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Vol. 2, # 5 - Feb 4, 2010 - Issue # 21 |
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How Well does Windows 7 Run on a Notebook with Modest Specs?
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- Editor's Corner
- How Well does Windows 7 Run on a Notebook with Modest Specs?
- Follow-up: It's just a game
- Quotes of the Week
- Cool Tools
- News, Hints, Tips and Tricks
- Release candidate will start expiring soon
- iPad as a thin client for Windows 7
- Microsoft earnings way up, thanks to Windows 7
- How to: Using the New Windows 7 Features
- How to upgrade from Windows 7 Home to Pro or Ultimate when you bought the boxed
version
- How to fix touchpad problem with Windows 7 upgrade
- Windows 7 and Vista Security
- Not even Windows 7 can stop social engineers
- Question Corner
- Get the Classic Start Menu on Windows 7
- Windows 7 Configuration and Troubleshooting
- How to use the Bootrec.exe tool in Vista or Windows 7
- Error message when you log on using a temporary profile
- Fav Links
- This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff
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Kiss Your Antivirus Bloatware Goodbye
We asked users of antivirus products what they didn't like about their AV software.
They told us they are resource hogs and slowed their computer down. They told us that
scan times took way too long, and that the AV software nagged them. In short, old-style
AV software takes too much Memory and CPU. Time to switch to VIPRE! It gives you malware
protection that combines antivirus, antispyware, anti-rootkit and other technologies
into a seamless, tightly-integrated product.
Even if you run "free" antivirus software, it hijacks 20% of your PC, so it's really not
free at all! Get VIPRE now and see how fast your PC can really be:
http://www.win7news.net/100204-VIPRE
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Editor's Corner |
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How Well does Windows 7 Run on a Notebook with Modest Specs?
Last week, after much agonizing, I bought a new Windows 7 notebook. If you're
interested in the decision process that I went through and the details about the
system I ended up with, you can read about that in my blog post at
http://www.win7news.net/100204-New-Laptop
I admit I had a little trepidation about how well Windows 7 Ultimate would run
on a notebook with modest technical specs - a bit more powerful than the typical
netbook, but not much. Part of the reason I picked the Sony was because I loved
my two previous Sony ultra compacts - but I did get off to a rocky start with
the second one.
I bought the Sony TX back in January 2007, right after Vista was released. I had
specifically waited for the release so I could get a new notebook that came with
Vista pre-installed, because my Sony T didn't support an upgrade to Vista. The
TX came with Vista Business edition. The hardware was very nice, but the
operating system ran as slowly as molasses. I had been running Vista Ultimate on
my Dell XPS for over a year (in beta and RC) with no problems, so I was shocked
at the lousy performance on my brand new notebook.
I tried upgrading it to Ultimate, but that didn't help (although it didn't seem
to make it any worse). I resigned myself to the fact that this time, I had made
a $2200 mistake. Then Service Pack 1 came out, and it proved to be a miracle
worker for my little Sony. I'm not saying Vista suddenly became blazing fast,
but after I installed SP1, it performed as I had expected it to and was
perfectly fine for doing the kind of work I did with the notebook.
I installed Windows 7 on the TX when the RTM came out, and it worked pretty
well. However, it has an old wi-fi adapter that doesn't support 802.11n, it
maxed out at 1.5 GB of RAM, and its hard drive is smaller than I would have
liked (60 GB). I was ready for a new one, and the Sony X was not only smaller
and thinner but it also had the n adapter, more RAM and more than twice the disk
space - and that disk was a faster solid state drive (SSD). Best of all, the
cost was hundreds of dollars less than I'd paid for the TX.
Any fears about performance went out the window when I got the little guy home
and started using it. Getting used to its "Chiclet" keyboard took a little
while, but the system is super responsive and I don't have to wait for a service
pack to enjoy using it. Despite its Atom processor, it has proven to be quite
peppy. I give the 128 GB SSD at least some of the credit for that, and I expect
to continue seeing the benefits of that technology, thanks to Windows 7.
Windows 7, along with Windows Server 2008 R2, is optimized for SSDs. It
partitions them more efficiently, which reduces the number of redundant read-write
cycles. The operating system also uses a technology called TRIM, which
uses ATA commands to increase the write speeds on SSDs (flash memory has a fast
random read speed but a low write speed). TRIM also addresses a problem that
SSDs had with older operating systems, whereby they would slow down over time as
more of the cells were written to. TRIM can cause the SSD to erase invalid pages
before they're overwritten to increase performance. TRIM also decreases wear on
the drive because it gets rid of the necessity for many merge operations.
Defragmentation and other features that are designed for traditional hard drives
are disabled when Windows 7 detects an SSD. For more about the engineering of
Windows 7 to better support SSDs, see
http://www.win7news.net/100204-SSD-Support
Another thing I was worried about was battery life. One of the primary reasons I
chose the Sony X was the incredible 12 hours of uptime claimed for the extended
battery. I wasn't sure if it would really live up to those numbers, but so far
it seems to be doing so. Battery life has been an issue for laptops that were
upgraded to Windows 7 from Vista, though. Some people have reported huge
decreases, from two hours to just thirty minutes, for example. I did notice a
very slight decrease in my battery time when I upgraded the TX from Vista to
Windows 7. Before, I had been able to get close to 7 hours. After the upgrade, I
was down to about 6 and a half.
Some people are getting messages saying their batteries need to be recharged
when they still have plenty of charge, and even messages saying the battery
needs to be replaced completely.
http://www.win7news.net/100204-Win7-Battery-Life
Apparently most of the time, the battery warnings are bogus and have to do with
the way some laptops' BIOSes detect whether a battery needs replacement. That's
good news, but it could lead to problems. As with the boy who cried "wolf" too
many times, you may ignore your computer's warning if/when your battery really
does go bad. Microsoft is working with PC vendors to try to determine exactly
what the cause is, and correct it.
http://www.win7news.net/100204-Battery-Issue
The battery issue may scare some folks away from buying Windows 7 laptops, or
from upgrading their current laptops to Windows 7. I would certainly think twice
about it if I read a report that my model of computer was getting hours less
battery time than before. All in all, though, Windows 7 runs extremely well on
laptops, notebooks and netbooks - certainly better than Vista did prior to SP1.
And you don't have to stick with the puny Starter edition just because you have
a low powered system. The Atom processor in my Sony X can handle Win7 Ultimate
just fine; one of the first things I did after bringing it home was to upgrade
the Home Premium edition that came with it.
What has your experience been with running Windows 7 on a portable computer?
Have you bought a new Win7 laptop or installed Win7 on one of your old ones?
How do you think performance on a small machine compares to Vista? To XP? Have
you noticed any problems with the battery life - either real ones or false
alarms? Have the scare stories made you hesitate to upgrade your laptop or buy
one with Windows 7 installed? We invite you to discuss this topic in our forum
at
http://www.win7news.net/100204-Forum-Discussion
Follow-up: It's just a game
In last week's editorial, I wrote about how Windows 7 is proving to be pretty
popular with the gamer community and asked for input from readers about your
experiences with Win7 as a gaming OS. I guess most of you are like me - you use
your computer for work and personal communication rather than playing games -
because we had a lower than usual number of discussion posts.
One reader pointed out that although Windows 7 supports DirectX 11 for graphics
and it's a great technology, it's not easy to find video cards yet that support
it, especially if you happen to be an nVidia fan. But apparently DX 10 is
working well on Windows 7 for some of you.
Tim G. made some good points about gaming in general, both in regard to how time
consuming it can be and bringing up the idea of "family gaming time" so that the
games allow you and your loved ones to do something together, instead of taking
time away from them. He also noted that playing PC games is pretty sedentary,
even if it is mentally intense, and pointed out the benefits of the Wii with its
involvement of the whole body in the gaming experience. I know many folks are
looking forward to Microsoft's Natal technology that goes even further in
putting you into the game interactively. It will soon be part of the Xbox and I
expect it to give the Wii a run for its money. Hey, I might even get an Xbox and
start playing games myself if I can justify it as part of my exercise program.
As always, thanks to all of you who participated in the discussion.
'Til next week,
Deb Shinder, Editor
feedback@win7news.net
PS: Did you know this newsletter has a sister publication for XP users called
WXPnews?
You can subscribe here, and tell your friends:
http://www.win7news.net/100204-WXPNews
And for IT pros, there's our "big sister," WServer News, at
http://www.win7news.net/100204-WserverNews
Join the Win7News fan page on Facebook!
http://www.win7news.net/100204-Win7News-on-Facebook
Quotes of the Week
"Computer games don't affect kids. I mean, if Pac Man affected kids, we'd all be
running around in darkened rooms, munching pills and listening to repetitive
music." - Marcus Brigstocke
"It's never just a game when you're winning." - George Carlin (1937 - 2008)
"You learn a lot about people when you play games with them." - Laura Moncur
"Once the game is over, the King and Pawn go back in the same box." - Italian
proverb
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Kiss Your Antivirus Bloatware Goodbye
We asked users of antivirus products what they didn't like about their AV software.
They told us they are resource hogs and slowed their computer down. They told us that
scan times took way too long, and that the AV software nagged them. In short, old-style
AV software takes too much Memory and CPU. Time to switch to VIPRE! It gives you malware
protection that combines antivirus, antispyware, anti-rootkit and other technologies
into a seamless, tightly-integrated product.
Even if you run "free" antivirus software, it hijacks 20% of your PC, so it's really not
free at all! Get VIPRE now and see how fast your PC can really be:
http://www.win7news.net/100204-VIPRE
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Cool Tools |
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News, Hints, Tips and Tricks |
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Release candidate will start expiring soon
If you're still running the Windows 7 release candidate (RC), get prepared: on
February 15th you'll start getting warnings of the impending doom of your
operating system. On March 1, it gets worse: the OS will shut down every two
hours. If you can actually put up with that, it'll go on until June 1, at which
time it will turn into a "non genuine" copy of Windows and you'll get anti-
piracy pop-ups. But in the meantime, you could lose data if you lose track of
time and Windows shuts down on you, so it really is a good idea to move to the
final version of Win7 as soon as you can.
http://www.win7news.net/100204-Release-Candidate
iPad as a thin client for Windows 7
Apple's iPad was released last week amidst much fanfare. It didn't exactly
impress everyone; many in the tech industry expressed disappointment. You can
read my reaction to the unveiling in my blog post here:
http://www.win7news.net/100204-iPad
But if you feel compelled to go out and buy one even though it lacks so many
features that I consider basic, here's some interesting news for you: Citrix has
announced that they are going to release software to make the iPad a thin client
that you can use to connect to your real operating system - Windows 7.
Hmm. Now that might actually make the thing useful. Read more here:
http://www.win7news.net/100204-iPad-Remote-Access
Microsoft earnings way up, thanks to Windows 7
There's good news for those of us who own Microsoft stock: earnings in the most
recent quarter are up 60 percent, and one reason for that was the release of
Windows 7 last October. In fact, revenue from Windows increased by 70 percent
and around 60 million copies of the operating system were sold. That wins it the
title of fastest selling version of Windows ever.
http://www.win7news.net/100204-Microsoft-Earnings
Customer satisfaction is up, too - also thanks to Windows 7
In another report, a market research company determined that Microsoft's
customer satisfaction rating increased by 14 percent in 2009, following the
release of Windows 7. That compares with a 6.9 percent increase for Apple after
releasing Snow Leopard.
http://www.win7news.net/100204-Customer-Satisfaction
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How to: Using the New Windows 7 Features |
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How to upgrade from Windows 7 Home to Pro or Ultimate when you bought the boxed
version
Here's an interesting issue that I encountered when I decided to upgrade my new
laptop from Windows 7 Home Premium (which came preinstalled) to Windows 7
Ultimate. I had a few boxed copies of Ultimate that I'd bought at the Microsoft
Store, so that should be no problem, right? It installed without a hitch, but
instead of a box to enter my product key, I got a message telling me that I
needed to upgrade with Windows Anytime Upgrade. That caused a few moments of
consternation - was I going to have to buy another license through WAU, when I
already had a perfectly valid license.
Well, I discovered that the answer is "no." I clicked to go to the WAU page, and
there was an option that said to click if you already have a Windows Anytime
Upgrade license. That wasns't exactly what I had, but I clicked anyway. And then
I got a dialog box asking for the product key. I wasn't optimistic, but I
entered my key (which I didn't get through WAU) and lo and behold, it was
accepted. That was a big relief, and I'm sure it will come as good news to
anyone else out there who finds him/herself in the same predicament.
How to fix touchpad problem with Windows 7 upgrade
If you upgrade your laptop to Windows 7, you might bet a message that your
Synapics touchpad has been disabled. This happens because an external USB device
was detected. You can enable the touchpad when an external USB device is
detected by performing these steps:
- Click Start.
- In the Search box, type main.cpl and press ENTER.
- Click the Device Settings tab.
- Clear the checkbox that says "Disable internal pointing device when external
USB pointing device is attached."
- Click OK.
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Windows 7 and Vista Security |
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Not even Windows 7 can stop social engineers
Windows 7 includes new security mechanisms that can keep malicious code from
running on your computer - that is, unless you explicitly download and
install that malware. Unfortunately, that's often what happens; instead of
exploiting vulnerabilities in the operating system, applications or protocols,
social engineers exploit human weaknesses and trick you into doing it to
yourself. No OS will ever be safe from those tactics until users wise up and
learn to recognize these for what they are.
http://www.win7news.net/100204-Windows7-Safeguards
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Question Corner |
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Get the Classic Start Menu on Windows 7
QUESTION:
There are some things I really like about Windows 7, like better security. But
I've been switching my XP back to the Classic Start menu forever - I just prefer
it that way. Why oh why did Microsoft remove that option in Windows 7 and is
there any secret way to get it back? - Steve L.
ANSWER:
I totally understand why one would want to switch back to the Classic interface
in XP, since the native XP interface is, to put it mildly, not very attractive.
I would never want to replace the Vista or Windows 7 Start menu and interface
with the old NT one, but we all have different likes and dislikes. I think
Microsoft removed the option to go back to the Classic look from Windows 7
because, well, it was time. However, for those die-hards who have put off
upgrading because of this, or who has upgraded and are now unhappy with the new
look, I have good news for you.
SourceForge.net has a free program called Classic Shell that lets you have the
classic Start menu, Explorer toolbar and other classic elements. You can see
screenshots and download it here:
http://www.win7news.net/100204-Classic-Shell
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Windows 7 Configuration and Troubleshooting |
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How to use the Bootrec.exe tool in Vista or Windows 7
You can use the Bootrec.exe tool in the Windows Recovery Environment to
troubleshoot the master boot record, boot sectors or a boot configuration data
(BCD) store if the Startup Repair option doesn't work. To find out how to start
the Windows RE and how to use Bootrec.exe for common problems, see KB article
927392 at
http://www.win7news.net/100204-Bootrec-Tool
Error message when you log on using a temporary profile
If you log onto a Vista or Windows computer with a temporary profile, you might
get an error message that says "The User Service failed the logon. User profile
cannot be loaded. This happens because of a Group Policy setting and may occur
when a profile is manually deleted. You can fix the problem with a registry
edit. For the step-by-step instructions, see KB article 947215 at
http://www.win7news.net/100204-User-Profile-Service-Failed
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Fav Links |
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This Week's Links We Like. Tips, Hints And Fun Stuff
Disclaimer: VistaNews does not assume and cannot be
responsible for any liability related to you clicking any of
these linked Web sites.
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Copyright © 1996-2010 Sunbelt Media Services. All rights reserved.
Information in this document is subject to change without notice. Other products and companies
referred to herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies or mark holders.
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