News on Windows 7 is going like a hot cake on the Internet now. Microsoft claims it’s build based on users suggestions and comments. I missed out the Beta released which they actually send out the installation disc. So I downloaded the current RC 32-bit version image file, size is around 2.3GB. It’s a Windows 7 Ultimate version. Product key will be issued from Microsoft website after the registration (Yea, you need to register yourself before the download). Burn the image file onto a DVD-R and you will have your own copy of installation disc.
As stated on the website, this is a RC release. So expect some troubleshooting. It’s for consumers to try out 1st hand before the final release, which should be available around end of this year.
Anyway, after some readings on reviews on the Internet of how people experience it with their old machines, as well as some notebook PC and netbook are actually come available with Windows 7 Beta pre-installed, I put it on my Asus EeePC 1000H, which I have had the memory ram upgraded to 2GB the 2nd day I bought it.
Since my EeePC comes with Windows XP Home, so upgrade installation is out of the question. Fresh installation is the only way, but it was a breeze anyway. Boot from the optical drive and just follow the on screen instruction. It takes about an hour to complete (didn’t actually time it). Once reboot into desktop, you get a fresh and clean look of Windows 7.
Picture shown above is my desktop in Windows 7. I have changed the wallpaper and have installed some programs to try out. I especially like how the taskbar look now, everything is icon-based. Items categorised more neatly than in Vista, menu looks excellent, date and time are shown together too, simply nice. Of course, to make it run more smoother under Atom, some visual effects such as animated controls and fade/slide menu will have to be compromised but have no worries it will affect your Windows 7 experience. Everything still looks good as it is.
Not sure if it’s because of the Ultimate version, compare to Vista Home Premium on my main PC, there are some extra settings to play with under Control Panel. Just in case something doesn’t work properly, the troubleshoot section is very easy to use too although it might not solve the problem (duh!!). It’s still a RC version…you’ve been warned. My Internet connection through office router was setup automatically and runs perfectly, but my Prolink wireless USB modem just doesn’t work although I’ve set it to XP SP2 compatible mode.
Just as most of the mobile users stated, battery/power management is one big improvement compare to the previous version. Users have stated that Vista has better power management than XP, and Windows 7 is more better than Vista. I’m not sure about Vista on EeePC but Windows 7 sure does it better than the Asus power management utility tool ran on XP before this. As of now after running for 3 hours, and countless times of PC restarting and programs launching/closing, I still have 45% of usage time. Previously, I’d be left with around 30-35% of usage time by now.
Overall, this is the best Windows ever. Just hope that it will be a “Woo~Waah” OS when it’s ready with no crash or BSOD...possible? Let’s keep our fingers crossed now.
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