Using Windows 7 beta

I have not used Windows 7 much now myself, but from what I know so far, you should keep few things in mind.

I installed Windows 7 on two computer so far, one is my workstation & 2^nd is another PC running Windows XP. Windows 7 uses the same Boot Configuration editor found in Windows Vista due to which dual booting with Windows Vista wasn’t a problem. Even when I formatted the Windows 7 partition from Windows Vista after installing Windows 7, I was still able to boot into Vista. However, if you are installing it on a new blank hard disk then Windows 7 will make a 200 MB hidden partition for boot files & this partition will not be visible in Explorer. In case of dual booting with Windows XP, Windows 7 Setup copied the boot files to C:\ Drive where Windows XP was installed & I wasn’t able to boot into XP or see the drive in Explorer as now it was the hidden partition. To fix this problem simply download EasyBCD & add a new entry for Windows XP after deleting the old Windows XP entry & select the C:\ Drive. Now you can dual boot Windows 7 & Windows XP without any problem.

Windows Vista drivers will work fine in Windows 7 in most cases. In my case, I installed it on my Workstation & it automatically detected all the drivers. Even then I went to Windows Update & it installed new drivers for my Graphics Card & Realtek LAN. Keep in mind that the current ATI drivers are giving me lots of trouble & they keep crashing 50% of the time. Waiting for things to get a bit stable.

Libraries are nothing but Search Folders of Windows Vista. This feature was never used much in Windows Vista but in Windows 7 it is right there in Explorer. By default there are 4 libraries named Pictures, Videos, and Documents & Music. You can add multiple locations in each libraries after which when you open that library in Explorer, it will show you the content from all the locations at once place even it is a web based location provided you have net connectivity. I don’t keep my data on the default drive where Windows is installed. I keep them in a separate partition under categorized folders so Libraries are a boon for someone like me.

The On Screen keyboard is finally something much better than the old one found even in Vista since the time of Windows 2000. The buttons are big so that if you are using a tablet PC, typing text won’t be a problem. The buttons are big enough for even finger touch & they are beautifully crafted on a glass panel.

Finally I can say that it is time to leave Winamp. Windows Media Player 12 is the be all end all Media Player for everyone’s need. WMP12 now has two separate views, the Player View & the Library view. Combine that with the Superbar of Windows 7 which acts as a minimize to tray functionality I have been always missing in WMP & I can very well say that I won’t be using any other media player from Windows 7 onwards when WMP12 & FFDShow will fulfill all my needs. I was easily able to connect my Nokia N79 in MTP mode & transfer all my files as WMP 12 has native support for MP4 & AAC Files along with H.264 & DivX support. Since I transfer videos to my phone after converting them to MP4, I was able to manage them right there from WMP12.

Windows Media Player 12 now has instant preview of the song. If you are playing something, then its audio will stop & the audio of new file come into front. As soon as you close the preview, the old audio will play again.

WMP12 playing a Video.

The new Caculator

Windows live Writer with my new blog theme auto applied, this gives lots of space to write stuff.

UAC no longer bugs you if you are working on something. If there is a UAC prompt & you are working on something then it will sit in the Superbar & glow to show you a prompt, If you click on that then only screen will dim

Installing DirectX 9 runtime

My Workspace with switcher

Some keyboard shortcuts which come in handy