| The retail version of Windows 7 was released about a year ago in October 22, 2009. Since the release, some of you may already have experienced the look and feel of Windows 7. But what makes Windows 7 really special? Well, for one thing, it works! Windows 7 is so good that almost a year after its release, Microsoft still has not announced Windows 7 Service Pack 1. It's what Microsoft should've released when they brought out the dreaded Windows Vista (makes me shiver just mentioning it!).
Well, what is Windows 7? Windows 7 is the most recent operating system released by Microsoft for PCs. There are several flavors of Windows 7 which cater to a wide range of uses starting from netbooks, home PCs, to full blown graphics workstations. Windows 7 is a welcome upgrade from Windows XP, which unfortunately up until now, is the current desktop operating system king. Why? because its stable and there is something to be said of an operating system that has survived for almost 10 years! Having said that, Windows 7 is poised to be a great successor to the mighty Windows XP. Let me tell you why.
Windows 7 startup is fast and devoid of uneccessary animation found in older versions of Windows. The desktop presents end users with a soft and smooth interface. The Aero interface (a hold-over from Windows Vista) is very pleasing to the eye with bright and "happy" wallpapers, smooth fonts, and the window transparency feature is both functional and cool to look at!
The OS itself, is very stable and system crashes seem to be a thing of the past -- at least from a standpoint of having to completely restart your computer. It includes drivers for most hardware and for the ones it doesnt have, it automatically downloads from the internet. Microsoft has also changed the way it organizes your documents. In Windows XP, the My Music and My Videos folders were all subfolders of the My Documents folder. In Windows 7, My Documents, My Music, and My Videos, have their own folder making it easier to categorize your documents and media.
Application support is one of Windows 7's strong suits. It will support just about any piece of software out there. It also includes a "Virtual XP" mode (requires a virtualization capable processor), for those apps that absolutely have to run on an older version of Windows.
Windows 7 is more secure compared to its older siblings. But the sad truth is that all versions of Windows have been plagued with viruses and malware. Windows 7 is not exempt from this. However, it has built-in security features that protect the end user from getting infected. For enhanced protection, Microsoft has released a free antivirus / antimalware program, Security Essentials.
Overall, Windows 7 is a refreshing change from Windows XP. From its interface, to its compatibility, and stability, Windows 7 is a sure winner for Microsoft. It works and I'd take that anytime. |
