Here is the continuation of the Windows 7 experience for me….
As I was saying, the system booted to tahe setup program and I noticed that it was completely like Vista and that scared me! Or may be I should say concerned me. What if this was the same as vista? What if all the optimization and improvements that I have heard so much about were pipe dreams of come kind? Having all that on my mind, I went thru the installation parameter settings and selected a clean install, and a final bang on the return key the whole process started.
The installation of Windows 7 was not so unlike the Vista. It was fast and the whole thing took less than 20 minutes, with one huge difference; After the installation there was only a couple of small updates, as oppose to over 1.5GB of updates for Vista. I am sure that the updates are on their ways as well speak, but for the time being very small amount had to be downloaded.
Well my so-called ‘concerns’ were unfounded. Windows 7 is what Vista was supposed to be. The UI is really clean and uncluttered and more importantly it is much faster than the Vista and wait time, on the part of the user, is very short or none existent. What all have to accept is this: Windows 7 is not a continuation of Win XP Pro. So some of those procedures that you are used to are gone and you have to be ready to do some learning. The learning curve is not too steep, but indeed it’s there and we all have to deal with it. Win 7 is the continuation of Vista – an Improved and optimized vista. So if you upgrade from Vista, things are nearly the same. But if you are updating from Windows XP, then you are dealing with a whole new ball of wax. Equally, I am sure, that XP users will master Widnows 7 in matter of days – as oppose to months.
One huge problem that I had with Vista was the boot time. The boot time took anywhere between 1-5 minutes. Don’t get me wrong; the machine was ready for the user after 30-60 seconds after the login. But you could see the hard drive light went on forever and ever while you used the machine at reduced speed. The shut down on Vista was no so different either and it took a long time.
The first time, after installation of the updates, that I booted the system, I could not believe my eyes and I had to reboot the machine twice more before I dared to believe it. Windows 7 was nothing like Vista – Fast to start up and faster to shutdown. I compared it startup and the shutdown with my iMac running Snow Leopard and Windows 7 was really at snapping at the heels of Snow Leopard. That was sweet and to my mind long over due. Microsoft has indeed optimized Windows 7. Is this is a service pack for Vista? I think not. In comparison to Snow Leopard relation to Leopard – Windows 7 is really an upgrade to Vista, much more than Snow leopard was to Leopard. I know – I know, I will get the hate mail for saying this, but you are hearing it from Macintosh user and it had to be said. Microsoft has done a great job of speeding up all Windows 7 operations and they have to be commended for it.
At this point, we have no idea how ‘safe’ or ‘ unsafe’ Windows 7 is and is going to be. But assuming that Windows 7 continues where Vista and XP left off, it would be great start for it. After nearly 8 years XP is solid and Vista has received many Security updates and plug-ups for large craters that was found in it. Lets hope that the trend continues and Windows 7 becomes more and more secure.
Compatibility was another issue that I was concerned about. True that Windows 7 has the core code of Vista, but it also contains major changes under the hood, and it these changes, in some cases, go all the way to hardware level. On top of that, I chose the 64b edition of Windows 7, which supposedly, could add to the incompatibility factor. I am happy to report that aside from Roxio 2009 none of the application that I use had any problems running under the Windows 7. I tried applications like Visual Studio 2008 Team, my primary development tool – Office 2007, every ones favorite tool – Adobe CS4, etc. and all worked well. As for Roxio, well they have an update that works with windows 7. You of course need to update to Roxio 2010 to get the whole thing working well under Windows 7. What was surprising was the fact that Apple’s Safari – iTunes worked very well under Windows 7. I got the 64b version of the iTunes and it’s working like a charm. I still haven’t been able to hunt down the 64-bit version of Safari. If you have any idea of its where about, please drop me a URL.
I have been using the Windows 7 64b for the past week and it’s running smooth – efficient and extremely fast. The 64b OS is running the 32b Applications very well, though I was told that the 32b Apps run slower in the 64b OS environment. All in All, a very pleasant surprise for me.
If you are using Windows XP and you are sick of it (like most people are), then Windows 7 is for you. If you are fed up with the Vistas speed and strangeness, then Windows 7 is for you. If you are a Mac user, then I suggest you look at Windows 7 as your secondary system. You can also look at Windows 7 as your alternative OS in virtualization more.
As I said in the beginning: It was a long time I was not excited about what Microsoft did. Windows 7 is changing that feeling for me and it was long overdue! Go MSFT…
Read the Part 3 of this report next week, when I had more time testing the Windows 7 Device Drivers….