Windows 7

I first heard about Windows 7 as I was browsing, did a bit more reading on it, check out the forums and decided to try it out. The main reason being it will be usable until March 2010, so I figured its worth the effort. License for the RC was simple to get, log in with MS passport and it will be provided. I got 2, initially by mistake but both proved to be useful as I finally did two installations. The download of the 2.3 GB file took about a day but was quite painless. It could be interrupted and resumed with ease. Once downloaded, burn to create a bootable DVD. Then the adventure begins.

The first was an experiment. A Fujitsu P5020 was in dire need of an overhaul. Its HDD is full, performance is slow and most likely riddled with viruses. First back up all data files. My first mistake here was that I did not copy the driver files. Solved by hunting and grabbing from the net. Precious time would be saved if I had copied the drivers.

Slot in the DVD, turn it on, press Esc key and boot from DVD. Windows 7 will only work on NTFS formatted drive. It will do that first and then install. This took about half an hour. Once done, amazingly it grabbed my home wireless at the first instant and goes online to search for updates. Most it does, some have to be manually searched and updated. It works.

Since this is one used by the kids, I then installed kaspersky AV from a multi license DVD that I thought was a waste of money back then. MS Office was missing and I did not get the licence key so I installed Open Office instead. That's it.

Since the P5020 was successful, I decided to update a Vaio TX with Windows 7. Back up data, copy drivers, download ProduKey for MS Office, pop the DVD, turn on, press escape key and boot from DVD. Format the drive and did a clean install.

About half an hour, install drivers and the AV Mode and function keys does not work. Download and install various Sony files i.e. Shared Library, Utilities DLL, Event Service, SFEP (don't ask - I don't know what it does) and the whole thing just works. For touch pad I installed the Alps Pointing device from Dell instead of Sony, because its only 2.3 MB whereas Sony's is 30 MB and the Sony Asia support page is so S L O W. The US site is fast but there is a notice saying that it might not be compatible with non US Vaios. Double standard ?

Then I installed Kaspersky and MS Office 2007. No issues. Both validated and updated. Brilliant.

Both, especially the Vaio TX now feels much faster and snappier. Looks better and so far works without any glitch. I do think that this is what Vista should have been. If you have an old system in need of an update, go for it.