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Love / Hate for Windows 7

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HrtOfSword:
I am using Windows 7 Professional Edition now and I used to use Windows XP Home Edition, so my comparisons are between these two versions.

Love for Win7 over WinXP

1. Lots of Zazz packed with Windows 7 as things look so much better compared to Windows XP. No more overuse of that not-so-appealing Blue border for Windows-based applications. Zazz-filled and Cool-looking icons are also included!

2. The Icons appearing on the "Right of the Taskbar" have been better organised so that only the essential icons appear. The not-so-essential icons are neatly tucked away but can still be easily accessed with the SMALL "Up Arrow" button on the "Right of the Taskbar", just right beside the rest of the important icons. This means no more super long and stretched area taken up by the "Right of the Taskbar". (I do not know the correct term for calling that part of the taskbar, eg Quick Launch Bar, Start Menu, etc, hence the quotation marks.)

3. My Libraries (available on Win7) gives you the ability to view files from both your Personal (linked to your username) Documents, Music, Pictures, Videos folders and those folders that are Public from the same Library directory location. In simple terms, this means you are able to share those files with other users on your computer more easily. It's similar to what has been implemented for the "Program Files" folder(s) (Public and Personal).

But in advanced terms, this gives you the capabilities to categorize files by folders and still be able to view them ALL at the same time in the same Library window. It has been something that I've been dreaming of and hoping would be created. My only complaint is that Libraries can only be created within the My Libraries tab that is found on the left-side panel in every single Folder window. I wished that a Library can be created within a Folder, just like a normal Folder, such that you get a Hierachy of Library->Folder->File available for each Library or Folder.

4.  Sticky Notes FTW!! Now I can keep track of what I need to do easily!! The best thing is  Sticky Notes appears prominently (unlike Notepad) when I need to be reminded and can be minimised quickly when I don't need them, doesn't look cluttered, makes it easy to access all my reminders with one click, and it looks Zazzy.

5. Default View of files in all Folders has been changed to "Details" in Win7 from "Tiles" in WinXP. You can also view the icons of files in Super Large icons if you are setting the settings for the elderly, who often have poorer eyesight.

6. The option to change the default program for a particular type of file extension has been made easily available and accessible (in fact it's in the Start Menu) in Win7. You can also change the default programs with ease as the Default Programs Control Panel automatically searches for Programs, which have been selected as the default program for any file type, and allows you to know which file types those Programs are in-charge of and to change them all within the same window. This is very different compared to in WinXP, when it was a tedious process as you had to go to the file for the file type you wanted and then navigate through many confusing panels before you could actually make changes to the default program.

7. You can now pin programs to the taskbar so that their representing icons appear on the taskbar, similar to what the Quick Launch Bar is. This also replaces the Quick Launch Bar, so if you select the option of wanting the program's icon to appear on your Quick Launch Bar during the program's installation, it no longer performs that action (since there's no more Quick Launch Bar).

8. Instead of the minimalistic list of options (Minimise, Restore, Maximise, Close Window) you get when you right click on the Icons for opened Applications/Programs/Tasks in WinXP, you now get additional AND more importantly useful options for programs that were included together with Win7, such as Windows Explorer (aka Normal Folders), Control Panel, Sticky Notes, Windows Explorer 8, Windows Media Player 12.

9. When selecting a program's Main Folder in the "All Programs"/"My Programs" menu in the "Start Menu", they now open up vertically right below the Folder you just clicked in Win7 and do not require your mouse to stay there for the list to remain displayed. The difference is that the list no longer opens left-right-center, filling up your entire screen, and you do not have to keep your Mouse there, which is good since you would not accidentally switch program Lists or select the wrong option just because you are not skillful with the Mouse.
You can also open up multiple programs' Main Folders or Sub Folders at the same time to display their respective lists in Win 7 since your Mouse does not have to stay there for the list to remain there.

The other thing is that all this is contained within the "Start Menu" and hence will not grow ridiculously oversized =)

10. New Folder Icons for All Folders. The Default Folder Icon is an "Opened Vertical-Rectangular Folder" in Win7 instead of a "Closed Horizontal-Rectangular Folder" in WinXP. And now your Contacts, Desktop, Downloads, etc get their own zazzy icons in Win7 instead of their original plain default icons in WinXP.

Microsoft has also been thoughtful enough to give the old WinXP My Music and My Pictures (though not for My Documents) folders a different icon compared to the new Win7 equivalents so that you can distinguish them. You will need to plug a HDD installed with WinXP to your HDD installed with Win7 to see this.

11. Folder Icons showing Thumbnailed Previews of Image/Video files within the Folder also look so much more zazzy as they now appear like pages of a book in Win7 instead of like pictures placed on a page of a photo album in WinXP.

12. The movement of My Music, Pictures, Videos into the User's "Main Overall" Folder instead of the User's/My Documents in Win7 is a simple but good move because now those Folders are no longer mixed together and jumbled up with my list of work document Folders.

13. Picture previews of Image and Video files now appear on the right-side of the Folder window and can be toggled on or off with just one click. This means you can save loading time if you are not a fan of picture previews of those media files.

14. More options (you have a whole freaking list accessible under More Options) for the "Sort by" option for sorting out files in your Folders in Win7 compared to in WinXP.

15. User Account Control in Win7 appearing whenever I am installing an application that will change the settings in the computer. Though not very useful for me, it is extremely useful for the unsaavy computer users who often find themselves getting tricked into installing virus, trojans and spyware.

16. A small Windows Shield icon etched onto the Icons of Programs found in "My Programs" on the "Start Menu" for programs that will alter the settings of my computer. Very useful, even for me.

17. Better control options for Volumes Control in Win7 compared to WinXP. You can now change the volumes for all programs that play sounds through one Volume Control panel in Win7 instead of having to change the main volume setting to suit one program, when the main volume setting affects other programs and tweaking it to suit one program may not suit another.

Hate for Win7 due to the new features
1. The tabs (for each of your applications/programs/tasks) have now shrunken into small square box-like tabs with icons representing the program in Win7 instead of the original rectangular tabs with the names (not icons) of the programs appearing to tell you what program it is in WinXP.
I don't exactly hate the icons BUT I hate the fact that even if you have five programs running and their tabs can fit onto your taskbar with no problems or lack of space, the tabs are still in their shruken Win7 form instead of the fuller rectangular WinXP form. I prefer to be able to click on applications/programs/tasks over a larger span of space and being able to see the name of the program, especially for Notepad and Web Browsers (Firefox, Internet Explorer), which actually include additional important and useful descriptions in the filename.

This is the one of the two major hates I have for Windows 7.

2. If you open say 2 or 3 Firefox browser windows, you get this layered effect appearing on the square tabs for apps/progs/tasks on the taskbar for Win7 instead of the original numbering on the rectangular tabs on the taskbar for WinXP. I prefer to know the exact number of Firefox windows I have instead of only knowing I have more than one.

3. (Continuing from point #7 mentioned above in the FIRST part) The ability to pin a program to the taskbar is a good feature BUT I hate the fact that this feature is replacing the Quick Launch Bar BUT the icons look so big (compared to Quick Launch Bar icons in WinXP) that I can't tell the difference between the Icon of a Program I pinned from the Icon of a Application/Program/Task I did not pin since there is nothing to distinguish them. This is unlike in WinXP, in which there was a vertical translucent vertical line to separate and distinguish them.

4. (Continuing from point #9 mentioned above in the FIRST part) Opening the list of options available from a program's Main Folder vertically may have been a good change, I hate that some programs' Main or Sub Folders (usually those towards the bottom of the list) are hidden if you open a program's Main or Sub Folder that has many options (referring to Accessories). The only way to view those that program lists that have been hidden is to use the scrollbar and scroll up or down.
I feel that Microsoft should have either made the Start Menu much taller or allowed a certain degree of horizontal expansion of the lists. Scrolling is just troublesome and annoying; one of the reasons why I prefer to read notes and documents spanning many pages on paper than on the computer monitor or the screens of electronic devices.

5. Some of the older programs, which were compatible with Windows XP, are incompatible with Windows 7.

6. No more Windows' Meadows (which was provided on WinXP) provided in Win7 for the background of my desktop =(

7. No more Shutting Down Menu in Win7 and hence no more colourful "Standby", "Restart" and "Turn Off" buttons that were once available in WinXP.

8. The maximising and minimising of a window looks less fluid now (though it could be attributed to the fact that I now have a much bigger monitor) even though I have much more RAM and a much better Graphics Card.

My Qualms about things in Windows 7 that Remained Unchanged
1. I want to be able to set a certain FIXED dimension for the windows of my programs and want to those dimensions to revert to the FIXED dimensions I've set, even after I changed them temporarily by Cascading, Stacking or Tiling (side-by-side) them.

2. (Continuing from point #3 mentioned above in the FIRST part) A more advanced feature that I hope can be created is that all Library & Folder details can be added by a user into a filename. For example, a file with a filename Notes__NotesToMysel f__MyFavouriteDesse rts.txt would be in the Library called Notes, under the Folder called NotesToMyself and the Appearance of the Pseudo-Filename would be MyFavouriteDesserts .txt (pseudo-filename because it is only the last portion of the filename instead of the true complete version).

Changes in Windows 7 that I'm Neutral to
1. Details of a File now appear on the bottom of the Folder window instead of the left-side panel of the Folder window (which is now taken up by a Shortcut to Favourites, Libraries, Computers (aka you Hard Drives), Network).

2. The Start Menu button has shrunken into a cool looking Windows icon. I dislike how it shrunk but I like the cool looking icon. The best of both worlds would be to remain rectangular with the "Start" word appearing beside the Windows Icon (like in WinXP) and having the cool looking 3D-like Windows Icon (like in Win7).

Love for Internet Explorer 8 (In Win7) over WinXP
1. Coloured tabs in IE8 FTW!! Tabs belonging to one group of tabs you've opened are now colour-coded and are of different colours compared to tabs belonging to another group of tabs.
To start a new group of tabs, simply create a new tab and type in a new address (without obtaining the new tab from the right-clicking on links in an existing tab and selecting "open in new tab").
You can also change the colour of a tab when you shift it into the midst of another group of tabs of different colour-code.

2. IE8 has (finally) copied Firefox's tab system by having newly-opened tabs appear towards the end (left) of the current list of tabs opened. The best thing is that it has gone another step further and intelligently integrated its original tab system of having newly-opened tabs appear right beisde the tab (in which you opened the link from) with the colour-coding of tabs. Now, new tabs belonging to the same group will literally be side by side with it's originating tab instead of always being kicked to the end like in Firefox.

Hate for Internet Explorer 8 (In Win7) due to the new features
1. When you right-click on the application/program/task's tab on the taskbar, you are supposed to see the windows belonging to that particular program right?
Wrong! You now get to see the tabs within the program itself, specifically referring to Internet Explorer 8. How dumb can this get?
The reason you opened new tabs in a Web Browser is to keep the list of webpages (in tabs) within the Web Browser itself instead of having the webpages in different Web Browser windows.
If I had wanted to access the Web Browser tab from the taskbar, I would have opened the link in a new window instead of a new tab wouldn't I? Where did common sense go when Microsoft created that feature and integrated it in Windows 7 and Internet Explorer 8?

Love for Windows Media Player 12 (In Win7) over WinXP
1. Windows Media Player 12 supports the codecs you've installed using the Combined Community Codec Pack, unlike the older versions which does not integrated at all with the CCCP.

2. The screen you see after your media file has finished playing just looks good and full of zazz.

3. You only need to click on one simple button to go full screen.

Hate for Windows Media Player 12 (In Win7)
1. When in full screen, the two panels of options appear once you move your mouse (either delibrately or accidentally) and take 3 seconds to disappear, unlike in Media Player Classic (included with CCCP), in which the one panel of options only appears if you move your mouse to the bottom of the screen and disappears almost immediately after your mouse moves out of that area around the bottom of the screen.

End Remarks:
This is not a comprehensive list of things I love or hate about Windows 7 since I've only owned and used it only for a couple of days and have yet to explore (MANY possibly still unused ) other features.
Please let me know if you know of any accessibility features that I have happened to miss out because I'd like to know the full extent of customizability and accessibility provided by Windows 7 Professional.

zherok:
As someone who also has a hard time saying things as brief as I would like, I have to say: 2600+ words in a single post? I've turned in English essays shorter than that.

You need to alter your approach. Rather than "I have something to say," consider, "I have something to discuss." With something this long it's obvious that you have something to say, but what you expect others to discuss with you is only briefly covered at the end. Put the focus on discussion, not "speaking aloud."

vuzedome:
This is the result of a user jumping from xp to 7, lots to say.

zherok:
I guess Vista spared me having to write a five page paper. I should be thankful. ;D

Lupin:
Another windows 7 thread...

You should learn how to search

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