Before I took a look at Vista I remember some partners and analysts telling me that it would greatly increase channel business. Before I even got an opportunity to review a beta of Windows 7, a few solution providers have said to me that this OS will truly increase channel business.
And, I am also sure somewhere in the vast regions of my memory I can come up with some VAR or analyst who told me that Windows ME will increase channel business.
But, that in a nutshell is the promise of what Windows 7 or any new OS from Microsoft holds in the market place.
There is good reason to think that the market has, in general, bypassed Vista. So maybe there will be some uptike in business with Window 7 because I can’t see XP lasting this long.
My first impression of Windows 7 was the fast start up. I counted just 20 seconds before it asked me for my password. That is pretty fast and comparable to many other Linux systems that I have seen.
One of the things I was anxiously awaiting was how Windows 7 would deal with those annoying security or update messages. Well, they are really non-existent on the screen. Windows 7 does try to notify you by flashing an icon in the notification area of the screen. I really like this a lot. Computing is already an annoying function. It should not be made worse with completely irrelevant pop-up messages. Sort of like how your Mom constantly reminded you that dinner was on the table, while you were trying to watch the end of the game.
End users want to write a letter, check email, surf the Web, review a spreadsheet, database or presentation and not be notified every few seconds about an update or that the PC is at risk.
The taskbar is a little bit bigger and Microsoft tells us that this is so that icons are easier to see. They are easier to see, but not by much; still a nice addition. The taskbar also is able to show the user mini-versions of applications or documents. I think this will be beneficial for the multi-tasker who has several Windows open at a time.
Another new feature that would put the multi-tasker in heaven is Jump Lists. Jump Lists are on the taskbar or on the start menu and it will open all your favourite Web sites, programs and documents all at once. All these taskbar features are consistent to Microsoft over-arching mandate with Windows 7, which is to be faster than Vista.
These are my first impression of Windows 7. I will drill down more in the coming days to give a sense of what the next Windows OS will have.