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Thread: Just got windows 7 home premium...

  1. #11
    Esteemed Member
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    Oct 2005
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    Windows 7 is much more stable than Vista, but a huge part of this is due to driver improvements by PC hardware manufacturers since the core kernel was already fine from what I found. The other large change though is some tuning for better performance, the stated requirement for 1GB RAM vs 512MB with Vista and a lot of user level interface improvements.

    Vista was doomed not by its kernel, but the fact that the public doesn't care if its core is good, as their entire perception is the front-end user experience. People like myself used Vista all along because it was much more secure than XP, but we also fought manufacturer driver issues and stupid decisions like including outdated 'crapware' that caused systems to crash. My own laptop was a perfect example, since it's finally stable after a bottom-up OS rebuild.

    The basic problem for a new OS at the public level is it must be tailored to them, unlike those of us with a deep background at an Administrative level. Vista was designed to change the direction of the OS, design in security and seriously begin the switch to a 64-bit OS, which is always a difficult transition.

    Just look at your list, since Windows 95 was the 16 to 32-bit transition, ME was the 'hold-over' OS while Windows NT 3.5x was occuring in business, eventually to be completely re-worked into Windows 2000 and then that was re-faced for the public as Windows XP 1 1/2 years later. You also missed other half-step versions like Windows 98SE, XP x64 and those proceeding 3.1 all of which had their own issues.

    So each major technical transition has been difficult, especially for the public which really has no deep technical understanding and thus no patience for something that doesn't just 'work'. Since Microsoft is more focused on the pure technology than say Apple, they really have to switch gears and get key people involved to create this 'polished' version that the average Joe can accept. For example, the key person behind the consistency of the Windows 7 GUI was the same one who created the 'Ribbon' in Office 2007.

    So no, I don't believe they purposefully do this, it's simply part of the nature of the technical innovation cycle versus user interface improvements. As the number of users with a PC increases their ability and willingness to try to understand the technology decreases, resulting in a GUI gap. I saw this originally at an engineering school where I worked in the 90's, since the newer students were more used to having simple to use technology in their hands almost since birth.

    This really isn't surprising, since human factors has been basically understood for years, but always gets supressed by the techno-geeks until something like a Vista kicks them in the b_tt economically, requiring a serious re-thinking of focus.

    This is why some tout Apple, since it's stayed on the human factors side of things most of the time, but generally shown the higher cost that typically comes from this choice. PC users as a group don't like to pay for this and so don't always get it, it's really that simple.

    Bitman
    Last edited by bitman; 2009-10-26 at 14:52. Reason: Splling

  2. #12
    129260
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    Lightbulb Wow, I see...

    That was written very well I might add. I see your point. Thanks for your thoughts. What I have noticed to, that also helped Windows 7, is the way it handles services differently compared to other windows versions. While vista did offer a service to be set to automatic-delayed start, 7 seems to handle this way better, more 1 by 1 then all at once kind of thing. Hope that makes sense what I am saying there. Anyways, I noticed that in the final version of windows 7 home premium, instead of in the rc (and past Microsoft OS) where almost every service was listed automatic, Windows 7 has set most services to manual as the default, rather then automatic; thus increasing performance on boot. It seems they set every service that was not required for windows to run and put it on manual. That way, if the user starts a program or tries to access a service, its only started when needed. For example, windows media player streaming. I think this is why as well that windows 7 works so much better.

    I also see your point about my list. The transitions are a key fact to consider. Guess I should have noticed that.

    And your right, the GUI is a major fact in how people see windows or any OS for that matter. When vista launched, most of the world had learned/knew Xp's way of doing things better then any OS. And XP wasn't so much different that 98 and 2000 users could still understand. But vista changed everything about the way it looked, where stuff was, etc. That was what people hated the most, you could not get the classic look back. People Do not like change, they despise it. But eventually, everyone eventually grabs on and moves on with the change. And now that a few years have gone by, people have learned to accept this new look and deal with what Windows now looks like.

    Thanks for your thoughts. I like the way you think, makes me learn alot.

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