A new name in the world of computers is delighting some and scaring others: Microsoft Windows Seven (W7).
It is the company’s upcoming operating system, the successor of the current Windows Vista. No exact date has yet been set for the commercial release of the product, but the mere announcement of its existence is sending shockwaves across the IT community.
W7 is just a code name for now and Microsoft may decide to rename when it is officially released. The essential new feature of W7 is empowering the user to manipulate files, mainly multimedia files, as simply and as easily as one does it with Apple’s iPhone: by touching and dragging the files-objects on the very screen, without any mouse or keyboard manipulation.
It is the fastest, most user-friendly and intuitive manner to move, copy, see, enlarge and close photos, files, music and so forth. From this viewpoint, users can’t wait to put their hands on W7.
What is rather strange is the timing. Chronologically Windows XP came around in 2001, Vista in 2007 and W7 will probably be available in 2009.
Vista, therefore, has only been around for a little more than year. This is very short period in terms of an operating system’s lifespan. Most Microsoft’s Windows have existed an average of four to five years.
Moreover, Vista predecessor, Windows XP, remains the most appreciated system today, and has been around for seven good years.
XP has proven to be the most stable, the least prone to crash. Windows XP has its fans and many of them have refused to move to Vista so far. There was even a petition on the web asking Microsoft not to discontinue their technical support for XP.
Vista, with all its technical advantages is a very “heavy” system. It requires exceptionally powerful computers to operate properly, especially in terms of graphics. Unless one has a machine with extensive graphics power, Vista will appear to respond as a slow system, irritating the user who had got accustomed to the fast Windows XP.
So, why is Microsoft announcing W7 when even Vista has not been widely adopted and remains a controversial issue? Only Microsoft can answer this, and we can only try guessing.
It could be that Vista was planned from the very start as a short-lived, temporary transition between XP and W7, in which case all those who went Vista (including the writer of this article) served as Guinea pigs for Microsoft. Another explanation is that Microsoft finally took notice of the frustration of Vista users and decided to accelerate the development and the release of W7 to address this frustration.
Those who have ignored Vista and stayed with XP are looking forward to W7. They consider they have wisely “skipped” the Vista painful experiment, if it ever was an experiment, and will take a quantum leap when they shift to W7. Those who took the plunge with Vista and remain unhappy with its performance will look forward to W7 as a long-awaited relief, as a deliverance from its excessive weight and idiosyncrasy.
If there are many unanswered questions about Vista and W7, one thing is certain. The trend in technology is towards intensive, heavy graphics. It is apparent not only in computers, but in the entire range of the new cell phones.
How well and how fast will intensive graphics work on your computer depends on the graphic processor and the memory allocated to it. In most cases the user has the possibility to expand this part of his computer by adding graphic memory or changing and upgrading the graphic controller. This is where one should not cut corners. It is only then that one would be ready for W7.
It is the company’s upcoming operating system, the successor of the current Windows Vista. No exact date has yet been set for the commercial release of the product, but the mere announcement of its existence is sending shockwaves across the IT community.
W7 is just a code name for now and Microsoft may decide to rename when it is officially released. The essential new feature of W7 is empowering the user to manipulate files, mainly multimedia files, as simply and as easily as one does it with Apple’s iPhone: by touching and dragging the files-objects on the very screen, without any mouse or keyboard manipulation.
It is the fastest, most user-friendly and intuitive manner to move, copy, see, enlarge and close photos, files, music and so forth. From this viewpoint, users can’t wait to put their hands on W7.
What is rather strange is the timing. Chronologically Windows XP came around in 2001, Vista in 2007 and W7 will probably be available in 2009.
Vista, therefore, has only been around for a little more than year. This is very short period in terms of an operating system’s lifespan. Most Microsoft’s Windows have existed an average of four to five years.
Moreover, Vista predecessor, Windows XP, remains the most appreciated system today, and has been around for seven good years.
XP has proven to be the most stable, the least prone to crash. Windows XP has its fans and many of them have refused to move to Vista so far. There was even a petition on the web asking Microsoft not to discontinue their technical support for XP.
Vista, with all its technical advantages is a very “heavy” system. It requires exceptionally powerful computers to operate properly, especially in terms of graphics. Unless one has a machine with extensive graphics power, Vista will appear to respond as a slow system, irritating the user who had got accustomed to the fast Windows XP.
So, why is Microsoft announcing W7 when even Vista has not been widely adopted and remains a controversial issue? Only Microsoft can answer this, and we can only try guessing.
It could be that Vista was planned from the very start as a short-lived, temporary transition between XP and W7, in which case all those who went Vista (including the writer of this article) served as Guinea pigs for Microsoft. Another explanation is that Microsoft finally took notice of the frustration of Vista users and decided to accelerate the development and the release of W7 to address this frustration.
Those who have ignored Vista and stayed with XP are looking forward to W7. They consider they have wisely “skipped” the Vista painful experiment, if it ever was an experiment, and will take a quantum leap when they shift to W7. Those who took the plunge with Vista and remain unhappy with its performance will look forward to W7 as a long-awaited relief, as a deliverance from its excessive weight and idiosyncrasy.
If there are many unanswered questions about Vista and W7, one thing is certain. The trend in technology is towards intensive, heavy graphics. It is apparent not only in computers, but in the entire range of the new cell phones.
How well and how fast will intensive graphics work on your computer depends on the graphic processor and the memory allocated to it. In most cases the user has the possibility to expand this part of his computer by adding graphic memory or changing and upgrading the graphic controller. This is where one should not cut corners. It is only then that one would be ready for W7.
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