5 Things I've Learnt, Moving To Windows 7 RC From XP

It's been a few hours now since I've taken the plunge, downloaded and installed the release candidate version of Microsoft's latest and greatest operating system, Windows 7 on my main working computer.

I have worked out five things that will be useful for those who, like me, will make the transition over the next few months to Windows 7 RC from Windows XP, not from Vista.

(1) If Windows XP Worked Fine, 7 RC will Work Fine

I am running Windows 7 RC on a Compaq NC6420, a two year old laptop with 2.5GB memory and a Core 2 Duo CPU running at 1.66GHz. I've ran the beta version on a Pentium 4 1.5GHz PC before and it was just as quick as when that desktop was loaded with Windows XP. Rule of thumb is Windows 7 RC will run as smoothly as with Windows XP.

(2) Windows 7 RC Is Very Different From XP visually

If, like me, you are moving to Windows 7 RC from XP, you will need to undergo a learning curve due to some significant visual differences. I stuck with the grey and conservative Windows 2000 colour scheme for almost a decade now, so shifting to the colour happy Vista like scheme is a bit disconcerting at first. Fear not though as Windows 7 has a "classic theme" that brings back the grey and blue background.