WinXP SP1 or SP2?

[julitomg]

Hi
Not sure if this is the correct forum(because it says "no video related issues"or something like that and in the end it´s video related), also it´s probably about questions long ago asked and answered, but anyway, here it is...
I was very happy(still am)with my win2kPro(sp4)/Premiere 6.5 rig, does all it´s supposed to do(capture, edit DV video)and does it very well...But the flow seems to go with XP and most programs are geared towards it, and since eventually I plan to move to Premiere Pro(Win XP only), I´m starting to think about the upgrade(one of the things that kept the idea away was economics but I guess I better start saving some money...)As it will be a bit of an investment(since I plan to upgrade the PC as well)I don´t want to make many mistakes here. So here´s the actual questions:
1)I think that when I buy a brand new Win XP, it will come with SP1 already with it, am I correct?..if so, should I stick to it or install SP2 also?
It may seem like a dumb question but I have read in several forums many pros and cons about it and it seemed that SP2 is(or was) not very video-friendly, is this correct?, has it changed?
Keep in mind that it will be installed on a computer that won´t be connected to the internet, will not have an antivirus, firewalls,LAN, etc.. (all files generated or manipulated in another PC are previously scanned for viruses before loading), also I will download and burn all necessary drivers for the system(latest XP versions)
2)If I choose to install SP2, is it better to install it from a CD(let´s say, obtained from MS or the ones that some magazines give away)or to download it first, burn it and install it(burnt in another PC, remember that the editing one isn´t connected)?
3)Should I install SP2 before or after I install DirectX 9?
4)Are there any settings that you´d recomend to optimize video performance(SP2 related?), are there any aditional upgrades from MS that would help in that area?
Thanks in advance and excuse my poor english.

[guns1inger]

If you buy a brand new PC now, it should come with SP2 installed. SP2 broke a lot of video software mainly because the software was poorly written to begin with. Well written software continued to function. In pretty much all cases installing an update to the video software fixed the problems.

If you do have to install SP2 then use a CD. Saves the download time, and reduces the risk of getting a corrupt install file and having to download again.

DirectX9 is part of XP, so the order doesn't matter much. You can update to dX9c before or after SP2.

There are no specific performance tweaks that I know of. Everyone is different. The best advice I can give - don't upgrade. Always install from a fresh format of the drive. Install only the software you need, nothing else. Turn off windows firewall. While it works, there are better products available for free, and if you don't need it (ie. not connected to a network), why run it.

There are quite a few updates available at MS update, as SP2 has been out for some time now, you should download these to a CD as well and install afterwards.

I have upgraded several hundred machines to SP2, including my own PCs. I have never had any problems with the upgrade process, or with software not running afterwards. This is in part because I tend to keep versions up-to-date, and also because SP2 really isn't as bad as it has been made out to be. Most of the people who had problems did not have clean, stable machines before installing it. There is no reason not to do it, and if you buy a new machine, or even just a new version of XP, you will probably SP2 slipstreamed in anyway.

[bazooka]

Go with SP2, if you want your computer to run reasonably well and up to date on security patches. Microsoft is going to pll the plug on SP1 support pretty soon, if they have not done it already.

[julitomg]

Thanks for the advice, and by the way; yes, I know that if I buy a brand new PC, with WinXP already installed, it´s supposed to have SP2 in it, but my computer upgrade will be of the home-made type(new motherboard, CPU, RAM and video card, the rest is what I already have)

[Cobra]

SP2 will cause no issues. Don't worry.