- Microsoft released six editions of Windows 7 in October 2009, in 32-bit and 64-bit: Starter, Home Basic, Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate; the Enterprise edition is essentially "Ultimate" edition for large quantity orders. Service Pack 1 was out in February 2011.
Tip: to see which edition (and service pack, and hardware) you have on your computer, hold down the Windows Logo key on your keyboard and press the Pause/Break key.
- Windows 7 Professional/Ultimate/Enterprise include Windows XP Mode, a free XP license for "Virtual PC" - on Home Premium, you need your own serial number / key for XP. This feature lets you run Windows XP and XP programs (like Outlook Express) right inside Windows 7! Here are two start menu shortcuts to launch Internet Explorer 6 and Outlook Express:
- Upgrading to Windows 7 is a breeze coming from Vista, but quite a change (worth the upgrade) coming from XP. Features notably removed include Quick Launch, the "Classic" start menu, and the inclusion of an email program (some PC manufacturers pre-install Windows Live Mail).
- Windows 7 is has overtaken XP as the most popular operating system in the world: this is in part because many users skipped Vista and upgraded directly from XP, released in 2001. And most Vista users have a PC capable of handling the Windows 7 system requirements. Statistics source = HitsLink.com
- Microsoft released Windows 8 in late 2012: it uses the new "Metro / Modern" interface, but most everything on the desktop will be familiar to anyone upgrading from Windows 7. The "Start Screen" replaces the start menu, but you can download third-party apps to bring back the start menu.
- Here's the full listing of tutorials: read through it for a great overview, or refresh your
memory. For in-depth info, just click on the corresponding link! - Change theme from the gorgeous Aero experience to more efficient Classic or accessible themes.
- Change wallpaper to a solid color or a background picture you can stretch, tile, or center.
- Add / Remove gadgets - show or hide them from the desktop, or permanently uninstall them.
- Add + customize weather gadget with: location, Celsius or Fahrenheit, stay-on-top, opacity.
- Window colors / transparency settings configure the "Aero glass" appearance of all programs.
- Customize system sounds by picking different
WAVfiles or turning some/all of them off. - Change volume / program sounds with different settings for each app, including muting some.
- Configure screensaver: use third-party screensavers, change the timer, or disable the feature.
- Add user accounts to let others use your PC without interfering with your files or settings.
- Delete accounts for users you no longer need; also explains how to change account type.
- Change account picture: it is visible on the logon screen and the top of your start menu.
- Change password for you or another Windows user; reset yours to a blank password.
- Restore Quick Launch to the taskbar like XP or Vista: the feature is only hidden, not gone.
- Disable Aero Peek to stop showing the desktop when moving your cursor in the corner by accident!
- Burn ISO image disc right from Windows, no need to download a third-party app.
- Upgrade to another edition of Windows 7 with "Anytime Upgrade": pay online, get a new serial #.
- Change icon size on the desktop, folders (Windows Explorer), start menu, or taskbar.
- Customize cursors by switching to different schemes or creating your own.
- Aero Snap lets you easily resize, dock, maximize windows + learn these keyboard shortcuts.
- Customize "close laptop lid" action: what happens when you close your laptop? Windows can optionally keep running, especially useful when you have an external monitor plugged in.
- Power plan & battery settings: make your computer more responsive, or save energy.
- ClearType settings control how smooth fonts appear on screen: adjust based on display type.
- Create zip files without third-party app: Windows calls these "compressed folders".
- Uninstall programs or installed Windows Updates - sort by size to regain disk space.
- Remember window size and position by customizing a program's shortcut properties.
- Open program w/ keyboard shortcut - works for any app, and even on older versions of Windows.
- Select files / folders: all files, a range (from file x to file y), or non-sequentially (one here one there).
- Show / hide taskbar icons to only keep important programs visible; others can optionally alert you.
- Disable taskbar notifications to prevent distractions from programs running in the notification area.
- Fix frozen taskbar problem when the "
explorer.exe" process is not responding and you can't click on another program, can't open folders, or can't open the start menu. - Customize wireless network settings to change password, control re-connection, encryption, etc.
- Disable virtual memory or reduce its size to regain hard drive space, especially with lots of RAM!
- Run programs as an administrator to perform system maintenance and configuration tasks.
- Always run a program as administrator by changing its shortcut or properties themselves.
- Change the default program that opens certain file types / extensions to another application.
- Change date/time for your PC's system clock, including time zone (only affects your profile).
- Stop Windows Updates reminders for patches or new software you're not interested in.
- Install a new font on your computer (or update it), and learn how to view already installed fonts.
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