Thus Windows 7 is a 7th generation product

 SSadagopan

Microsoft is getting all its partners ready for the launch of Windows 7 on Thursday. Many of us remember MS Windows 3 launched in 1990, a killer product, particularly with applications like MS Excel

Windows NT announced in 1993 was a completely rewritten operating system (OS) pioneered by David Cutler, the VAX VMS creator

Windows 95 was a runaway success

Windows 98 was a disaster, crashing right on the launch session

Windows XP launched in 2000 was a pleasant experience and dominates the desktops today

Windows Vista, launched in 2007, was again an apology (even Microsoft CEO admitted recently)

Thus Windows 7 is a 7th generation product.

My first impressions — based on less than two weeks of experience — are very positive

It is simple

It took just an hour to "clean install" from the Windows 7 CD; fast and straightforward. The opening screen is clutter free. The task bar has just a couple of items — Internet Explorer, Windows Explorer and Media Player pinned (kept permanently); you have the option of "pinning" any item (and vice versa). Any program or file can be searched in a simple text box just above the Windows button. Connecting to the network took two mouse clicks; one click on the task bar item, second on one of the networks discovered by Windows 7. Attach any device — connect a printer and Windows 7 "figures out" a way to locate and load the device driver and you are ready to print. A Bluetooth camera or mobile phone is recognized instantly; you transfer the pictures and video effortlessly. If an application has compatibility problem, Windows 7 attempts to run it in XP compatibility mode automatically. With the accelerator feature of IE8 (comes with Windows 7), many tasks are accomplished much faster; for example, you can find a person on Facebook when you click on his name on a web page. You can select a paragraph on a non-English website and with one click get its English translation The "jump list" can be accessed with a right click on any of the programs on the task bar and this opens up the sub-items (say, sites you visited ) or past activities (say, files that you opened). The search is so intuitive that the search box becomes the starting point for any activity (the way Google screen has become for internet use). Windows Explorer neatly categorizes files into documents, pictures, music, and video. Microsoft has dropped Outlook Express Mail client in favour of Windows Live Mail (free download) that is part of Windows Live Essentials with 25 GB of free online space Windows 7 supports "multi-touch". With HP TouchSmart laptop running Windows 7, I could explore Microsoft Virtual Earth by "pinpointing" with my fingers, a great experience; play Piano and draw using my multiple fingers on a scratch pad; with MS Media Center I could organize pictures and music by dragging and dropping using just my fingers! It is uber cool! Windows 7 allows personalization; I could increase text size to 125% to increase readability so easily. The peek feature allows one to take a look at the contents of a window right on the task bar without opening. One can clean up a cluttered screen by shaking (hold the left mouse and move your fingers over the track pad) — shake again to make them reappear. The snap feature lets one to snap fit two screens/two applications like Word & Excel side by side (for easy comparison or cut and paste) with minimal effort. The application compatibility task, multi-touch interface and auto-detect of most devices work wonders. In short, Windows 7 shows great promise. By not creating hype Microsoft might spring a big surprise with millions deciding to go for Windows 7. My first impressions, if it is any indication, points to a huge success for Windows 7. (The writer is the founder director of the International Institute of Information Technology, Bangalore)