But you won't necessarily see that straight away .Dubious default settings mean most Windows 7 installations aren't properly optimised , and if you want your system to have the best performance , usability , security and battery life then you'll need to apply a few extra tweaks . Here's what you need to know .
Tweak the Windows 7 taskbar
You'll want to get your Windows 7 system feeling a little more like home . Are you a little confused by the way application buttons are combined on the new taskbar , for instance ? Then get things back to normal by right-clicking the taskbar , selecting Properties and selecting "Combine when taskbar is full" from the "Taskbar buttons" list .
And while you're there , try checking the "Use small icons" box to save a little screen real estate .
Uncover secret wallpaper
Right-click the desktop , select Personalise and you'll be able to set your desktop background to some impressive new wallpapers , including a set for the
United Kingdom ( or wherever in the world you are ) .
But Microsoft has also provided more regional wallpapers for you to try . Click Desktop Background > Browse , navigate to |Windows|Globalization|MCT , choose a region you like - MCT-AU|Australia , say - and click OK to see the new images .
Improve Windows 7 battery life
If you're running Windows 7 on a laptop then saving energy is probably more important than speed , and you can get advice on how to do that with a little help from a hidden tool .
First close down any applications you have open ( anti-virus tools , firewalls or anything with an icon in the system tray can be left alone ) .
Then click Start , type CMD , then right-click the link to cmd .exe and select Run as administrator .
Finally , type
powercfg -energy
and press Enter . Windows 7 will analyse your system for 60 seconds and produce a report detailing whatever it finds . View this for recommendations on extending your battery life .
Run old software
Windows 7 is all about building on the Vista core , rather than changing it , and should run much of your software without difficulty .
You may still run into occasional problems , though , so it's a good idea to prepare yourself by installing Microsoft's XP Mode right now . This is essentially a virtual version of XP that you can run from within your Windows 7 desktop , and should allow you to run most troublesome older software without difficulty .
We say "should" because it's not quite that straightforward . Your CPU must have hardware support for XP Mode to work , for instance . The tiny , free Securable can tell you this , or you can download the manufacturer's own tools : the AMD Virtualisation Compatibility Check or Intel's Processor Identification Utility . If you pass that test then find out more on the Microsoft Virtual PC page .
Prepare for disaster
Everything we've seen so far tells us Windows 7 is a big improvement on Vista , but it's early days , and there's still just a chance that things could go horribly wrong .
Prepare for potential disaster by creating a system repair disc or two ( click Control Panel > System and Security > Backup and Restore > Create a system repair disc ) .
If your system won't boot for some reason then start from the system repair disc instead and it'll do its best to get your PC back into working order .
Speed up Windows 7
By default Windows 7 puts you on its "balanced" power plan , which saves energy but might also cut performance .
If you're using a desktop and are interested in speed above all else then click Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Power Options > Create a Power Plan , choose the High Performance option and give your plan a name . Click Next > Create , choose the "Change plan settings" link next to your custom power plan , and tweak it to suit your needs .
Improve Windows 7 battery life
If you're running Windows 7 on a laptop then saving energy is probably more important than speed , and you can get advice on how to do that with a little help from a hidden tool .
First close down any applications you have open ( anti-virus tools , firewalls or anything with an icon in the system tray can be left alone ) .
Then click Start , type CMD , then right-click the link to cmd .exe and select Run as administrator .
Finally , type
powercfg -energy
and press Enter . Windows 7 will analyse your system for 60 seconds and produce a report detailing whatever it finds . View this for recommendations on extending your battery life .
Windows 7 adds many useful improvements , but the default Explorer settings are still as dubious as ever and you'll want to tweak them right away . Click Start , type Folder and choose Folder Options from the list to get started .
The new Explorer navigation pane shows disconcertingly few drives and folders when you start . This makes for faster loading , but also means reaching your destination often requires extra clicks .
If you prefer the Vista style of navigation then click the General tab , and check both "Show all folders" and "Automatically expand to current folder" .
Windows 7 also hides drives that are empty , which means the contents of the Computer folder can change in unexpected ways . We find that distracting , but it's easy to change : just click the View tab and clear the "Hide empty drives . . ." box .
And it's generally a good idea to set up Explorer to display file extensions and hidden files , unless very inexperienced users have access to your PC . Click the View tab , select "Show hidden files , folders and drives" , clear the "Hide extensions for known file types" and "Hide protected operating system files" boxes and click OK to finish the job .
Thanks you for good suggestion.
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