Ok, so for the past month or so I've been putting Windows 7 through its paces and have been happily impressed. There are still some bugs that need to be worked out, and I wouldn't recommend anyone immediately install it when its officially released, but so far it looks like a decent replacement for Vista.
As some of you may remember, there was another Microsoft Operating System that suffered from the same short life span as Vista will most certainly suffer....and that was MS ME or Millennium. At the time it was supposed to be the answer to an aging Windows 98 and had the core of what was to become Windows XP. As we all know, it was rushed out, suffered from multiple buggy issues and was quickly replaced by XP. Very few ME loaded machines are still around, and I feel this will be the same fate as Vista, once the public has a chance to see Windows 7 in action.
So, first the bad:
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It still "looks" like Vista. I know, thats not really a negative, but if you've been burned by Vista, you'll certainly not want to see the same look on the new OS. |
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There seems to be a buggy situation with how the security center advises the user on the status of their AntiVirus software. I loaded three different brands of AV, made sure they were up to date, and all three were reported as "Out of Date" by the Security Center. Not a big deal, but something that needs to be fixed by MS if they want to regain customer confidence. |
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The OS would not recognize an older SATA driver. Not a deal breaker, it was an older system and expecting a new OS to load properly would be a surprise, but it was annoying. It quite likely this will be fixed on the official release, since Win 7 seems to run better on older systems than Vista does. |
Now for the good:
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It still "looks" like Vista. I know, I know, a contradiction. Personally, I like the look of Vista and actually wish Windows 7 pushed the envelop on the graphics a bit more. For those of you hung up on the XP look, well, you can always run Windows 7 in Windows Classic theme (Vista offers this as well). |
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You can run older applications in a Windows XP compatibility mode, something Vista refused to allow. So for those of you waiting to upgrade older XP systems, running software that would not operate on Vista, Win 7 will most likely work for you. |
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It runs on older systems, those that weren't actually Vista certified. I took an old HP desktop, less than 1GHZ processor, and only 1GB of RAM and Win 7 runs beautifully. Full graphics, no hangs, multiple programs running with no lags, something most Vista systems would need at LEAST 2GB of RAM and 1.5GHZ processor. Granted, to truly appreciate a new OS and get the most computing power for your buck, I'd invest the extra and upgrade your aging system to something dual core and mega RAM, but if need be, you could get by on an older system. |
Win 7 will be offered in just a few editions. Unlike Vista with its dozen different editions and scaled functionalities (ok I exaggerate), Win 7 will come in just a few editions. The final word hasn't been released, but the rumor is there will be at most three, a Home edition, a Business edition, and an Extreme edition. Personally, I'd like to see MS just consolidate to two editions, a Home and a Business.
Well, there you have it. Like I said up front, I'm impressed so far with what I've seen. The proof will be in the final release, making sure the major bugs are exterminated and the OS buttoned up for a tidy release. The last thing Microsoft wants is a repeat of the bad publicity that Vista dished them.
Windows 7 is tentatively scheduled for a late 09 release. I'll keep you posted on any further updates and recommendations. |
