Windows 7

[SteveA]

Has anyone looked into upgrading to Windows 7?

I have never been very happy with Vista, so I've been considering the upgrade.

I did run this utility from Microsoft.

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/win...e-advisor.aspx

I was easy and fast to run, but the results showed that more than a dozen programs and software items would need to be "upgraded" or "replaced" to be compatible with Windows 7.

More info from this article:

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscente...y_and_how.html

[upthesaukee]

Hi Steve: as part of my job training at my work, I took microsoft's training on Win 7 and also had a chance to play with it for a little bit at work.

I have xp on my computer, and ran the upgrade utility and had several items that would be questionable. I can only run 32 bit system, and so I will not be upgrading at this time, and when I do, I will be getting a new pc.

The training states most Vista programs are compatible, and obviously some are not. One thing that I am telling people is to run the utility, and make sure any important software is Win 7 compatable. If it is in question, then contact that hardware or software manufacturer for their imput. They may have developed a patch or driver that will make it compatible.

Overall, the software seems to be more user friendly, which is good for the non-techie types. Vista seemed to be at least acceptable to "Geez I love it why are people hating it I find it easy to use" types and quite a few techie types (my experiences). As the article you referenced stated, some may view it as a step backwards, but I think most will find it an improvement.

Upgrading from Vista is a relatively easy process, where go to Win 7 from XP is much more challenging. With Xp, rather than just upgrading (transferring) data, it is necessary to "migrate" information. This means it must be transferred to an external source off the computer, and after Win 7 Professional (no XP mode in Home premium) is installed, you then have to install the migrated data. Win 7 Professional has the migration software in it, and you can also download it seperately.

Long and short of it, if you are unhappy with Vista, I think you may find Win 7 much more to your liking. It does have some looks that are a little different, but overall, I think a rather short learning curve. Finding files and applications you use a lot can be easier with some of the Win 7 features.

Good luck with your decision.

[trfour]

Hi Steve; I've been looking into Windows 7 as well. Heres a very informative page out at ZDnet that will answer most questions.

Link; http://news.zdnet.com/2463-9595_22-286664.html

[DRH]

Originally Posted by SteveA

Has anyone looked into upgrading to Windows 7?

I have never been very happy with Vista, so I've been considering the upgrade.

I upgraded from Vista to Windows 7 last Thursday. The installation went flawlessly. During the first part of the process I got a message box saying that a few of my applications might have problems under Windows 7, but they were limited to "Dell Support" software, a user interface application for my computer's ATI graphics card (which provided access to features of my graphics card I don't need or use), and my Apple iTunes software.

Before proceeding with the upgrade, I uninstalled the "Dell Support Center" and ATI user interface software, but I did not uninstall my iTunes software. When the Windows 7 upgrade was complete, I ran the iTunes program and it runs fine. I can easily do without the Dell Support Center and the ATI user interface applications.

Since the upgrade, I have run all of my application programs and each of them runs fine. My computer boots and shuts down faster than it did running Vista, and all my application software seems to run faster as well. Following the upgrade I had no problem with any of my existing device drivers, and my HP printer and Epson scanner both function fine.

In my case the upgrade process took about 3 hours. After answering a few questions at the beginning of the process (e.g. did I want to "upgrade" my existing system or install a completely clean version of Windows 7, etc.), the process required no user intervention until near the end when I was asked to type in my Windows 7 license key.

All in all, I am quite impressed with Windows 7, especially with my system's increased speed.

[fpartri497]

witch version of windows 7 did you Install?? I* went to best buy the 24th. and refused to pay $320.00 for the pro version. So I havent done anything yet. I have been running Vistsa since Its intro, and I still HATE It.

[DRH]

Originally Posted by fpartri497

witch version of windows 7 did you Install?? I* went to best buy the 24th. and refused to pay $320.00 for the pro version. So I havent done anything yet. I have been running Vistsa since Its intro, and I still HATE It.

I bought the Windows 7 Home Premium upgrade version. It's widely available for $119.99. The Windows 7 Professional upgrade version is available at Staples for $199.99: http://www.staples.com/Windows-7-Pro...?cmArea=SEARCH

[BroadHopper]

When I ran the Windows 7 compatibility utility on my Compaq laptop (Presario F700) it says the machine is compatible with Windows 7 64 bit OS. My machine is a 32 bit machine!
The utility software says the NVIDIA graphic software is not compatible and there is no known upgrade. The HP web site listed laptops with NVIDIA graphic packages running Windows 7. I am really confuse?!?!?

[SteveA]

I'm most concerned about these two messages.





The Zone Alarm would be expensive to replace and the itunes would be a pain to re-install.

I think I'll wait a bit and see how it goes for a few pioneers before I wade in.

I may, however, have to change my signature. I don't think I'm up to that big of a scavenger hunt!

[DRH]

Originally Posted by SteveA

I'm most concerned about these two messages.

Attachment 3156

Attachment 3157

The Zone Alarm would be expensive to replace and the itunes would be a pain to re-install.

I think I'll wait a bit and see how it goes for a few pioneers before I wade in.

I may, however, have to change my signature. I don't think I'm up to that big of a scavenger hunt!

Steve - if you have a current subscription to ZoneAlarm Security Suite, you can download and install version 9.1.008 from their website ... it is compatible with Windows 7.

http://download.zonealarm.com/bin/fr...seHistory.html

Also, the current version of iTunes is 9.0.1, which runs fine on my system under Windows 7.

http://www.apple.com/itunes/download/

[magicrobotmonkey]

Ubuntu 9.10 "Karmic Koala" is coming out soon and it's free! I know I'll be upgrading on release day, and I don't even need a disc to do it!

edit: forgot the link! http://www.ubuntu.com/

[Chickie]

I heard recently that Google is coming out with an operating system the first of the year (February, I believe). Is this true?

[BroadHopper]

Originally Posted by Chickie

I heard recently that Google is coming out with an operating system the first of the year (February, I believe). Is this true?

There is a Google web browser out that replaces Internet Explorer. Never tried it.
http://www.google.com/chrome

Google is on an operating system. If it's not out already.
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2009/...chrome-os.html

There is a mobile OS called Android. I think it is coming out in Nov.
http://code.google.com/android/

[webmaster]

1. Windows 7 is indeed very stable and user friendly. I've been running the free trial for a few months and I'm impressed.

2. If you want to try the Enterprise version free for 90 days click here.

3. Amazon.com is selling a 3 pack of the Home version for $149. Click here.

4. I just received a free full copy of Windows 7 Ultimate. This paragraph on the packaging jumped out at me:

If you are unpgrading from Windows XP, you will need to back up your files and settings, perform a clean install and then re-install your existing files, settings and programs.

This is not good. I'm not sure yet if that applies to all versions but I'm very surprised there is no upgrade path for the Ultimate version I received.

[magicrobotmonkey]

As I understand it, to get from XP to 7, you will need to move anything you want to keep off your computer and do a clean install, there is no upgrade path from XP to 7. From vista to 7, you are *supposed to* be able to upgrade, but given the shortcomings of vista, I'd be backing up data before attempting that anyways.

Google's mobile os android has been out for a long time now, it was only on tmobile to start. It is coming to verzon very soon, within the next month, on a motorola phone that's being called the "Droid"

Googles desktop os is a long ways off, and no one knows that sorts of devices they plan on introducing it on.

[fpartri497]

well today I Installed windows 7 proffesional upgrade with no Issues. It basically Installed itself and very quickly. This platform runs very fast compared to vista witch i hated from day one. I hr. Installation. done Im allready happy with It

[Kamper]

I read an article about it the other day. Supposedly, it's mostly Vista after some extensive therapy. It requires less RAM to operate so it should be faster. There was more but I'm tech-tarded so that's what grabbed me.

I'm not going to up-grade from Vista Home Premium. I'll get whatever's current when I buy my next "surf-board."

[WinnDixie]

Originally Posted by Kamper

I read an article about it the other day. Supposedly, it's mostly Vista after some extensive therapy. It requires less RAM to operate so it should be faster. There was more but I'm tech-tarded so that's what grabbed me.

I'm not going to up-grade from Vista Home Premium. I'll get whatever's current when I buy my next "surf-board."

I am so "tech-tarded" I didn't even read this thread until today, but I'm glad I finally did! Thanks for all the info (at least all that I could understand). I guess Kamper's philosophy is the only life preserver I dare to grab. I'm a huge pretender in the computer world, faking all the way...but if my i-Pod program gets messed with, my heart would break! I'll wait! One thing I have learned: you end up buying a new "surf board" sooner than you might think!

[trfour]

November 5th, 2009. http://blogs.zdnet.com/security/?p=4...g=wrapper;col1

Just a reminder to stay up to date as security issues are discovered every day! ZDnet.com and Cnet.com are great at helping us all out.

[trfour]

Originally Posted by fpartri497

well today I Installed windows 7 proffesional upgrade with no Issues. It basically Installed itself and very quickly. This platform runs very fast compared to vista witch i hated from day one. I hr. Installation. done Im allready happy with It

I got caught between a rock and a hard place some months back when my old computer died. I knew I didn't want to buy a new computer with vista, as I had read all about the discomfort of others with, so I looked online and found a nice inspiron 531 Dell direct buy New, with XP for $249.00 . CPU only, as I had a good monitor. Looking at Windows 7, I'm in no particular hurry to upgrade. Although you need to keep XP updated and firewalled, and that I've had very good luck with, I'm going to let others
work out the kinks with W-7.

Side note; Hey, FLL is roll'in in the $$$$$$$ that he has pocketed over and since the many years he's been running Web-TV! He told me that he only had to buy four sets of seatbelts for it over the last 15 years!!

[VtSteve]

Originally Posted by webmaster

1. Windows 7 is indeed very stable and user friendly. I've been running the free trial for a few months and I'm impressed.

2. If you want to try the Enterprise version free for 90 days click here.

3. Amazon.com is selling a 3 pack of the Home version for $149. Click here.

4. I just received a free full copy of Windows 7 Ultimate. This paragraph on the packaging jumped out at me:



This is not good. I'm not sure yet if that applies to all versions but I'm very surprised there is no upgrade path for the Ultimate version I received.

I'm not sure how good this is, but here is the MS step by step to upgrading from XP.

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/l..._UpgradeFromXP

[hazelnut]

Originally Posted by webmaster

1. Windows 7 is indeed very stable and user friendly. I've been running the free trial for a few months and I'm impressed.

2. If you want to try the Enterprise version free for 90 days click here.

3. Amazon.com is selling a 3 pack of the Home version for $149. Click here.

4. I just received a free full copy of Windows 7 Ultimate. This paragraph on the packaging jumped out at me:



This is not good. I'm not sure yet if that applies to all versions but I'm very surprised there is no upgrade path for the Ultimate version I received.

As a "Mac Guy" the new commercials really strike me as pretty funny. Seeing all those "PC Users" with boxes like they are moving. I really don't want to turn this into a Mac v PC debate as both do well at "what they do" but man oh man has Microsoft had some major blunders lately. They're practically gift wrapping customers to Apple. The latest blunder that comes to mind is the whole "Windows 7" party packs where people were supposed to host little kick off parties across the country??? Who the heck is Microsoft employing in their marketing department? Let's not even get started on the whole Bill Gates, Jerry Seinfeld campaign.

I am excited to try out Windows 7 though. As I said I am a "Mac Guy" but I am also a Technoholic and I love anything new. I'm curious to give "7" a test drive.

-H

[VtSteve]

Same here H. I run a Windows system framework at the office, but have gradually phased out many of them. I use my Macbook exclusively now, and have one accounting application using XP when I attach it to the network. I've used W7, and it doesn't suck nearly as much as Vista. A few of the parts they copied from OSX now function smoothly, as opposed to not at all

While I do appreciate little no problems, I still view computers as a tool for me to use, not work on. In that respect, I have little use for Windows anymore. W7 is basically Vista SP3 or 4, depending on how you look at it. I just wonder how much real growth there is in copying the best you can.

For people that have limited needs, you can get a decent notebook for $500 or so, but many of the desktops are still a little stripped down. One of the biggest benefits of running 64-bit Windows is that 32-bit Windows cannot address more than 4 GB of memory. (technically, 3.5 GB.) Unfortunately, the Vista 32 path to W7 64 bit isn't as seamless as it should be.

[fpartri497]

this morning I had a black screen and a white curser arrow and that was iT. No motion what so ever. could not even shut off the computer using the power button. I had to unplug the machine to get It to shut off. on restart It wouldnt boot up past the windows screen I had to resort to the emergency start up disc that I had made on Installation.I have NO Idea what made It go into meltdown.


every day last week, I kept getting a message that another computer was trying to hack into mine. but was blocked by my kas perskey anti virus. The machine seems to be operating O.K. now


Whats Next?

[hazelnut]

Originally Posted by fpartri497

this morning I had a black screen and a white curser arrow and that was iT. No motion what so ever. could not even shut off the computer using the power button. I had to unplug the machine to get It to shut off. on restart It wouldnt boot up past the windows screen I had to resort to the emergency start up disc that I had made on Installation.I have NO Idea what made It go into meltdown.


every day last week, I kept getting a message that another computer was trying to hack into mine. but was blocked by my kas perskey anti virus. The machine seems to be operating O.K. now


Whats Next?

Get a Mac.

Sorry I just had to. Not helpful I understand.

Unfortunately it sounds like a complete reinstall is needed. We're talkin wipe out the whole hard drive and start from scratch install. Make sure you get all your Anti-Virus protections up to date before you do anything. McAfee has a nice set up. Comcast offers it for free, for subscribers.

[trfour]

From CNET; http://www.cnet.com/windows-7/ and there are updates most every day that will help answer questions, between ZDnet and Cnet.


fpartri497, sorry to hear about your scare! hazelnut may be right, Vista was critically vulnerable to malware up until this months patch Tuesday on the 13th. Keep us informed on what you find and there is help out on Microsoft's website as well.

To everyone, no matter what OS you are running! Keep It Up To Date and patched!

[SIKSUKR]

In a related problem,I have not been able to send mail from Windows Mail on my Vista os. It has run flawless for the first 4 months since being purchased. Now I can only recieve and have not changed any settings. I have tried a few fixes from online trouble shooting blogs.I keep getting this message.

An unknown error has occurred. Subject 'Re: ', Account: '####### Server: 'mail.myfairpoint.net', Protocol: SMTP, Server Response: '550 5.7.1 nA3FZn1T003625 This message does not comply with required standards.', Port: 25, Secure(SSL): No, Server Error: 550, Error Number: 0x800CCC69

Any ideas?

[fpartri497]

siksukr:

Thats what happened to me with Vista that I had been running since Day one. All of a sudden, my E-mail wouldnt work at all with four different programs That I had. After a month, of trying to get It to work with no success windows 7 came out so I installed that. For the first week Win. 7 ran flawlessly. then went to black out. I still dont know why. Been running for 2-3 days no with no problems so far

[brk-lnt]

Originally Posted by SIKSUKR

In a related problem, I have not been able to send mail from Windows Mail on my Vista os. It has run flawless for the first 4 months since being purchased. Now I can only recieve and have not changed any settings. I have tried a few fixes from online trouble shooting blogs. I keep getting this message.

An unknown error has occurred. Subject 'Re: ', Account: '####### Server: 'mail.myfairpoint.net', Protocol: SMTP, Server Response: '550 5.7.1 nA3FZn1T003625 This message does not comply with required standards.', Port: 25, Secure(SSL): No, Server Error: 550, Error Number: 0x800CCC69

Any ideas?

That message is the Fairpoint mail server rejecting your message. Not sure why that would suddenly start happening, but I would try calling Fairpoint first.

[RI Swamp Yankee]

Originally Posted by BroadHopper

... my Compaq laptop (Presario F700) it says the machine is compatible with Windows 7 64 bit OS. My machine is a 32 bit machine!...

Your Presario F700 probably has a AMD Athlon 64 X2 CPU which is 64 bit. The windows software you are running is the 32 bit version which will run on a 64 bit machine. .... Yes, it can be confusing.

[Lakes Region PCs]

Hey there guys,
I've been running the RC issue of Win7 since June, and it is Excellent! I've yet to NOT have been able to get an app running. 99% of the time they will run in "compatibility" mode, which is seemless. There are a couple things you should know that MS neglects to tell you, one is that it does not ship with an email client. So if you are used Outlook Express you'll need to download Win Live Mail, free product downloadable directly from MS. I actually have ended up liking it better than OE.

There really is just no comparison to Vista, it's completely overhauled. Speed wise it is VERY close to XP, even on older rigs running minimal processors and RAM. Boot times are comparable to XP and resource usage as well.

I've recently built a few new systems and have installed 7 on all of them.. Here are some pics and specs on the most recent, it's quite a powerhouse but by no means do you need anything close to this to run 7 smoothly..

http://www.lrpcs.com/latsetPC.htm

If anyone has any questions or needs any help regarding fresh installs or upgrades I'd be glad to help. Good luck to those that take the plunge, you'll be pleasantly surprised I'm sure!!!

Mike
mike@lrpcs.com
www.lrpcs.com

Originally Posted by SteveA

Has anyone looked into upgrading to Windows 7?

I have never been very happy with Vista, so I've been considering the upgrade.

did run this utility from Microsoft.

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/win...e-advisor.aspx

I was easy and fast to run, but the results showed that more than a dozen programs and software items would need to be "upgraded" or "replaced" to be compatible with Windows 7.

More info from this article:

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscente...y_and_how.html

[Pineedles]

Mike, that is one huge mother fan in that PC! Does the processor and PS run that hot to need one that big? I think you'll need to buy some carbon offsets to run that thing.

[Lakes Region PCs]

Hi Pineedles,
Yeah that is one HUGE fan, I hadn't used that particular case before and couldn't believe it when I saw it. You would NOT believe how quite that case is. That huge fan spins at quite a low rpm but is so big that it draws out a huge volume of air. The case came with 4 fans, I added another to the one fan in the front for more front flow, plus the power supply fan, and GTX 260 fan, and the 2 back case fans. It's sitting next to an older P4 system and you literally cannot even hear the new one next to the old. It's amazing how quite the new fans are.

I forgot to post about a very good friend of mine's blog (Anura Guruge):

http://nhlife.wordpress.com/

He posts to it almost daily and is doing a migration, slowly I might add, from his XP machine to this new machine you saw pics of. He is writing of his new experiences with Win7 and it is very interesting to follow. He's lived here in Alton for some years and was on lake over on Varney point for many years. Here is also a link to his home page, he's quite an interesting guy, and dare I say "genius" in many areas.
http://www.guruge.com/

BTW Pineedles are you running Win7 yet or still waiting to take the leap?

Mike
www.lrpcs.com

Originally Posted by Pineedles

Mike, that is one huge mother fan in that PC! Does the processor and PS run that hot to need one that big? I think you'll need to buy some carbon offsets to run that thing.

[hockeypuck]

Just buy a mac. Set it and forget it!