here is a little on its features, and the bait a runs out in may. So
they might do full release then.
Windows 7 Feature Focus
While you could always shell out $60 for a Windows book that teaches
you everything from how to use a mouse to the vagaries and history of
TCP/IP networking, I think there's a better way. You're already a
Windows user, so we can make certain assumptions about your needs and
wants. And when it comes to the next version of Windows, what you
want to know--what you need to know--is what's changed, what's
different. And that's why I'm starting this Feature Focus series: To
focus on the new features in Windows 7, Microsoft's next client
operating system.
It won't happen overnight. Indeed, with Windows 7 not even feature
complete as I write this, features that are there now in the public
M3 ("milestone 3") pre-beta could change and new features can and
will be added. So this series will evolve as Windows 7 evolves, and
it will grow over time until, I hope, it's good enough that you don't
need one of those pointlessly detailed introductory books. (But if
you do want to take it to the next level, fear not: I've already
begun prepping Windows 7 Secrets, the follow-up to my Windows Vista
Secrets books.)
Here are the new features I've identified in Windows 7 so far. If you
find a missing feature, or would prefer for me to cover certain
features first, please do let me know. I will begin writing up full
articles about each feature soon.
Accessibility improvements. Microsoft has revamped the accessibility
features in Windows 7 with improved speech recognition and a new
Magnifier utility with full-screen and lens-mode views.
Action Center. While previous versions of Windows included a feature
called Windows Security Center that monitored the various security
features of the system, Windows 7 takes this functionality to the
next level with Action Center. In addition to monitoring security,
Action Center also monitors the OS's maintenance features and
consolidates alerts from numerous Windows features into a single interface.
Aero Peek. This replacement for Show Desktop in Windows 7 lets you
"peek" behind all of the open windows on your desktop and easily view
and Windows Gadgets or files on your desktop. You can also peek into
the contents of specific open windows.
Aero Snaps. By dragging open windows in certain ways, you can "snap"
them to the edges of the screen, maximize, or minimize. This obviates
the need to click tiny onscreen elements, making these features more
accessible to users.
Backup and Restore. Windows Vista's stellar backup and restore
features have been streamlined and simplified in Windows 7. Like its
predecessor, Windows 7 supports both data backup and image-based
system backup, but now the UIs are more segregated.
Bitlocker To Go. The full-drive encryption feature that first debuted
in Windows Vista has been updated in Windows 7 to support removable
USB storage devices like flash memory drives and portable hard drives.
Blu-Ray support. Windows 7 natively supports Blu-Ray optical discs
and enables you to write to Blu-Ray recordable media.
Calculator. The Windows Calculator utility inexplicably receives a
major upgrade in Windows 7 with calculation history, unit conversion,
calculation templates, data calculations, and other new features.
Credential Manager. The new and improved Windows 7 Credential Manager
lets you save credentials, like user names and passwords, so that you
can more easily logon on to Web sites, networked computers, and other
resources automatically. Credentials are saved in the Windows Vault
and can be backed up and restored to encrypted Managed Information
Card (MIC) files. (Credential Manager uses Windows CardSpace technology.)
Device Stage. This Longhorn-style user experience will be made
available for multi-function devices such as smart phones,
multifunction printers, portable media players, and the like. Through
this UI, you'll be able to access the features that are unique to
each device. Each Device Stage page can be extensively customized by
the device maker.
Devices and Printers. This activity center provides a central
location for interacting with any hardware devices--digital cameras,
mice, displays, keyboards, and the like--that may be attached to your PC.
DirectAccess. This feature is aimed at business users who need to
securely access corporate network resources while away from the
office. Essentially a simple replacement for VPN connections,
DirectAccess requires Windows Server 2008 R2 on the server-side.
DirectX 11. Windows 7 includes the latest version of the DirectX
multimedia libraries.
Display improvements. Windows 7 includes numerous improvements
related to computer displays, including integrated display color
calibration, improved high DPI support, ClearType, and improved
support for external displays. A new Windows Key + P keyboard
shortcut helps you easily switch between connected displays.
Getting Started. This replacement for Windows Vista's Welcome Center
no longer appears the first time you boot into the Windows desktop,
but it still provides a central location for discovering new
features, personalizing the system, transferring data from your
previous Windows PC, and discovering and launching other common tasks.
HomeGroup. Microsoft has consolidated the most common network-based
sharing tasks into a single simple interface called HomeGroup.
Computers in a HomeGroup can easily share documents, digital media
files, and printers over a home network.
Internet Explorer. Windows 7 ships with the latest version of
Microsoft's Web browser, Internet Explorer 8.
Libraries. In Windows 7, Microsoft has realized a long-term goal to
replace the static special shell folders from previous Windows
versions and replace them with virtualized shell locations that
aggregate content from a variety of physical locations. Libraries are
implemented as virtual folders and the views they present are the
results of search queries. Libraries are also the basis for HomeGroup
file and digital media content sharing.
Location-Aware Printing. Windows 7 utilizes different default
printers for each of the network locations you've configured on the
system so you won't mistakenly print a child's school project to the
work printer. When you're at work, you'll print to the work printer,
and when you're at home, you'll print to the home printer.
MinWin. The componentized core of Windows 7, which includes both the
traditional operating system kernel as well as the minimum necessary
surrounding support technologies to create a bootable (and, for
Microsoft, testable) system. Note that, in Windows 7, MinWin isn't a
feature per se but is rather the foundation upon which the rest of
the OS is built.
Paint. The Paint utility that's been in Windows from the very first
version receives its first significant upgrade in decades, and now
sports the new Scenic Ribbon toolbar.
Parental Controls. The parental control functionality that debuted in
Windows Vista is updated in Windows 7 to support multiple games
rating systems and parental control providers.
Power Config. Windows 7 includes a new Power Config utility that
provides reports identifying problems, settings, applications, and
other things that may be reducing the power efficiency of your PC.
Problem Steps Recorder. Windows 7 includes a new utility called the
Problem Steps Recorder that captures screen shots of the steps a user
is taking so that help desk personnel can provide a fix without
physically having to visit the desktop.
ReadyBoost. ReadyBoost first appeared in Windows Vista, providing
users with a way to cheaply and easily improve the performance of
their PCs by utilizing a USB memory key as a memory cache. In Windows
7, ReadyBoost is improved in numerous way: It supports multiple
memory devices, can work with USB memory keys, Secure Digital (SD)
memory cards, and other internal flash devices, and supports over 4
GB of storage.
Scenic Ribbon. Microsoft has evolved the Ribbon toolbar from Office
2007 and made it part of the operating system in Windows 7. This new
version of the Ribbon, called the scenic Ribbon, is used by two
Windows 7 applications, Paint and WordPad, and can be used by third
party applications going forward as well.
Sensor support. Windows 7 includes support for hardware-based
sensors, including GPS-based location sensors.
Start Menu (Enhanced). The Windows 7 Start Menu is an enhanced
version of the Start Menu that debuted in Windows Vista.
Startup Repair. While this useful tool did debut with Windows Vista,
it wasn't installed on PCs by default. In Windows 7, it is installed
into the OS partition automatically and appears automatically when
the system can't boot properly, fixing any problems and returning the
system to its normal booting state.
Sticky Notes. The Sticky Notes utility loses the bizarre Windows
XP-style interface from previous Windows versions and supports ink
and text input.
Styles. In Windows 7, Microsoft combines various system
preferences--including the desktop background, the Aero glass window
color, the system sounds, and the screen saver--into styles you can
customize, save, and share with others.
System Restore. The Windows 7 version of System Restore works as
before, providing a way to non-destructively return a PC to a
previous point in time, but is more reliable, predictable, and
effective than its predecessors.
Tablet PC. After making Tablet PC functionality available more
broadly in Windows Vista, Microsoft is improving this technology in
Windows 7 with better handwriting recognition that has improved
accuracy, speed, and support for math expressions, personalized
custom dictionaries, and 13 new languages.
User Account Control. While much reviled by certain users, the User
Account Control (UAC) feature that debuted in Windows Vista played a
huge role in making that system the most secure Windows version yet.
In Windows 7, UAC is extensively updated to be less annoying, and the
overall system has been fine-tuned to minimize the number of UAC
prompts that interrupt users.
View Available Networks. Windows 7 includes a new Jump List-based
utility for finding and connecting to Wi-Fi, mobile broadband,
dial-up, and VPN connections. Unlike the similar UI in Windows Vista,
this utility, called View Available Networks, does not require you to
navigate through a series of dialogs and windows.
Virtual Hard Disk support. Windows 7 allows you to mount a Virtual
Hard Disk (VHD) as a drive in Explorer so that you can navigate its
contents like a physical hard disk. It also supports the ability to
boot from VHD images.
VPN Reconnect. Windows 7 users who still need to make traditional VPN
connections will benefit from a new VPN Reconnect feature that
automatically reestablishes a VPN connection when you temporarily
lose Internet connectivity.
Windows Anytime Upgrade. This utility debuted in Windows Vista but
was found to be too confusing for most users, so the electronic
upgrade capability was removed. In Windows 7, Windows Anytime Upgrade
returns to electronic upgrading and Microsoft promises you'll be able
to upgrade from one version of Windows 7 to another in about 10 minutes now.
Windows Defender. The malware and spyware protection utility from
Windows Vista continues in Windows
7 with a few changes: It's been integrated into the new Action Center
and its centralized notification system. But Defender also drops the
useful Software Explorer feature, so users will have to look
elsewhere for a way to prevent unwanted applications from running a startup.
Windows Easy Transfer. The Windows Easy Transfer utility that debuted
in Windows Vista has been substantially updated with a new user
interface and new capabilities. As before, Easy Transfer helps you
transfer files, folders, and program and system settings from your
previous Windows install to your new one. This time around, however,
the process is simpler and more streamlined.
Windows Explorer. Microsoft has significantly updated Windows
Explorer yet again in Windows 7, this time with a new toolbar, a
resizable search box, and a new navigational pane.
Windows Gadgets. The Windows Sidebar disappears in Windows 7, but the
Gadgets continue on and are integrated with the desktop.
Windows Live. Windows 7 integrates with a growing collection of
Windows Live services, including Windows Live Photos, Windows Live
Profile, Windows Live People, Windows Live Spaces, Windows Live Home,
Windows Live SkyDrive, Windows Live Groups, Windows Live Calendar,
Windows Live Events, Windows Live Hotmail, and more.
Windows Live Essentials. Available as an optional download, Windows
Live Essentials is an application suite that includes a number of new
versions of classic Windows applications, including Windows Live Mail
(email and calendar), Windows Live Photo Gallery (photos), Windows
Live Messenger (instant messaging), Windows Live Movie Maker (video
editing), Windows Live Family Safety (enhanced parental controls), and more.
Windows Media Center. Microsoft's ten-foot UI for digital media
content is improved with a slightly enhanced user interface,
multi-touch support, HomeGroup integration, and various global
broadcast TV standards.
Windows Media Player. Microsoft's media player received a major
makeover in Windows 7 with several new features, including enhanced
DVD playback, a new lightweight playback mode, dramatically improved
format compatibility (including AAC and H.264), Windows Taskbar Jump
List customization, PC-to-PC and media streaming, and a new Play To feature.
Windows PowerShell. Windows 7 ships with the Windows PowerShell 2.0
scripting environment and the Windows PowerShell Integrated Scripting
Environment (ISE).
Windows Search. Windows 7 comes with the latest version of Windows
Search, and unlike the version that first shipped with Windows Vista,
you can now obtain instant search results from network-based file
shares as well as local hard drives. Microsoft has also improved the
performance of local searches, sorting, and grouping.
Windows Taskbar (Enhanced). The Windows Taskbar has been dramatically
enhanced in Windows 7 to minimize clutter. New Taskbar features like
Jump Lists, fly-over and full-screen icon previews, and more.
Windows Touch. Windows 7 builds on the Tablet PC and touch
capabilities from previous Windows versions and adds pervasive
support for multi-touch. All of the major UI components, including
the Start Menu, Windows Taskbar, and Explorer, are touch-friendly in Windows 7.
Windows Troubleshooting. This new Windows 7 feature diagnoses and
resolves common operating system and hardware issues. It works
automatically, or you can visit the Troubleshooting control panel to
find problems to troubleshoot. Windows Troubleshooting integrates
with Action Center so you'll be notified when relevant new
troubleshooters from Microsoft and third parties are made available.
Windows Update. Microsoft's utility for downloading and installing
system updates has been enhanced in Windows 7 to take advantage of
changes in the security model and to better expose optional and
featured updates.
Wireless Device Network. Finally, Windows gains a way to use your
wireless-equipped laptop as a wireless access point for other PCs
when you're connected to a wired network.
WordPad. The simple word processor continues into Windows 7 with the
new Scenic Ribbon UI and several editing improvements.
XPS Viewer. While Windows Vista users are forced to use Internet
Explorer to view XML Paper Specification (XPS) documents--essentially
Microsoft's PDF knock-off--Windows 7 gains a dedicated XPS Viewer application.
--Paul Thurrott
November 12, 2008
on windows super site
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