Windows 7 and the home computer user
Introduction
Windows 7 has the same look and feel as its predecessor, Windows Vista, but has been widely hailed as a much better product, not only because of major changes, but also numerous minor, "under the bonnet" changes. One of the most obvious differences between Windows 7 and Windows Vista is the size of its resource "footprint"; Windows 7 will run, quite happily, 1GB of RAM on a slow dual-core processor, making it a viable proposition for netbook as well as desktop computers. In fact, minimum system requirements include 1GB of RAM, a 1 GHz processor, 16GB of hard disk space and a DirectX 9 compatible graphics card with 128NB of memory. At least 4GB of RAM, 20GB of hard disk space and, of course, an x64 processor, are required for the 64-bit version of Windows 7, however. Windows 7 also introduces the new graphics technology, DirectX 11, which will appeal to the gaming fraternity, although a DirectX 11 compatible graphics card and, of course, games that take advantage of new features - tessellation, multi-threading, DirectCompute graphics acceleration, etc. - is required.
Windows 7 Features, Benefits & Considerations
The Windows 7 user interface has undergone some subtle changes when compared with Windows Vista, or Windowx XP, for that matter. The interface is more pleasing, aethestically, but the changes to it are not only cosmetic. The Windows Taskbar, for example, is larger, with larger buttons, so that it can be used more easily with a touchscreen and the previous Quick Launch area has disappeared, with open applications and shortcuts appearing on the Taskbar. Open applications can be distinguished from shortcuts by a defined border and multiple borders signify more than one instance of an application.
Essentially, the consensus of opinion is that Windows 7 is the operating system that Windows Vista should have been. Mobile features, such as customisable power management plans, together with a revamped and workable, form of hibernation will appeal to laptop users, as will straightforward wireless connectivity and so-called "Local-Aware Printing". This latter feature "remembers" the last printer you printed to on any given network and, optionally, makes that printer the default the next time you connect to that network.
On the downside, if you want to upgrade to Windows 7 from Windows XP, you do need to perform a "clean" installation - which involves reformatting your hard drive and reinstalling your applications and data - rather than a simple upgrade. The process if straightforward, if time-consuming and you can expect better stability and performance for the new operating system as a result.
If you want to take your content "on the road", Windows Media Player allows you to burn music, pictures and videos to blank CD, or DVD media. A standard, single-sided, single-layered DVD has a capacity of 4.7GB, enough for two hours of digital video, so, provided that the file type in which it is recorded - AVI, DivX, WMV, etc. - is supported, you can play back movies on standalone DVD players, such as dual screen portable DVD players, for example.