By: Mike Robinson

After only a few hours operating Windows 7, I was sold. Right from the get-go, the experience was startling. I performed a clean install of Windows 7 on my Core 2 Duo notebook and was shocked when it took only about 25 minutes to complete. On the same notebook, Vista took close to an hour to install.

When the installation was finished, every single device was recognized. Windows 7 found everything and installed the appropriate driver automatically. I didn’t have to spend hours scouring the Internet to try and find drivers for my printer or scanner either. (Who actually keeps driver CDs right?) With Vista, I would have spent hours trying to find drivers for everything.

The second thing I noticed was how little space on the hard drive Windows 7 consumed. It was less than half of what Vista had hogged on the same system.

When I first installed Windows 7 Professional on my PC, I was expecting a shiny new version of Windows Vista. What I discovered was an operating system that delivered on what Vista couldn’t. The computer seemed to run smoother on Windows 7 than Vista. Things seemed snappier and much more responsive. All of my drivers and devices worked.

I have been running 7 now for several months and so far, no crashes, no blue-screens. No issues whatsoever. So far, I have been extremely impressed.

As I said before, most businesses did not make the move to Vista because of the incompatibilities with legacy hardware and software. The biggest development with Windows 7, however, is its ability to run in “XP-Mode.” If you have software that can only run on an XP machine, Windows 7 has the ability to run any XP application in a virtual XP environment. You just need to make sure that your PC supports the feature. You also need Windows 7 Pro or Ultimate to take advantage of this feature. So, should you upgrade or not?

In the past, I would have recommended that most people wait for at least six to twelve months before making the switch. Wait for the first service pack so that any major bugs are ironed out. Stick with what is working for you.

That said, Windows 7 is truly impressive. On today’s newer hardware, it’s faster, more reliable and more secure than XP. I see no reason why anyone wouldn’t feel at ease making the move to Windows 7.

Have you tried Windows 7 yet? If so, tell us what you think.

 

Mike Robinson is a Purchasing Manager specializing in Computer Hardware for Staples Canada.