There are many reasons why Windows 7 version is sought after by technology enthusiasts to affirm that Microsoft has come through with a stable computing platform including, decent hardware requirements and a hardened security model.
I have been running Windows 7 on my laptop for over a month, installed all the applications I would normally use including, iTunes, Office, Firefox, Mozy and they all worked fine, without any compatibility settings or other similar malfunctions. Windows 7 is able to run Firefox, iTunes, Word and Photoshop simultaneously, with decent speed on just 1GB of DDR2 RAM and a 2,2Ghz AMD Turion 62 single core processor. The visual effects appear fluid on a two year old ATi X200M graphics chipset with just 64MB of RAM. Besides what Microsoft did under the hood by optimizing the code to run faster is simply amazing.
A very important aspect for Windows users, security, has been given top priority in several ways and improved in Windows 7. The UAC (User Access Control) dialogs are less frequent and not so annoying, executables are scanned for digital signatures of their vendor and you are notified about files downloaded from the internet as well as an improved firewall and notification center. The DEP (Data Execution Prevention) is enabled by default, we still have the KPP (Kernel Patch Protection) and a significantly improved Auto-run in Win 7. Also, the privilege level of your account is not rooted with passwords which would grant you unlimited access to system resources. Additionally, all start up items that access critical system areas are also required to be manually approved via an UAC prompt to affect changes that may affect system integrity and security.
The Win 7 has the most advanced and usable UI including, the taskbar. You have quick access to commonly used applications, for instance, finding the window you are looking for with Quick Look, a streamlined notification area which is clean yet retains usability and instant search from the Start menu. It is evident that the engineers have dedicated a significant amount of time to securing the operating system.
Windows 7 from a Windows XP viewpoint is an incredible upgrade including, performance, stability, security along with an incredible selection of hardware and software. Finally, the price is (free until June next year), a bonus from Microsoft.
