Your views on Windows 7

Windows 7 in 2010?

shouldn't Microsoft get its house in order over the holes in vista first?

Im having flashbacks to the Windows ME debarcle.

Or is it Not the case that they are responsible for their own mistakes?

and given the expense of these systems, isn't it a little rich of Microsoft to force out yet another version of an operating system with an artificial roll out date?

Im sure some of us are still getting used to Vista over XP!

I would hazard a guess and say that an awful lot of home users don't even make use of all of XPs capabilities. What is the point of such users upgrading to yet another new operating system and having to relearn just  the parts which they use now with XP.

It is understandable that users who make the most of their operating system's capabilities would want to upgrade because they are keen enough to spend time relearning a new system. I don't think the majority of users are, yet they will be bombarded with adverts extolling the new system's improvements and how they really need to upgrade as soon as possible if only for the improved security ( and Microsoft's profits, which probably haven't done as well as expected with Vista ).

Colin B

Thanks for that Andy, I'll keep my eyes open for the microsoft droids coming to the door!

The problem is with Windows - the head honchos at Microsoft run with a seed of an idea before considering the outcomes of putting it into practice.

In the halycon days of windows the OS was actually seperate from the Graphic Interface we all know and love as windows.  In those early days people were encouraged to develop apps for the windows interface, Im sure many contributors to this board used works/office/clarisworks/lotus at one time or another.

But then we get to Win95 where DOS commands suddenly find themselves in the background of the Windows Program,  and a nice new browser to kick Mosaic into touch. Its lacking a few maintenance tools so they issue a plus pack (which also sorts out a few 'holes' alongside some applications (Pinball, Anyone?)) - IBM try their best to compete with O/S 2 but its Windows that comes out on top.

But then the problems start - M/S Programs work wonderfully but others suffer from an overenthusastic O/S to crash any non M/S App at Will - Microsoft calls the problems 'General Protection Faults' and Service Packs are Introduced to fix them

Two years go by and Microsoft plan to Introduce 'Windows 97' (which has a nice shiny front end and a new version of their internet browser) - The Interface is lovely and IE4 is right up front - the marketeers at Microsoft want the OS to ship but the programmers still say theres bugs in the programs - so it becomes 'Windows98' - but its still perforated - so 98 SP1 is introduced.

We're all installing SP1 on our Windows 98 systems when Bill & Co release a statement - We're tying in the next O/S into NT - which was a business operating system - home users around the world get ready for the big change only for Microsoft to pull back with Windows Millenium Edition - Plugging the Holes of 98 but creating new ones in the meantime - compatibility mode eases a few of the problems but theres still something wrong.  

So Bill reaches a decision - Home users have waited long enough - NT comes to the home in the shape of Windows XP - and we get the start of four flavours of XP ranging from Home Basic to Professional - but this is going to cost - in either an upgrade or purchase of a brand new pc. - and the cost is transferred to the user

And once again in a rush to get the OS out on time the program goes out with holes - Microsoft suddenly declare a new type of hardware - legacy and advise us all to contact our hardware suppliers for new drivers, who promptly put us all on the internet to get them

but looking in the background - something is missing - DOS is Dead - we're all using NT Based XP Now and Microsoft wants us to know about it.

The tools are nice in XP and themes have been replaced by 'Styles' and 'Skins' and a lot of new apps run rather well with the new system - but much like the memory hungry mouse in a cheese factory - the memory allocations eat up your system RAM - and put this together with the apps it only leads to one thing - a crash - or as Microsoft like to call it a GPF - General Protection Fault.

So Fast Foreward a service pack and system update or three and we get to Vista - the 'New' Operating system. with a lovely system agent which tells you you actually need updates - its graphically stunning and has some lovely effects - Microsoft are eager to tell you what you can do with it - new office suites games and apps are created and computer component shops are rubbing their hands in glee from the purchases of memory, graphics cards and all.

and then just as you sit in front of your nice new vista system - you're greeted with a message having just logged on to read your e-mail

'Windows update is updating your system.........'

ARRRGH! More blooming holes in the programming.

Im just wandering come 2010 if all these holes will be fixed :)

I do hope so.

Gosh, it must be a long time since I logged in here - I've not seen this new forum!

The mag's at home, so I can't quite remember what you said about Windows 7, but I seem to recall an image that suggested that they might arrange icons in circles on the screen ... rather like the screen layout of the OLPC that I have! Can anyone locate screenshots of Windows 7's circles?

My views:

I've recently got a tablet with Vista on, and having read some of the comments, I was a little wary. Indeed, one of the reasons that I selected the model I did was because Toshiba install Vista, but include XP in the box.

However, I've been very impressed. It's *much* faster than my previous tablet (the jump from 756 MB to 3GB of RAM could have something to do with that!). Yes, there are a few quirks, but in essence, I don't think that the changes are as great as they are between say, Office 2003 & Office 2007.

In anycase, considering the moves of OS I've made over the years (starting with ZX81), I don't think it's that different - though I take the point that many people have found their hardware doesn't work with it; which would be annoying!

Actually, it always amuses me that games updates are sold on the basis of improving this, that & the other features - people buy them & love the new interface.

Update Windows/Office  - and then people aren't so happy! Though I agree that learning a new interface for something of interest is way easier than because you have to / aren't that interested in it.