W7 First Looks

Posted on November 9, 2008

Since the recent Microsoft PDC where the first copies of pre-beta Windows 7 were passed out, everyone has been anxious to know what it’s like.

Not having access to a copy, I have to rely on the reports I’m relying on the initial impressions of others…and I think to no great surprise, they’re pretty positive. Actually, with all the negative vibes set up by Vista, and with Microsoft knowing what those vibes are all about, it was pretty much a given that one of the main agendas for W7 (gussied up Vista) would be to correct those shortcomings. Do that and you get a glowing first report on the new version and that’s pretty much what we’re seeing.

So here are a few of the remarks seen with no attribution:

Aero interface refined, leaner in its demands
Visual effects smooth even on a Celeron
Display settings returned to desktop right-click
Window resizing more intuitive
User Access Control (UAC) much less annoying
Wireless connections simplified, right-click any entry to connect
Paint, Calc, Wordpad all updated
Sticky notes on desktop with virtual corkboard available
Explorer interface allows creation of libraries and addition of folders, local or networked
Powershell with GUI for scripting purposes
Monitors ambient light and adjusts brightness
Location awareness, change default printers, etc. based on triangulated location

How about things that aren’t included anymore?

Windows Movie Maker
Windows Mail
Windows Photo Gallery

These will still be available as free downloads and will become part of Windows Live desktop applications but will no longer be a part of the OS.

Everything sounds promising with this new version. And with these economic times, it still seems reasonable if your current XP box is enough to run you for another year, I would just wait it out. Or at least get far enough along to where vendors like Dell are offering free upgrades to W7 when it does come out.