Windows 7 -- Life After Vista

Microsoft has been working hard on their next operating system and has recently announced the general availability of a preliminary version that can be used for testing and evaluation purposes.  We'll discuss some of the highlights of the new operating system, and point to some online resources in case you'd like to check it out in more detail.

Highlights
We've of course loaded Windows 7 to "play", and so far it looks really good.  It is stable, solid, clean, and feels pretty fast.  It resembles Vista a bit, and was built on the Vista core, but feels less flashy and more modest.  Applications that run on Vista should run on Windows 7, and hardware that runs Vista will run Windows 7. 

One of the goals of Microsoft was to improve the performance from Vista, and they have addressed this by both increasing the speed of the OS and by developing features that help the user operate more efficiently. 

Overall, Microsoft worked on providing a fundamentally secure platform, helping secure anywhere access, protecting users and infrastructure, and helping protect data.

There are many new features to explore, but here is a quick bullet point list of some of the highlights:

  • Improved desktop search
  • Internet Explorer 8 for improved internet security
  • DirectAccess (automatically connect remote workstations to Windows Server 2008)
  • BranchCache (used to sync files between corporate and branch offices)
  • Improved BitLocker (drive encryption)
  • BitLocker To Go (encrypt portable devices such as USB keys)
  • Built-in Biometric support
  • Improved taskbar
  • Improved device management
  • Better compatibility for both hardware and software
  • Windows Touch (for touch screen enabled monitors)
  • Tight integration with Windows Live online services
  • Remote media streaming
  • PlayTo
  • Windows Media Center improvements

It is our opinion that the best operating system is the one that provides a stable and secure environment, and that enables our applications to run well.  We humans interact with our applications to complete our tasks, the applications interact with the operating system, and the operating system interacts with the hardware.  Only time will tell as we approach the final version, but it looks as though Windows 7 is shaping up to be a success.

Additional Microsoft Resources
Videos: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/videos.aspx
Windows 7 Home: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/default.aspx
New Features: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/whats-new.aspx
Download:  This version will automatically stop working on June 1, 2010, but is available for immediate download http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/download.aspx

Windows 7 -- Life After Vista