If you’re new to Windows Vista, you may experience problems with your existing hardware or software. You may also experience problems with a wireless network. Some of these issues can be traced back to driver problems, and Windows has a number of known driver problems.

Meeting Driver Problems Head On

If you’re upgrading to Windows Vista and have a wireless network already in place, you may find that you need to download new wireless drivers for your computer. Often, you’ll need a driver that was made specifically for Windows Vista. You can find these at the Web site of the company that made your wireless network equipment. Driver Detective can also be configured to download and install all of the drivers you need for your wireless network connection. You can revert to older drivers if you need to for some reason, so you won’t lose anything by trying a new driver.

Windows Vista’s driver updating service doesn’t always load the correct driver. You may find that you have a video display from one manufacturer, and Windows Vista recommends that you use another driver from another manufacturer. My best advice: don’t do it unless the manufacturer for your specific equipment doesn’t have a driver specific to Windows Vista and you’re stuck for other options. If you find that a recommended driver doesn’t match your hardware, you can go to the manufacturer’s site to get the proper one. Again, Driver Detective will automate the process of finding the correct driver, downloading it and installing it.

Third-party software sometimes works. In the Windows arena, third-party tools have gotten a bad rap because some of these tools turn out to be malicious software. You can find good third-party products that will get your system running, but you’ll need to do some research on the third-party tool as well as the source you intend to download it from. Some sources are notoriously rife with malware. You can usually find information on good third-party tools versus malware by reading recommendations from other users. Before you download or install anything, make sure that your anti-virus and anti-malware software programs are up-to-date.

Finally, you may find that some of your “driver” problems are actually compatibility problems. You’re most likely to see this if you’re running old software on a new computer or new software on an old computer. This is very true with game software and game-related hardware. Check with the software publisher to see if there are updates or patches for your software (or your OS) that will help smooth out the interplay between the software and the OS.

Photo Credit: Ross Imlach