One thing that makes Vista slow compared to Linux is Antivirus software. I
don't run any AV software on my Linux computers, but it is a must for
Windows. AV software scans files, web content and email as it comes in.

Another thing is that Vista is huge. Like 30 gig. It loads lots of stuff
into memory. Check out the Task Manager. It takes time to load all of that
stuff and keep it running. You can't even run Vista on some of the computers
we are using for our Linux software.

I have an XP machine that I removed all of the software I could in the Add
or Remove Programs including all of the Windows components that I could
remove. It runs quite fast. I'm afraid to plug it into the network because
it doesn't have any AV software. Vista won't work on many XP boxes.

The problems I have found with Vista are related to third party software.
Although My AV software, CA Antivirus runs fine on my XP box and my wife's
XP computer, it tends to crash on my laptop which is running Vista. My
Lexmark printer works great on the XP boxes, but doesn't work at all on
Vista. It is taking a while for these companies to get the Vista thing
right.