Windows7 Evangelist

One of the best kept secrets from Microsoft regarding SharePoint 2010 (news, site) was something that SharePoint developers around the world were for crying for: the ability to run SharePoint on a desktop environment and not a VM.

You can imagine the cheers that went up through the crowd of over 7,000 at the SharePoint conference last week when they were told they can run SharePoint 2010 environments on both Windows 7 and Windows Vista SP1.

The install works for both SharePoint Foundation — formerly WSS — and SharePoint Server.

SharePoint 2010 on Windows 7
Now keep in mind this is just a standalone environment for developers, it’s not meant for production at all. And, it does still require that you have a 64 bit operating system.

There are some prerequisites for running an install on Windows Vista and be sure to check out the RAM and space requirements for both Foundation and SharePoint Server.

We know you don’t have the beta yet, at least most of us don’t, but here’s the MSDN article explaining the installation process.

Installing SharePoint 2010 on Windows 7

Last week, war erupted between tech giants Microsoft and Apple as the Windows maker celebrated the launched of its newest baby: Windows 7. But while Windows 7 seems to have been a hit, Apple fired back with its own ad campaign.

With Microsoft and Apple making the headlines, we thought it was appropriate to make them the subject of this week’s Web Faceoff, our weekly series where we pit two popular web or tech apps and letting you, the readers, choose the victor. This week’s battle-for-the-ages was between none other than the two hottest OSes on the market: Microsoft Windows 7 and Mac OS X Snow Leopard.
The voting and the comments were heated. Over 7000 votes were cast with less than 400 votes separating to the two operating systems. But in the end, Microsoft was able to outlast the Apple assault. With 3632 votes (50%), Windows 7 defeated Snow Leopard’s 3278 votes (45%). 357 of you (5%) voted that the battle was dead even.

Who would win in a fight: Microsoft Windows 7 or Mac OS X Snow Leopard? (Poll Closed)

Windows 7 50% (3632 votes)

Snow Leopard 45% (3278 votes)

Tie: I don’t have a preference between the two 5% (357 votes)

Total Votes: 7267

While Microsoft can declare victory in this battle, the war clearly isn’t over. There will be more skirmishes between Apple and Microsoft, and we’ll bring them to you in future web faceoffs.

POLL: Windows 7 Outlasts Snow Leopard in Reader Vote

Microsoft baked a number of support technologies directly into its new operating system so it can self-diagnose and repair problems.

By Paul McDougall
InformationWeek
October 30, 2009 03:06 PM

In an effort to improve customer service and cut down on support costs, Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) added a number of features to Windows 7 that give the operating system the ability to diagnose problems automatically and even fix itself in some cases.

Windows 7 screen shot

(Click for larger image and for full photo gallery)

Some of the tools are contained in a part of the platform that Microsoft calls the Windows Action Center.

“These troubleshooters can diagnose and solve the most common problems reported by Windows users, including set-up and compatibility issues, hardware defects, and the like” said Lori Brownwell, in a blog post.

For example, inexperienced computer users often install the incorrect drivers for new hardware, such as speakers, a mistake that results in poor performance or no functionality at all. “If you have incorrectly installed your audio driver, the Windows Action Center can alert you, diagnose the problem and point you to the correct fix , of fix the problem itself,” said Brownwell.

Microsoft has also published online “Fix its” that automate much of the troubleshooting process. Clicking on a Fix it initiates a routine under which steps outlined in Microsoft’s Knowledge Base technical articles are automatically applied to the problem.

“We’ve even built safety measures into the Fix its to give added reassurance,” said Brownwell. “If the user clicks on the wrong Fix it, it won’t modify anything,” she said.

Microsoft is also using a number of other unconventional means to offer Windows 7 help, including social networking. The company’s support team is using Twitter to quickly disseminate solutions to any new problems that might arise. “We have developed additional support tools for Windows 7 that reflect the places people are increasingly going online to visit, such as a favorite social media site,” said Brownwell.

Microsoft formally launched Windows 7 last week. The full version of Windows 7 Professional is $299, with upgrades going for $199. Windows 7 Ultimate is priced at $319, with the upgrade version at $219. The full version of Windows 7 Home Premium is priced at $199, with an upgrade from Vista or XP costing $119.

Windows 7 First ‘Self-Healing’ OS — InformationWeek

Windows marketing VP Tami Reller looked like she could finally exhale at the Windows 7 launch in New York City last week.

"Congratulations on the launch. I’m sure it’s been a long road," I said.

"You’re telling me," she replied, grinning but understandably weary from the busy day.

"There’s just more and more demand to use the same tools at home and work. That’s really what’s different about the world now." Tami Reller, Corporate VP and CFO, Windows Business Group

Reller then sat down with CIO.com’s Shane O’Neill to share her thoughts on bringing Windows 7 to market, the link between when Windows 7 will be adopted by consumers and businesses and how Microsoft will help XP users move on.

Regarding the Windows 7 launch, how has the world changed since sinced Vista’s launch three years ago and how is Windows 7 a better operating system for the world we live in today?

The process by which we brought Windows 7 to market over the past three years has been dramatically different than in the past. I think what gets us to a better place today is how we engaged with partners and customers throughout the cycle.

[ For complete coverage on Microsoft's new Windows 7 operating system -- including hands-on reviews, video tutorials and advice on enterprise rollouts -- see CIO.com's Windows 7 Bible. ]

Early in the process we set out to understand how consumers, small businesses and enteprises were using the software and how they wanted to use the software. We communicated with customers in a much more systematic way where we could take their feedback and put it to use.

On the partner side, there was a dramatic change too. We sat down with OEM partners in the very beginning to discuss technology and business goals, meeting on our campus and their campus. And the results are out there in that showroom [referring to the display of new Windows 7 PCs at the launch event].

How did you adjust your Windows 7 planning when netbooks came out of nowhere about a year ago and became popular?

We had a process that was very well-documented, but also allowed us to be agile around things like netbooks. All the Windows 7 versions run brilliantly on netbooks today because we were able to say, ‘Ok, how do we adjust? These netbooks are real, this is happening.’

Windows XP is still the X factor in the enterprise. How do you convince businesses that won’t budge from XP for whatever reason – the economy, comfort with XP, lack of trust in Windows 7 – to upgrade?

We think there are three elements of that conversation that are important.

One is, customers who did not move from XP to Vista didn’t get the benefit of the IT cost savings per PC that you could get with Vista, whether it is from better PC management or improved security. Like Vista, Windows 7 is also is also less expensive to operate than XP. To an IT professional, that’s the important value: how much more can I save per PC.

Slideshow: 7 Tools to Ease Your Windows 7 RolloutSlideshow: Windows 7 in Pictures: 10 Cool Desktop Features

Next is compatibility in the ecosystem. That’s a big part of our conversation with enterprises: what blockers can we help remove to get deployment to happen. There are ISV (independent software provider) packages from big, global ISVs and we have to make sure there is perfect compatibility. We also work with them on their custom applications to do an assessment. Is there going to be compatibility out of the gate? Do we need to do some intermediation together? Will virtualization work – is it long-term, short-term, mid-term?

There are macro things we can do for compatibility, and then it’s going to be specific for each customer, and we are set up to do that. We have the Windows Compatibility Center and Windows 7 is very compatible upfront. But there’s work we need to do on a company’s custom applications.

The last piece is user enthusiasm. There’s just more and more demand to use the same tools at home and work. That’s really what’s different about the world. There’s an expectation now that you can flow from home to work and everywhere in between and have your data transfer.

Along those lines, can you talk more about the connection between consumer adoption and corporate adoption of an OS. It didn’t really happen with Vista. How much of enterprise adoption of Windows 7 depends on consumer enthusiasm?

I think there’s a significant connection. Early signs are telling us there will be a groundswell of Windows 7 adoption in the consumer space. And the timing is good: we are coming out right before the holidays, and there are some signs of life in the economy, particularly in the consumer space. If we get this groundswell of consumer adoption, it will inspire corporate adoptions at a faster pace than might happen ordinarily.

Mind you, corporate adoptions take time. They take planning, they take budgeting, they take testing, they take remediation. But part of what can motivate an IT department and a CIO is user satisfaction. They ask: Can I save money and will my users be happy? And if they get to go check and check, then adoption starts to move faster.

Shane O’Neill is a senior writer at CIO.com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/smoneill. Follow everything from CIO.com on Twitter at twitter.com/CIOonline.

Windows 7: Where Consumers Lead, Will Businesses Follow? – Business Center – PC World

These 10 videos from CNET TV cover a range of useful tips for Windows 7 users, including how to make a system repair disc, how to customize the Start menu, what some of the best hot keys for the operating system are, and more.

There’s also advice on how to upgrade from either Windows XP or Vista to Windows 7, how to fix Ethernet driver problems in VMWare, how to burn an ISO directly from the newly enhanced Windows Explorer, and how to get to the jump list from your left mouse button.

Windows 7’s calculator is packed with features. Who knew?

(Credit: Screenshot by Seth Rosenblatt/CNET)

Some of my personal faves we haven’t yet turned into videos. Desktop junkies will love that you can now set up a desktop wallpaper slideshow. From the desktop, right-click and choose Personalize, or go to Appearance and Personalization in the Control Panel. Click Desktop Background at the bottom, and change the picture location to the folder you want. Alternatively, you can choose images from across multiple photos. Unfortunately, the Aero Glass taskbar color won’t change to complement each new slide, but you can set it to rotate images as often as every 10 seconds.

I can’t vouch for its efficacy, but another trick is that Windows 7 includes a monitor color management tool which photographers and graphic designers are sure to appreciate. You can get to it either through the Screen Resolution window’s Advanced options, then clicking Color Management, or going to Run and typing DCCW.

If you right-click on a program or a shortcut launcher, you can now pin it to either the Start menu or the Taskbar, which should save you from having to run the program to get it onto the taskbar. Another functional redo has been visited upon the Calculator. There are new views for Programmers and Statistics, and there are new features for quickly doing unit conversion, date differentials, and using templates to create customized finance calculations.

There are far more Windows 7 tips and tricks than these, of course. If you have a favorite, tell us in the comments below.

Seth peers into the deep, dark corners of software so that you don’t have to. He has yet to suffer a single nightmare about OS/2. You can follow him on Twitter.

10 tips and tricks for Windows 7 | Windows 7 Insider – CNET Reviews

Company working with Tasktop and Soyatec on multiple initiatives to boost interoperability between its products and open source technologies like Eclipse and Java

By Paul Krill | InfoWorld

Microsoft will unveil on Wednesday several open source initiatives to boost interoperability between Microsoft technologies, such as Windows 7, Windows Azure, and Silverlight, and open source technologies, including the Eclipse tools platform and Java.

Although the company has at times been viewed as the commercial opposite of the open source movement, the company’s latest gestures to the open source community show Microsoft is willing to make moves that can assist open source devotees build products that rely on Microsoft’s products. Microsoft is working with Tasktop Technologies and Soyatec in projects and technologies being unveiled Tuesday.

[ Last week, Microsoft released a second beta version of its Visual Studio 2010 software development platform. | Get InfoWorld's 21-page hands-on look at the new version of Windows, from InfoWorld’s editors and contributors. ]

“This is part of our ongoing efforts to make our products more open,” said Vijay Rajagopalan, principal architect for the Microsoft interoperability strategy team.

In partnership with Eclipse solutions provider Tasktop, Microsoft is looking to enhance the developer experience of Eclipse on the newly released Windows 7 platform. Support is being extended to run the Eclipse IDE on Windows 7 and also to build Windows 7 applications.

The two companies will develop updates to the Eclipse IDE to incorporate features of Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2. The intention, according to Microsoft, is to ensure that the “improved” productivity and user experience of Windows 7 will be available to developers using the Eclipse IDE and also to desktop applications built on the Eclipse platform.

Developers will be able to access Windows 7 functionality such as Jump Lists from the redesigned Windows 7 task bar. Jump Lists enable access to Eclipse-specific functions. Also, the project will extend Eclipse Standard Widget Toolkit to integrate Windows 7 features such as task bar display of progress and search widget integration. Updates also will modernize the look and feel of Eclipse to match the Windows 7 user interface experience.

“We are working with Tasktop to improve the developer experience on Windows 7,” Rajagopalan said.

Tasktop will contribute enhancements to the Eclipse that will be available under the Eclipse Public License for early access in the first quarter of 2010. General release is planned for the Eclipse Helios technology release train in June 2010.

Windows remains a critical platform for Eclipse users, stressed Mik Kersten, CEO of Tasktop. “Over three-quarters of Eclipse downloads are of the Windows distribution,” he said.

“This joint effort between Tasktop and Microsoft is going to bring those new enhancements in Windows 7 into the hands of Eclipse IDE users,” Kersten said.

Microsoft also is announcing an open source plug-in, called Windows Azure Tools for Eclipse, to give PHP developers more flexibility in developing Web applications for the Windows Azure cloud platform. The plug-in, available as a free download, features wizards and utilities for writing, debugging, and deploying PHP applications to Azure.

“Essentially, it’s an open source plugin that will enable PHP developers using Eclipse to create PHP Web applications,” Rajagopalan said. The technology is available for download.

The existing Windows SDK for PHP is bundled into the Eclipse PHP project through the plug-in, which also includes a Windows Azure “storage explorer” to browse data contained in Azure tables, blobs, or queues.

Microsoft extends Windows 7 and Azure to open source developers | Developer World – InfoWorld

When Vista launched, IT giant Infosys only managed to convince 30 percent of users to migrate. “It was like taking people to the dentist,” recalls Murali Krishna, VP and head CCD, Infosys Technologies. “Vista had certain features we wanted users to adopt, but it just wasn’t user friendly.”

But that experience isn’t changing the way Infosys looks at technology. It has always implemented emerging technologies and is doing the same with Windows 7 on 200 machines. And this time, says Krishna, users aren’t complaining, especially, he says, with the brisk start up and shutdown times.

The new operating system has also made life easier for Krishna. Windows 7 makes his work more effortless because it reduces background activities, resulting in enhanced power and processor management. It also helps him keep an eye on unauthorized software across about 5,000 projects. “The enhanced security feature App locker is a real treat,” he says. If Infosys is yet to scale its migration beyond 200 it’s because third-party software like VPN and encryption tools haven’t yet been certified to run on Windows 7 and supporting features like the Bitlocker are not yet enterprise ready. Once these issues are ironed out, Krishna plans to roll out the new OS in a big way. “Our target is to cover 70 percent of our machines in the coming four to six weeks. We are constantly optimizing infrastructure costs and providing a secure and user friendly environment. With Windows 7, Microsoft has upped performance, security and support,” he says.

But what about compatibility and user training, the biggest challenges to any migration? “There is no user training required to move to Windows 7,” says Krishna. And he’s been running all his work on Windows 7 without a hardware upgrade and has dealt with compatibility issues using the new compatibility mode.

Making a Case for Windows 7 Migration – PC World

Steve Ballmer recently stated that Windows 7 is the best version of Windows ever. Now that Windows 7 is officially out, the public at large can join that debate and determine if Windows 7 is the best version of Windows yet, or even the greatest operating system of all time. Let’s consider the hypothetical question of whether Windows 7 is the greatest operating system of all time.

Before the flaming comments start flowing about what a Microsoft fanboy I am, let me begin by stating that it’s a hypothetical question, not a statement of opinion, never mind an assessment of any empirical facts.

How do you even measure such a thing, though? Choosing the ‘best’ operating system is a little like selecting the ‘best’ religion. They all have their pros and cons and the decision is very subjective because what one person considers a feature, the next person considers a bug.

Windows 7 has been favorably reviewed thus far and it seems to be doing well out of the gate, but, let’s take a look at some factors you might consider in trying to choose the best operating system ever.

Price

Price alone can’t determine the best operating system, but it can certainly be a factor. You have to be careful about how you calculate the price of the operating system though. For example, the Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium Upgrade edition costs $120, compared with Snow Leopard, the recent upgrade for Apple Mac OS X, which came in at $29. However, comparable hardware to run it on costs two to three times more for the Mac OS X system, and the cost of compatible hardware devices is typically higher as well.

Linux is open source, which means that an operating system like Ubuntu can be downloaded for free. There are some intangible costs to the learning curve if you aren’t already a Linux-user, as well as some additional effort to adapt other hardware and software to work with it. But, overall the winner on price would appear to be Linux.

Market Share

This is arguably one of the more widely-accepted measurements for ‘best’ operating system. However, there are subjective ways to measure it. Is market share determined by the number of systems sold with a given operating system? Many users report having purchased a system with Windows Vista, but wiping it and replacing it with Windows XP, or some variant of Linux. How about the number of virtual systems running a given operating system, or the number of users who have multiple operating systems?

According to netmarketshare.com, Windows XP has 71.51 percent of the operating system market, followed by Windows Vista at 18.62 percent. Lumping versions together, Windows has 92.77 percent, followed by Mac at 5.12 percent, with Linux coming in third at just under one percent. Judging by those numbers, the market share winner is easily Windows, or more specifically Windows XP.

Vulnerabilities / Stability

Maybe price and market share are too arbitrary? You can argue that you get what you pay for and that free doesn’t mean good, or that just because corporations deploy Windows XP by the tens of thousands doesn’t make it ‘best’. How about the most stable operating system, or the one with the fewest vulnerabilities and patches?

Fair enough. I have two caveats to point out for this measurement. First, the number of patches can vary greatly from the number of vulnerabilities and may be misleading. On Microsoft’s monthly Patch Tuesday one Security Bulletin or update often addresses a number of outstanding vulnerabilities. Similarly, some updates for Mac OS X patch a large number of holes all at once.

The other caveat to consider is to look at the big picture. When Microsoft releases updates each month it includes patches for Windows, Microsoft Office software, Internet Explorer, Windows Media Player, and other Microsoft software like SQL Server and Exchange. An operating system like Ubuntu may be able to boast fewer vulnerabilities, but unless you are only using the core operating system you have to include the vulnerabilities for the web browser, media player, productivity software, etc. that make the system as a whole functional.

I’d call this one a draw.

Device / Software Support

Continuing the perspective that it’s the system as a whole that provides value, not just the core operating system, another measure of best operating system could be the number of compatible hardware devices and software applications available to use with it. No operating system is an island, and the flexibility to install a wide range of additional hardware and software greatly enhances the overall ownership experience.

Judging by what I see on store shelves at Best Buy, or what I can find online from retailers like Amazon, or CDW, I would say this category easily goes to Windows, but figuring out specifically which version of Windows would take a lot more digging.

Longevity

Any vendor can crank out a new whiz bang operating system every year or three and capture the attention of users. The new operating systems also become the de facto standard installed on new hardware purchases which gives them a decided advantage. So, when a legacy operating system still commands a significant share of the market, it says something about how capable and respected that operating system is.

Given that Windows XP users outnumber Windows Vista users almost 4 to 1, and that three out of four users still use the older version of Windows, the reigning champ in this area has to be Windows XP.

The bottom line though is that only you can determine what is the best operating system for you. Determining the ‘best’ operating system is, in fact, a matter of subjective opinion. Surveys and statistics may be useful, but what matters is how it works for you to do what you want a computer operating system to do.

It is too early to measure Windows 7 against most of the factors I listed, but I do think given time it could emerge as the best version of Windows and maybe even the best operating system.

Now you can commence flaming.

Tony Bradley is an information security and unified communications expert with more than a decade of enterprise IT experience. He tweets as @PCSecurityNews and provides tips, advice and reviews on information security and unified communications technologies on his site at tonybradley.com.

Is Windows 7 the Greatest OS Ever? Let Me Count the Ways – Business Center – PC World

Windows 7 is a big improvement over Vista, and a pretty convenient OS in general—but it’s by no means perfect. These 10 downloads improve Windows 7’s looks, functions, and make it easier, safer, and more convenient to upgrade to.

10. Bring back the "classic" Start menu

Windows 7’s Start menu is a powerful thing, offering program and file launching as you type and allowing for smart pinning of whatever you frequently access. If you’re really attached to the Windows 2000/XP-style Start system, though, CSMenu restores a "classic" look to Windows 7 by installing a companion Start menu on your taskbar. Want to eliminate that new-fangled Start menu and use only your classic model? Grab StartKiller and wipe away all signs of progress—er, change. We meant change. (Original post)

9. Logon changer customizes password screens

You can customize a lot of your system’s look in Windows 7, but the login/password screen remains fairly opaque and unchangeable. Tweaks.com offers a Logon Changer for Windows 7 that simply takes a JPG file (256K or less, so be sure to re-size and compress) and applies it to your logon background. If you don’t mind doing a little registry hacking, there’s a manual work-around for logon changing, but the Logon Changer is worth the install/uninstall if you know what you want to keep as your logon screen. (Original post)

8. Create recovery discs for pre-installed Windows 7

If you moved up to Windows 7 by way of a new computer purchase, you may have found that getting a full Windows 7 disc, or even a system recovery disc, was an "option" that cost a good bit of extra cash. If you’d like to ensure you can save your system from common boot-up and system errors in the future, NeoSmart offers its own Windows 7 System Recovery Discs that can repair damaged files, restore System Restore points, and even pull in full backups for restoration. If you upgraded to 7 from a student discount package that only delivered a single .exe file, Download Squad explains how to make a DVD upgrade disc from student discount files. (Original post)

7. Pull up incoming Gmail from the taskbar

If Gmail is your primary inbox, Gmail Notifier Plus not only subtly informs of you of new mail by changing its taskbar icon, but provides a subject line preview of new messages when you hover over its icon. You also get shortcuts to compose a new message, pop open your inbox in your browser, or head to any of your messages individually. Neat stuff, especially if you’d rather have a more firm control over when your inbox can have your attention—just close down Gmail Notifier Plus when it’s time to get cranking. (Original post)

6. Winfox makes Firefox work with Jump Lists

Support for Windows 7’s helpful jump lists won’t show up in Firefox until version 3.7. In the meantime, those who want to access their current tabs and most frequently visited sites can do so with Winfox, a helpful little add-on that you pin to your taskbar to access Firefox from. Copy Winfox to your Firefox program directory, install it, and pin the "Winfox" application to your taskbar. Now you can pin favorite pages to your jump list by dragging their tabs down, see the favicons of the sites you’ve got open, and get a read on how many tabs you’re running in the Firefox icon. (Original post)

5. Hulu Desktop Integration adds streaming TV to Windows Media Center

Windows 7’s Media Center was impressive enough for Adam to bust out his Buster Poindexter headline, and the only thing you might say it’s missing is better access to streaming television. Since Media Center just added CBS streaming, the one big hold-out is Hulu—which would deliver streaming shows from the likes of Fox, ABC, and NBC. Hulu Desktop Integration brings Hulu to Media Center with a clever little app. Launch the Hulu app from Media Center, and Media Center shuts down, opens the full-screen Hulu Desktop app, and then switches back to Media Center when you’re done in Hulu. That’s a nice thing, since because it uses the official channel to get at Hulu, the chances of it being locked out by Hulu are slim. (Original post)

4. Add stacks to your desktop

Windows 7’s taskbar is getting a lot of notice, and some say it’s more useful than Mac OS X’s Dock—except it’s missing the very neat "Stacks" feature. Missing, that is, until you grab StandaloneStack or 7stacks, which both do a great job of creating blow-up menus of folders and apps from single icons on your taskbar. Add a storage folder or custom collection of shortcuts to your taskbar, and you’ll never have to hunt down that "Computer" link in the Start menu again just to get to the right file. (Original posts: StandaloneStack, 7Stacks)

3. Tweak hard-to-find settings

It’s always a good idea to see what kind of settings you can change from your new OS’ Control Panel, but Microsoft only lets you play with so many check boxes and sliders. Apps like Ultimate Windows Tweaker, along with XdN Tweaker, have been digging deep into the guts of Windows since Vista first arrived (and sometimes before XP showed up), and they let you seriously fine-tune your system. Want only certain Aero 3D effects on your desktop? Need to change Windows 7’s window-snapping behavior? These apps have you covered. The hardest part is knowing when to say when on a settings-changing binge. (Original post)

2. Make Alt+Tab switching more intuitive

The familiar Alt+Tab keyboard shortcut gained a little visual overhaul in Windows 7, but it still offers just basic window switching. VistaSwitcher, a more powerful app and window switcher, improves on it in just the right ways. Besides an intriguingly different look, the app supports keyboard shortcuts that let you minimize or tile windows from your Alt+Tab screen, close down programs or file windows in bulk, and, with a Ctrl+Alt+Tab press, switch only between the open windows of the particular program you’re using, like a browser or image editor. Despite the name, VistaSwitcher works perfectly well on Windows 7. (Original post)

1. Install all your necessary apps at once

The first few times you re-installed an operating system, it probably felt like an adventure, something fun, a test of your tech prowess. At this point, though, you might just want to skip the part where you spend an hour grabbing Firefox, Picasa, an anti-virus app, WinAmp, uTorrent, and other must-have apps from the net. Ninite is your ticket out of redundant installations. Head to the web site, check off the apps you need from a huge range of good, free software, and download the resulting customized installer app. Double-click, hit start, and do something constructive while Ninite installs everything you asked for in the background, with very few, if any, questions or prompts

Top 10 Windows 7 Booster Apps – windows 7 – Lifehacker

Computerworld – Users can do a "clean" installation of Windows 7 using an upgrade license to save $80-$100 over the price of a "full" edition, a popular blog reported today.

According to Paul Thurrott, who writes the Supersite for Windows blog, Microsoft’s upgrade media and product keys can be used to do a full installation of Windows 7 on PCs that do not have an earlier version of the OS.

Microsoft’s Windows 7 upgrades are designed to do "in-place" or "custom" installs on PCs running Windows XP, Windows Vista or one of the preview editions of Windows 7. But Thurrott said that a few simple steps lets users install upgrade editions, which are considerably cheaper than the full versions designed for fresh installations.

Windows 7 Home Premium, for example, costs $119.99 as an upgrade, but $199.99 for the full edition, a difference of $80. The full versions of Windows 7 Professional and Windows 7 Ultimate, however, cost $100 more than the corresponding upgrades.

Nearly three years ago, Thurrott showed users a similar trick with the then just-released Vista; that technique, however, required users to install Vista twice.

Today, Thurrott spelled out how to conduct a clean install using a Windows 7 upgrade license. The process requires users to install but not activate Windows 7 with the accompanying product key. After the installation is completed, users must make a minor change to the Windows registry, use the Windows "rearm" command, then reboot.

"When Windows 7 reboots, run the Activate Windows utility, type in your product key and activate Windows," Thurrott said. "Voila!"

The rearm command can also be used to run a copy of Windows 7 for up to 120 days without activation, a trick that Microsoft confirmed two months ago.

Microsoft allows users to install and run any version of Windows 7 for up to 30 days without requiring a product activation key, the 25-character alphanumeric string that proves the copy is legitimate. The rearm command can be used as many as three times at the end of each 30-day grace period to extend the activation-free ride for approximately four months.

Some users commenting on Thurrott’s blog reported that they were able to do a clean install using a Windows 7 upgrade key without resorting to his registry hack and the rearm command. Thurrott, however, was skeptical.

"It certainly doesn’t hurt to try this, but my guess is that there was a version of Windows on the hard drive that Setup detected, thus making the install and activation work properly," he said.

Windows 7 install trick saves up to $100