Windows 7 Next generation of software CONTROL?

[Vinylman]

Check out what PC world has to say about where the latest Windows OS is headed.

Not very user friendly.

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/170842/windows_7s_deadly_sins.html

 

[briankb]

[rant] like most of the nut job groups out there the leader of FSF is a hypocrite. FSF advocates ALL software should be free, completely without exception. If it's not they complain.
However the leader always requires a steep speaking fee plus expenses which is how he has been making a living for years. So if you pay him he will be glad to tell you how much your company sucks for not using completely free software which is crazy. You should use whatever software makes you or your staff the most productive and profitable. I really wish this guy would concentrate more on having competition than this free software stuff. [/rant]

I've been using Win7 x64 for the past few months and it's very nice. If you are a novice I imagine there are restrictions but I'm running in admin mode just like on XP or Vista.

 

[Replicator]

I have nothing but praise so far for Windows 7 . . . It's been like a long overdue dream come true !

 

[javila]

Oh jeez.

 

[choucove]

As others have already quickly popped up to mention, there's been an outstanding amount of support and praise for Windows 7, and not just from Microsoft freaks either. One of the computer science professors I know has always been incredibly devoted to Mac OSX, but after having a chance to run and play with Win 7 he is planning his next upgrade to switch to 7 instead of keeping with OS X.

I've been working with Win 7 personally as have several others here, and there are very few things that have been complained about anywhere.

My uncle is a software and system designer and one of the leading computer security specialists in the nation. He has never liked Microsoft and even with Win 7 release says he still doesn't like a lot of how Microsoft markets and does things. But even then, he said he cannot deny that it presents an unbeatable level of productivity for 99% of the world. So the software isn't free like you can get from elsewhere. But not everyone can offer everything for free. Without a cost, they wouldn't have the years and years of company experience into making a better product that sells better. It's simple economic law that a company that sells their product will strive to make better selling product. If a company doesn't sell a product, they don't have the incentive of better selling products to push them to better their products.

Now is that to say that Windows is the only operating system (or software in general) worth anything? Of course not!

 

[Techman]

Win 7 is a good software.
However, it still presents a reduction in our total computing experiences. The DRM crap is about the most restrictive there ever was. If fact, it contravenes our rights given to us by copyright law. That is where a lot of the controversy comes from.


One powerful reason Vista is a failure is because of the DRM. IT would intrude on a legal users activity and in fact remove what it thought was maleware. Plus the fact that a much higher powered machine was required to run it just because of that DRM management overhead. A high powered machine should have meant a faster response. Instead it was met with a slower machine. They made us pay for their demands that invaded our rights. Thus,,,Vista FAIL.

And another reason is the activation system that was even more onerous for a non OEM buyer. Plus the price of the software was way to high verses the benefits. there are 500,000 cases of legal OS being shut down which at first M$ denied was occurring. .

You pay 300 for the OS then you were required to buy a nw machine that also required you to get updates to your present software. A simple purchase of 300 quickly turned into a $3,000 money pit.

Win 7 is being accepted because it is a good software and most PC users have the newer hardware anyway. No need to run out and buy new software. Then they made sure older software and hardware would run without the hassles. The free market dictated what was acceptable. IF win 7 does not become a success then we wil lsee some changes..

 

[Dice]

Windows 7 with 64bit and 8 gigs of ram and a SSD, runs like a dream. Hasn't crashed on me in 2 months.

 

[choucove]

I've heard here and there that several gaming software companies ran into trouble instituting very strict DRM and registration restrictions for their games and because of it lost a lot of possible market. There was one game in particular (though now the name of it has lost me) that only allowed the purchaser to install and activate the game one time. That meant if you want to reinstall or anything else you had to purchase a different license. Needless to say after that game suffered from horrible sales due to that activation requirement the company vowed never to try a stunt like that again!

Techman sure pointed out something interesting that should be something brought to more people's attention. The way that product DRM and activation has come to dictate not only how the software can be used but what the purchaser can do, period. While I do like Microsoft, I believe a lot of things they have done are very questionable if not completely wrong.

Many of the reporting utilities and even features that you PAY for require that you forfeit your identity and information to Microsoft. To me, that's just wrong and an invasion of privacy. And the thing about it is very few people using the software know of what is really going on. It should be paid more attention to but instead it is almost like a form of borderline invasion of privacy that has been legalized and put under the radar as to not cause a stir.

It is almost the same thing as with Facebook or any other social networking site. Millions and millions of people are joining on these sites, posting up all their personal information, without even realizing that the minute they do their information from their names to their phone numbers to their pictures are forever property of Facebook. (User Terms & Agreements) But this is a subject coming under more scrutiny as well, so it will be interesting to see where things go from here.

I honestly feel that even if this kind of subject was brought to the forefront of technology discussions everywhere, they MIGHT make a change to the system but in the end it would still perform the same way. It's just that age in technology where for some reason, since it's so easy to get the information anyways, everyone has to know everything about you.

 

[Tony Teveris]

Installed Win7 (64 bit) over my Vista 64 with no problems. Had to installed McAfee 8.7 (IT enforcement) and it runs like a top. Never really had problems with Vista either. The only thing I do not like in WIn7 are the toolbars. In previous versions you could place your toolbars anywhere but now they are always tied to the taskbar.

I have been looking into Linux but so far I'm not very happy. As a developer I want source code and the proper tools to develop software and I find it very hard in the "open source" world to find anything. I'm constantly in a "hide and seek" mode.

 

[choucove]

I have been looking into Linux but so far I'm not very happy. As a developer I want source code and the proper tools to develop software and I find it very hard in the "open source" world to find anything. I'm constantly in a "hide and seek" mode.

Really? This is quite interesting to me to hear, as at KU we were taught almost completely on Linux because of their open source availability of code and functionality for programming. The best programming classes I learned from were tied in with the bash script power to run all your code without having to spend a single dime. You run it, it just works. Yes, there are additional loops you have to go through sometimes for certain things like drivers but that is what you give for not having to pay for the software. But to say that the open source software is lacking isn't always true, as there are a lot of open source software that is on par with the top-contending pricey alternatives.

I'm interested to hear though that you do prefer Windows for coding. I know a lot of people and places do, but usually linux's integrated bash scripting and all the integrated libraries and free programming utilities are one of the key selling point for programmers.