A nice touch with SUSE's installer is the hardware validation screen, where an installer can check to see if all of the hardware has been identified. Vista accomplishes that task after the initial install, leaving most of the hardware identification chores for after the first boot up.
Arguably, the biggest factor in completing a successful installation comes in the form of driver support. That turned out to be a challenge with Vista. Test Center engineers encountered hardware compatibility difficulties with every machine tested, forcing Windows XP drivers to be used in some cases or, at worst, ignoring the nonfunctioning components. Test Center engineers had the best success with a Lenovo/IBM ThinkPad T42. (See related story.)
With SUSE Linux, most drivers were included on the installation CD or readily available during the install. The install process includes the ability to automatically retrieve the latest updates, patches and drivers, as long as you have a valid Internet connection during the process. Vista offers a similar capability, but the simple truth is that most drivers are just not available yet. Microsoft has promised that the driver issues will be resolved by the time Vista is released to manufacturing.
