Verdict: Win 7

So, I decided to finally sit down and write a post about my opinion of Windows 7, now that I’ve had a computer with it installed for over a month now.  And to be fair, I’m even writing this post from a Win 7 computer.  And to be blunt, I’m not impressed.

As much as everyone keeps ranting that this new version of Windows is the greatest thing since sliced bread(Win XP), I’m disappointed.  All of the hype, and this system still seems to be as clunky and backwards as most people found Vista to be.  Sure, I’ve seen some improvements, but over all, the design seems stunted.

Like when I go to download a file.  Windows 7 can not figure out what to do with it.  it doesn’t know if it goes in the downloads folder, the pictures folder, or the documents folder.  It just seems to play musical chairs with the file and then randomly pick a location where to save it.  And before I get people scolding me because ‘I just don’t know how to use my computer’, remember that the reason you now have a devoted downloads folder is because Microsoft is trying to build a system that just knows what you want.  You want to download a file?  We know where it goes!  Only they don’t.  I’ve tried downloading audio files from download sites like Amazon mp3 and from my Ubuntu One account, and podcasts from podcast sites, and three out of three sites, Windows tries to download the file to a different folder each time.  Then I have to go through and select the right folder for the download.  Little conveniences are only convenient if they work.

Next, the start menu.  I’m really getting tired of Microsoft’s automatic detection software trying to figure out what I use on a regular basis.  I have at this moment five applications listed in the start menu’s auto-detect list that I have used only once, and have never opened again.  But four different applications that I use regularly on this computer are not listed.  Great example is the program I’m using to write this blog post, Live Writer.  A very nice third party application for writing up blog posts, but I have to keep digging through the annoying depths of my start menu to get to it.  And this is one of the programs I use the most on this Windows 7 PC.

I guess what I’m trying to get at with this post is that despite the fact that this operating system is built on firm foundation of security,  it tends to annoy more than satisfy.  And I really hate having to re-learn the locations of systems settings that really have no need to be put into a new location just because Microsoft is trying to make their new operating system different then their last.  Its annoying.