Windows 7 Upgrade Vs Fresh Install

Being the technical geek that I am, I've given Windows 7 the proverbial shakedown cruise to see what I was going to be up against at work when we start getting the new PC's.

I'll admit, I was not expecting much: my enthusiasm being shot down in flames by the Vista rollout had me very skeptical about Microsoft's direction and vision when it came to operating systems.

I performed both a clean install and an upgrade installation from Vista to see how the experience was in each case.

I'm not going to go into all the differences, enhancements, and tweaks you will find in the OS; there are plenty of sites on the web where you get that info. Instead, I am going to focus on the installation experience, and first "out of the box" experience.

THE CLEAN INSTALLATION

The clean installation of Windows 7 was undoubtedly the simplest install I've ever had with a Microsoft product, and it is clear that they have been watching Apple closely as far as how they streamline every aspect of their products. A fresh install of Windows 7 is just as easy and quick as a fresh install of OS X on a Mac, and was finished well within a half an hour.

Excellent!

THE UPGRADE INSTALLATION

The upgrade installation took much longer: about 3.5 hours.

I have had bad upgrade experiences in the past, and prefer a fresh install of an OS so it doesn't carry through the quirks of the prior OS. With that in mind, I these are the steps I followed to upgrade my Vista machine to Windows 7.

Ran the Windows Upgrade Advisor to see if there were any problems or conflicts.

As my upgrade PC was only about a year old, the only problem reported was that McAfee AntiVirus 8.5i was incompatible with Windows 7. That was not really a surprise to me --I had already been looking at different AntiVirus solutions-- so I uninstalled it.

Performed a general cleanup with CCleaner.

If you don't have this handy freeware utility on your computer, get it now! CCleaner (allegedly for "Crap Cleaner") is a small tool that does three things: deletes unused temporary files, cleans out all invalid registry entries, and allows you to manage the programs that startup in the background when Windows boots.

Running this type of cleanup prior to an upgrade is a good idea, as the new OS transfers all your settings and files from the old OS.

Needless crap will only make any upgrade more difficult.

At best it will make the upgrade take longer.

At worst, the installation might fail.

After I cleaned the files and registry, I looked through the programs that start up with Windows and found a few that I don't really need to have running (iTunes services, etc) and disabled them.

Re-booted and made sure everything was still working well.

Just a precaution to make sure I didn't turn off something I needed!

Run the Vista Disk Defragmenter

This step is likely not necessary, in all honesty. I've always done this in the past prior to doing an upgrade, so it's a habit for me.

However, I ~believe~ that Windows 7 handles upgrades differently: instead of just writing over the old OS with new system files, it actually copies the files, folders, and settings to a protected area, does a FRESH installation, and then ~imports~ your data back into the new OS.

(If I am wrong on this detail, please let me know!)

Re-boot, then ran the Windows 7 upgrade.

After answering a couple questions at the very beginning, Windows goes to work. Obviously, the more stuff on your computer, the longer this process will take. I've heard reports of anything from 1 hour to 8 hours for an upgrade.

If your computer isn't a fresh squeaky-clean install of Vista with nothing else one it, plan on setting the computer aside for a few hours.

THE WINDOWS 7 OUT-OF-THE-BOX EXPERIENCE

I am wholly impressed! If you are already used to Vista's interface, then there really is not much new visually in Windows 7. However, it feels like they've taken Vista, streamlined and stripped all the bloat and fat off of it, and what you have is a leaner, faster, and more intuitive interface.

There were a couple items that surprised me... The much touted "Windows Mail" that was part of Vista is gone. If you used Windows Mail, the upgrade will save all your mail and contacts and allow you to import it into Outlook.

Windows Movie Maker... gone.

Windows Photo Gallery... gone.

If you were running Windows Ultimate Extra and using Dreamscapes for an animated desktop... Kiss it goodbye.

Some of these apps were heavily advertised not even 2 years ago, as Microsoft was trying to complete with Apple's approach of including everything the average user needs right out of the box. Windows has long had a particular reputation: buying the PC was the easy part, and spending the next few days purchasing and installing all the stuff you need to ~use~ the PC was the hard part.

So why Microsoft has decided to backpedal on that marketing decision is an interesting question. However, at the end of the day if I am going to spend my hard-earned cash on an OS, I'd rather have a slim and sleek OS that needs some apps install (that ~I~ get to choose) than a bloated one that contains apps I probably don't need.

Fortunately, most of these excluded apps are available via Windows Live Essentials and can be installed after the upgrade.

Both the fresh install and the upgrade performed equally well. There were no quirks, sluggishness, or broken applications on the upgrade installation.

All in all... Thumbs up, Microsoft! This is an OS done right. The PC is ~finally~ nearly as fun and easy to use as a Mac!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3398218

Should You Stay on Windows 7 Sp1 or Upgrade to Windows 8

Some analysts have indicated that the introduction of Windows 8 only revealed a simple modification on the user interface comparing to Windows 7 Sp1 and Microsoft would have to offer more incentives if it aims to encourage users to upgrade their Windows OS. Even as a number of users are utilizing the PC for a good amount of their work, they do not see any reason for upgrading their Windows 7 Sp1 into the recently introduced Windows 8.

Microsoft seems to utilize the Windows 8 to introduce touch screen technology into their products. Although the company has indicated that the latest OS can be utilized in existing systems, some analysts have indicated that it would take more than just a facelift in order to encourage users to upgrade their Windows 7 Sp1 into Windows 8.

A good number of individual and commercial users may think twice in upgrading their current Windows 7 Sp1 unless Microsoft will reveal more features that will be useful for them. Since Windows 7 Sp1 is more functional than utilizing touch-based technology, users may need more than just an enhanced user interface in order for them to be convinced in upgrading their Windows 7 OS to Windows 8. Simple tasks such as copying and pasting is more efficient using the current system compared to the latest touch screen technology, which appears to be what Windows 8 is offering.

Windows 8

Last year, Microsoft officials indicated that more than 70 percent of commercial PCs are still utilizing Windows XP instead of Windows 7. This comes as a surprise for some analysts since Windows 7 Sp1 offers better stability and security compared to the previous version of the OS. With this in mind, it would not be easy to convince these commercial users to upgrade their systems to utilize the recently-introduced Windows 8 OS, which according to analysts is nothing more than just a modification in the user interface.

A good number of users are satisfied with their current OS, be it Windows XP or Windows 7, so it may take more than just what Microsoft has revealed to convince users to upgrade to the latest version of their operating system, Windows 8.

News Source: http://www.planetinsane.com/should-you-stay-on-windows-7-sp1-or-upgrade-to-windows-8/2617861/

XP Support - Where Can I Get Windows Support ?

Microsoft is one of the largest companies in the world that develops, manufactures and licenses very many products that are related to computing. It has been in this field for more than 35 years. One of the most common products of this company is windows XP.

This is a type of computer that is widely used at home, in institutions or business. Just like any other product or device, problems may occur while using it thus there is need to repair it so as to continue enjoying best services from it and to ensure that the product is repaired, correct tools must be used. XP support is a center that was established by this giant company to help its clients in solving problems related to Microsoft windows.

Due to advancement in technology, each company is striving to reach a large of number of people at the shortest time possible. Being an international renowned company, Microsoft has been able to achieve this due to establishment of online offices that aid in giving customers the necessary information that they deserve. Through the use of XP support, customers with problems related to Microsoft windows computers have been helped solve their problems. Anything to do with Microsoft software, programs, viruses, computers and so on are dealt with by this support center.

It is has been made even easier to contact this center in that there are you can ask on how to go about any problem online. You can be able to send an email, make online submission or call using a phone directly to this center. The emails and submissions are responded to immediately in less than 24 hours and when using their toll free numbers, you get instant respond.

It is good to often contact XP support center in order to know of any new developments in the windows computers. This is because new ideas are being created and implemented to cater for the needs of the current society that has become more innovative.

Source: http://goo.gl/PXqjQ

Are You Ready to Move Up to Windows 7 ?

Windows 7 (Win7) has been available for almost 6 months now, and we're seeing more and more instances of Win7 in our clients' networks. We thought it was timely to review some common questions and misconceptions about Win7.

You do not need to upgrade all your PCs to Win7 simultaneously, and, yes, Win7 can connect to Windows 2003 servers just fine.
Most new PCs will come with Win7, so there is no need to upgrade. Almost every vendor of PCs, especially those aimed at consumers, have switched almost their entire lines to Win7 making it the operating system of choice.
Businesses will have to choose whether they will buy new PCs with Win7--and it probably comes down to applications. If you run primarily general applications, Win7 is a good choice now. There are changes in the user interface, but in our experience, most users have adapted very quickly. If you have special applications, check that your applications work. If it runs on Vista, it will most likely run fine on Win7 but it's worth a check.
The typical computer user probably should not upgrade an existing machine. Yes, we're biased, but we would recommend leaving a Vista-to-Win7 upgrade to an experienced IT person. Currently there is no official direct upgrade path from Windows XP to Win7. A clean install of Win7 is the way to go on newer machines currently running Windows XP that can support Win7.
The other thing to keep in mind is that a typical new Windows system costs a lot less now than it did when Windows Vista came out nearly three years ago. You can get a reasonable mid-to-high-end desktop with Win7 for under $1,000 and a decent mid-range system for $500. A reasonable consumer notebook can sell for $800 or less. Instead of spending $200 for a Windows upgrade, save the money until you can afford a new machine on which it's preinstalled.
If you're thinking of going with Win7, be sure to order carefully. One client inadvertently ordered new machines with the Windows XP downgrade option (as a fallback) and ended up with 5 new machines running Windows XP. We had to upgrade them to Win7 for him, and now their network is humming along on Win7 machines.

Source: http://goo.gl/Fh79C

Should I Upgrade to Windows 7 ?

The first thing you need to think about is "Do I need to" "or "why do I need to" upgrade to Windows 7. Is there an advantage for me to do so considering my current usage profile?

I recently read a review comparing Windows XP with Windows 7 using a reasonably configured PC. Windows XP came ahead on some counts, Windows 7 on others (but not by a lot in either case) except in the "multimedia" area where windows 7 came further ahead. So I guess if you are heavy into multimedia, maybe. The differences except for this again posed the question "Should I upgrade to Windows 7" as the gain looks minimal.

This leaves functionality. "Is there any extra functionality in Windows 7 that I may gain advantage of" First one should consider that many new features in Windows 7 (like ISO image burning) you probably already use other programs. Paint for example has been jazzed up in Windows 7, but you probably already use much better graphics programs.

Look at it this way, in my opinion most Windows upgrades are mainly for show and to add some extra functionality to keep driving revenue into Microsoft. Microsoft gets steady revenue from new PCs already installed with their operating system. This is independent on which version of windows is installed. They keep pushing up their revenue by creating new Windows versions. They get this extra revenue by you and I upgrading. If they did not do this then this would be a revenue stream lost. I think this is where "Vista" fell down they tried to rush it out to get this revenue stream going and it fell in a heap, thus Windows 7.

Now Windows 7 didn't fall in a heap but it is considered "bloatware" That is, it has so much so called functionality and frivolity that most users would only look and use a fraction of its capability. Most operating systems are like this even Windows XP. Compare it to when VCR's came out. Most people just wanted to push a button to watch a video or push one or two to record, yet they were presented with so many options to do this that most people sort of gave up. The same thing with remote keypads. There are so many buttons that most people did not know what they did.

Getting back to "should I upgrade to Windows 7". Are you happy with Windows XP? Does it do everything you want? Well stay with it as you are not going to get any extra benefit from upgrading. Later on you may need to, as support for Windows XP will vanish (and it will eventually) and even then you may not want to upgrade.

I have been in the computer systems business over 35 years and one thing I have found is that most problems occur when new updates of existing operating systems, (patches, fixes etc) are installed. When these stop being installed the operating system became very stable. I have found this with many "Mainframe" systems I used to look after when existing system support updates were discontinued. I would see Windows XP the same. As soon as support is discontinued many new problems disappeared. Unfortunately you may eventually have to upgrade to windows 7, as programmers will start developing programs that will only work on the Windows 7 operating system.

I hope this helps you to make a decision on the question "should I upgrade to Windows 7". Basically if you have no need to then all you are doing is pushing money out your pocket at this time. Better to wait until Windows 7 matures if you feel you want to keep up with the game, or if you buy a new computer.


Source: http://goo.gl/tJipm

Should I Upgrade to Windows 7?

The first thing you need to think about is "Do I need to" "or "why do I need to" upgrade to Windows 7. Is there an advantage for me to do so considering my current usage profile?

I recently read a review comparing Windows XP with Windows 7 using a reasonably configured PC. Windows XP came ahead on some counts, Windows 7 on others (but not by a lot in either case) except in the "multimedia" area where windows 7 came further ahead. So I guess if you are heavy into multimedia, maybe. The differences except for this again posed the question "Should I upgrade to Windows 7" as the gain looks minimal.

This leaves functionality. "Is there any extra functionality in Windows 7 that I may gain advantage of" First one should consider that many new features in Windows 7 (like ISO image burning) you probably already use other programs. Paint for example has been jazzed up in Windows 7, but you probably already use much better graphics programs.

Look at it this way, in my opinion most Windows upgrades are mainly for show and to add some extra functionality to keep driving revenue into Microsoft. Microsoft gets steady revenue from new PCs already installed with their operating system. This is independent on which version of windows is installed. They keep pushing up their revenue by creating new Windows versions. They get this extra revenue by you and I upgrading. If they did not do this then this would be a revenue stream lost. I think this is where "Vista" fell down they tried to rush it out to get this revenue stream going and it fell in a heap, thus Windows 7.

Now Windows 7 didn't fall in a heap but it is considered "bloatware" That is, it has so much so called functionality and frivolity that most users would only look and use a fraction of its capability. Most operating systems are like this even Windows XP. Compare it to when VCR's came out. Most people just wanted to push a button to watch a video or push one or two to record, yet they were presented with so many options to do this that most people sort of gave up. The same thing with remote keypads. There are so many buttons that most people did not know what they did.

Getting back to "should I upgrade to Windows 7". Are you happy with Windows XP? Does it do everything you want? Well stay with it as you are not going to get any extra benefit from upgrading. Later on you may need to, as support for Windows XP will vanish (and it will eventually) and even then you may not want to upgrade.

I have been in the computer systems business over 35 years and one thing I have found is that most problems occur when new updates of existing operating systems, (patches, fixes etc) are installed. When these stop being installed the operating system became very stable. I have found this with many "Mainframe" systems I used to look after when existing system support updates were discontinued. I would see Windows XP the same. As soon as support is discontinued many new problems disappeared. Unfortunately you may eventually have to upgrade to windows 7, as programmers will start developing programs that will only work on the Windows 7 operating system.


Source: http://goo.gl/kIJcq

Speed up Windows 7 by these 3 tools

Windows 7 is the latest offering from Microsoft, but it's still prone to running slowly and with errors. This is a problem which even the most advanced computers cannot avoid, and is one which is actually very easy to fix if you have some software tools to boost the speed and reliability of your system. Here are the top 3...

#1 Antivirus, AntiSpyware & Anti-Adware - Anti-"malware" (Malicious-ware) programs are an essential part of any computer for several reasons, not least because of how they can protect your personal data. These tools are also highly effective at speeding up your PC, as the more infections it has, the slower it will run. Windows 7 is currently getting bombarded with 1,000's of new viruses and adware infections, making the need for antivirus, antispyware and anti-adware a necessity. You can get these tools from most major download sites.

#2 Junk File Cleaner - "Junk Files" are files which Windows cannot use or read. These come in two forms - files which you just download or create and are of no use... and files which are useful but are unreadable. As computers age, their buildup of junk files increases, slowing your computer down tremendously. Every computer has these files, and many unchecked PCs have gigabytes of data just blocking up your system. To remove these, you should go through your computer and delete any of the downloaded files that you no longer want by selecting them and pressing SHIFT + DELETE. You can alternatively get a junk file cleaner program, which will automatically remove all the junk files from your system.

#3 Registry Cleaner - Many people claim that these tools can do all-sorts to your PC. The fact is that registry cleaners can boost your PC's speed if it has a lot of errors inside it. These tools scan through the registry database and remove any damaged or corrupted settings that are causing problems. The registry is basically the storage facility for Windows, which keeps data including your saved passwords, latest emails and desktop wallpaper safe. Unfortunately, the registry is also prone to making your computer run much slower as your PC often saves many of the files in the wrong way. This causes them to become unreadable, which slows your PC's speed. To fix this, registry cleaners are designed to scan through the registry database and fix any of the damaged / corrupted settings that are causing a problem. This allows your system to become faster, but only if there are a considerable amount of errors on there.


Source : http://goo.gl/Rg8Xz