Computerworld published a review on Windows Vista Beta 2

The same thing happened with Windows XP. When Beta 2 arrived, I found myself torn between what was new and good about the operating system, and what was new and bad.

Significant negatives back in 2001 included product activation (which doesn't affect Microsoft volume licensing customers), changes to the network-configuration user interface and the way XP interacted with other versions of Windows on small networks. Was Windows XP truly better than Windows 2000? It was a toss-up in many ways. In the end, I went with the improved app compatibility and user interface improvements of XP. But it wasn't by much.

[url=http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9000829]Visual Tour: 20 Things You Won't Like About Windows Vista