a much faster machine, it is slightly more enjoyable to run CFS2 on the older machine. As you have implied, Vista is just a little buggy, especially when running CFS2. Yet, it is so much easier to sit in my favorite chair with the laptop and play with CFS2. The reason is that I have a terrible back, and it is important that I be able to recline.
I had thought about buying a portable stand so I could use the old desktop and still be able to sit in a recliner, but they want so much money for those things- even at Wally World. As it is I can make CFS2 work in an acceptable manner with my HP Vista laptop and the memory and processor speeds are never a issue.
I am torn between the fine manner in which Vista takes advantage of the dual-core processing capabilities of modern computers and a desire to have CFS2 run trouble free. The fact is, if you get online and research the little tweaks that make Vista machines a little more user friendly there isn't much of a reason to go back to the old XP or Windows98 operating systems. I can get CFS2 to run just fine on Vista. But if you want to run even older programs I guess you have no choice.
If you are really into combat flight sims I do not know why you would even want to mess with sims older than CFS2. As time goes by, more people seem to realize that CFS2 is the best combat sim ever offered. Jack, there is so much to learn about CFS2 and so many add-ons that it will take you a good deal of time and effort to learn it all. And another fact is, you really don't need to go back in time to an older machine to get CFS2 running well. I suggest you concentrate on learning the fine points (tweaks) of modern computers and the fine points of CFS2. There will be many that disagree with me and many will support my position.
