Microsoft Virtual Labs now allows you to test drive Windows Vista through the internet. This is a nice feature allowing people who are still using XP and considering whether Vista will be a good upgrade.
With a simple click, you can experience the online trial and discover new features on your own, or follow the videos and guided exercises.
Take the test drive here
A couple of thought from my side:
1. Seems like the test drive site is powered by ActiveX controls and SilverLight. I tried using Opera to do the test drive but the site report that my browser doesn’t support ActiveX controls. Duh! Internet explorer and Firefox works fine though.
2. I’m pretty sure that the Vista that you are test driving is located in a virtual machine. You can practically do anythng with it. The step by step video tutorials are quite handy too.
3. You do need a fairly good internet connection to interact with your virtual vista. Don’t complain if you have a slow internet connection and the virtual Vista seems slow to responds to your mouse clicks.
4. You can possibly do the same thing by testing remotely on your friend’s computer who runs Vista by using TeamViewer or Mikogo.
Overall, the experience was positive while testing Vista out.
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