Background Information on XP and Vista
When I first got word about the new Win 7 OS coming out I was actually a bit shocked to be honest. To hear this news so soon after the Vista release was a little odd. However, I thought about the situation for a minute. Vista has bugs and runs like pregnant pig, updates don't seem to really improve much and even the "SP1" really wasn't a Service Pack at all. People were complaining about needing one and Microsoft thought it would be a good idea to give them that placebo and shut them up. It was simply a few normal updates to the security of the OS put in to one package. Smart thinking Microsoft, jokes on people who are computer illiterate...sigh. Not only that, but the OS it’s self was released early due to high demand.

Vista also has some issues with a lot of older software and hardware. Installing drivers can be a pain (this is from personal experience) and crashes seem like the normal process for Vista and this is more than likely because of the new kernel. Software manufacturers were kind of left in the dark in having to build on a new kernel without adequate time to make positive running drivers or updates. It just seems as if Microsoft took way too much time to create the OS and then to have it ultimately become hated by many end users. I know this because I am the one who is picking up the phone and giving the end user the support.

With XP, it came out with issues in the beginning as well. With randomly freezing up, BSOD's, and many other issues that I could sit here and complain about, but it's kind of boring. Vista may have been a bit buggy at first on release as well, but it was nothing like XP's release. Just to clarify, I am not against Vista and I am not for it either because I really feel that Microsoft should have waited another year to make sure that the OS was better than what it was on release as well they should have given software and hardware manufactures a better chance to actually update drivers and software to be compatible. Yeah, Vista has been out for a few years now, but it still has a lot of issues. This is one major factor in how the OS made its impact on the general public. The fact that it was on a new kernel is another reason why they should have supplied better tools and longer time for software and hardware manufacturers to be ready for it on release. Because of this, many programs that ran great in XP may not have worked in Vista and it made it very hard to make a seamless transition from XP to Vista. This alone caused lots of headaches for not only the software/hardware manufacturers, but the end users and IT departments.

About Win 7

Windows 7 is in a completely different ball park than either XP or Vista. However, It is based off the same kernel as Vista, but with some major changes. When asking Microsoft they said, "We are not developing a new kernel for Windows 7, but instead we refined the Vista kernel for use in the new operating system. This will help IT managers in expecting less hardware and software incompatibilities as a result if they make the move from Vista to Windows 7, which is unlike the problems many IT shops are currently having when migrating from XP to Vista." It's an IT nightmare to do a migration from one OS to a new one. For them to hear that Windows 7 is off the same kernel makes them wonder why moving to Windows 7 would be necessary.

By keeping the same kernel, Vista is really getting a second chance. There is nothing fundamentally wrong with the 'Vista' kernel, but it's a way for Microsoft to move away from a branding issue that was ultimately created when the OS made a bad name for its self due to so many incompatibility issues. You all know about that dark cloud that glooms over the brand name "VISTA" that I am talking about. Using the same kernel is an appropriate move because if you look at XP it was really a culmination of four turning cycles turning back to the mid-90's with Windows NT version 3 or 3.5. Now that we have a bit of an understanding about XP, Vista, and Windows 7 and a little history leading up to the new OS I will get on to my personal experience and what I think. So pull up a chair and suck down that caffeine because you’re in for a ride!

Now reading about Win 7 before it was even in Beta testing was like a tease. So many great things were being said about how different the OS was going to be. When I first saw the “leaked” screen shots it was like I was a kid in a candy store. The look being pretty much the same with a few tweaks to the UI was nice. One of the things that really stuck out for me was that annoying sidebar. Wait, that’s right Win 7 doesn’t have that. Instead they took that out and allowed for just having the applets to the side or anywhere for that matter. This was a great idea and I knew right off that it would release some of that memory for better use. Seeing the task bar in the leaked photos was a bit interesting. Reading about it was even better. The new task bar wasn’t really a task bar anymore. Instead it is now an applications bar, or what you can think of is a quick launch bar.

The Windows 7 taskbar is the most important Windows UI change since Windows 95, and it will dramatically change the way you use Windows and it's better than the Mac's Dock. That’s because the “superbar” – as it is known by developers – takes the taskbar functionality in a new direction. It's no longer merely a window manager, but a place to manage open windows and by proxy, open applications. This meaning that it is now a bonafide application launcher. With this it actually blends the two in ways that will remind many of the OS X Dock. Yes it is true that you have had the ability to launch applications from the Windows taskbar's Quick Launch for ages. That has been demolished so that Microsoft could completely and seamlessly integrate the launching of new apps and the managing of running ones.

Open Windows and Managing Apps
The superbar operates like the OS X Dock, but in reality Windows 7 takes this a step further. There is a significant visual change of running applications versus ones that are merely “pinned” to the task bar. The difference is the faint outline and the kind of glare that appears around the icon as shown in the image below.
Then there is the flashing colored glass. When an application needs your attention it will actually start to glow or flash in and out. This is nice, and though way less ostentatious than the old blinking button it’s still obvious. If you have your taskbar set to auto hide it will actually pull up the taskbar to show you that something needs your attention.

This process is so simple even your 80 year old grandmother could figure this one out and like it. What’s really nice is when you hover over an icon it displays any open windows and when you hover over one of those windows it will actually front face that window to your desktop and make everything else translucent. It’s also easy to move from app to app in one motion to bring up that window. This is not just a visual trick, like flip 3D. This is just sleek, convenient, and useful! You really don’t even need the Alt+Tab feature anymore. One of the things that may not be very apparent right off the bat is how to launch multiple services of one application. The secret is that you right-click the app icon, then click the app name itself appearing in the pop-up menu. Granted, from the Mac Dock, unless opening a new window is coded into the application as a Dock function, like Safari, you can't do it at all.

New Features
The latest release client from Microsoft which is Build 7100 or also known as RC1 came with a wonderful update. You can now have a virtual XP machine in Window 7. Windows Virtual PC provides the capability to run multiple Windows environments such as Windows XP Mode from your Windows 7 desktop. This was a shocker when the news came out and many people were skeptical on how this would play out. As in how much more RAM would you need and how much would be used? Another question would be how well is this going to perform?

In my experience so far the XP VM (Virtual Machine) is not even a noticeable hit on performance. The rig I am using has 2 Gig of DDR 800 and a Q6600 Intel Core 2 Quad. Without the VM I utilize about 53% of the ram. When using the VM it only goes up to 67%. The CPU usage goes up just a little more than usual as well. Not bad if you ask me.

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Installing the VM is simple. There is an update you have to install first and then after a restart you can install the VM. You can find that information plus the download at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc/download.aspx.
While I would like to have had a seamless installation it did not go that way. However, I was able to easily figure it out. My issue was that it was hanging right at the beginning of the installation. The only way to close it was to shut down the IEXPLORE process and then restart it and try again. Finally I went through the compatibility mode troubleshooting and it finally seemed to work. I have also heard that right clicking on the installer and selecting RUN made it install as well. Double clicking on the installer seems to make some systems to hang on that install window. One of the other things you may want to keep in mind is that you will need to have a system that can handle the virtualization. The VM requires a CPU with the Intel™ Virtualization Technology or AMD-V® feature turned on. This feature must be enabled in the system BIOS. You can also download utility’s to check if your processor has support for hardware virtualization. You can get Intel’s by going to http://www.intel.com/support/processors/tools/piu/ and AMD’s by going to (AMD currently does not have this app available on their site. I will update when link is available.)

Differences between Vista and Win 7
I have compared Win 7 with Windows Vista and found these 7 features that add significant value to Win 7.

1. Performance and user friendliness
Windows 7 will tremendously reduce the time to install an app. Also, now Windows will be less annoying with very less UAC prompt. For developers also, Win7 will reduce the time taken for developing Windows app.

2. NetBook Edition
Netbooks are the light weight portable laptops used for browsing, email etc. It seems that by this yearend we’ll see Netbooks by every major Brand like HP, Dell, Sony etc. Windows 7, apart from Ultimate Edition and Business edition will also have Netbook Edition. Though, of course it’ll be a stripped down version.

3. Media Center
Win 7 comes with enhanced Media Center experience. It will have Internet TV which will telecast MSN channels by default and will have a desktop sidebar gadget for the same too.

4. New Task Bar
Windows 7 desktop will look different now because of the new taskbar. You can now reorder the opened Window buttons. It has Jump Lists feature which will allow you to access common programs very easily. And you can see the full screen preview before switching to a window.

5. Media Center
Win 7 comes with enhanced Media Center experience. It will have Internet TV which will telecast MSN channels by default and will have a desktop sidebar gadget for the same too.

6. Multi-touch technology
With touch technology becoming the latest trend after Apple’s revolutionary multi-touch iPhone, Windows 7 has multi-touch for all the supported hardware. HP Touchsmart series is one of them.

7. Aero Peek
Aero Peek allows Win 7 users to instantly make all the opened windows transparent. So lets say, you want to see the weather on the Windows 7 sidebar Gadget, this feature will be very useful.

Final Thoughts
Windows 7 looks to have a slight edge over Vista pretty much across the board, with better speed, and lower CPU usage. Let’s hope things continue to improve as we approach the actual release. Apparently it looks like XP is still the outright speed champ on current hardware. To put things in perspective, I have been running XP as my main for the longest time. Even the three years that Vista has been out. This is simply because Vista, in all my experiences with it, ran horrible. I had a dual boot system and I would play around with Vista here and there, but I always found something (errors) that just irritated me so much I gave up and removed the partition and went back to just XP. Now mind you, I did give Vista the chance to improve. I have played with it the entire three years that it has been out. When I got Win 7, I immediately made another partition and played around with it. I found myself playing for hours upon hours and with each click I was amazed at how this OS is like Vista, but not. Some people will get what I mean by that.

I have since been running Win 7 as my main OS for some time now and I do plan on getting this OS as soon as it hits the shelves. I would also recommend to others to give this OS a chance instead of ranting over how it’s just a Vista update. It’s a complete revamp of the kernel and the UI with some other great features added. To have an OS that is still in Beta perform so well made me realize that this OS has some serious thinkers involved in the revamp. My props are out for Microsoft on realizing the people’s needs and making an OS that will not only mold to them, but assist them. The usability it’s self is far superior to Vista or XP. I recommend this OS to all users.