Windows 7

18 Stories

Germany Bans Xbox, Windows 7

But Microsoft says it doesn't have to pull products yet

(Newser) - If you live in Germany and you like Microsoft products, you may want to stock up: A court ordered today that Microsoft remove Xbox 360 and Windows 7 from shelves, after ruling that Microsoft had infringed on Motorola Mobility's patents. But nothing will be pulled yet, Microsoft says, because...

Why Windows XP Refuses to Die

It's ' the Methuselah of desktop operating systems': Harry McCracken

(Newser) - Despite upgrades like Vista and Windows 7, Microsoft's most popular operating system remains the clunky, security-plagued, 10-year-old Windows XP. But why? "I'm fascinated—and, in a peculiar way, inspired—by XP's astonishing longevity," writes McCracken in Time . Microsoft is mostly at fault, he says, because...

Coming Soon: Windows 8
 Coming Soon: Windows 8 
Apr 4, 2011 12:13 PM CDT

Coming Soon: Windows 8

Could be released as early as this holiday season

(Newser) - It seems like only yesterday that Microsoft released Windows 7—and indeed, most of us haven't gotten around to upgrading to that version—but already, Windows 8 is nearly upon us. Web forums were filled with news and rumors last week after PC manufacturers and equipment makers got "early...

How to Buy a Laptop
 How to Buy a Laptop 
Walt Mossberg
Apr 29, 2010 1:31 PM CDT

How to Buy a Laptop

Mossberg offers his annual shopping guide

(Newser) - It's time once again for Walt Mossberg's annual computer buying guide, in which the Wall Street Journal 's tech guru runs down the bare minimum the average person should know when buying a laptop. His advice:
  • Processors: Intel has a shiny new wave of Core chips, the i3, i5, and
...

EU Closes Microsoft Antitrust Case

No fines assessed, thanks to deal to add browsers on Windows 7

(Newser) - The EU formally ended its decade-long antitrust battle against Microsoft today, consummating a deal made this summer. Microsoft has agreed to include rival browsers, including Firefox, Safari, and Google Chrome, on European releases of Windows 7. In exchange, it won’t be assessed yet another fine—EU regulators have fined...

Windows' Screen of Death Has New Shade

Microsoft security update causes Black Screen, but it's not fatal

(Newser) - The Windows Blue Screen of Death is so passé these days, so some malevolent circuit board or update appears to have cooked up a new fail: the Black Screen of Death. The Black Screen is affecting not just new Window 7 machines, but those running XP and Vista as well....

Gap Narrows, But Macs Still Beat PCs
Gap Narrows, But Macs
Still Beat PCs
walt MOSSBERG
Oct 29, 2009 11:37 AM CDT

Gap Narrows, But Macs Still Beat PCs

Performance and price gaps close but Mac is still value

(Newser) - With Windows 7 and Mac’s Snow Leopard operating systems both available, it’s time for Walter S. Mossberg to drop some science on the arduous task of picking a computer. Things aren’t too different this time around: Macs are still more expensive, though “prices on Windows PCs...

Windows 7 Drops: Microsoft Is Back
 Windows 7 Drops: 
 Microsoft Is Back 
David Pogue: SO LONG, VISTA
Oct 22, 2009 7:41 AM CDT

Windows 7 Drops: Microsoft Is Back

Redmond can be proud of its new OS: Pogue

(Newser) - At last, you can put your Vista woes behind you. Microsoft's new operating system, Windows 7, which drops today, takes what's good about its predecessor—especially security and good looks—and eliminates the parts that drove users bonkers. Windows 7 isn't just substantially faster and more compatible with users' machines,...

Windows 7: Finally an End to the Ordeal of Vista
Windows 7: Finally an End to the Ordeal of Vista
mossberg review
Oct 8, 2009 7:51 AM CDT

Windows 7: Finally an End to the Ordeal of Vista

It's even better than aging fallback Windows XP

(Newser) - PC users who've suffered the agonies of Vista are finally about to get a reprieve, Walt Mossberg says: Windows 7, to be released Oct. 22, is "a faster and much better operating system than the little-loved Windows Vista, which did a lot to harm both the company's reputation, and...

Pick an OS: Uncool Robots or Snooty Evangelists?

New Microsoft ads go for Mac-esque buzz—and fail laughably

(Newser) - Anyone who wants a computer faces an unpleasant choice: Mac OS or Windows. Now, Windows is “awful”— buggy, at times barely functional. But one expert would rather assign himself to Microsoft purgatory than join the club of snooty, self-satisfied cooler-than-thou Mac users. “Stop showing me your iPhone,...

To Appease EU, Microsoft Offers Browser Choice With Windows 7

Company allows rivals, settles antitrust case

(Newser) - Microsoft will offer a choice of web browsers to European users of the new Windows 7 operating system to avoid an antitrust fine, Bloomberg reports. “When you’re looking at ongoing fines in a downturn, it makes more sense to settle,” one analyst says. The EU says the...

Switchover to Windows 7 a Big Pain
 Switchover to 
 Windows 7 a Big Pain 
Tech review
Jul 23, 2009 9:56 AM CDT

Switchover to Windows 7 a Big Pain

Move from XP may require external hard drive, patience

(Newser) - The latest Windows incarnation beats Vista and XP, but don’t expect a smooth transition: upgrading from XP to Windows 7 is an ordeal, writes Walt Mossberg in the Wall Street Journal. “In fact, the process will be so painful that, for many XP users, the easiest solution may...

Why Google's OS Won't Beat Microsoft
 Why Google's OS 
 Won't Beat Microsoft 
OPINION
Jul 9, 2009 11:48 AM CDT

Why Google's OS Won't Beat Microsoft

Windows 7, open-source competition hold Chrome OS back

(Newser) - Microsoft needn’t stress about Google’s planned operating system, writes Joseph Tartakoff for paidContent. Five reasons why:
  • Windows 7 will put Microsoft on firmer ground, having won great reviews so far—and it will have been out 9 months by the time Chrome OS appears.
  • Google’s not the
...

Microsoft's Windows 7 Prices Include Early-Bird Discount

Free upgrades for Vista PC buyers starting Friday

(Newser) - A pre-ordered upgrade to Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating system will cost US customers $49 or $99 from tomorrow until July 11, depending on version: Home premium or Professional, CNET reports. Also starting tomorrow, anyone who buys a new Vista PC will get a free upgrade to Windows 7 when...

Buying a Computer? Wait for New OS
 Buying a Computer? 
 Wait for New OS 
Tech Review
Apr 23, 2009 9:07 AM CDT

Buying a Computer? Wait for New OS

(Newser) - It’s a bad time to buy a computer, writes Walter Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal. And that makes it an equally awkward time for his annual computer buying guide. Both Microsoft and Apple will release new operating systems in the fall, and it’ll be easier to buy...

Windows 7: Finally, an End to Vista Misery
 Windows 7: 
 Finally, an End 
 to Vista Misery 


PRODUCT REVIEW
Jan 22, 2009 9:53 AM CST

Windows 7: Finally, an End to Vista Misery

'New' Microsoft OS is major improvement, say critics

(Newser) - Microsoft is rolling out a successor to Vista, its universally reviled operating system, with Windows 7 now available in a relatively bug-free beta download. Early users report that the new edition is a marked improvement. David Pogue, in the New York Times, says Windows 7 ends “a big part...

High Traffic Delays Windows 7 Beta Rollout

Company's site crumbles under demand

(Newser) - After promising the world Windows 7 Beta on Wednesday, Microsoft had to pull the plug on its download site due to cripplingly high traffic, CNET reports today. “We are adding some additional infrastructure support,” Microsoft said, “before we post the public beta.” Microsoft hopes to have...

Ballmer Opens Up Windows 7 Beta

Beta version of Vista successor available to the public starting tomorrow

(Newser) - Windows 7 Beta will be launched to the public tomorrow, Steve Ballmer told the Consumer Electronics Show yesterday. The Microsoft chief, filling the keynote slot held by Bill Gates in the previous 11 years, told the audience that the operating system would be a return to the "special sauce"...

18 Stories