Originally Posted by Neowin.net

Windows Vista included the enhanced <a itxtdid="6779800" target="_blank" href="#" style="border-bottom: 0.075em solid darkgreen ! important; font-weight: normal ! important; font-size: 100% ! important; text-decoration: underline ! important; padding-bottom: 1px ! important; color: darkgreen ! important; background-color: transparent ! important;" classname="iAs" class="iAs">desktop search</a> feature which helps users to readily <a itxtdid="6779816" target="_blank" href="#" style="border-bottom: 0.075em solid darkgreen ! important; font-weight: normal ! important; font-size: 100% ! important; text-decoration: underline ! important; padding-bottom: 1px ! important; color: darkgreen ! important; background-color: transparent ! important;" classname="iAs" class="iAs">locate files</a>, e-mail messages, and other items on their PC . With the release of <a href="http://windowsteamblog.com/blogs/windowsexperience/archive/2008/06/03/windows-search-4-0-released-to-web.aspx" target="_blank">Windows Search 4.0</a>, the performance of the <a itxtdid="6779851" target="_blank" href="#" style="border-bottom: 0.075em solid darkgreen ! important; font-weight: normal ! important; font-size: 100% ! important; text-decoration: underline ! important; padding-bottom: 1px ! important; color: darkgreen ! important; background-color: transparent ! important;" classname="iAs" class="iAs">search tool</a> improved while adding much-needed manageability features for IT.<br><br>Windows 7 along with the <a itxtdid="7607572" target="_blank" href="#" style="border-bottom: 0.075em solid darkgreen ! important; font-weight: normal ! important; font-size: 100% ! important; text-decoration: underline ! important; padding-bottom: 1px ! important; color: darkgreen ! important; background-color: transparent ! important;" classname="iAs" class="iAs">desktop</a> search, introduces Federated Search in which the scope of the search goes beyond your PC. You can now search for items in remote repositories from your PC. It is based on <a href="http://www.opensearch.org/Home" target="_blank">OpenSearch</a> and the RSS format. Since it is based on open standards, it becomes very simple to create custom 'search connectors' for your own remote repositories. For example, you can search Flickr or Twitter from within explorer.<br><br>There are already few search connectors available for download:<br><ul><li> <a href="http://www.mediafire.com/?lmmjnzgtznz" target="_blank">Neowin Connector</a> (Created by <a href="http://www.neowin.net/forum/index.php?showuser=118616" target="_blank">-Hiroshi-</a>, <a href="http://www.neowin.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=717288&amp;hl=federated+search " target="_blank">more information</a>)</li><li> <a href="http://www.istartedsomething.com/flickrsearch/" target="_blank">Flickr Search Connector</a></li><li> <a href="http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/742-windows-7-search-federation-providers.html" target="_blank">YouTube Search Connector</a></li><li> <a href="http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/742-windows-7-search-federation-providers.html" target="_blank">Google News Search Connector</a></li><li> <a href="http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/742-windows-7-search-federation-providers.html" target="_blank">Google Blogs Search Connector</a></li><li> <a href="http://w7search.chakkaradeep.com/" target="_blank">Twitter Search Connector</a></li><li> <a href="http://w7search.chakkaradeep.com/" target="_blank">MSN Search</a></li><li> <a href="http://brandonlive.com/files/osd/Deviant%20Art.osdx" target="_blank">Deviant Art Search</a></li></ul><br>The Federated Search feature looks very promising. As <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenSearch#Search_engines_and_software_that_suppor t_OpenSearch" target="_blank">more sites add support for OpenSearch</a>, expect to see more search connectors emerging for Windows 7. This is nothing new for Microsoft as OpenSearch has already been implemented in <a href="http://blogs.msdn.com/ie/archive/2005/09/14/466186.aspx" target="_blank">Internet Explorer 7(&amp; above)</a> and <a href="http://www.sharepointblogs.com/johnwpowell/archive/2007/07/11/search-sharepoint-from-the-ie-7-toolbar.aspx" target="_blank">SharePoint Search</a>.<br><br>There is no official documentation yet, but it is <a href="http://groups.google.com/group/opensearch/browse_thread/thread/468101336ecc3161#" target="_blank">believed</a> there will be a Windows 7 Beta SDK released once the <a href="http://www.neowin.net/news/live/09/01/04/neowins-microsoft-ces-2009-predictions" target="_blank">beta is officially available</a> later this week.<br><br><img src="http://www.neowin.net/images/uploaded/215509_federated-search.png" alt="" class="linked-image" border="0">

Originally Posted by Neowin.net

<br>Microsoft has introduced BitLocker To Go with Windows 7. Bitlocker To Go extends BitLocker drive encryption to USB storage devices, enabling them to be restricted with a passphrase. Many corporations have been asking for this feature since Windows XP when USB storage devices began to become more popular. In addition to having control over passphrase length and complexity, <a itxtdid="7138788" target="_blank" href="#" style="border-bottom: 0.075em solid darkgreen ! important; font-weight: normal ! important; font-size: 100% ! important; text-decoration: underline ! important; padding-bottom: 1px ! important; color: darkgreen ! important; background-color: transparent ! important;" classname="iAs" class="iAs">IT administrators</a> can set a policy that requires users to apply BitLocker protection to removable drives before being able to write to them. BitLocker To Go also allows users to more securely <a itxtdid="6700945" target="_blank" href="#" style="border-bottom: 0.075em solid darkgreen ! important; font-weight: normal ! important; font-size: 100% ! important; text-decoration: underline ! important; padding-bottom: 1px ! important; color: darkgreen ! important; background-color: transparent ! important;" classname="iAs" class="iAs">share data</a> with users who have not yet deployed Windows 7. Microsoft currently allows Windows XP SP3 and Windows Vista SP1 users to read BitLocker To Go devices using the passphrase. If you plug a bitlocker encrypted USB storage device into Windows 2000 or Windows XP SP2 you will simply see the device as a non-formatted device and will be unable to access the data. I took the feature for a spin earlier today and you can see the results below.<br><br>Microsoft has also introduced (with Windows 7) the Windows Biometric Framework. The framework is designed to make biometrics more reliable, compatible and usable in Windows 7. The Windows Biometric Framework also makes it easier for developers to include biometrics in their applications by providing a common API that can be added independently with each biometric fingerprint solution. Perhaps the most important addition in this area is that fingerprint sensors can now be used on domain enabled networks.<br><br>UPEK, who manufacture tens of millions of fingerprint sensors, has worked closely with Microsoft and <a href="http://www.upek.com/support/downloads/windows7/w7x86.asp" target="_blank">released its pre-release protector suite and driver</a> for Windows 7. The driver works well with Windows 7 and allows you to utilise the inbuilt fingerprint sensor to logon to Windows. I have been using the beta driver myself on a <a itxtdid="5022565" target="_blank" href="#" style="border-bottom: 0.075em solid darkgreen ! important; font-weight: normal ! important; font-size: 100% ! important; text-decoration: underline ! important; padding-bottom: 1px ! important; color: darkgreen ! important; background-color: transparent ! important;" classname="iAs" class="iAs">Lenovo</a> X300 and you can find a demonstration below.<br><br><b>Bitlocker To Go</b><br><br>Below you can see the BitLocker control panel options, you can see that the USB key is currently encrypted:<br><br><img src="http://www.neowin.net/images/uploaded/98_bit11.png" alt="" class="linked-image" border="0"><br><br>To achieve encrypted status you need to do the following, click on protect in the Bitlocker control panel and you will get the following, allowing you to setup a strong pass phrase:<br><br><img src="http://www.neowin.net/images/uploaded/98_bit2.png" alt="" class="linked-image" border="0"><br><br>You must setup a recovery key so you can unlock the device if you forget the pass phrase:<br><br><img src="http://www.neowin.net/images/uploaded/98_bit3.png" alt="" class="linked-image" border="0"><br><br>Encryption will then begin and it took us approximately 20 mins for a slow 1GB stick. When you plug in the USB stick again it will prompt you for the pass phrase:<br><br><img src="http://www.neowin.net/images/uploaded/98_bit5.png" alt="" class="linked-image" border="0"><br><br>If you forget the pass phrase you can use the recovery key to unlock the device:<br><br><img src="http://www.neowin.net/images/uploaded/98_bit6.png" alt="" class="linked-image" border="0"><br><br><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/RrxA5DxGxxc&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/RrxA5DxGxxc&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></object><br><br><b>Biometric Improvements</b><br><br>Microsoft have introduced a control panel applet for managing fingerprint sensors:<br><br><img src="http://www.neowin.net/images/uploaded/98_bio1.png" alt="" class="linked-image" border="0"><br><br>You can associate various fingers per user:<br><br><img src="http://www.neowin.net/images/uploaded/98_bio2.png" alt="" class="linked-image" border="0"><br><br>You can also change the settings to enable/disable fingerprint logon, here you can see the domain option:<br><br><img src="http://www.neowin.net/images/uploaded/98_bio.png" alt="" class="linked-image" border="0"><br><br>When you go to login to Windows the logon screen will look like this:<br><br><img src="http://www.neowin.net/images/uploaded/98_bio.JPG" alt="" class="linked-image" border="0">

Originally Posted by TeknoKing

The resource monitor I like..

I already had IE crashing on me a few times while opening Azine.. weird... But they got my feedback on it.

Originally Posted by TeknoKing

Yep, that's the only thing I use, but I gave IE a chance, or two, or three.

Someday I'm hoping for a Mac/PC Hybrid with the best of both worlds.

Originally Posted by Billiam

There's one potentially useful bit of information I forgot to mention. I did my install into unused space on a drive that already had two partitions on it. Both of these partitions ended up visible with drive letters assigned once the install finished. It was only the single partition on my other hard drive that I needed to manually assign a drive letter to in order to make it visible/usable in Win 7.

Originally Posted by #1 DOUCHER

Here's a few keyboard shortcuts for you guy try

Winkey + Left arrow snaps window to left side of screen
Winkey + Right snaps to the right
Winkey + Up maximizes window
Winkey + Down minimizes window
Winkey + Space enables Desktop peek

Originally Posted by SupaRookie

Loaded windows 7 on my laptop today. A little bit disappointed; I had like 7 unknown devices! The laptop is a relatively old laptop though. No video driver or audio driver. However, I could play a video file! CPU was at 99% though.

Btw, I like your FT shorcut.

Originally Posted by rza49311

Well, I tried loading 7 on my Lenovo T61p two nights ago. I tried the upgrade. Everything appeared to be flawless with the install and every program still worked but I was getting a BSOD every 5 mins referring to tdx.sys. I did some searching and people were saying it was the network drivers. I tried changing them but it didn't help and unfortunately I didn't have time to troubleshoot it as this is my main work computer I cranked up acronis and rolled back. I'll have to try a clean install sometime soon.

I HATE the taskbar, i miss my quicklaunch i have like 15 things on it in vista. I hate how the new one opens tabs right with the icon and pushes the other icons out. Not cool.

Originally Posted by #1 DOUCHER

Try going to device and printers and when you open it you'll see an icon representing your laptop and it'll probably have an exclamation on it click on it and choose trouble shoot from the menu bar above or you can right click and choose troubleshoot.

Originally Posted by srika

it sounds like Windows 7 Troubleshooting is as helpful as it was in the older versions

Originally Posted by srika

Outlook sux

Originally Posted by srika

Outlook is great when it works.

Originally Posted by Billiam

Outlook is fine. It's Microsoft's search that sucks. Especially so within Outlook.

Originally Posted by Billiam

Outlook is fine. It's Microsoft's search that sucks. Especially so within Outlook.

Originally Posted by subinf

They need to get rid of Word 2007 and go back to Word 2003. The new word is a huge fucking pile of shit. Possibly the dumbest, more fucked up retarded program I've ever been forced to use. Fucking god I hate it.