Windows 7 Details

papu

Microsoft's Windows 7 announcement earlier today was followed up by an extensive demo of the new features during the PDC keynote, and since then even more info about the new OS has flooded out, so we thought we'd try to wrap up some of the more important bits here for you. Microsoft seems to have done an impressive job at this early pre-beta stage, folding in next-gen interface ideas like multitouch into the same OS that apparently runs fine on a 1GHz netbook with 1GB of RAM, but we'll see how development goes -- there's still a ways to go. Some notes:

* Obviously, the big news is the new taskbar, which forgoes text for icons and has new "jump lists" of app controls and options you can access with a right-click. You can select playlists in Media Player, for example. Super cool: when you scrub over the icons, all the other app windows go transparent so you can "peek" at the windows you're pointing at.
* Gadgets now appear on the desktop -- the sidebar has been killed. That makes more sense for all those laptop owners out there with limited screen space, and you can still see gadgets anytime by peeking at the desktop, rendering all other windows transparent.
* Window resizing and management now happens semi-automatically: dragging a window to the top of the screen maximizes it, pulling it down restores; dragging a window to the edges auto-resizes it to 50% for quick tiling. Nifty.
* The system tray now only displays what you explicitly say it should -- everything else is hidden, and the controls have been streamlined.
* User Account Control settings are now much more fine-grained -- you can set them by app and by level of access.
* They demoed multitouch features on an HP TouchSmart PC -- it was pretty cool, although the usual nagging "what is this good for / that'll get old fast" concerns weren't really addressed. The Start menu gets 25 percent bigger when using touch to make it easier to handle, and apps will all get scroll support automatically. There's also a giant on-screen predictive keyboard. Again -- could be amazing, but we won't know until it's out in the wild.
* We've always known Microsoft intends Windows 7 to run on netbooks, and we got a small taste during the PDC keynote: Windows SVP Steve Sinofsky held up his "personal" laptop running Windows 7, an unnamed 1GHz netbook with 1GB of RAM that looked a lot like an Eee PC, and said that it still had about half its memory free after boot. (We're guessing it was running a VIA Nano, since most Atoms run at 1.6GHz.)
* At the other end of the scale, Windows 7 supports machines with up to 256 CPUs.
* Multiple-monitor management is much-improved, as is setting up projectors -- it's a hotkey away. Remote Desktop now works with multiple monitors as well.
* Media Center has been tweaked as well -- it looks a lot more like the Zune interface. There's also a new Mini Guide when watching video, and a new Music Wall album artwork screensaver that kicks in when you're playing music.
* Devs got a pre-beta today; a "pretty good" feature complete beta is due early next year. No word at all on when it'll be released to market apart from that "three years from Vista" date we've known forever.

That's just the good bits -- hit the read links for piles of more info and screenshots, and we'll keep our eyes out for anything else interesting. Exciting times!

Keynote videos on the PDC site
Technologizer Windows 7 hands-on
Ars Technica Windows 7 interface walkthrough
Laptop Windows 7 hands-on
Windows 7 Media Center revealed

All Ala Engadget Link

papu

i think it looks nice

Username!

Even after the mess that is Vista, this excites me - I look forward to testing it.

If it's XP performance with Vista looks, I'll be very happy.

Jonathan

humaxf1 wrote: »

Can't spell "the or Windows.."

God help us!

Leave your sarcasm under the bridge!

Who needs Vista looks... Windows classic look all the way - turn off all the visual bloat and turn on classic start menu. Productivity my rear end.

+1 for windows classic. By far a better ui than aero.

Mountjoy Mugger

Username! wrote: »

Even after the mess that is Vista, this excites me - I look forward to testing it.

Same here. Were you an "official beta tester" on Vista, by any chance?

The reason I ask is I still haven't seen any menion of it in "Connect".

Stephen

Oh god, prepare for the inevitable whining and bitching about the taskbar changes.

_Kaiser_

Looks pretty good. If it holds up in the final release I think we'll be just bypassing Vista altogether in work

Cabaal

humaxf1, two month ban from windows for acting the complete muppet!

posts deleted, personally unless Windows 7 is impressive as well I won't be moving from XP

JimmyCrackCorn!

I liked what i saw of it.
Betas out soon two.

I have good reports from people who work on it and i believe them.

I also strangely like the look. A windows release with no complaints from me.

Forsaken1

Microsoft need to learn a very important fact:
If it ain't broke don't fix it!

They made a good OS in XP but went and ruined their cred and infuriated their customers by producing Vista (apt name seeing that this O/S is going out the window and will soon be a fleeting memory).

I'd like to see some 3rd party doing what microsoft did in the very beginning with Dos.
Some 3rd party taking over XP, rebranding it and re-developing it but keepig the look and feel that people are familiar with rather than providing extra headaches with each new release...
"Where's the poxy control panel!!! Arrrgrgghh!"
"Where the SHOW DESKTOP option gone???!!!!!"
"Where's the bloody program files and documents & settings folders??!"
"What's the point of a Program Data folder??!"
"Why is the bloody thing slower that XP!?!?"
"Who want's needless animation on their desktop anyway????"

Here's an interesting concept: How about an operating system that runs faster and more efficiently with the same hardware with each new release...hmmm

Why burn up watts for the sheer hell of it, make PCs more eco-friendly by having them run more efficiently.

ARE YOU LISTENING MICROSOFT?? :mad:

Username!

Forsaken1 wrote: »

"Where's the poxy control panel!!! Arrrgrgghh!"
"Where the SHOW DESKTOP option gone???!!!!!"
"Where's the bloody program files and documents & settings folders??!"
"What's the point of a Program Data folder??!"
"Why is the bloody thing slower that XP!?!?"
"Who want's needless animation on their desktop anyway????"

You do realise that this is a Pre-Beta... it's ages away from release. And who said it's slower than XP? Engadget posted about it running on a Netbook with 1GB of RAM, 1.6Ghz Atom Processor and it only took up 485MB of RAM when everything was running.

Right now my XP machine is using 725MB of RAM with only a few IE, FF and Outlook windows open.

http://www.engadget.com/2008/10/31/lightweight-windows-7-pre-beta-loaded-onto-eee-pc-1000h-with-ver/

Diddy Kong

Forsaken1 wrote: »

I'd like to see some 3rd party doing what microsoft did in the very beginning with Dos.
Some 3rd party taking over XP, rebranding it and re-developing it but keepig the look and feel that people are familiar with rather than providing extra headaches with each new release..

Eh this has been done, and if memory serves me correct there was a thread a few weeks ago about the top 10 alternative OS's.

ReactOS - from their website:

ReactOS® is a free, modern operating system based on the design of Windows® XP/2003. Written completely from scratch, it aims to follow the Windows® architecture designed by Microsoft from the hardware level right through to the application level. This is not a Linux based system, and shares none of the unix architecture.

Ginger

Picked up a copy of Windows 7 from PDC and Windows 2008 R2.. unfortunately doesnt include the new taskbar..

As for Windows Azure.. another thing to work with

Jonathan

Ginger wrote: »

Picked up a copy of Windows 7 from PDC and Windows 2008 R2.. unfortunately doesnt include the new taskbar..

As for Windows Azure.. another thing to work with

How does one join the beta program?

Ginger

Connect usually and I am fairly sure this willbe a wide beta.. we got the pre beta bits from PDC

Capt'n Midnight

Forsaken1 wrote: »

Microsoft need to learn a very important fact:
If it ain't broke don't fix it!

actually what they know from experiance is the biggest competitior to windows is the previous stable version and people will continue to buy it unless they stop selling it.

Here's an interesting concept: How about an operating system that runs faster and more efficiently with the same hardware with each new release...hmmm

IIRC EVERY previous microsoft version of windows was advertised as being faster than the previous one

windowsce or embedded would use less power

I don't know why they need to release new versions of desktop windows all the time, 90% of copies are OEM and you can't transfer them so there will always be a market as long as people buy new PC's. Unless it's to drive sales of new PC's or sell new features.

aidan_walsh

Looks like everyone looking to go back to Classic Mode is in for a treat, because the new task bar is mandatory.

Slutmonkey57b

I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing - the new taskbar changes are actually going to bring in some major useability. The notification area is far too spammy, and a big reason for that is that having a little icon that you can right-click to use an app with is a really useful trick. *If* devs start using the jump lists, then everything's going to be a lot better to use.

Sherifu

I saw someone figured out how to enable the new task bar on the PDC build of Windows 7.

Ginger

Its not included in that build.. its was included in a later build according the Windows 7 crowd I was chatting to at PDC

Sherifu

It can be enabled in Build 6801, which I thought was the PDC build. Or is that wrong?

Jonathan

I like my classic theme tho

Ginger

Sherifu wrote: »

It can be enabled in Build 6801, which I thought was the PDC build. Or is that wrong?

No thats correct, just relaying what I had heard from them because we asked where was it... build 6801 was the one that was also used on all the PCs for internet access...

Ginger

As a followup you can enable the new taskbar in build 6801 .. tho its not as complete as the PDC demo version

Sherifu

You can't enable peek and stuff yet.

Did you enable it in 6801? How's it working?

Ginger

Enabled it on a demo version.. seems ok.. tho as I said not as complete... pity because it was pretty cool

PhilCurran

I'm running Windows 7 Home Basic N on my Dell mini. No issues so far
I'll see if I can unlock the superbar with the information from withinwindows

jaqian

Username! wrote: »

If it's XP performance with Vista looks, I'll be very happy.

So any chance it will run on 128Mb RAM or less?

Forsaken1

Username! wrote: »

You do realise that this is a Pre-Beta... it's ages away from release. And who said it's slower than XP? Engadget posted about it running on a Netbook with 1GB of RAM, 1.6Ghz Atom Processor and it only took up 485MB of RAM when everything was running.

Right now my XP machine is using 725MB of RAM with only a few IE, FF and Outlook windows open.

http://www.engadget.com/2008/10/31/lightweight-windows-7-pre-beta-loaded-onto-eee-pc-1000h-with-ver/

Hi
I was talking about the joke that is Vista! Have now preconceptions about Windows 7 yet.