My brief experiences with Windows 7

Nov 14, 2009

My brief experiences with Windows 7

I got a copy of Windows 7 about a week ago. Never really got the chance nor time to play with it until now. So I erased my Windows XP and redo a new Boot Camp Partition for Windows 7. The sole purpose of having Windows is to run some needed applications.

I always enjoyed the idea of having Windows (or even Linux) on my Mac. With VMware Fusion and Parallels Desktop, everything runs faster and easier (& to HELL with Virtual PC).

I noticed a few interesting things when I did the installation:

1. Boot Camp will now named the new partition as “BOOT CAMP” instead of “Untitled”.
2. The installation process of Windows 7 is so much user-friendly now.
3. Boot Camp will create the partition in MS-DOS. If you want to proceed with Windows 7, you may encounter a small problem as Windows 7 only install in NTFS volume. Just choose the options and you are able to format the partition.

*Remember, you don’t have to choose the format, it will “auto” format the partition as NTFS.

4. Everything went smoothly. It may restart itself a few times but that is nothing. After everything is setup, just enter your product ID, your Username and Password. Done!

I really like the user-interface. The graphics and motions are smooth. For once, I will say “cool” for Windows. The wallpapers that are included with the disc-installations are funky. Gone are the days where Operating Systems are filled with ugly boxes and dull appearances. GUI has gradually becoming a form of art, and we consumers will benefit from it.

5. Install Boot Camp drivers. I am not sure which version you have from your installer disc. I got a CD that contains drivers from Snow Leopard Installer Disc.

*I believed many people still remember Mac Drive from Mediafour. It allows you to read HFS Plus formatted volume. Now, with Snow Leopard Boot Camp drivers, you can see your Mac OS partition and external volume which formatted in HFS plus.

For some unknown reasons, I could not do a right click via my MBP trackpad (Control-Click), so I used an old program which I had that does Apple Mouse (I always keep this application with me since the very fast day Apple launched Boot Camp). You may download it HERE (applemou.exe). It’s a very handy FREE program.

The customizations are made easier for everyone now. You can even download more FREE themes for your Windows 7.

The last thing you realized is, there are no “Windows Mail”, “Windows Address Book” or “Windows Movie-Maker” etc etc. To be honest, that’s good news for those of us who never used these tools. Microsoft has an page specifically directing you to the replacement applications: Finding your applications in Windows 7 .

If you open a Windows, you can see something similar to Mac Finder:

The downloads, music, movies, photos… etc etc.. Ironically, it make it easier for Mac Users like me to navigate around.

One last thing I noticed about Windows 7 is that the booting time is much faster then Vista. For hardcore Windows Lover, I believe this is something they cheer about.

Category: Technology

Tagged: Apple Boot Camp for Windows 7, Installing Windows 7, Mac Drive from Mediafour is driven out by Snow Leopard Drivers