Thursday, December 14, 2006

Windows Vista

  Every time Microsoft releases a new operating system, the computer industry becomes aflutter with anticipation, and the lives of millions of computer-users around the world have their lives turned upside down until they realize, a) that they can use it, and b) that it makes things better.

  In July 2005, Microsoft unveiled the first beta version of the operating system that will replace Windows XP.  It’s called Windows Vista, and among those of us who have tried it, reaction is mixed.  This week I had a chance to give it a day in court, and quite frankly, I like it.  And I think that, for the most part, you will too.

  I guess I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that it’s supposed to be safer and more secure against the cyber-badguys.  Microsoft has developed a unique new way to encrypt everything on the hard drive, and it can only be decrypted by an on-board microchip, making it impossible for “the evil-doers” to access your hard drive.  It’s called BitLocker, and can even protect against offline attacks.  Of course, it also relies on Windows Defender to protect against malware, just like Windows XP.  And Internet Explorer 7, which you may have already downloaded from Microsoft.com, ramps up security against malicious software using anti-phishing filters and other key features.  All of these are supposed to come together to make your desktop a little safer.  How well it will work against the ever-evolving hackers remains to be seen.

  But what is most striking about Windows Vista is the visual appearance.  It is certainly sleeker and more streamlined than the visually stale XP.  While it’s similar enough to XP to ease the transition and minimize techno-shock, the new features struck me as an immediate improvement.  Chief among them are the “gadgets,” which can be pinned to the right side of the desktop for quick and handy access.  You can add a clock (the round kind, with hands), a handy notepad for reminders, or feed the latest headlines, weather information and stock prices directly to your desktop.  In the future, more gadgets will be available for download from the Microsoft website.  When it comes to practicality, they all beat the pants off that irritating Windows Dancer.

  With Windows Vista, searches are made simpler, too.  I hate to say it, but the new search features are eerily reminiscent of Google.  In my short playdate with Vista, I found the search results to be better organized and more likely to find exactly what I was looking for than XP ever offered.

  But computer guys are having a harder time adjusting.  The version I used belonged to Mike Stout of The Only Company, a computer support and service company in Las Cruces.  Stout is also a beta-tester for Microsoft, and has encountered a few problems with the new system.  “It’s a little harder to find the features that I need to access.”  (These are presumably not features that the average user would typically use—or understand.  Things like registries, administrator settings and networking features.  You know.)

  Overall, I don’t think the launch of Vista will be as unsettling to the average user as, say, Windows 95 was.  It is currently being manufactured, and is scheduled to hit shelves on January 31, 2007. 

 -From Pulse
   December 14, 2006

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