Vista SP1: What’s Under The Hood

Long Zheng of istartedsomething has posted an extensive list of what issues Vista SP1 addresses. As Microsoft prepares to roll out the Release Candidate of this to users soon, it might be worth taking a look. Some highlights that might be of interest to mobile users:

• Improves the effectiveness of a Windows ReadyBoost™ device in reducing the time to resume from standby and hibernate by increasing the amount of data stored in the ReadyBoost device that can be used during a resume cycle.
• Includes improvements to Windows Superfetch™ that help to further improve resume times, in many environments.
• Improves the time to resume from standby for a certain class of USB Hubs by approximately 18%.
• SP1 reduces the number of UAC (User Account Control) prompts from 4 to 1 when creating or renaming a folder at a protected location.
• SP1 addresses issues many of the most common causes of crashes and hangs in Windows Vista, as reported by Windows Error Reporting. These include issues relating to Windows Calendar, Windows Media Player, and a number of drivers included with Windows Vista.
• Improves power consumption when the display is not changing by allowing the processor to remain in its sleep state which consumes less energy.

It is a long list and the entire changelog is on view here. While the Release Candidate is scheduled to be released next week, please take caution and back up before installing it. I know of several users who have tried this and had difficulty (including Matt Faulkner.) By the same token I know of several who have seen no issues with the install, so your mileage may indeed vary.