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By Steven van Hemert
Microsoft's success in engineering a stable and desirable Windows 7 may be pie in the sky. By Steven van Hemert
When your software runs over 90% of computers on the planet, any new release is bound to be a big deal.
In 2007 Windows Vista was in the news for all the wrong reasons. Reviled as a flawed operating system for its resource-heavy processes and overall instability, consumers ignored Vista in favour of the lighter and more stable Windows XP. As a result of Vista's unpopularity, a majority of PCs still run some version of XP - an operating system that is now almost a decade old.
But with critics giving Microsoft's latest operating system, Windows 7, a cautious thumbs-up, people are taking notice. Amazon.com reported that Windows 7 is now the highest-grossing pre-order product in the online retailer's history.
The release of Microsoft's latest operating system comes at an interesting time in computer technology. While the traditional high-tech scene has wobbled during the recession with sales of PCs stagnating, the demand for netbooks - small, ultra-portable laptops with limited processing power has skyrocketed.
This has had an interesting impact on the development of Windows 7. The system has been engineered to be lighter and less resource hungry. With its improved memory management mechanics, Windows 7 will run faster and use less power on new netbooks, but will also support high-end machines with multiple processing cores. Microsoft have made Windows 7 available on Flash drives to cater for the netbook market.
Part of the demand for netbooks has been driven by a surge in cloud-based computer services that prioritise connectivity over locally stored programs.
So, in a move that may seem counter-intuitive, Windows 7 will ship with fewer features than Vista. To produce an operating system that is faster and more streamlined, Microsoft have dropped native programs from the Windows 7 suite. These programs will be available for download for free from the Microsoft Live Essentials website, so you can choose what software you want to run.
For the rest, it's Windows as everyone knows it, but with a twist. Windows 7 demands far less from users. Where Vista had a freak out every time you opened a file, Windows 7 has a far less paranoid User Access Control system, grouping security warnings in the Action Center in such a way that they don't interrupt your every click, and allowing you to choose what level of notification you desire.
Most of the improvements in Windows 7 are concerned with the visual and tactile aspects of the system and have been engineered into the user interface to make interacting with Windows far more pleasant.
But it's more than just spit and polish. Windows 7 now has a docking system that provides one-click access to programs and selected folders. With Aero Peek functionality, a user is now able to see thumbnails of all open windows in an application on mouse-over. Each application also has a short cut of actions so you can easily open a recently visited web page or frequently used file. You can also Pin files to be associated with programs you use regularly.
The way Windows handles open applications has also changed. Programs can now be layered with transparent windows, with Aero Snap functionality automatically making a window full-screen when dragged to the top edge and half-size when dragged to the sides. Grabbing a window and shaking it with the mouse will hide all open windows except the one you're working in.
In truth, much of the polish has been borrowed from Apple's OSX, with many of the cosmetic tweaks and interface upgrades mirroring functionality that Mac users have long enjoyed. But for Windows XP users, these developments are something new.
Another aspect of Windows 7 that has pundits crying its virtues is the improved hardware support. On install, Windows 7 should automatically install drivers for all your hardware. It also has greatly improved plug-and-play support for external hardware and will recognise and access a variety of electronic gadgets like cameras, phones and mp3 players.
Windows 7 also features more advanced security features like BitLocker and BitLocker to Go, an application that will encrypt your hard drive and external drives, making transporting sensitive data less of a headache.
But despite Microsoft's success with engineering a stable and desirable Windows 7, some analysts are torn as to the impact Windows 7 will have on the market place. With services rapidly moving into the cloud, this could be the last time Microsoft release an operating system in such a format. And with the recession taking chunks out of budgets, there will be some tough decisions to make that will pit Windows 7 against new players in the Linux and cloud-based market.
Time to upgrade?
If you skipped Vista and are still running XP, there is no easy upgrade path. A clean install is the only option, which will mean re-installing all your other software and applications as well. From Vista, upgrading to Windows 7 is a reasonably simple process.
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