The Windows and Windows Software Megathread

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bradzilla: Oct 15, 2004

So, as of right now, with $50 upgrade and RC 7100. I would have to do a fresh install of Vista, then reinstall Windows 7 over that? Will my Vista key that I had before upgrading to Win7 still work?

# ? Jul 9, 2009 22:20

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# ? Apr 24, 2024 01:20

Xachariah: Jul 26, 2004

Goddamn, Windows 7 is slick as gently caress. I particularly like the new taskbar and Aero Peek function, though I had to switch it to small icons as it was a bit large for my tastes. It's seriously more awesome than I expected.

# ? Jul 9, 2009 22:41

univbee: Jun 3, 2004

bradzilla posted:

So, as of right now, with $50 upgrade and RC 7100. I would have to do a fresh install of Vista, then reinstall Windows 7 over that?

Unsure yet, but it's likely.

quote:

Will my Vista key that I had before upgrading to Win7 still work?

Yes. Depending on the nature of the key, you might have to phone Microsoft to get it re-activated, but they're very easygoing about that; if you have a legal key, you're fine.

# ? Jul 9, 2009 22:46

Charles Martel: Mar 7, 2007; "The Hero of the Age..."

The hero of all ages

I went ahead and pre-ordered Windows 7 Home Premium from NewEgg since I won't re-format all that much and would rather save the money. I'll re-install Vista a few times first if I get Win7 for just $50. Free shipping too, and NewEgg ships fast.

I just wanted to get my order in before the promotion ends in 2 days too.

# ? Jul 9, 2009 22:53

Xachariah: Jul 26, 2004

If you're in the UK, can you preorder from Amazon.com? I've never needed to before, but co.uk isn't doing the promotion.

EDIT: Nevermind "Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S."

# ? Jul 9, 2009 23:05

EVGA Longoria: Dec 25, 2005; Let's go exploring!

univbee posted:

Unsure yet, but it's likely.

Yes. Depending on the nature of the key, you might have to phone Microsoft to get it re-activated, but they're very easygoing about that; if you have a legal key, you're fine.

Of course, doing so is 100% against the EULA, since the key is invalidated by getting an upgrade.

# ? Jul 9, 2009 23:12

bradzilla: Oct 15, 2004

Casao posted:

Of course, doing so is 100% against the EULA, since the key is invalidated by getting an upgrade.

So are you trying to say that I'll essentially need to buy a copy of Vista and a copy of Win7 if I want to use retail Win7?

If so, gently caress that poo poo I'll just go back to Vista.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 02:05

Mug: Apr 26, 2005

Ok I finally found "Incomming connections" in windows 7. You have to go into the list of your network devices (although it's actually a list of connections not devices). Then tap ALT to get the File menu. "New Incomming Connection" is in the File menu.

Pretty dumb. It's the only option in there, why isn't it in the "New Connection" dialogue?

# ? Jul 10, 2009 02:08

Weedle: May 31, 2006

bradzilla posted:

So are you trying to say that I'll essentially need to buy a copy of Vista and a copy of Win7 if I want to use retail Win7?

If so, gently caress that poo poo I'll just go back to Vista.

No, you need to have a copy of XP or Vista if you're going to use the upgrade edition. That's the whole point of an upgrade: to offer a cheaper option to people who own the previous version of the OS. If you don't own any licenses for previous versions of Windows, just buy the full version of Windows 7.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 02:14

Anonononomous: Jul 1, 2007

Is there a way to change the icon sizes? Medium is too big and small is too small.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 03:39

markovian: Sep 18, 2000; How the hell did she write the diary if she was deaf and blind?

Have you tried Ctrl+Scroll?

# ? Jul 10, 2009 03:51

EVGA Longoria: Dec 25, 2005; Let's go exploring!

bradzilla posted:

So are you trying to say that I'll essentially need to buy a copy of Vista and a copy of Win7 if I want to use retail Win7?

If so, gently caress that poo poo I'll just go back to Vista.

I think I misread your question, the current copy of Vista you own works for upgrading to Windows 7, but you lose the right to use it on a seperate computer - using the Windows 7 upgrade invalidates your Vista license.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 03:52

c0burn: Sep 2, 2003; The KKKing

Xachariah posted:

If you're in the UK, can you preorder from Amazon.com? I've never needed to before, but co.uk isn't doing the promotion.

EDIT: Nevermind "Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S."

There are no upgrades in Europe because the EU and Microsoft are a bunch of babies.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 06:02

univbee: Jun 3, 2004

Casao posted:

Of course, doing so is 100% against the EULA, since the key is invalidated by getting an upgrade.

I was about to argue this, then realized I was only looking at one particular case.

It's correct that the EULA forbids your using the license to get two Windows licenses. If you own Windows Vista and buy an upgrade edition of 7, legally you're entitled to have Vista OR 7 installed, not both. This includes dual-booting on the same system, or having a VM. You can, however, wipe your 7 install and reload Vista legally; in this scenario, it should be possible to have the key activated. It might require calling Microsoft, but it should be doable.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 07:49

univbee: Jun 3, 2004

I wrote a big section about clean install vs. upgrade installs, and also did a separate write-up on legal restrictions. If I made any mistakes, let me know; this thread's been going in circles a bit and I'd like to get solid, detailed information on those questions that keep popping up so we can focus on other things. God, I hope this RTMs Monday.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 08:14

Bleepblorp3587: Jun 1, 2003

c0burn posted:

There are no upgrades in Europe because the EU and Microsoft are a bunch of babies.

Ya. The �50 version of Home Premium available for pre-order on July 15th is the full version.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 08:58

bradzilla: Oct 15, 2004

Does Windows 7 not support .bin files? I'm trying to burn a cd image, yet the burning software will only look at the .cue file. It'll burn the .cue file fine, but naturally the cd won't have any actual data on it. What gives?

# ? Jul 10, 2009 15:54

Death of Rats: Oct 2, 2005; SQUEAK

Irish Bandit posted:

Ya. The �50 version of Home Premium available for pre-order on July 15th is the full version.

Since I'm likely to need two of these, I was wondering if any more news had come out about the "family" edition of Windows 7? Especially as I can probably convince someone in my house to buy one of the liscences off me.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 16:03

c0burn: Sep 2, 2003; The KKKing

bradzilla posted:

Does Windows 7 not support .bin files? I'm trying to burn a cd image, yet the burning software will only look at the .cue file. It'll burn the .cue file fine, but naturally the cd won't have any actual data on it. What gives?

It has an ISO burner, that's it

# ? Jul 10, 2009 16:04

The Gunslinger: Jul 24, 2004; Do not forget the face of your father.; Fun Shoe

Grab something like MagicISO or whatever and convert it to a .iso file. Alternatively use ImgBurn.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 16:33

Prefect Six: Mar 27, 2009

univbee posted:

So one install per copy, it's against the license to install once on your home pc and once on your office pc or laptop?

Maybe it's Office I'm remembering allowing you to do this.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 16:42

univbee: Jun 3, 2004

Ice Trucker posted:

So one install per copy, it's against the license to install once on your home pc and once on your office pc or laptop?

Maybe it's Office I'm remembering allowing you to do this.

Correct. Retail versions of Office allow for this, no version of Windows does.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 17:57

Thermopyle: Jul 1, 2003; ...the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt. �Bertrand Russell

Death of Rats posted:

Since I'm likely to need two of these, I was wondering if any more news had come out about the "family" edition of Windows 7? Especially as I can probably convince someone in my house to buy one of the liscences off me.

From here:

Gizmodo posted:

Prices for the Windows 7 Family Pack have apparently leaked, according to ZDNet, and the multi-user bundle will net you three copies of Windows 7 for $137. Also revealed were prices for the Windows 7 Anytime Upgrade products.

These prices aren't 100 percent confirmed, and no one knows certain when these products will ship. But the speculation is that upgrading from Windows 7 Starter to Windows 7 Home Premium will cost $82, while upgrading from Home Premium to Professional or Ultimate will cost $91 or $138, respectively.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 18:11

Alex007: Jul 8, 2004

I'm currently shopping for a new video card and I'm wondering if there's anything I should stay away from, considering this is for Win 7 ? Especially driver-wise, who between ATI and Nvidia sucks less ?

# ? Jul 10, 2009 19:44

The Wonder Weapon: Dec 16, 2006

Is there a way to make windows always be running one of two process'? Whenever I'm not running TF2, I want to be running another small exe, and as soon as I launch TF2, I need the other process to die. I tend to forget to turn it on after I'm done playing TF2, and it's all about having it run as long as possible. I was thinking windows could just see if hl2.exe is on, and if isn't, launch another exe. As soon as hl2.exe starts, it kills the other process. This way, one of the two is always on.

Does this make sense? Is it possible?

# ? Jul 10, 2009 20:51

Thermopyle: Jul 1, 2003; ...the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt. �Bertrand Russell

The Wonder Weapon posted:

Is there a way to make windows always be running one of two process'? Whenever I'm not running TF2, I want to be running another small exe, and as soon as I launch TF2, I need the other process to die. I tend to forget to turn it on after I'm done playing TF2, and it's all about having it run as long as possible. I was thinking windows could just see if hl2.exe is on, and if isn't, launch another exe. As soon as hl2.exe starts, it kills the other process. This way, one of the two is always on.

Does this make sense? Is it possible?

I do exactly this with a custom AutoIt script. Out of my head, so I'm sure there's some errors, but something like this:

code:

While True
	; Team Fortress 2 just started
	If WinExists("Team Fortress 2") Then
		ProcessClose("SOME_PROCESS")
	EndIf
	;Team Fortress 2 just stopped
	If Not WinExists("Team Fortress 2") And Not WinExists("SOME_PROCESS") Then
		Run("SOME_PROCESS")
	EndIf
	Sleep(5000)
Wend

# ? Jul 10, 2009 21:28

The Wonder Weapon: Dec 16, 2006

Thermopyle posted:

I do exactly this with a custom AutoIt script. Out of my head, so I'm sure there's some errors, but something like this:
code:
While True
	; Team Fortress 2 just started
	If WinExists("Team Fortress 2") Then
		ProcessClose("SOME_PROCESS")
	EndIf
	;Team Fortress 2 just stopped
	If Not WinExists("Team Fortress 2") And Not WinExists("SOME_PROCESS") Then
		Run("SOME_PROCESS")
	EndIf
	Sleep(5000)
Wend

Thats great! Whats AutoIt, and how do I make it work? also, the process is "hl2.exe" and "steamstats.exe" Would that be:

code:

While True
	; Team Fortress 2 just started
	If WinExists("Team Fortress 2") Then
		ProcessClose("hl2.exe")
	EndIf
	;Team Fortress 2 just stopped
	If Not WinExists("Team Fortress 2") And Not WinExists("SOME_PROCESS") Then
		Run("steamstats.exe")
	EndIf
	Sleep(5000)
Wend

# ? Jul 10, 2009 21:37

Dogen: May 5, 2002; Bury my body down by the highwayside, so that my old evil spirit can get a Greyhound bus and ride

Alex007 posted:

I'm currently shopping for a new video card and I'm wondering if there's anything I should stay away from, considering this is for Win 7 ? Especially driver-wise, who between ATI and Nvidia sucks less ?

They're both fine. Get whichever you want, or if you want to get more specific about your needs you might want to read the building/upgrading megathread or ask in there if the first post doesn't answer your question.

# ? Jul 10, 2009 21:48

The Wonder Weapon: Dec 16, 2006

Alex007 posted:

I'm currently shopping for a new video card and I'm wondering if there's anything I should stay away from, considering this is for Win 7 ? Especially driver-wise, who between ATI and Nvidia sucks less ?

Just buy whatever has a really good rebate on dealmein.net this week

# ? Jul 10, 2009 22:41

ExtremeODD: Jul 16, 2005

I know you cannot upgrade from xp pro to win 7 ult but could a person upgrade from xp pro to vista ultimate to win 7 ultimate RC? Or is there any way to not reinstall programs going from xp, I only ask because Im dual booting and dont have the space to install everything 2x.

# ? Jul 11, 2009 00:03

fishmech: Jul 16, 2006; by VideoGames; Salad Prong

ExtremeODD posted:

I know you cannot upgrade from xp pro to win 7 ult but could a person upgrade from xp pro to vista ultimate to win 7 ultimate RC? Or is there any way to not reinstall programs going from xp, I only ask because Im dual booting and dont have the space to install everything 2x.

You can't have an upgrade licensed OS dual booting with the OS you upgraded from.

# ? Jul 11, 2009 01:25

ExtremeODD: Jul 16, 2005

fishmech posted:

You can't have an upgrade licensed OS dual booting with the OS you upgraded from.

That would make sense, I dont know what I was thinking. Reading through the thread, it seems like its possible to upgrade from xp > vista > 7 and keep some things working... I think Ill just stick to my xp/7 dual boot and wait for a new computer to setup anything new (running old opteron 165, dfi lanparty of some sort)

# ? Jul 11, 2009 02:00

Thermopyle: Jul 1, 2003; ...the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt. �Bertrand Russell

The Wonder Weapon posted:

Thats great! Whats AutoIt, and how do I make it work? also, the process is "hl2.exe" and "steamstats.exe" Would that be:

http://tinyurl.com/be8ds2

Just dig in to the help file...

# ? Jul 11, 2009 03:17

Slimchandi: May 13, 2005; That finger on your temple is the barrel of my raygun

Any reason why my laptop's battery life might be worse under W7 than Vista? With the same power settings I'm experiencing 25-30% less battery life. I did change from 32 to 64 bit, could this have any implications?

For the record, using 7100 in an Acer 5630, previously Vista Home Premium.

# ? Jul 11, 2009 08:07

Unsound Logic: Jul 12, 2002; "Why don't you mosey along, pardner."

- If the OS you're upgrading from is an OEM version (came with your computer and has a COA sticker on the case), you MUST install the Windows 7 upgrade to the computer it was originally installed on. No transfers, you play by the same rules as the OEM version of the original OS.

So I have an activated copy of Vista using the OEM key from the sticker on my laptop. When I get my upgrade copy of Windows 7 I should have no problem then as long as it's being used on the same laptop?

# ? Jul 11, 2009 12:01

Charles Martel: Mar 7, 2007; "The Hero of the Age..."

The hero of all ages

Last day to order your Home Premium ($49.99) and Professional ($99.99) Upgrades for those prices!

I know one of the biggest perks to Professional is domain join...is that like if you wanted to connect your laptop to your desktop and transfer files by making your desktop the host? Is there another program that could do that if you don't buy Professional? Honestly, that's the only thing I would miss.

# ? Jul 11, 2009 14:49

LooseChanj: Feb 17, 2006; Logicaaaaaaaaal!

Charles Martel posted:

I know one of the biggest perks to Professional is domain join...is that like if you wanted to connect your laptop to your desktop and transfer files by making your desktop the host?

No, it's a server thing and if you don't know what it is you don't need it. You can copy files and whatnot with Home.

# ? Jul 11, 2009 15:21

uXs: May 3, 2005; Mark it zero!

I have a question about libraries:

I organized my music rather strictly, the end result being a folder structure, like so:

\playlists\genre\artist\album.m3u4

Now I want to access this from the start menu. Problem is, when I add the "playlists" folder to the music library, I have to navigate like this:
start menu - music - playlists - genre - ...

The "playlists" part in that is what annoys me, I'd prefer to have the genre folder directly below the music folder. Because there is no other choice below the music folder, having to navigate through the playlists folder is entirely superfluous.

Is there a way to do this, without having to manually add every single genre folder to the music library ?

Edit: ok, found a solution, sort of. I added the playlists folder as a toolbar to the taskbar, and put it all the way at the bottom (my taskbar is on the side of my screen), so that there is no space for the genre folders on the taskbar itself. That way, I get everything in an expanding menu, which is perfect.

uXs fucked around with this message at 18:15 on Jul 11, 2009

# ? Jul 11, 2009 17:51

jeeves: May 27, 2001; Deranged Psychopathic
Butler Extraordinaire

RTM comes out monday.

So I am curious, with the Release To Manufacturers version being released-- how will the betas and such work? Do they expire once the full Win7 public release occurs, or such? Also, folks that download the RTM-- will they work until the release as well, using the beta keys?

# ? Jul 11, 2009 19:08

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# ? Apr 24, 2024 01:20

Thermopyle: Jul 1, 2003; ...the stupid are cocksure while the intelligent are full of doubt. �Bertrand Russell

jeeves posted:

RTM comes out monday.

So I am curious, with the Release To Manufacturers version being released-- how will the betas and such work? Do they expire once the full Win7 public release occurs, or such? Also, folks that download the RTM-- will they work until the release as well, using the beta keys?

Betas already stopped working awhile ago. Well they work, but they reset every 2 hours.

The Original Post posted:

GENERAL INSTALLATION QUESTIONS

Q: When does the Release Candidate expire?

A: In a surprisingly generous move, Windows 7 RC, once activated with a product key, will operate fully until March 1st, 2010. At this time, the OS will begin shutting itself down every two hours to encourage obtaining and installing the final released version. Finally, on June 1st 2010, the Release Candidate will expire.

# ? Jul 11, 2009 19:14

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