Dell has changed slightly, in that they are allowing XP to be installed on new computers.. Since this is the case, please check with them for a possible Recovery disc with an XP installation on it.. It would then include all drivers and software to factory condition.
If such a disc is not available, see if they have a list of drivers for your machine and possible instructions for downgrading.. If you'd like to read about some of the issues regarding downgrading, please read the link below. It's a long thread about HP computers but reading all the posts should give you a heads-up on the issues and success stories.:
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-12546_102-0.html?forumID=133&threadID=243153&messageID=2460401
Hope this helps.
Grif
Hello everyone,
I have ordered a Dell XPS M1330 laptop with Windows Vista Home Premium as the operating system.
I am a student and will be predominantly using the notebook for campus related activities. My university does not fully support Windows Vista, so I will have to downgrade my operating system to Windows XP Professional with SP2.
A genuine, academically licensed version of Windows XP Professional will be provided by the university. However, with all the news I'm hearing about Windows Vista, I want to know about the potential problems that I will be faced with in doing the same (hardware/driver issues and the like...).
Is there an easy way to make the transition?
Thanks in advance for the help. If there's more information needed from me, I will be glad to provide the same.

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