microsoft-windows

My new Windows 7 eBook is available for $7 now (and includes the following information).

Buy My Windows 7 eBook Now!

1. System Requirements For Windows 7
2. Windows 7 Editions
3. Configure User Access Control In Windows 7

Read more on Windows 7 eBook…

The question, as asked by live chatter Alix:

I just bought a new laptop that came pre-installed with Vista Business. I upgraded DIRECTLY from 2000, more or less. I have used and still do use it, but I didn’t like it for my personal use. Vista, I am very happy with.

Read more on Features in the Vista Explorer are Somewhat Lost…

A month ago, “Oli Kenobi” emailed me and asked for my opinion on the Airport Extreme – which is turning out to be one of the better wireless routers I’ve ever owned, if only in terms of raw usability and user friendliness. He emails with a brief update this morning, including some surprising news – my shared experiences have inspired him to make the switch from Windows to OS X:

Read more on Breaking Windows Habits…

“General Walnut” poses excellent (if not rhetorical) questions on the matter of Windows vs. OS X:

I am nowhere near as much as an expert at this kind of stuff that you are and I’m not going to pretend that I am, but you were talking about how because of Vista that Apple might get more of the market. If they did catch up or even pass Microsoft, don’t you think that they will end up facing many of the same problems that Microsoft faces now? I mean, third party companies will want to start making machines that run their OS, and if Apple agrees then they would have to deal with the same hardware adjustments that Microsoft has to deal with. I don’t know, it just seems like, if the positions switch then it will just be the same thing with a different company, and if Apple computers aren’t running in that controlled environment that they have created then they will run into just as many, if not more, problems than Microsoft.

Read more on To Switch or Not to Switch…

Yeah, I’m crazy for being annoyed by all the shims and hacks that Microsoft Windows software developers have tried to slip past our respective radars. I think we should excuse this multi-billion dollar company for not being able to standardize software across their future flagship OS. I think it’s perfectly normal for every other application to have a different toolbar settings and dimensions. I also think that menu option height discrepancies are sexy.

Read more on Ignore the Windows Apologists…

McLaws says Vista Needs More Time and Scoble says McLaws is right on Windows Vista ship date. Pirillo has been saying this for several months now, and has been labeled a “nitpicking whiner” for his attacks on Windows Vista’s UI and UX. Welcome to the club, boys – I’m happy to no longer be standing out here alone. I’m singing the “I Told You So” song today, which sounds a lot like the Blackeyed Peas hit: “My Humps.” Microsoft Windows is bleeding influencers like never before. And now, further commentary from the memetic echo chamber:

Read more on Robert and Robert: Duh!…

I wish I was making this up – I really do. I also wish that someone at Microsoft would wake up to the fact that the user experience in Windows Vista is 10x worse than it was in Windows XP (if only because they couldn’t get developers to adhere to XP guidelines, and now Vista apps look even more Frankenstined). I wish Microsoft would hire somebody to look at this stuff before it ships – and do something about the problems before the world has to deal with them.

Read more on Windows Vista: Lipstick on a Pig…

A few minutes ago, in an online group chat, Microsoft Windows Featured Community leaders received the following stream of information regarding the number of sanctioned downloads for Windows Vista Beta 2. This report comes directly from Microsoft’s own Aaron Coldiron:

Read more on Windows Vista: Download vs. DVD…

Dinner with Lili Cheng and her band of Merry Men (and Women) indicated that there were still a few more Vista UI fixes coming down the pike in pending releases. I’ve been reporting and recording as much as humanly possible, but until Microsoft officially assigns Lili as the Goddess of ‘All Things UI’… we’re screwed. Guess what else is probably not going to be fixed in Vista? Errant ToolTips. Sloppy, sloppy, sloppy – but this is an oversight that will likely slippy, slippy, slippy.

Read more on User Interface…

Hey, we’ve got Vista Forums online – including categories for Multimedia, Networking & Sharing, Performance Management, Scan, Security, General Discussions, Hardware Devices, Games, File Management, Account Administration, Mail, and Setup & Installation. Each one of these Vista forums has a separate RSS feed, too – so if you want to track what’s happening in the world of Vista support, you can do it with ease. The forum servers are much happier now, and we’re only going to add more categories over time. Vista Help, ho!

Read more on Vista Forums…

I just couldn’t leave well enough alone. Even after my problems with Outlook 2007, and my original feedback on Windows Vista, I went deeper into Windows Vista’s second beta. This time, I didn’t concentrate so much on the font issues (so that I couldn’t be accused of being such a nitpicker). Don’t get me wrong; there are still thousands of UI oversights still sitting within Windows. I intend to prove that beyond a shadow of a doubt. I don’t just want to hear about how some of my problems were addressed – I won’t rest until all of them are. I keep being told that a lot of it will be happening soon, but… I’ll believe it when I see it. This isn’t just about fonts and icons, my friends – it’s about something I intend on using as my primary operating system for the next… seven (?) years.
Read more on 65 More Windows Vista Mistakes…

The screen shot from Windows Vista proves it. Any comment, Brandon? Of course, I’d expect a lot of these kinds of bugs in beta builds – especially when one beta is combined with another beta. The search “engine” is light years better than it was in previous verisons of Windows, or so the Search team tells me. I haven’t yet tried to copy my PST over into Outlook. I’ll be using Vista more and more on the road, as it’s now my laptop OS.

Read more on Microsoft Slows Microsoft Down…

I spent a few hours with Windows Vista last night, per Jim Allchin’s request to send him feedback about what I discovered in terms of discrepancies and oversights. I took that task seriously, and stayed up late to compile this far-from-comprehensive list. I sent it to him at 1am, and I hope he doesn’t have a filter that keeps him from seeing it. I realize this list is lengthy, but… these reasons are exactly why I’m afraid Vista won’t be as polished as originally anticipated. I warn you, this list is long – and it’s only going to get longer, the deeper I dive into Vista Beta 2. This list is longer than the interview! If you think this list is long, check out my follow-up list of 65 More Windows Vista Mistakes.
Read more on Windows Vista Feedback…