From vista down to xp

hey i have a benq joybook s41 and it came with pre-installed vista with it and i want to change it to xp....if any1 can help me with wat i need to do after i install xp and get rid of vista, like if i need certain drivers and stuff like that would be much appreciated. Also i want to have all the software that came with the laptop like the benq software.

and if u have any reasons why i shouldnt be doin this plz do tell me i would like to hear ur opinions.

as u could probably tell i dont kno that much about computers

The first thing you would need to do is visit the website of the manufacturer of your laptop and check availability of XP drivers. Don't let the lack of drivers deter you though, because, if you are able to identify the devices, more often than not, you can find 3rd party drivers (i.e. chipset drivers, video drivers, etc., etc.)

The most important part, however, is whether the laptop has SATA drives, which is likely, and whether the BIOS settings allow for compatibility settings for the SATA controller. If it does not, then you will need to slipstream the SATA drivers into a custom XP install CD. nLite is a great tool to do this. You will need to locate the SATA drivers for your laptop (WinXP version) and add that to the drivers section.

As far as the benQ software, well, it would have to be available in XP versions.

Personally, I have a HP tx2510US on my bench, that does not have any HP supported XP drivers, but I won't be able to get to it until mid next week. I am going to try nLite first, but there is another program I may use as well. I'll update next week and let you know how it goes. Unfortunately, this is a tablet PC, and the BIOS does not have any compatibility settings for the SATA. On a normal XP install, I get the blue screen of death saying that there is a driver issue/virus. Well, I know it's not a virus. We'll see if I am successful in slipstreaming the SATA drivers, which is the issue.

As far as installing XP, if possible, you need not worry about any warranty issues, as software does not void the hardware warranty. I've seen it brought up before that it would, but I've contacted the manufacturer in my case to verify. Likewise, if you are able to install XP, then I'm sure you'll be happy with the outcome.