# Windows 7, what's the verdict so far? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 5, 2010, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761 "2010-02-05T03:50:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![runcible\_spoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc29f/32.png) [@runcible\_spoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/runcible_spoon)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/21 "2010-02-07T00:19:04Z")
I work in a computer lab, and we switched over to 7 this semester. So far, other than a few things-not-being-in-the-same-place moments (which I’ll get used to), I think it’s maybe a touch better than xp. Most of the improvements are look-and-feel, which I can certainly appreciate. I like the thumbnails when you mouseover the taskbar, for instance. It certainly seems faster, but we also got new computers, so I wouldn’t want to commit to that. It does still have some of the obfuscation that Vista was infamous for. You can’t unlock a computer and kick off the user without restarting. It still frequently wants administrator access to do stupidly simple things (like run a troubleshooter). Pretty much everything’s got an added layer of ‘simplified’ controls before you get to the classic interface. You can either get used to the new methods, or switch back, so it’s not really a big deal, just seems pointless. It’s not like their new ‘simplified’ layouts are really intuitive or anything. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/22 "2010-02-07T02:37:26Z")
I went from a machine with XP to a new machine with 7 64 bit back in October. It is more stable than XP. It is set up a bit differently. My consultant advised me to skip Vista and says that 7 is basically a reworked Vista that is not as much a pain in the ass. It was trouble getting some drivers, but overall I think it is a success. ---
**Author:** ![sleestak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@sleestak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleestak)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/23 "2010-02-07T06:15:01Z")
> [@runcible\_spoon](#): > > You can’t unlock a computer and kick off the user without restarting. Bwah? I haven’t had that problem at all. So far I like it quite a bit. The only thing I don’t like is having to track down where MS decided to put things on this version. Of course this happens every time they come out with a new OS. I can always find what I am looking for but it might take a bit longer than normal. I’ll get used to it. So far I haven’t had any issues. I am running it at work and pound on it pretty hard. No lock ups and it runs all our programs with out an issue so far, and we have tons of programs that are used by various departments. Plus it comes with a chess program, so I can waste my time getting better at chess. Slee ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/24 "2010-02-07T06:22:30Z")
Vista also came with Chess Titans. I hate 7. The only differences I notice between 7 and Vista are negatives. For instance: I used to be able to click the Firefox icon on the left side of the taskbar whenever I felt like opening a new Firefox window. Can’t do that anymore. I used to be able to click a button on the taskbar to go into Windows Flip 3D view; can’t do that anymore (have to hold down Win+Tab.) I don’t like the new taskbar tab system. I hate the fact that when you drag a window to the edge of the screen, it automatically fullscreens it. (Hey Windows, if I want to fullscreen a window I’ll click the fucking Maximize button.) The taskbar pops up onto the screen when you manipulate the controls of VLC media player in fullscreen mode (never used to do that in Vista.) The only way to remove it is to click the screen again. My clock keeps resetting itself to wrong times and dates. I NEVER had any of these issues a single time in XP or Vista, but I guess Windows 7 wants to change all that by giving us interesting new experiences like time travel. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/25 "2010-02-07T07:22:25Z")
Yes man, I’m sure your clock randomly changing itself is due to Windows 7. My biggest problem so far is minor sleep issues. Mostly the fact that it won’t go to sleep sometimes when it’s supposed to. I have it set to sleep after 30 minutes of inactivity and sometimes after a few hours it still has not gone to sleep. I did the basic “do not allow my router to wake up computer” and now IDK what else there is. ---
**Author:** ![Lantern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d26b3c/32.png) [@Lantern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/26 "2010-02-07T07:44:35Z")
I have a laptop which runs Windows 7 and I like it quite a lot. It’s perhaps the most attractive and convenient UI I have come across on a computer (I have used MacOS X a fair bit though not much Linux). And yet somewhat to my surprise I don’t find myself rushing to install Windows 7 on my desktop. The fact is Windows XP runs just fine and while 7 has a whole range of improvements, XP remains perfectly usable. ---
**Author:** ![xash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c6cbf5/32.png) [@xash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xash)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 8:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/27 "2010-02-07T08:03:20Z")
My bookmarked Windows 7 links: **[The Bumper List of Windows 7 Secrets](http://blogs.msdn.com/tims/archive/2009/01/12/the-bumper-list-of-windows-7-secrets.aspx)** **[70 Useful Windows 7 Tips & Tricks](http://www.softsailor.com/news/887-70-useful-windows-7-tips-tricks.html)** **[18 cool things Windows 7 does that Vista doesn’t](http://www.techradar.com/news/computing/pc/18-cool-things-windows-7-does-that-vista-doesn-t-628892)** **[67 Windows 7 tips, tricks and secrets](http://www.techradar.com/news/software/operating-systems/62-windows-7-tips-tricks-and-secrets-643861)** **[Stupid Geek Tricks: Secret Items on the Windows 7 Send To Menu](http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-7/stupid-geek-tricks-secret-items-on-the-windows-7-send-to-menu/)** **[Use any version of Windows 7 free for 120 days](http://windowssecrets.com/2009/08/20/01-Use-any-version-of-Windows-7-free-for-120-days)** **[Windows 7 Hack: Start Windows Explorer from ‘My Computer’](http://blog.taragana.com/index.php/archive/windows-7-hack-start-windows-explorer-from-my-computer/)** ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/28 "2010-02-07T08:44:49Z")
> [@runcible\_spoon](#): > > You can’t unlock a computer and kick off the user without restarting. You normally don’t need to any more: just switch user. > [@Argent Towers](#): > > . For instance: I used to be able to click the Firefox icon on the left side of the taskbar whenever I felt like opening a new Firefox window. That’s funny: I have an icon for Firefox on the LHS of the taskbar and when I want to open a Firefox session, I just click it. ---
**Author:** ![Spectralist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Spectralist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectralist)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/29 "2010-02-07T08:57:41Z")
> [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](#): > > I never understood why people were so adamant about defending Vista with the argument that people just disliked change when it seemed so obvious it had serious failings. Because Vista was/is fine? Most of the problems people had with it weren’t Vista’s problems. A lot of(maybe even most of) the compatibility issues people had came from switching 64bit without knowing what 64bit was. Or from it being pre installed on computers that couldn’t really handle it. Well they could have if it were configured correctly but usually they just had the default/near default configuration. And many people got entirely new computers as their start with Vista and then blamed any problem they had on Windows rather than considering the possibility that their new hardware may not be as reliable as what they were used too. Or that to bloatware that comes on many new systems, especially laptops, might be causing the issues. There’re problems with Vista, there’re problems with all OSs but the way people blew it way out of proportion with Vista was just annoying. > [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](#): > > So I’ve felt vindicated that most people I know think “wow, 7 is really a lot better in a lot of ways and pretty decent”, rather than hating the new new thing. I find most people’s reaction to Windows7 to be rather disappointing. It’s Vista with a bit of a face lift and they go all gaga over it while bashing Vista. It makes no sense. > [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > I hate 7. The only differences I notice between 7 and Vista are negatives. For instance: I used to be able to click the Firefox icon on the left side of the taskbar whenever I felt like opening a new Firefox window. Can’t do that anymore. You can make it work more-or-less like it used to by creating a custom tool bar. Right click on the task bar-\>Toolbars-\>New toolbar… > [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > I hate the fact that when you drag a window to the edge of the screen, it automatically fullscreens it. (Hey Windows, if I want to fullscreen a window I’ll click the fucking Maximize button.) You can turn this off, though I cant remember where. And some programs do something like this by themselves(such as Chrome) so they’d still do it if you turn it off. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/30 "2010-02-07T12:44:07Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > That’s funny: I have an icon for Firefox on the LHS of the taskbar and when I want to open a Firefox session, I just click it. Yeah, you can start a new Firefox session by clicking it. What you can’t do is open a new window of Firefox while Firefox is already running. ---
**Author:** ![Ruken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f475e1/32.png) [@Ruken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruken)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/31 "2010-02-07T15:19:20Z")
I never used Vista, so I think a lot of what is annoying me about 7 got changed earlier. It’s like they tried to idiot-proof everything, but instead made it more complicated. My only real beef is that I can’t run Fallout 3 on my new laptop. It has absolute crap specs, but it runs games better than my old PC, which _does_ run Fallout 3, if at the lowest settings and with hourly crashes. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/32 "2010-02-07T16:11:24Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > Yeah, you can start a new Firefox session by clicking it. What you can’t do is open a new window of Firefox while Firefox is already running. File\New Window Or you could just open a new tab. ---
**Author:** ![runcible\_spoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9fc29f/32.png) [@runcible\_spoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/runcible_spoon)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/33 "2010-02-07T17:05:55Z")
I should clarify that you can’t unlock computers and kick someone off _unless_ you have User Switching enabled, which, given how many people we have here, we don’t want to do. ---
**Author:** ![Hunter\_Hawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/50afbb/32.png) [@Hunter\_Hawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hunter_Hawk)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/34 "2010-02-07T17:35:15Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > Yeah, you can start a new Firefox session by clicking it. What you can’t do is open a new window of Firefox while Firefox is already running. Right-click on the taskbar item, then click on the program item in the context menu. That should invoke a new separate window. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/35 "2010-02-07T19:57:39Z")
OK, so instead of one simple click to a little icon to do what I want to do, I have to either go to the file menu to open a new window (I already knew that) or I have to right-click it and then left-click another version of the same icon. Instead of just clicking the icon once. I realize how petty this seems. But it’s the principle here that I object to. Something that used to require only one click now requires _two_ clicks and there is _no good reason for it._ ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/36 "2010-02-07T21:13:27Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > OK, so instead of one simple click to a little icon to do what I want to do, I have to either go to the file menu to open a new window (I already knew that) or I have to right-click it and then left-click another version of the same icon. Instead of just clicking the icon once. > > I realize how petty this seems. But it’s the principle here that I object to. Something that used to require only one click now requires _two_ clicks and there is _no good reason for it._ Frankly, there doesn’t seem to be a good reason to open another window, either. All you have to do is _one click_ on the new tab button beside the last open tab. ---
**Author:** ![\_Undecided\_Adrian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/eada6e/32.png) [@\_Undecided\_Adrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_Undecided_Adrian)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/37 "2010-02-07T21:30:45Z")
You can run an additional instance of a program with a middle click as well. ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/38 "2010-02-07T21:57:48Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > Frankly, there doesn’t seem to be a good reason to open another window, either. All you have to do is _one click_ on the new tab button beside the last open tab. I do not want a new tab. I want a new window. Why? I don’t know. I just prefer it that way. ---
**Author:** ![Apex\_Rogers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e480ec/32.png) [@Apex\_Rogers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Apex_Rogers)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/39 "2010-02-07T22:25:38Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > I do not want a new tab. I want a new window. Why? I don’t know. I just prefer it that way. CTRL-N. Easier than clicking on the icon was, even. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2010, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761/40 "2010-02-07T22:31:36Z")
Are people getting the OS disks with new computers? If not, what are you supposed to do in the event it dies and has to be re-installed? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-7-whats-the-verdict-so-far/527761.md?page=3)