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Socoder -> On Topic -> Windows 7

Sat, 14 Nov 2009, 09:00
JL235
As of today I iz now running Windowz 7 Professional! But so far I'm not too impressed. I've read it's better optimized then Vista, especially on modern multi-core PCs.

Today I've been running multiple installers whilst streaming TV and setting up all my apps, with no stuttering or slowdown. However I'm only going to be doing this today. For general use it only seems marginally faster then my previous Vista machine which ran only a single-core 2ghz Athlon (and taht's because that machine ran really quickly). I should mention I'm now using a 2.5ghz Core 2 Quad with 4gb ram. So I've turned the page file off to reduce disk IO and my disk has a much larger cache then the previous one. So I'd actually expect the same performance under Vista. So far the performance increase seems overrated.

But my biggest issue is that I'm really struggling to find new features I like. To a large degree it feels like they have just moved everything about. The new pins on the taskbar is just the old quick launch bar + the old window grouping. I've always hated grouping windows, it's just not needed if you have your start menu on the left or right hand side of the screen like I do. The quick launch is also better because it seperates shortcuts from the open apps (fortinately you can get it back).

The only feature I like (and I'm not hugely balled over by it) is the new window dragging. I have a dual-monitor setup and so very often find myself having to drag a window from one monitor to the other and then fullscreen it. Now I can do this in one motion by dragging it to the top of the other monitor and it fullscreens automatically. I'm disappointed that this is my number 1 feature in Windows 7.

What are other people's experiences, am I missing something here???
Sat, 14 Nov 2009, 09:39
Phoenix
You can turn off grouping; I don't like it either. But I don't see why you complain about the loss of the quick launch bar. You do know that you can middle click task bar items to launch a new instance, right? I think that the new task bar is better than the old one. Although overall, the superficial differences between Windows 7 and Vista aren't that big. But my Windows 7 machine is stable and fast, so I don't moan and I don't see why you do. It kicks XP's ass any day of the week.
Sat, 14 Nov 2009, 09:53
JL235
My vista machine was stable and fast, so I see no change there.

I'm moaning because these are all things that I use 99% of the time. I'm having to learn how to get back features in Vista or how to use my PC differently.

For example I used to always minimize Windows Media Player to the start menu so it's docked. There I could switch tracks and alter the volume with no clicks needed. The docking mode has been removed.

When not docked I'd have it left out on the desktop in it's compact mode. This offers quick access, looks pretty and takes up very little space. Compact mode has been removed so now it takes up less space and I have to stare at ugly album art.
Sat, 14 Nov 2009, 11:12
Phoenix
Docking mode hasn't been removed hasn't been removed in Windows Media Player, you just have to hover over the icon for a second to make it appear. I can't comment on compact mode though, since I never use WMP. Winamp and media buttons suit me perfectly.

There are new features in Windows 7, but I agree that they might not be features which directly affect you and me. Although I like the ones which do, small as they may be. What new features would you have wanted in Windows 7?
Sat, 14 Nov 2009, 11:29
JL235
This is the docking mode:

The hover/pin thing is terrible. As you say you have to wait for the controls to appear, they aren't there permanently. When they do appear you can only go back, forwards or pause/play the track. No stop and no volume. Volume is one I use a lot as it saves me having to go to the sound mixer.

If you select to play a new song whilst it's minimized it also restores itself and pops up on top of other apps. This is very annoying.
Sat, 14 Nov 2009, 11:50
Phoenix
I see your point, and I understand why it's annoying. But still, what new features would you have wanted in Windows 7?

|edit| By the way, have you tried download the Vista version of WMP and running it in compatibility mode? |edit|
Sat, 14 Nov 2009, 12:00
JL235
Phoenix But still, what new features would you have wanted in Windows 7?

The current features in Vista.

I do agree, there is lots of new stuff in here. It is better optimized for multi-core machines and takes advantage of modern instruction sets. It also has some really clever stuff under the hood like the fault tollerant heap that can negate the majority of memory bugs.

But for the user it just feels like a big step backwards.
Phoenix By the way, have you tried download the Vista version of WMP and running it in compatibility mode?
No, and tbh I'm really dissappointed if I should. I really like Windows Media Player for audio because I the explorer as my library and playlist. I especially love the shell extensions allowing me to select and queue music for playing.

I think it's a big fail if I need to download a new music player because MS have ruined theirs.

|edit| fyi: I've found a guide here that instructs how to revert back to WMP 11, and another guide here for getting Windows Live Messenger to close to the tray rather then the taskbar.
Mon, 16 Nov 2009, 13:37
Scherererer
Best new feature -- the calculator.

end of story.

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Computer Science Series: Logic (pt1) (part 2) (part 3) 2's Complement Mathematics: Basic Differential Calculus
Mon, 16 Nov 2009, 14:51
Jayenkai
OMG! There's a new Calc!?!?

...
Where the f's my new PC!?!?!?!?!?

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Mon, 16 Nov 2009, 15:07
Afr0
Best new feature -- the calculator.

end of story.


No!!

I've never in my life experienced a Windows install without a single hickup, and installing Windows 7 over an old Windows 7 (Beta) was absolutely painfree.
Vista upgrade from Vista Beta as well as XP was utter fail, and XP's installation program has a tendency to assign random drive-letters to partitions, making it impossible to know which one's which. Besides, XP is getting old.
Windows 7 install = WIN!

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Mon, 16 Nov 2009, 19:51
zebeste
I personally hate the popup that requires me to type in the administrator password in Vista whenever I want to install/uninstall anything. Windows 7 doesn't have it.

I've been pinning all of my applications to the taskbar and I have it set so that all open windows of those applications are collapsed so that if I have multiple windows open, they only take up one little square on the task bar.

One thing I don't like is whenever I try to copy over a file with a different one I find the dialog more confusing than the WinXP one.