It looks very similar to Windows vista as its using same kernel. But there are lots of enhancements and added features which makes Windows 7 look better and faster than vista.
So lets move on and look at some new features and options which makes Windows 7 unique and better than earlier versions of Windows.
Setup
Coming to the setup of Windows 7, is just same as Vista setup, same options, same wizard, same interface except the setup background and boot screen which is too awesome."Windows StartUp is displayed along with a glassy scrollbar in the middle of boot screen. The setup background has the same image which is also used as a desktop wallpaper in Windows 7.
It took almost 30 minutes for the Windows 7 installation. Nothing will be asked during installation, except the time zone, etc at the end of installation. So you can make a coffee after running the setup.
Windows Explorer
Windows Explorer has also been modified a bit. New commandbar (without icons as usual), new left-side pane containing Libraries, Favorites, etc, new Details Pane, a few new options in "View" menu like Content and at last re-sizable Searchbar.
Overall, new Explorer looks more better and simple.
Desktop Context Menu
Desktop context menu is similar to Vista but you get 3 new options:
* Share with
* Display Settings
* Gadgets
Share with is used for new Home Groups, Display Settings directly launches the Graphics card Properties tab and Gadgets launches the Sidebar Gadget list.
New Control Panel
Control Panel window has also been modified. The left sidebar takes very less space and resizes itself whenever any control panel item is opened in the window. It provides more space.
You can also switch to Small Icons view by right-clicking in empty area and selecting the option:
As you can see now you can save the view settings which was not possible in Vista and people complained a lot about it.
System Tray
Now icons in System tray are highlighted when you move the cursor over them. Also you can see a little difference in icons when you click on them. The little arrow at start shows the hidden/inactive icons.
The empty space at last of the taskbar is new "Show Desktop" shortcut. It minimizes all opened window and shows the Desktop. Very handy and cool feature:
New Taskbar Options
Now Taskbar and Start Menu Properties contains a few new options and has a re-designed interface.
As you can see now you can change the taskbar location directly from the drop-down box.
PS: Classic Start Menu has been removed. I hope it'll be added in later builds.
Ribbons in MSPaint and Wordpad
As you all know about Ribbon interface implementation in Paint and Wordpad applications:
MSPaint:
Wordpad:
New Windows Defender Interface
Windows Defender got a new interface in Windows 7.
They have removed the "Windows Defender logo" from right and also changed the colors of window.
Improved Firewall
Windows Firewall has been improved a lot in Windows 7. Now its more customizable and provides more security:
Re-designed Calculator
Calculator has also been re-designed. It provides 2 new options: Programmer and Statistics.
New Options in "Folder Options"
There are 2 new options in "Folder Options":
* Hide empty drives in the Computer folder
* Try to search the content of unknown file types
New Options in "System Properties"
"System Properties" also provides 2 new options:
* Save taskbar thumbnail previews
* Show shadows under windows
If you disable "Show shadows under windows" option, then all window loose the shadow around them and it looks very ugly at the moment but its a nice addition.
As you can see the black corners around window which doesn't look good but since its a testing build. Such GUI glitches would be fixed in later builds.
New Boot Screen, Login Screen and a little modified Aero Theme
As mentioned at start, Windows 7 contains a new Boot screen showing "Starting Windows" along with a glassy progressbar in the middle.
Login screen is similar to Vista except the background. Vista login screen background is same as its default Aurora wallpaper. Same case with Windows 7, its login screen background is same as its default wallpaper which is also used during the setup.
And Aero theme is very same as Vista theme. Only a little tweaked start menu and taskbar. Also the maximized windows don't loose transparency.
So that's the end of this review. There is much more to share which is coming in near future. So stay tuned with us...
This article was posted in Windows 7.
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