Moving to Windows 7..

[Big Dan]

Anyone play with the Windows 7 RC's yet? I had them both but went back to Vista now I got my mitts on a 90 day developers trial of the RTM version I installed the 64 Bit on my desktop and 32 bit on my Laptop

So far I'm really impressed with it. The easy transfer wizard was awesome it copied all my stuff, including program settings from Vista to Windows 7 without issue.

Since I cannot afford a new computer right now, I'll probably max out my RAM and buy a 64 Bit OEM copy for my desktop which is quite a bit cheaper than a retail version.

As for the laptop I might hustle up enough for a new laptop but if not I'll probably put 32 Bit just so have a 32 bit machine running in case something is incompatible with 64.

I also have a copy of Snow Leopard on it's way..It looks like it's going to be a busy month for OS upgrades. :sqeek::sqbiggrin:

What about you?

[ewomack]

Any really big standout changes in Win7? Is the interface similar or have they flipped a lot of things around? I haven't had time to go research it yet...

[Big Dan]

Pretty much the same as vista with a new taskbar... The task bar is like a hybird of the Vista one and the OS X dock

[Muddy]

I'm still running XP. Every now and then I'll get on my wife's laptop and duke it out with Vista.

[Muddy]

Since I cannot afford a new computer right now, I'll probably max out my RAM and buy a 64 Bit OEM copy for my desktop which is quite a bit cheaper than a retail version.

As for the laptop I might hustle up enough for a new laptop...

Aren't desktops gobs cheaper than laptops?

[ewomack]

Pretty much the same as vista with a new taskbar... The task bar is like a hybird of the Vista one and the OS X dock

Ah... the wacky expanding/unexpanding bottom of the screen taskbar? Is Windows slowly morphing into Mac? Do Steve Joba and Bill Gates look more alike?

[ewomack]

Aren't desktops gobs cheaper than laptops?

Not gobs, but they're generally cheaper, yes...

[Big Dan]

Aren't desktops gobs cheaper than laptops?

Yup but I'm figuring next time around I'll buy a laptop with a dock and do all my computing from the laptop when home I'll have it plugged into an external monitor and keyboard. It saves me from buying two new computers.


Ah... the wacky expanding/unexpanding bottom of the screen taskbar? Is Windows slowly morphing into Mac? Do Steve Joba and Bill Gates look more alike?

It's not exactly like that basically Windows 7 no longer has the quick launch toolbar nor does it delineate between opened and closed programs. Basically you 'pin' programs to the taskbar when you click on the icon if it's open it brings the window the foreground. If the program isn't running the program launches. Also, by default there's just large icons on the task bar and no program/document titles.

I really don't care for the new taskbar but overall W7 seems snappier on the same hardware as I was running Vista on.

[ewomack]

It's not exactly like that basically Windows 7 no longer has the quick launch toolbar nor does it delineate between opened and closed programs. Basically you 'pin' programs to the taskbar when you click on the icon if it's open it brings the window the foreground. If the program isn't running the program launches. Also, by default there's just large icons on the task bar and no program/document titles.

I really don't care for the new taskbar but overall W7 seems snappier on the same hardware as I was running Vista on.

Ah, I see... I'll have to check it out... did you run the Beta?

[Big Dan]

Ah, I see... I'll have to check it out... did you run the Beta?

Nope I got an RTM (gold) copy of enterprise good for 90 days for lying a bit and saying I'm developer. I am a developer just not a software developer. :D

Here's the link if you want to give it a test drive: Windows 7 Enterprise 90-day Trial
(http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/cc442495.aspx?ITPID=sprblog)

As also don't forget to backup before playing with HD partitions.

[iowadawg]

Will wait until sometime next year to upgrade from XP....

I just love XP too much and don't like learning some new OS....

[julien_simon]

I'm using Vista but not a big fan. I like XP better.

Haven't had a chance to see the Windows 7 yet.

[Zap]

Bought a laptop 2 years ago with Vista on it.
Removed Vista and put XP on it. It was much faster after that.
I hope Win7 is faster than Vista. If not, I'll remove Win7 from the next laptop and go back to XP again.

[pctec]

Bought a laptop 2 years ago with Vista on it.
Removed Vista and put XP on it. It was much faster after that.
I hope Win7 is faster than Vista. If not, I'll remove Win7 from the next laptop and go back to XP again.

Sounds like a plan except you might not be able to because of a lack of drivers for the new laptop... :sqfrown:

[Muddy]

Plus it'll void your warranty won't it?

[Muddy]

For one of my businesses I bought six new laptops all with Vista. Then I found out that the primary software we used everyday all day long (database) was not yet compatible with Vista. Was going to throw XP on them all but was told it would void the warranty so I took them back. This was in early 07 and it was near impossible to find a new machine that had XP on it. I finally found some at newegg and snapped six up while I could.

[Zap]

Sounds like a plan except you might not be able to because of a lack of drivers for the new laptop... :sqfrown:
Yes. Hunting down XP drivers for a Vista machine can be a pain, but well worth the effort.
It's possible the new laptop with Windows 7 won't have XP drivers for it, but I'm hoping I won't have to go that route anyway.
You may have to get creative when looking for drivers, but it's possible.

Example: My current laptop (preloaded with Vista) had some drivers for XP available on the Gateway website. I had to look elsewhere for some of the others in the XP flavour. But I did manage to find all of them.



Plus it'll void your warranty won't it?
It shouldn't. When you buy a laptop (or desktop) from someone, you should be able to run whatever O/S you want. I think that whatever company you buy from can refuse to provide tech support for Linux if you bought a Vista laptop, but if the CPU fries on you, it should be covered, regardless of the O/S you're running.

[Bogart]

I'm looking to upgrade. I'm running a Pentimum-3 desktop that I upgraded to XP last year.

[Strong]

Hi Bogart! I have nothing to add to the thread, I just wanted to say hi and welcome to BTWIMHO.

BTW did you mean Pentium 3?

[Zap]

I'm looking to upgrade. I'm running a Pentimum-3 desktop that I upgraded to XP last year.

I think XP is probably your last stop on the upgrade train with that rig.
I wouldn't go Vista or 7 with it.

Pentium 3?!?!? We have dual and quad cores now, dude.
Treat yourself on black Friday!

Welcome to BTW, BTW. :sqbiggrin:

[Muddy]

It shouldn't. When you buy a laptop (or desktop) from someone, you should be able to run whatever O/S you want. I think that whatever company you buy from can refuse to provide tech support for Linux if you bought a Vista laptop, but if the CPU fries on you, it should be covered, regardless of the O/S you're running.

Well, I bought them at Best Buy and that's what they told me...probably got a Geek Squad rookie. That or it's a dumb policy indigenous to them. Newegg came through so that was cool.

Howdy Bogart! Welcome to ByTheWayInMyHumbleOpinion!

[Bogart]

Hi Bogart! I have nothing to add to the thread, I just wanted to say hi and welcome to BTWIMHO.

BTW did you mean Pentium 3?

THanks for the welcome!

That's what I said Pentium 3 :sqembarrassed:

[buffalo]

I think my next computer (desktop or laptop) will be a Mac, so I don't care. :p

[Bogart]

I think my next computer (desktop or laptop) will be a Mac, so I don't care. :p

The MAC is good. But there are some issues with software and you can't open TIFF images that were scanned on a pc.

[Zap]

Got an extra hard drive for my laptop and scored a copy of Windows 7 Ultimate.
Just playing with it now.

Seems a lot like Vista, but so far it seems faster than Vista.
Tried a couple of file copy operations across the network and that is definitely faster than Vista was.

Going to try installing a few programs and see how that goes.

[Muddy]

What about this Ubuntu I've been hearing about?

[ewomack]

I've heard it's one of the better colas around (http://www.ubuntu-trading.com/)...

[Muddy]

Windows 7: The fastest selling operating system in history (http://www.downloadsquad.com/2010/01/07/windows-7-the-fastest-selling-operating-system-in-history/)

[Muddy]

Windows 7 Parody - CollegeHumor video (http://www.collegehumor.com/video:1929452)

[ewomack]

Wow... that was a lot of work...

My favorite was "a glass of Pepsi with a dead bird in it."

Not that I advocate dead birds...

[Big Dan]

Sorry bumping an old thread but I wanted to update on my Windows 7 experince.

Last week I upgraded my laptop to Windows 7 64 Bit, it's a whole lot snappier than Vista was. It helps that it was a clean install too not a bloated OEM Vista install. ;)

I also replaced the keyboard (was missing a key) which was easy as soon as I figured out that I removed the wrong piece of plastic the first time around. :sqembarrassed:

For a $130 I got a laptop that will easily run me another two years. Cheaper than me buying a new one. :sqwink: The only thing now is it needs a new battery (currently at 46% capacity) but I'm always near an outlet so it's not to big of an issue.

Down the road a faster HD might be in the picture. The RAM maxes out at 4 GB and I already have 3GB in there, I cannot see upgrading that especially considering I'll have to buy two sticks and throw out the current RAM.


What about this Ubuntu I've been hearing about?

Ubuntu is pretty cool. I've been dual booting on an off for about 5 years now. I'm not a big fan of Karmic (the current release) but I'm running an alpha of Lucid that's slated to be released next month and it's shaping up real nice.