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It is almost unbelievable that Microsoft are bringing out a new version of Windows when Vista was only released two years ago…but I suppose it is only in Beta.  But we have it here to test and have been playing with it for some time.

First impressions are that it is very Vista-like!  But we are fans of Vista here so that is a good thing.  The install went very quickly and smoothly on a fairly basic Dell Optiplex 360 Intel Core 2 Duo machine.

So here is the desktop….

As you can see, it has the Vista Sidebar with the clock at the top, and the big Vista style icons.  The most noticeable change here is the taskbar at the bottom.  The quick launch icons have got bigger!  And the open applications are just the program icon which is nice.

One note about the Sidebar, this is actually no longer just a Sidebar because the gadgets that you can choose to have there can actually be positioned anywhere on the screen.

If you hover over one of the icons on the taskbar that is representing an open application you get a preview of what is open, see image below….

And then you just click on the one you want to work with.  Easy.

Also, if you right click on one of the icons on the quick launch/taskbar you get a menu specific to that application, rather then the good old standard right click menu.  So for example you might get recent documents if you right click on the word icon that is down there or shortcuts to desktop, pictures, music, videos etc if you right click on the documents folder.

The main aim here I believe is to make things more accessible for users, ways to quickly get where we want rather than having to wait for windows to load before we can get to pictures etc.

Another nice, yet simple feature I would like to bring to your attention is a change to the start menu,

You will notice that in the top picture that programs such as Word and Paint have arrows next to them, if you were to hover over the program for long enough or click the arrow and you get….yes you’ve guessed it, a list of recent documents (see  bottom image of the two above).  Now that is a feature we really like!

That’s it for the first glance, coming up soon will be some nice simple features of Windows 7 Beta!  Keep an eye out for that one.

See Also:
Windows 7 Beta

We like to be on the ‘cutting edge’ when it comes to Microsoft Software..so I think we must have been one of the first to download the Windows 7 Beta when it was made available last week!

So far we haven’t done much with it other than

• Install it on a Dell Optiplex 360 with no problems, it was very quick to install and installed all the drivers automatically so that was a nice surprise!
• Downloaded and installed AVG Trial which again works so it is good to know there will be Anti-Virus protection out there as soon as Windows 7 is released!
• Connected the machine to a Windows Home Server…again a breeze!

So there have been no problems as yet. As it is a beta I do expect them but let’s see what happens.

First Impressions are that Windows 7 is very quick. It is obviously a build on Vista but there are some nice touches that make working on a computer faster and easier   We’ll keep you posted but if you have had the chance to play with it share you findings

Cheers. Graham.

For the past couple of months here in the office we have been testing Microsoft’s Windows Home Server and we are very impressed! So much so that we plan to run a whole bunch of tutorials, reviews and tips in the new year for this!

We’ll be covering things like –

• What Windows Home Server (WHS) can do for you at Home
• What WHS can do for you in a Small Office Environment
• WHS & Backing Up
• It’s limitations when compared to Small Business Server
• Buying Advice
• Ways to extend your WHS
• Accessing your Home Server’s Shared Files and Computers remotely
• and More…

So book mark this category on pctoolbox.co.uk ready for this great new section for 2009 !

The question I get asked so often is how much is the cheapest laptop? Which isn’t as black and white as people seem to think (or maybe hope!). Using our favoured supplier Dell let’s look at a some prices and see what we get!

The Cheapest…

Going on Dell laptops for Home you can buy a laptop for £269 including VAT and Delivery. Not bad. But what will the laptop be any good for? Well this is an inspiron Mini 9 running Ubuntu (not Windows) and really is designed solely for internet, emails and maybe the odd word document. But you won’t get much more out of it than that. It is small with a 8.9″ screen so isn’t designed for people who use a PC/Laptop a lot and want an everyday machine. Something portable for checking emails etc whilst on holiday or travelling then this is great! Otherwise…read on.

The Cheapest we would recommend for the average user…

For the cheapest machines you need to look at the Inspiron laptops of the Dell range and they currently start at £329 inc VAT & Delivery. I personally would upgrade the processor to an Intel Core 2 Duo from the Celeron and also increase the memory to at least 2GB rather than 1GB so therefore giving a cost of £439. Not so much because the user would need the specification straight away but most people will look at this being a long term investment and not change it as often as some businesses would. So for the extra £110 I would say it is well worth it.

Sound advice? We believe so, but contact your local independant IT Supplier and see what they have to say too.

The Short Answer

£269 but I would say spend £439 if you want the machine for more than just emails and internet.

This tutorial will show you how to run a ScanDisk on your Vista PC.

What is a ScanDisk?

ScanDisk, also known as ‘Error Checking’ simply scans the file system and repairs any errors or bad clusters.  This just helps keep your computer running smoothly and hopefully quickly, so its worth doing.  How often depends on how much you use your machine, every three months for the home user should be fine.  Busy home machines or business machines I would say monthly ideally.

How to run a ScanDisk

1. Firstly, close all programs.
2. Click on the Start Orb.
   
3. Select ‘Computer’
   
4. Right-Click on the drive which has the Label ‘(C:)’ and then select ‘Properties’.
   
5. Select the ‘Tools’ tab and then ‘Check Now’ (Click to Enlarge Image)
   
6. Ensure that both boxes are ticked, then click ‘Start’.
   
7. Click ‘Schedule Disk Scan’ and then restart your machine.
   

Any questions?

This tutorial will show you how run/schedule a Defragmentation on your Vista machine.

What is a Defrag?

If you use this analogy, your computer is like a filing cabinet, it starts all neat and tidy but over time it becomes messy and disorganised.  Defrag simply tidies things up which makes it easier for the computer to locate the information it requires therefore improving the performance of the machine.

Tip:

We suggest that you don’t have any programs running whilst running a Defrag.

How to run a Defrag

1. First of all click on the Start orb
   
2. Then select ‘Computer’
   
3. Right-Click on the drive which has the Label (C:) and select ‘Properties’.
   
4. Select the ‘Tools’ tab and then Defragment Now (Click to Enlarge Image)
   
5. Select Defragment Now (Click to Enlarge Image)
   
6. Select which disks you wish to be defragmented (we recommend that you Defragment all Disks).  Once you’ve selected click OK.
   
7. Your computer will now be running a Defragmentation.  This may take up to a few hours.  (Click to Enlarge Image)
   
8. You will be informed when the Defrag is complete.  At that point you can close the Defrag Window and continue using your computer as you normally would.

How to Schedule a Defrag:

On Vista, Defragmentation is set on a default schedule.  However, that schedule may not fit to your work style.  So here is how to change the Scheduled date and time.

1. Follow steps 1-4 from ‘How to run a Defrag’
2. Select ‘Modify Schedule’  (Click to enlarge Image)
   
3. Decide when you would like the Defrag to be Scheduled for by using the drop down menus (Click to Enlarge Image)
   
4. Click OK

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You may or may not realise that Windows Vista Home Premium and Vista piece of Ultimate includes Windows DVD Maker.  Windows DVD Maker is a software which enables you to create DVD’s which are not just personalised but look professional too!

You can add a variety of media, such as; pictures, music and movies.  However….the DVD Maker doesn’t support some media format, for example: it doesn’t support music file formats which itunes use.  A way to over come this problem is on itunes make a playlist of the tracks you would like on the DVD, make a copy of the playlist on a CD.  Then import the CD using Windows Media Player ensuring that you don’t protect the files because that would prevent from being used in the DVD Maker.  Then insert the tracks that you imported through Windows Media Player.  (Make sure you don’t break any copyright laws when doing this!)

The thing I found most fustrating in the DVD Maker was that your ability to modify the actual movie/slideshow was very limited.  You don’t have much influence on the chapter/scene organisation and the transition between features.  I suggest that if want to produce a detailed and very personalised DVD then produce the actual movie on Windows Movie Maker and then import it into Windows DVD Maker to produce the menu’s and the physical DVD.  I’ll take this moment to remind you that if you don’t have a DVD burner you won’t be able to put the movie onto the disc.

You can download Windows Movie Maker for free for Vista or for XP.

Some ideas for using DVD Maker:

• Make a holiday DVD
• Birthday presents
• Birthday DVD
• Wedding DVD
• Baby Photos

We think using DVD Maker is a great way of bringing the nation to the 21st century, why not watch a DVD of your holiday snaps instead of everyone crowding round the pack of photos!  It’ll probably work out cheaper too!

How do you make your DVD’s?  Would you like a tutorial?

Summer holidays are coming up and if you are anything like me you’ll end up with hundreds of photos, so what do we do with them? Printing them would cost a fortune but for those running Windows Vista (either the Home Premium or Ultimate Edition) how about making a DVD of your photos to show your friends?

Windows DVD Maker is a quick and easy way to make a slideshow of your holiday photos to put on a DVD and take round to friends and family to show them your photos on their telly!

For more info check out the Microsoft Windows DVD Maker site!

Last week AVG released the Free version of their new award winning Virus Protection software. It is still an entry level protection package and their full Internet Security software still offers much more protection but for those home users who really can’t afford it then this is the next best thing!

Along with the Anti-Virus module, this version of AVG Free includes AVG Spyware protection and AVG’s new ‘Safe Search’ feature to help protect you online.

Compatible with Windows XP and Windows Vista. Download it now for Free!

Microsoft released last month Service Pack 1 for Windows Vista. Service Packs released for Windows are basically/usually a combined patch of many previously released critical patches along with some new patches and sometimes some software updates.

The thing to remember is that although updates to your system are there to improve security and stability, things can go wrong, so it is important that you do the update at a time when you can leave the machine to run the update without needing to interrupt it. Also make sure you have got a backup of all your files before proceeding with the update.

To initiate the update you can either download the whole SP1 from microsoft.com, or if you go to the Start Orb, All Programs and Windows Update, it should be there ready for you to run. If not choose “check for updates” on the left hand side.

The advantage with the latter method of running the update is that Windows Update checks your system to see what parts of the service pack are needed. Rather than downloading the whole 400mb or more! Obviously if you are wanting to install the patch on a number of machines, or on a machine with a slow connection then downloading the whole lot is a far better way of deploying SP1.

For me and the machines I have installed it on so far…a seamless update to a OS that in my opinion has been very stable in its first year of life!