Yes Microsoft did learn its lesson from vista... if you design a bad OS that is more geared towards looks over functionality, then you better spend lots of money marketing it to shape peoples opinion on it.
The sad fact is, I need third party tools (win 7 task tweaker) and need to alter the regedit for simple UI features that are missing in vista/win7 that have been in windows for ever a decade.
They also need to include a search tool (the one in XP will work), this way you arent SNAFUD when you need to search an HDD that isnt indexed for whatever reason...
And do you know what else I hate? When Microsoft downloads an update and remotely reboots my PC... How about an option of "Download and install all critical update, but only remind me when reboot is needed". Sometimes I go months without installing updates because I forget, but I cant have it install it, because it auto reboots my PC sometimes...
I whole-heartily agree with the search option. It is one of my biggest gripes with Win7/Vista and till this day I don't understand why it was removed without a replacement. The new windows search blows chunks for newbies like my parents. The old search was pretty easy and straight forward even though it had that annoying dog animation at least it worked.
Amen! A command-line equivalent to Unix's "locate" tool would be useful as well. I hate having Windows Search index my whole hard drive, but the fact is you can't actually search your drive (effectively) unless you let it index. I don't care if searches are slow on a non-indexed drive; I just want the ability to do them at all!
But honestly, if the search feature is the worst thing anyone has to say about Win7, that's pretty mild. Overall, I'm very happy with Windows 7. Okay, I ran Windows Vista on my main PC for about two years without any major complaints, but I'd like to hear precisely what features (beyond search) others feel is missing or needs a third party utility.
What's wrong with either "Download updates but let me choose when to install them" or "Check for updates by let me choose whether to install them" options on the windows update control panel page? Both will start nagging you from the tray (and IIRC the shutdown icon on the start menu) when updates are available.
With the former option after clicking yes I get a popup dialog that keeps coming back nagging me to reboot; but don't recall if it's specific to that download option or something I set elsewhere.
I do not understand most peoples compulsion to hate the search built into Windows 7.
Could you explain what makes it worse than the search built into Windows XP? I can search my drive perfectly by opening the drive and typing the search term in the search box in the top right hand corner. It has the ability to search by metadata, which XP never did. I can search between dates, between file sizes, specific file formats, using wildcards (?, # and *), and even on a non-indexed drive (like the 5TB media array I have), it only takes moments to show results.
I have a feeling that most people's complaints about Windows 7/Vista search is that they don't know how to use it properly.
You mention UI features that are missing, but fail to mention what features you're referring to. Could you elaborate?
And finally, other than one software glitch on Vista, no update will ever restart your machine without your prior approval. You have Windows Update set erroneously - the only option that will do this is "Install Updates Automatically", and even in this situation, you are able to choose when the restart takes place to make it as unobtrusive as possible.
I hope you don't take my cynicism personally, I'm just genuinely curious.
This is problem with 99% of people that have issues with Vista/7. The problem is not the OS, it's the user. They're either A) Stuck in there old ways and refuse to adapt, no matter how much better an OS is. Or B) Too thick to use features properly.
The search is VASTLY improved in Vista/7. And the restarting thing mention is just ridiculous and should not be happening. You're always notified before the machine is restarted.
After reading all the comments and replying to a few, I've come to the conclusion that there are still quite a few people out there that still think it's cool to criticize Microsoft. Get over it, people. Bashing "Micro$uck" is so 1999.
First of all, I like the index search, but I do not like it being the only option.
Ive had times when ive searched for someone yet got 0 results when I knew it was on my indexed drive. Ive had other time ive searched for something, found nothing, then manually found it later (gezz, GJ there microsoft)...
Or when I temporarily add a 2TB hdd that is not index... In win7 I need to search the entire HDD, in win XP I can pick a folder to search, can pick the size, and date... And I can do this in a nice UI that even my grandma can use.
I also hate how I can set it up so when I right click on a item in my taskbar that I get the classic menu. I need to either shift-right click or put my mouse over it, wait a second, then right click on the preview window... As someone who drags folders/firefox/pdf's over to my extended desktop, sometime I need to get em back when my extended desktop (my TV is behind me and angled away from me).
Or win7 grouping... I want this nice and simple... newest window should be opened at the right. I dont even have to tink about it, I know where it is...
Then there is hte stupid things... Like how/why isnt there a list view or a detailed view of the control panel? I want a nice and easy alphebeital view. The cloest I can get is a alphebetical view that tries to put in as many entries on one line before it spills over into the next line...
Or what about the "all programs", I only ever go here when I cant remember what its called (aka I cant search for it), so id much preffer the old style of viewing thing, now I need to scroll as opposed to the Xp style which was click on it and keep reading em till I find the app I want...
Or I hate how there is no option to tell windows not to append " - shourtcut" to all shortcuts. Why do we still need registry key change to fix this? Why cant this be in some sort of control panel configuration?
Or why is the sound recorder so basic? I used to like to do a quick 5s test ot my mic sometimes before skype calls. This new recorder only allows me to record, then save as mp3... no pause, no play, no nothing.
And still no native ISO mount on win7? Ironic considering most of my ISO are from MSDN...
And do you know what really makes me angry sometimes? Auto sorting.... Extremely frustrating when you move a file in its folder and it sorts itself among 100's or thousands of other files and i dont know the filename... Now its like I always need to make sure I know the filename before I move something over. But that doesnt exactly work when im moving over many files (and that doesnt happen everyday, but when it does im fubared)...
BTW this isnt microsoft bashing, its win7/vista bashing. Ive worked for MS as a tech support when I was younger, and I got a lot of respect at how they handle there support. But vista and win7 have a lot of things that frustrate me.
Honestly, I don't see what your problem is, almost everything in your list is something I do every day without any of your issues.
Search is not only based on what is indexed, however to remain quick search will only initially check indexed files. You just click on "more results" if you don't find what you're looking for, and if necessary "my computer" and you will find the rest, but it will take a much longer time, so it's better to just index you drives if possible. Besides, you really shouldn't rely on search functions, instead just pay attention to where you put things, what will you do if your OS gets corrupted and you can no longer search? Also, if the files are hidden, or are in a hidden directory they will not show up unless you either unhide them, or change your folder options to view hidden files/folders.
You can still choose a specific location to search just by navigating to the folder you want to search and typing your search in the search box, that automatically limits the search to that folder. Once you've done that it's just a matter of sorting by whatever criteria you want, it's very easy.
Wow, that third complaint is really trivial, and there are a number of ways to mitigate it. If you don't wanna deal with the previews then just turn Aero off, and they will be gone. I also seem to remember being able to just turn off previews in System. I don't think you can turn off auto grouping though, but so what having 5 million windows to manage in my Taskbar is just really annoying. If you want faster Preview generation just turn off the paging file if you have more than 4GB of memory.
As far as extended desktops go, just disable the extended desktop from your driver icon in the system tray, nearly all drivers support this, and bam, all the items and windows on the extended display will be snapped to the only remaining display. Cake. There are other ways but this is the easiest, and really you shouldn't be storing stuff on your desktop, it's just a waste of your system resources, just pin commonly used things to the Taskbar, and once they are pinned you'll never need to look elsewhere for them. If the Taskbar is too small just unlock it and resize it, more space instantly.
As far as a list view in the control panel, just try out the views provided till you find it. It is there, and it shows everything in alphabetical order, really you just need to try things out a little, it's not hard.
Unlike, older versions of windows you can pin any program to the Taskbar. If you're really in and out of the start menu often enough to nitpick how "All Programs" is displayed, you're doing something wrong.
Anyway, this is going on too long and it's time to leave work, so I'll leave it to someone else to explain how to use your computer.
Honestly, I don't see what your problem is, almost everything in your list is something I do every day without any of your issues.
Thats often peoples mind set "this doesn't bother me, so it shouldn't bother you".... Unfortunately that does not fix my issue.
Search is not only based on what is indexed, however to remain quick search will only initially check indexed files. You just click on "more results" if you don't find what you're looking for, and if necessary "my computer" and you will find the rest, but it will take a much longer time, so it's better to just index you drives if possible. Besides, you really shouldn't rely on search functions, instead just pay attention to where you put things, what will you do if your OS gets corrupted and you can no longer search? Also, if the files are hidden, or are in a hidden directory they will not show up unless you either unhide them, or change your folder options to view hidden files/folders.
sometimes searching is faster... But most of the time (when searching for files) is either because its a rare file that ive stored many years ago, or something ive forgotten its position.
You can still choose a specific location to search just by navigating to the folder you want to search and typing your search in the search box, that automatically limits the search to that folder. Once you've done that it's just a matter of sorting by whatever criteria you want, it's very easy.
THat does not work. That relies in indexed drive. IF the index is corrupt or not index that search will do nothing but search the current folder and no subfolders.
As far as extended desktops go, just disable the extended desktop from your driver icon in the system tray, nearly all drivers support this, and bam, all the items and windows on the extended display will be snapped to the only remaining display. Cake.
That would take extra work to re-enable and disable it everyday. Right clicking and moving something over and moving it back is faster and I dont need to worry about enabling/disabling my extended desktop constantly.
There are other ways but this is the easiest, and really you shouldn't be storing stuff on your desktop, it's just a waste of your system resources, just pin commonly used things to the Taskbar, and once they are pinned you'll never need to look elsewhere for them. If the Taskbar is too small just unlock it and resize it, more space instantly.
I dont use pinning. If something is closed, I do not want it in my taskbar. I also put all my common items in my toolbar. Nice and easy. Single click opens them, they are nice small icons, and it keeps my taskbar clean and obvious as to what programs are running. I like to keep things simple. If closed = I dont want it in taskbar. if open = I want it to open always in the same spot. if right click = I want common options like "move" and "restore". Nice and simple.
As far as a list view in the control panel, just try out the views provided till you find it. It is there, and it shows everything in alphabetical order, really you just need to try things out a little, it's not hard.
Wrong, its not there.
Unlike, older versions of windows you can pin any program to the Taskbar. If you're really in and out of the start menu often enough to nitpick how "All Programs" is displayed, you're doing something wrong.
Wow, GJ, you 100% missed my point. I didnt know that was possible.
Anyway, this is going on too long and it's time to leave work, so I'll leave it to someone else to explain how to use your computer.
Im sure they dont let you surf the net at mcdonalds...
We’ve updated our terms. By continuing to use the site and/or by logging into your account, you agree to the Site’s updated Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
16 Comments
Back to Article
ComputerGuy2006 - Monday, August 15, 2011 - link
Yes Microsoft did learn its lesson from vista... if you design a bad OS that is more geared towards looks over functionality, then you better spend lots of money marketing it to shape peoples opinion on it.The sad fact is, I need third party tools (win 7 task tweaker) and need to alter the regedit for simple UI features that are missing in vista/win7 that have been in windows for ever a decade.
They also need to include a search tool (the one in XP will work), this way you arent SNAFUD when you need to search an HDD that isnt indexed for whatever reason...
And do you know what else I hate? When Microsoft downloads an update and remotely reboots my PC... How about an option of "Download and install all critical update, but only remind me when reboot is needed". Sometimes I go months without installing updates because I forget, but I cant have it install it, because it auto reboots my PC sometimes...
phatboye - Monday, August 15, 2011 - link
I whole-heartily agree with the search option. It is one of my biggest gripes with Win7/Vista and till this day I don't understand why it was removed without a replacement. The new windows search blows chunks for newbies like my parents. The old search was pretty easy and straight forward even though it had that annoying dog animation at least it worked.JarredWalton - Monday, August 15, 2011 - link
Amen! A command-line equivalent to Unix's "locate" tool would be useful as well. I hate having Windows Search index my whole hard drive, but the fact is you can't actually search your drive (effectively) unless you let it index. I don't care if searches are slow on a non-indexed drive; I just want the ability to do them at all!But honestly, if the search feature is the worst thing anyone has to say about Win7, that's pretty mild. Overall, I'm very happy with Windows 7. Okay, I ran Windows Vista on my main PC for about two years without any major complaints, but I'd like to hear precisely what features (beyond search) others feel is missing or needs a third party utility.
Jeff7181 - Tuesday, August 16, 2011 - link
It's called PowerShell. It's very... powerful.Jeff7181 - Tuesday, August 16, 2011 - link
How is "press Start and start typing your search term" difficult?DanNeely - Monday, August 15, 2011 - link
What's wrong with either "Download updates but let me choose when to install them" or "Check for updates by let me choose whether to install them" options on the windows update control panel page? Both will start nagging you from the tray (and IIRC the shutdown icon on the start menu) when updates are available.With the former option after clicking yes I get a popup dialog that keeps coming back nagging me to reboot; but don't recall if it's specific to that download option or something I set elsewhere.
Omoronovo - Tuesday, August 16, 2011 - link
I do not understand most peoples compulsion to hate the search built into Windows 7.Could you explain what makes it worse than the search built into Windows XP? I can search my drive perfectly by opening the drive and typing the search term in the search box in the top right hand corner. It has the ability to search by metadata, which XP never did. I can search between dates, between file sizes, specific file formats, using wildcards (?, # and *), and even on a non-indexed drive (like the 5TB media array I have), it only takes moments to show results.
I have a feeling that most people's complaints about Windows 7/Vista search is that they don't know how to use it properly.
You mention UI features that are missing, but fail to mention what features you're referring to. Could you elaborate?
And finally, other than one software glitch on Vista, no update will ever restart your machine without your prior approval. You have Windows Update set erroneously - the only option that will do this is "Install Updates Automatically", and even in this situation, you are able to choose when the restart takes place to make it as unobtrusive as possible.
I hope you don't take my cynicism personally, I'm just genuinely curious.
B3an - Tuesday, August 16, 2011 - link
This is problem with 99% of people that have issues with Vista/7.The problem is not the OS, it's the user. They're either A) Stuck in there old ways and refuse to adapt, no matter how much better an OS is. Or B) Too thick to use features properly.
The search is VASTLY improved in Vista/7. And the restarting thing mention is just ridiculous and should not be happening. You're always notified before the machine is restarted.
Jeff7181 - Tuesday, August 16, 2011 - link
After reading all the comments and replying to a few, I've come to the conclusion that there are still quite a few people out there that still think it's cool to criticize Microsoft. Get over it, people. Bashing "Micro$uck" is so 1999.Jeff7181 - Tuesday, August 16, 2011 - link
What UI features are missing?The search bar in Explorer works for non-indexed drives.
Microsoft doesn't have remote control of your PC to download updates nor reboot your PC. They're settings on your PC that are easily changed.
ComputerGuy2006 - Tuesday, August 16, 2011 - link
First of all, I like the index search, but I do not like it being the only option.Ive had times when ive searched for someone yet got 0 results when I knew it was on my indexed drive. Ive had other time ive searched for something, found nothing, then manually found it later (gezz, GJ there microsoft)...
Or when I temporarily add a 2TB hdd that is not index... In win7 I need to search the entire HDD, in win XP I can pick a folder to search, can pick the size, and date... And I can do this in a nice UI that even my grandma can use.
I also hate how I can set it up so when I right click on a item in my taskbar that I get the classic menu. I need to either shift-right click or put my mouse over it, wait a second, then right click on the preview window... As someone who drags folders/firefox/pdf's over to my extended desktop, sometime I need to get em back when my extended desktop (my TV is behind me and angled away from me).
Or win7 grouping... I want this nice and simple... newest window should be opened at the right. I dont even have to tink about it, I know where it is...
Then there is hte stupid things... Like how/why isnt there a list view or a detailed view of the control panel? I want a nice and easy alphebeital view. The cloest I can get is a alphebetical view that tries to put in as many entries on one line before it spills over into the next line...
Or what about the "all programs", I only ever go here when I cant remember what its called (aka I cant search for it), so id much preffer the old style of viewing thing, now I need to scroll as opposed to the Xp style which was click on it and keep reading em till I find the app I want...
Or I hate how there is no option to tell windows not to append " - shourtcut" to all shortcuts. Why do we still need registry key change to fix this? Why cant this be in some sort of control panel configuration?
Or why is the sound recorder so basic? I used to like to do a quick 5s test ot my mic sometimes before skype calls. This new recorder only allows me to record, then save as mp3... no pause, no play, no nothing.
And still no native ISO mount on win7? Ironic considering most of my ISO are from MSDN...
And do you know what really makes me angry sometimes? Auto sorting.... Extremely frustrating when you move a file in its folder and it sorts itself among 100's or thousands of other files and i dont know the filename... Now its like I always need to make sure I know the filename before I move something over. But that doesnt exactly work when im moving over many files (and that doesnt happen everyday, but when it does im fubared)...
BTW this isnt microsoft bashing, its win7/vista bashing. Ive worked for MS as a tech support when I was younger, and I got a lot of respect at how they handle there support. But vista and win7 have a lot of things that frustrate me.
Aarchel - Wednesday, August 17, 2011 - link
Honestly, I don't see what your problem is, almost everything in your list is something I do every day without any of your issues.Search is not only based on what is indexed, however to remain quick search will only initially check indexed files. You just click on "more results" if you don't find what you're looking for, and if necessary "my computer" and you will find the rest, but it will take a much longer time, so it's better to just index you drives if possible. Besides, you really shouldn't rely on search functions, instead just pay attention to where you put things, what will you do if your OS gets corrupted and you can no longer search? Also, if the files are hidden, or are in a hidden directory they will not show up unless you either unhide them, or change your folder options to view hidden files/folders.
You can still choose a specific location to search just by navigating to the folder you want to search and typing your search in the search box, that automatically limits the search to that folder. Once you've done that it's just a matter of sorting by whatever criteria you want, it's very easy.
Wow, that third complaint is really trivial, and there are a number of ways to mitigate it. If you don't wanna deal with the previews then just turn Aero off, and they will be gone. I also seem to remember being able to just turn off previews in System. I don't think you can turn off auto grouping though, but so what having 5 million windows to manage in my Taskbar is just really annoying. If you want faster Preview generation just turn off the paging file if you have more than 4GB of memory.
As far as extended desktops go, just disable the extended desktop from your driver icon in the system tray, nearly all drivers support this, and bam, all the items and windows on the extended display will be snapped to the only remaining display. Cake. There are other ways but this is the easiest, and really you shouldn't be storing stuff on your desktop, it's just a waste of your system resources, just pin commonly used things to the Taskbar, and once they are pinned you'll never need to look elsewhere for them. If the Taskbar is too small just unlock it and resize it, more space instantly.
As far as a list view in the control panel, just try out the views provided till you find it. It is there, and it shows everything in alphabetical order, really you just need to try things out a little, it's not hard.
Unlike, older versions of windows you can pin any program to the Taskbar. If you're really in and out of the start menu often enough to nitpick how "All Programs" is displayed, you're doing something wrong.
Anyway, this is going on too long and it's time to leave work, so I'll leave it to someone else to explain how to use your computer.
ComputerGuy2006 - Thursday, August 18, 2011 - link
do quotes work?test
ComputerGuy2006 - Thursday, August 18, 2011 - link
Thats often peoples mind set "this doesn't bother me, so it shouldn't bother you".... Unfortunately that does not fix my issue.
sometimes searching is faster... But most of the time (when searching for files) is either because its a rare file that ive stored many years ago, or something ive forgotten its position.
THat does not work. That relies in indexed drive. IF the index is corrupt or not index that search will do nothing but search the current folder and no subfolders.
That would take extra work to re-enable and disable it everyday. Right clicking and moving something over and moving it back is faster and I dont need to worry about enabling/disabling my extended desktop constantly.
I dont use pinning. If something is closed, I do not want it in my taskbar. I also put all my common items in my toolbar. Nice and easy. Single click opens them, they are nice small icons, and it keeps my taskbar clean and obvious as to what programs are running. I like to keep things simple.
If closed = I dont want it in taskbar.
if open = I want it to open always in the same spot.
if right click = I want common options like "move" and "restore".
Nice and simple.
Wrong, its not there.
Wow, GJ, you 100% missed my point. I didnt know that was possible.
Im sure they dont let you surf the net at mcdonalds...
cisshweta - Saturday, March 2, 2013 - link
I liked your post, you can also help me by sharing information about how window 8 is going to help developers for <a href="http://www.developmobileapp.com/windows-mobile-app... mobile applications</a>.cygnetinfotech - Wednesday, May 15, 2013 - link
Yes, this search is a great option. Windows 8 is the best operating system and its development is increasing.