Windows Tips and Tricks: A Windows 7 Review
“For those evaluating a Win 7 upgrade.”
by Jack Dunning

It seems like years that we've been waiting for Windows 7 to be released—ever since Vista hit the market. Now it's official. Yesterday, October 22, was the introduction of Windows 7 to the computer market. Now most of the off-the-shelf computers should come with Win 7 installed—unless they are a Mac or possibly a netbook.

There will be a few people rushing out to buy a new Win 7 machine, but I suspect that most people will either wait a day or two getting ready for the move, or they are thinking about upgrading their current computer. In anticipation of people wanting to review their Windows decision, I dug through past issues of ComputorEdge pulling out those columns and articles most relevant to the Win 7 decision. What follows is a review of many of the words of wisdom (with links) that I have published over the past year about Windows 7 and upgrading from other versions of Windows.

Window 7 for Newbies

If you are new to the subject, ComputorEdge dedicated an issue to the topic of Windows 7 on June 26. In that issue there was an article on called "Using Windows 7: New features and a new look and feel." For the uninitiated, this is a good starting point. While the article doesn't cover all of the Win 7 changes, I try to hit the most relevant and interesting aspects of Windows 7.

In the same June 26 issue, there is a second article dedicated to "Windows 7: New and Improved Programs: If you're upgrading anyway, these may be a bonus." While these programs are not essential to any operating system, they are either new to Win 7, or in most cases improvements on older, standard Windows programs. If you just want to know a little more of what all the hoopla is about, the two articles in this issue will bring you up to speed.

New Computer or Upgrade

While it appears that most XP computers will probably be able to handle Windows 7, it may not be worth the cost or effort to upgrade. That depends upon the age and capability of your hardware—the two go hand-in-hand. Check out the Windows Tips and Tricks column titled "Windows 7, October 22: Microsoft Learned from Vista's Mistakes" in the September 18 issue. For more details on upgrading, there is a section on Windows Upgrade Advisor in "Windows Tips and Tricks: Start Getting Ready for Windows 7" in the May 15 issue. This Microsoft program will test your hardware to determine if your machine is up to the task. If not, you may be better off buying new.

Which Version of Windows 7

Maybe you've already decided to move to Windows 7, but aren't sure which version to buy. There is a significant difference in price between versions, although the added features may or may not be worth it to you. Those difference are reviewed in "EdgeWord: Which Version of Windows 7, Home or Professional?: Should you spring for the extra money?" in the October 2 issue.

The primary feature that appears in the Enterprise and Ultimate versions of Windows Vista and Windows 7, but not in the Professional version, is Windows BitLocker. This is the Windows file-encryption program discussed in "Proactive Protection by Encrypting Your Data" by Tim McGuire in this week's issue. If you need to encrypt your hard drive, then you may prefer the Ultimate version of Win 7.

Is It Time to Switch from Windows XP?

It was just last week that I responded to a question addressing whether XP users needed to make the switch. As usual the answer was, "It depends." For the details of the answer see, "Windows Tips and Tricks: Windows 7 Versus Windows XP: Is it really time to drop XP?" in the October 16 issue.

What Missing From Windows 7?

More stripped down than Vista, the leaner Windows 7 has had a number of programs removed from it. Some are features that were introduced in Vista, such as Windows Sidebar for gadgets. (Only Sidebar is removed—the gadgets remain.) Others have been standards that also appear in Windows XP. In most cases the programs can be downloaded free from Windows Live Essentials. These programs include Windows Photo Gallery, Windows Movie Maker and a couple of others.

Probably the biggest shock is the fact that there is no e-mail program included with Windows 7. Many people will be rummaging through the program trees wondering how they will pick up their e-mail. Windows Live Mail is another free download from Windows Live Essentials mentioned and linked to above. If you install it you will find it considerably different from other e-mail programs you've used. I installed it on a Vista machine last May and liked it, as discussed in "Windows Tips and Tricks: For Windows 7, it will be Windows Live Mail" in the May 22 issue. Try it now! You may or may not agree. I expect that for many, Mozilla's free Thunderbird e-mail will look like an excellent alternative. Remember, you will need to download an e-mail program.

32-Bit Versus 64-Bit?

If you are running 64-bit Vista, then you should have no problems with 64-bit Windows 7. Most of the new computers will come with the 64-bit version of Windows 7 installed. Any 32-bit programs (most of the current programs are 32-bit) will run fine in the 32-bit mode of the 64-bit version of Windows. The primary problems have occurred when running selected drivers and programs in 64-bit Windows. Sometimes, they just don't work. To be sure that your critical software will function with a 64-bit Windows computer, load it on a friend's 64-bit Windows operating system machine (64-bit Vista is a good test). If it works, then you're good to go to 64-bit Windows 7.

If you take the time to review some of the cited pieces on the topic of Windows 7, be sure to check the readers comments attached at the end. Some of them add significant information to the topic and help to clarify any misguided statements I may have made.

As can be seen throughout most of the articles and columns, my philosophy is that as long as you're happy with your computer (and it still works), don't feel compelled to make any changes. (That includes all of you happy Vista users out there.) However, for almost anyone, when they eventually move to Windows 7, it will be an improved computing experience.

Comments and Letters about Windows Tips and Tricks: A Windows 7 Review
“For those evaluating a Win 7 upgrade.”
by Jack Dunning

Opening the shipping carton

I have just purchased my first Win 7 computer and am getting ready to set it up. It is an economy model that will replace the older of my two XP/Ubuntu partitioned computers in my office. I may add Ubuntu to the new computer as a virtual machine application. Your articles in this issue are very encouraging and informative. I successfully avoided Vista and have never even tried it out, and am now a bit apprehensive about the whole thing.

Thanks for the help!

—Cicero Walker, Colorado Springs, CO

No E-mail Program

Mr. Dunning,

Read your article on Win 7 in the 10/23 issue and was startled to read that 7 had no e-mail client. I currently employ several XP Pro computers in a network, all of which depend on Outlook Express. There are hundreds of addresses involved, with collateral info on most, plus numerous e-mail folders with important msgs. All of this is backed up, but it would be a monumental task to transfer it all to another e-mail client. It's hard to believe MS has no path for OE. If this is true, it looks like any new hardware we buy will require XP. I think MS grossly underestimates the size of the installed XP base. Wonder how IT shops based on XP in the big corporations will be handling this. My employer won't even let us go to IE8 because it doesn't support current operations. Any comment?

Best,

—Joe Silverman

Response on No E-mail Program

There is an e-mail client, Windows Live Mail, available from Microsoft as a free download that will import all of the Outlook Express messages and contacts (contacts will need to be exported into another file first). I address the topic of e-mail clients and Win 7 in next Friday's column.

Regardless of which way you go, you will still need to move all of your messages and contacts. Windows Live Mail does have an Internet capability that could make it easier to share contact information.

—Jack Dunning, ComputorEdge