First Look at Windows 7

As reported earlier, the finer details of Windows 7 were revealed at the Professional Developers Conference(PDC) that is underway at Los Angeles.

We now have a fair idea of what Windows 7 really is all about.

The PDC coverage also answers the biggest question people had in their minds -- Is Windows 7 just a "spruced up" Vista? This is what it was considered to be, when we had a very restrictive initial look at the leaked screen shots that appeared few weeks ago. Well, that argument has been laid to rest now with Microsoft offering a "hands-on" to the journalists who attended the PDC. They had on offer a Dell Laptop loaded with a Windows 7 pre-beta Build 6801.

These are the initial impressions of what the Windows 7 is all about -- and what it is not.

To start with, it is not just a Vista rehash. Yes, it retains the "family look" but there are many underlying changes that makes it a far better OS than its predecessor. Although I still think they should have opted for a full design-change to alienate itself from Vista, Microsoft chose not to do so and I believe they have valid reasons for that decision. So, what's new? And what is not? Read on.

First off, the build that was showcased during the PDC (6801) is reportedly an older version. This meant that several of the new features that were seen in some screenshots were not present in this build. For the record, screen shots have revealed newer build versions; namely build 6926 and 6933, which seems to be a more complete package -- albeit an unstable one.

Networking -- the Windows 7 way

To start off, connecting to a wireless network is now far easier. In fact, it is just one click away from the task bar -- to digress a bit here, the taskbar is another Windows component that has more or less remained the same over the years. Not any longer! The good ol' taskbar "text" has given way to icons (which does impart a somewhat gaudy look to it). More on the taskbar improvement later. As for choosing a WiFi network to hop on to: click on the icon on the task bar and you get a list of all the networks available. Click on the one you wish to join to and you're done! Now that's nifty but leaves me wonderin why such an interface was not offered earlier, through Vista.

UAC remains; but subtler now

The dreaded UAC (User Access Control) pop-ups still loom large. Yes, you have the option to turn them off in Vista... However, Microsoft thinks there are folks who would still want their computers to be a bit more proactive and let you know what your background programs are up to. So what's on offer? A slider control through which you decide whether to turn UAC off completely or let it pop up only when a program (and not you) makes a change to the system settings. Nice!

Sidebar: Killed

I am not sure how many of you found the Vista sidebar irritating, as I did. When screen real-estate is at a premium, it was a pain if you wanted to use the gadgets without the accompanying sidebar to eat up your resolution. Windows 7 has shown the sidebar the door but the gadgets remain: you are now free to place them anywhere on your screen. Finally!

HomeGroups

The Homegroup is supposed to be a tool to share files and media over a small home network. Apart from sharing printers, it can also help setup a share for other hardware, and allows for seamless inter-machine connectivity along with added security: you decide what to share and what not to. This is one of those networking solutions that is wizard-driven. The problem is that wizards rarely work uner the Windows ecosystem -- how many times have you run a networking wizard which successfully does nothing? Let's hope this one actually works.

Device Stage

Device Stage is an enhanced "auto-play" pop up when you connect an external device to your computer. The only difference is that now you have different interfaces for various hardware. By supported hardware, I mean the devices which provides content for the Device Stage will show up with "extra features", when connected, instead of the plain auto-play window that is the current norm. It remains to be seen if device manufacturers pick this up.

Taskbar

Yes we're back where we started. As I mentioned earlier, the taskbar has undergone a complete transformation after having been left unchanged since eternity. The quick launch has been discarded and now we have icons replacing the text that displayed running programs (very Mac OSX). The right click offers greater access to features and flexibility -- offering options such as opening recent files and related goodies.

Multitouch

Finally we have multitouch on the PC and prima-facie, it seems to work pretty well. While you might need a slight learning curve to start off with it, it won t take an user significant time to master it. And yes, it supports all the gestures you have in mind -- pinching, stretching and the others. Happy?

User Interface

Ok, nothing revolutionary here. It still looks like Vista (which most people might not like). But there have been minor changes. The Flip 3D remains along with the new taskbar (already previewed). Notable additions include a new windows resizing feature which has managed to turn some heads. And yes, the system tray has been upgraded as well. It now offers you more control over the (annoying) balloon pop ups -- letting you decide if you want to display an item on the tray permanently or not.

Mac Users Boo (as usual)

While many have welcomed the changes, Mac users claim most of the new features on the Windows 7 are simply Microsoft's version of existing OSX stuff. Yes, we have been hearing this ever since the Vista launch and now it has rather become a norm. Windows 7 is arguably the biggest change to the user interface that Windows have been through since XP and from what I see, it is a far cry from a rehashed Vista. With an expected 2009 launch it remains to be seen how it fares against the OSX SnowLeopard 10.6 due mid-2009.

A faster Windows?

Windows 7 will also aim to be leaner, faster and it won't crib for system resources -- a lesson well learnt from the Vista debacle. Remember the 'Vista capable' labels? To prove this, Windows SVP Steve Sinofsky showcased his personal laptop during the keynote which ran the OS smoothly. The netbook reportedly ran at 1Ghz with 1 GB of RAM. Now that's nice. An OS easier on the hardware is certainly welcome.