Windows 7 Beta Build 7000

Well, Microsoft is finally doing it. They realize vista is bad and are replacing it. Although not yet officially available, I am currently running the beta of Windows 7. Despite preceding thoughts about how it would perform, I was pleasantly surprised. Even though it is a beta, W7 was very compatible with software and I only encountered one major problem driver wise, that being Creative drivers for my Audigy SE caused a blue screen. However, I feel this is Creative's fault because both ATI and Realtek drivers installed flawlessly. On a more minor note, Xfire statuses don't work correctly either. Other than that, W7 performs as it should, but whether or not you like that is up to you.

The easiest way to describe Windows 7 is as if OS breeders existed and they combined Mac OS10 and Windows Vista. The toolbar on the bottom is distinctly Windows, but anyone familiar with Mac will notice it resembles the OS10 toolbar as well. At the very left is the blue circle with the windows symbol (which glows when you scroll over it) immediately followed by the former "Quick Launch Bar". Only this time both the Quick Launch and the standard program tabs are the same size. Additionally, they removed any text describing the program and enlarged the icon, which is mainly how it resembles OS10. Other than the changed toolbar, most of the OS is unaltered from its Vista counterpart. Where W7 really shines is in performance. I found programs functioning and loading faster then they have ever done in XP or Vista. That being said, game performance was reduced, as XP still outperforms it in that department. But keep in mind this is a beta, and the graphics drivers aren't designed for W7 and will need time to mature for better gaming performance.

As long as Microsoft actually uses user feedback to improve their product and fix all the bugs, W7 should look like a smart upgrade for anyone running Vista and especially anyone still running XP (like me). The UI is much friendlier, the performance is there, and the stability is there, so kudos to Microsoft, and I hope Windows 7 performs and sells well.

- Andrew Korman