Windows 7 Beta 1 – 1 month in February 11, 2009

For those of you who are reading up on this blog, you’ll know that I’m putting the windows 7 beta to the test. I’ve already given it a review, and another one, 3 weeks later.

So, here we are, a month(and some days, evidently) later. For those who read my “3 weeks in” review, you’ll note that the OS was holding itself pretty good, and showed no obvious flaws. However, after a month, even Windows 7 is showing itself to become just as all the other iterations. A rule of thumb I’ve always lived by, is that no windows install lasts for more than a couple of months before you basically have to make a clean install. Of course, if you treat it right, using registry defrags and clean up stuff from time to time, you can obviously make it last for years, but that’s not the point I’m trying to make either. Anyways, a month after I installed Windows 7 Beta 1, it’s starting to give annoying errors here and there.

It’s not unfixable though, and I’ll get to that. For example, some programs just refuse to install. I was given an error while trying to install QuickTime the other day, and windows didn’t even give me a valid reason as to why this happened, but instead, just refuse to actually run the installer. Instead, it gave the infamous “..Has encountered an error and will now shut down”-message. Oh joy. However, after a couple of runs trying to install QT and iTunes, and still not getting the thing to work, the Windows Action Center gave me a message as to what was wrong. Apparently, the registry’s been worked at in Win 7 too, and this is what’s giving the error, rendering some applications unable to install. But, Windows 7 wasn’t only generous enough to tell me what was going on, it even told me how to fix it. If you’re encountering the same kind of thing, here’s what you got to do.

1. Open up the command prompt as an admin by going to “Start->All programs->accessories, and right-clicking the command prompt.
2. Type the following in the command prompt window: reg del hkey\sowtare\microsoft\sqmclient\windows\disabledsessions /va /f
3. Hit return/enter.

And there you go, the issue should be resolved. Now, of course, it is a beta, so it’s bound to have some issues, but it’s a good thing that the action center told me what the error was. Of course, if you’re efficient with running through the registry, you probably got that the command further up here is a command that directly changes a value in a file in the registry, and you can also do this manually. However, I’m not going to suggest tampering with it anymore than that command, as it can seriously screw a lot up.

Now, on to the other issues. The sleep/wake times have been HEAVILY improved compared to Vista, but lately, it’s actually been slowing down. Now, when I wake from sleep, it takes a couple of minutes before it’s actually back on track, and the joy of typing the password and then instantly starting Spotify to tune in to music has become more of an "oy” than joy(think cockney). Huzzah. Now, I’ve searched for a solution to this, and while I’ve yet to find one, I’m pretty sure it’s got nothing to do with the registry, but instead, it’s linked to the computer’s memory(RAM). The computer I’m using it on only has 1GB of SO-DIMM DDR2 RAM, so it’s bound to get issues here and there when it comes to performance, but if you’re running on 2GB++, I’m sure it won’t bother you the same way as it has been with me.

However, the bug that’s bothering me the most, is WLAN stability. It actually had some problems regarding the stability in the first day, but as the Windows Update managed to find a new and improved driver for my WLAN adapter, I didn’t see how mentioning it would be necessary. Evidently, I was wrong. The last couple of days, the WLAN has started become VERY unstable, and disconnects me from the router in intercvals. Some days, there are no problems at all, but then there’s the other days, when it keeps doing it chronically. It usually happens when I start a download, be it from FTP’s, torrents or simple HTTP downloads. It also tends to happen when moving files from one computer to another via the network.

Now, this is a bug I find very annoying. If you’re not online via WLAN, you’re probably safe, but I’ve yet to test an actual cabled connection.

Of course, some of you might think that this is router related, but when my Mac and PS3 stays connected, you probably get that it’s not.

Another thing that’s also full of bugs is Windows Media Player 12. Now you’re probably thinking “WMP? Who the hell in their right mind uses WMP?” Well, I don’t, actually. Not for desktop playback of files. I use Spotify for listening to tunes, I use iTunes for syncing my iPhone, and I use VLC Media Player to watch films/videos. However, WMP has a nice feature that allows you to share media over the network. This is especially good when trying to watch HD video. As I stated earlier, my laptop isn’t exactly powerful, so even 720p files is laggy. My PS3 can play them back without any issues at all, and so, instead of copying the file to an external drive and connecting it to the ps3 later on, I simply add it to the WMP library and share it. Since the PS3 can connect to media servers hosted by WMP, I kinda have to use it. And also, if I want to watch something on another laptop in the house, I don’t have to copy files all over the place.

But, there’s issues. For one thing, WMP has a tendency of not starting at all these days, and when it finally does, re-syncing the folders it’s set to watch and add media from, can be a royal pain in the ass. It works some times, but generally, the later days, it’s actually becoming really hard to do. I try to re-sync the folders, I try adding it manually, and I try dragging and dropping. It’s still not showing up in the library, and it’s most certainly not popping up on the PS3 either. Windows Media Player has, however gotten a pretty extensive codec library/support, so playing back files within it, is less of a problem now, than it was a couple of years ago. Compared to WMP 10/11, it’s actually a delight. If you overlook the fact that it won’t start, and won’t add files to the library.

..And that’s actually pretty much it. It’s still holding up pretty good, but there are some errors that need fixing. And of course, considering it’s still in beta, they will be.

 

-Tom Ellingsen

Windows 7 Beta 1 – Three weeks in. February 1, 2009

About 3 weeks ago, I reviewed the Windows 7 Beta 1. So now, three weeks in, I found it only natural to blog a new post about how it’s keeping up with the normal windows-sickness that Microsoft has suffered since the dawn of Windows 95.

Here’s the topics and bugs I’m specifically looking for, and whether or not they’re still around, in no specific order.

Note that I’m not blogging just about the issues, I’m also giving thorough information about why they happen at all, and how to solve them.

 

1. BSOD (Blue Screen of Death)
2. Registry speed
3. USB devices
4. Copy/Paste
5. Delete
6. General performance
7. Updates
8. Default Programs

 

1. The infamous Blue Screen of Death

Although I’ve heard stories of people experiencing this phenomenon, I’ve yet to see it. In fact, the last time I personally gawked upon the all so precious kernel panic was in Windows XP(pre SP1), and that was my own fault, benchmarking, multi-tasking, watching videos and downloading at the same time. With a 32-bit processor and 1GB RAM, I was kind of asking for it anyways. However, if windows is used correctly, the BSOD should not appear. If it does, however, you’re either doing something wrong, or windows itself is having issues. It’s mostly directed at the memory though, so you might want to do a RAM diagnostics, should it happen frequently.

Anyways, so far, Win7 has not displayed a BSOD as of yet. I will, however let you know.

 

2. Registry, and the speed of windows accessing it

Now, some of you might know this, but one of the main reasons why Windows installs get slower after months of use, without doing a clean install, is the registry. Mac OS X does not suffer this, since it has no registry, but this post is about windows, so I’ll get to the point.

Once you install an application, it registers information in the registry, including licensing, runtime data and some other stuff necessary to run.

However, this information is static, but once the application is uninstalled, it still leaves traces in the registry, just in case you should choose to install them again. Suffice to say, if you keep installing/uninstalling applications often, the registry gets cluttered. The issue with most family computers is, that the average Joe doesn’t really know what he’s doing. This goes for Jane’s too, though. They use windows every day, but they also let their kids use it, and kids generally installs/uninstalls apps more often than adults. So, naturally, the kids get the blame for screwing up the computer.

Now, what you should know, is this; The registry CAN be accessed by running the “Regedit” command in the windows run dialogue, BUT, it shouldn’t be tampered with if you don’t really know what you’re doing. In fact, you should leave it alone all together, as it also contains critical windows runtime files and other valuable information that enables windows to run.

So, what CAN you do? well, there’s actually several applications out there that help clean the register, and thus optimizes your computer’s access to it. My personal favourite for this, is Auslogic’s Registry Defrag. It’s free, and does exactly what you’d expect of it. It defrags the registry, and makes your computer’s general speed much improved.

Now that that’s settled, how is this issue in windows 7? Well, I’ve been installing and uninstalling apps frequently, to help settle the fact whether or not it’s supported in 7, and so far, the registry seems to be a bit more optimized in win 7, compared to Vista and XP, but it’s also worth noting that there’s only so much Microsoft can do about it, to make applications still compatible. All in all, it’s running faster than XP/Vista, but it’s still got a long way to go to match a 4-year old OS X install. Using windows for 4 years without doing a clean install again, without tending the registry is near-fatal.

 

3. Usb Devices. Compatibility, speed, and stability.

This topic is rather short. Everyone knows what USB is these days. Granted, not everyone knows that it’s an acronym for Universal Serial Bus, but that’s not relevant.

In windows 7, the general compatibility is just how you would expect a new OS to be. I’ve yet to find a product that’s not supported, and since almost all USB devices are Vista-compatible, there’s no hassle at all. Let’s remember that Windows 7 uses the same driver structure and system as Vista, so whatever drivers that are compatible with Vista, will also work seamlessly in Win 7. That’s all there is to it.

As for speed, USB 2 is just as fast as ever, and the general stability is just as Vista. No problems at all. All in all, it’s how you expect it to be; working.

 

4. Copy/Paste. Speed, Compared to Vista.

If you’ve lived under a rock for the last 2 years, you’ve not noticed how Vista royally screwed up the copy/paste speed, since it oftentimes used longer time to estimate the time remaining, than it actually used to complete the process. For instance, a <1MB file should take less than 10 seconds to copy and paste, but Vista could use way longer, as it started estimating the time remaining instead of actually copying the file.

In 7, this issue is resolved slightly, but lately, I’ve been noticing it starting to estimate a lot more than it used to. This isn’t really a huge problem, but it sure as hell is annoying, if you’re downloading a lot of small files, and want to re-organize it later on.

 

5. Deleting files.

As with the previous topic, Vista had a tendency of estimating time to delete the files instead of actually deleting them, and in 7, this is still pretty annoying. Granted, huge files are deleted quickly, as windows starts to delete it, and estimates while it’s doing so. With smaller files, the file is sometimes actually deleted already while windows is trying to estimate the time remaining. 7 still has some very annoying flaws in this field, beta or not, and it’s pretty aggravating to delete 100 small .RAR files to clean up the folders.

 

6. General Performance. How 7 is stacking up, after 3 weeks of solid, main-computer usage.

Well, I’m pleased to say, I’m still not going back to Vista. Or Xp, for that matter. I’m still gonna use my OS X Leopard, but on my laptop, this isn’t really a possibility, so I’m keeping within the Windows genre here. I’ve used my fair share of Linux distributions since ‘97, and I’m still not going there. Windows is generally the consumer OS anyways, and 7 is evidently, the flagship. It’s like Vista, just good, and about a month in, it’s still packing a punch, and is still as easy on the system as it was in the beginning. Vista’s got a lot to learn, but let’s hope MS decides to jump ship on that, and continue developing 7 instead.

 

7. Updates. How Microsoft is choosing to keep its beta testers updated.

Windows Update(tm) is still present, of course, and it’s more seamless than ever. It’s in style of Vista, meaning that you don’t have to open a browser like IE to download the updates, and it’s all done automatically, should you wish it. This is, of course as expected, but I find that windows update finds a LOT of drivers for external devices automatically, and almost removes the need for any manual search for drivers and the discs that usually come with the product, which are almost always outdated anyways. Windows update has updated drivers ready for your stuff.

On a side-note, there’s frequently new updates for 7 itself too, so MS is keeping you up-to-date very well.

 

8. Default Programs.

This is still worth a topic in itself, and the annoying way of choosing default programs in Vista is still present. By that, I mean that in XP, there was a dialog box that took care of this, and it opened way faster than the new “center” in Vista. I’ve always preferred the way XP handled this, and so Vista pretty much annoyed me. The time it takes to right-click a file, choosing open with, default program and waiting for the window to open, and then selecting the stuff, takes too much time. Applications also have a tendency(Windows Media Player, most frequently) of taking the files back, making you have to re-claim the files again, and again.

This is still present in 7, and if it were up to me, it’d be revamped, or integrated in the right-click menu.

 

 

Well, that’s it for now. I’ll keep you updated later on, as the Beta is said to run out in August, so there’s still plenty of time to keep analyzing it.