The major secret of success of Microsoft is that it keeps an eye on the likes and dislikes of users and always tries to introduce new features which may satisfy its users so that they may not feel the need to look around for another software option.
This approach seems to be successful in the era of cut throat competition of software industry. The evolution of Windows, from Dos to Windows 7 is a clear example of such market orientated behavior of Microsoft.
In its new product – Windows 7 – Microsoft has introduced many new features with the help of which users may work:
- Faster
- Easier
- More efficiently
- May feel lighter to work with a sense of relative, ‘Fun’
While discussing the prominent features of Windows 7, Microsoft announced, “We designed Windows 7 to be more nimble and always ready when you are”
Prominent Features of Windows 7
1. Quicker Access To The Tasks of Your Frequent Usage
In the Windows 7, jump lists have been introduced which consists of recently opened items, so that such items of daily usage, given below, can be opened easily.
- Files
- Folders
- Websites
- Other options, applied by users, during the normal operation of Windows 7 and organized by the OS
You can either click the items included in the Jump Lists or you can, manually, pin favorites to ump Lists.
2. Get Music & Videos, Even You Are Away
It is a normal wish of every computer users to have access to the collection of music or videos in his/her home PC while they are away; either on work or on leisure trips – now they can do it. Now, you do not need to copy your media files from your home PC to your laptop, mobile gadgets or vice versus, i.e. you can access anything you want, anytime you want and from where ever you go.
This dream comes true with an option of ‘Remote Media Streaming’ available in Windows 7 which can fulfill your wish of remaining accessed to the music/video collection in your PC, working through Windows Media Player 12 library over the Internet.
3. Introduction of ‘Homegroup’ To Work and Share Easily
It was always a problem for the home users to make groups so that they may share files or print documents within the home as PC might have access to one printer at home. It was felt easier to copy the file/document on a USB drive and attach it with the PC which is attached with one printer. This problem is now solved with the help of ‘HomeGroup’.
New facility in Windows 7, HomeGroup, helps to do the following tasks on Home networks:
- Sharing files
- Attaching devices
- Attaching printers for convenient printing
Just connect two or more PCs, powered by Windows 7 and HomeGroup will be operational, and will, automatically, start to share with other member PCs in home to perform the following tasks:
- sharing your music
- Pictures
- Video
- Complete document libraries
4. Live Taskbar Previews
With many tasks being performed by computers, it was always a problem to see the background software working but now, in Windows 7, just look at the Taskbar Icon to preview the actual images of all of your open files/documents or programs.
Now, with the movement of your mouse over the image, you can preview the full image of the full-screen where you can click on the full screen image to start working in the desired program or right on the file. And yes, you can save a lot of your time by just closing windows/programs/files from the thumbnail previews.
5. Easily Size & Arrange Windows
A new option, introduced in the Windows 7, is ‘Snap’ which is a quick new way to resize open windows by just dragging the windows to the edges of your screen in a rather funny way. Snap is a tool to make reading, organizing and comparing windows in a way you desire.
Window can be adjusted, as per your choice to:
- Top of PC screen
- Bottom
- Left
- Right
- Expand vertically
- Fill the screen
- Position windows side by side
6. Windows 7 and the Application of Touch Technology
Though ‘Touch Technology’ is not a new thing in the Windows but, now, you may feel that it may work in every corner of your PC. Now, Start menu and taskbar have larger and fingertip-friendly icons while many programs familiar in the Windows 7 programs have been converted into the touch-ready ones.
Now with the ‘Windows Touch’ in Home Premium, Professional and Ultimate editions of Windows 7, painting in Paint is possible with finger touch or multitouch gestures. Need to zoom in on a picture? Move your fingers apart. Want to right-click on something? Touch it with one finger and tap the screen with a second on the screen.
7. Performance improvements
In the era where time is treated as the money, ‘Wait’ id the most hated word. With this public approach to waiting, Microsoft has taken to include many options to avoid wastage of time (avoidance of wait) which are displayed below:
a. Now, Windows 7 is designed with the options of:
- Sleep
- Resume
- Reconnect to your wireless network more quickly
b. While using the portable flash drive or other USB device for the first time, Windows 7 prepare it ready for use in seconds, i.e. waiting is even shorter
c. Windows 7 uses far less memory than Windows Vista
8. 64-Bit Support
Now, the PC market is flooded with computers with 64-bit processors with the advantages of:
- 64-bit PC can handle larger amounts of information than a 32-bit system
- With RAM of 4GB and 64-bit, computers are more responsive for the multitasking
Yes, remember, the Windows 7 has 64-bit support.
9. Windows 7 is Prepared to Work Faster
Windows 7 is designed to perform faster, in this way:
- Start typing into the Start menu search box, immediately after opening the operating system and many things on your PC can be displayed immediately:
- List of relevant documents
- Pictures
- Music
- E-mails
2. The results of search are, now, grouped into category with highlighted key words, easier to scan, with the help of text snippets
3. Windows is designed to search all the available sources of storage, e.g. external hard drives, networked PCs and libraries and can be narrowed down by date, file type, and other useful categories.
10. Data Safety
BitLocker, improved for Windows 7 and made further improved in the Ultimate and Enterprise editions, is designed to keep everything – from documents to passwords – safer and this work is done with the encryption of entire drive.
With the BitLocker is activated, each and every item, from file to music, is encrypted automatically.
