Windows Vista: Your Favorite Features

[ming]

I'm getting lost in the control panel... can never remember that ADD/REMOVE programs has changed to something else.

Also, I prefer the traditional start menu where a new menu pops out when you hit a folder.

 

[NetRyder]

I'm getting lost in the control panel... can never remember that ADD/REMOVE programs has changed to something else.

Also, I prefer the traditional start menu where a new menu pops out when you hit a folder.

You should definitely try using the search boxes in the Start Menu and Control Panel more often. I use them all the time, and they're huge time-savers.

If you forget what Add/Remove Programs is called, for example, you can just fire up Control Panel and start typing "add" (since the focus is automatically in the search box, by default), and the first item in the list will be what you're after. Same with the Start Menu; I never click the "All Programs" item anymore.

Those search boxes are just awesome once you start using them.

 

[NetRyder]

Motion Desktop seems to be wowing people, I mean DreamScene.

As I am not under NDA but do have a copy -- that damn racoon is driving me nuts now, seems to crash the com surrogate (whatever the hell that is) when I try browisng my motion desktops.

Oh and great gadget Netz, might inspire me to reinstall the client

I thought the COM Surrogate errors were related to incompatibilities between Nero and Vista. Could that be the reason?

And glad you like the gadget. You should definitely start folding again.

 

[kcnychief]

Ever since I fell in love with searching the Start Menu, using the All Programs even on XP is almost painful

 

[madmatt]

NR, the gadget looks awesome. Good work.

 

[Electronic Punk]

I thought the COM Surrogate errors were related to incompatibilities between Nero and Vista. Could that be the reason?

And glad you like the gadget. You should definitely start folding again.

That could be possible, I pushed out 7.7 (I think) this morning so will check it out after work -- even going the windows web folder and trying to generate a thumbnail will cause the same crash.

 

[kcnychief]

I am rather fond of the new and improved Event Viewer. I'll post some screenshots and more details when I return home next week, as my work laptop doesn't yet have "the pleasure" of running Vista.

Rubbish!

To follow up on this a little, it really does rock the house! I dig the fact that you can now export results into XML files. Also just as sexy, you can centralize error reporting from multiple PCs to one - will be more useful when I upgrade some of my locations. The subscription is also nice, where you can almost RSS subscribe (not RSS, but similar) to other PCs based on time intervals, with custom filtering/reporting.

Delicious and about time! Now all I need is for this to be compatible with 2000/XP

 

[Shamus MacNoob]

When I see people use words like sexy and love when they talk about a bunch of 1's and 0's makes me wonder sometimes :lick:

 

[NetRyder]

When I see people use words like sexy and love when they talk about a bunch of 1's and 0's makes me wonder sometimes :lick:

You mean like how you love HL2 and COD2?

 

[Brad]

Wow.

 

[kcnychief]

When I see people use words like sexy and love when they talk about a bunch of 1's and 0's makes me wonder sometimes :lick:

Yeah I'm pretty into this stuff, I like it a lot

Guilty as charged, and nice comback NR

 

[Shamus MacNoob]

You mean like how you love HL2 and COD2?

Hey at least I picked some kick @ss games :lick:

 

[NetRyder]

Hey at least I picked some kick @ss games :lick:

Yeah, some kick-ass 1's and 0's, eh?

 

[Shamus MacNoob]

Yeah, some kick-ass 1's and 0's, eh?

And then some might even be some 2's in there :lick:

 

[American Zombie]

Re: Windows Vista: The things that you like...

Previous Versions

I may be wrong but it appears Microsoft have decided not to include this feature in Home Premium which is the version most home users would need. Home users who want this feature have no choice but to get Ultimate or Business but if they get business then they lose out on some multimedia features.

The Business, Ultimate, and Enterprise editions of Windows Vista include a useful innovation to help you protect your data: Shadow Copy. This feature automatically creates point-in-time copies of files as you work, so you can quickly and easily retrieve versions of a document you may have accidentally deleted.

 

[apu95]

Re: Windows Vista: The things that you like...

Nice ones, chief and Khay! Keep 'em coming.

Network Profiles:

This is a great feature for fellow mobile users who regularly switch between different wired/wireless networks. For each network, Vista saves your configuration settings (DHCP/Static IP, DNS servers, etc.) and restores them automatically when you connect to the same network again.

When you first define a network profile, you also specify whether it's a Public or Private network (see screenshot). File/printer sharing automatically gets turned off when you connect to a Private network, and gets re-enabled when you connect to a Public one. This means that you no longer have to disable all your file shares before you connect to that wireless network at the cafe or airport, and turn them all back on manually when you come back home. Windows Firewall in Vista is also profile-aware, so applications that are allowed to pass through the firewall on a Private network are not automatically granted access on a new Public network.

A very handy feature that makes working with multiple networks less of a chore.

I love that feature, it's so comfortable having everything managed that way. I created profiles for school and home, but I still haven't been able to get the settings working
At school I need DHCP, while at home I use a static IP. I can't figure out where to set the individual IP settings for each profile...

My favorite feature so far: Windows Backup

Making an image of my entire PC when it's freshly installed and setup is awesome. No more worrying about reinstalling all your programs and whatnot. I can make an image and use incremental backups afterwards

 

[Tweakfiend]

Re: Windows Vista: The things that you like...

The reliability monitor. I found out about it from Paul Thurott's SuperSite, so i'll leave the explanation to him, needless to say its excellent addition to windows

Yes Id have to agree that the Reliability Monitor for the ease of monitoring problems as they occur is very good, ...early days on Vista Ultimate full version but still on 10.00 score so far.
2) I dont use the network sharing options of Vista although some like it.. rather use Network Magic which is better IMO.

 

[madmatt]

I have been using Vista Ultimate (32-bit) on my production box for about a week now. Now I'd like to tell all.

Things I Like

Renaming Files
I love the fact that when you rename a file it only highlights the filename portion and not the extension. What a huge time saver.

Office 2007
What's not to like? The new suite is much easier to use (thanks to the "ribbons") and much more powerful than previous releases.

I especially love Outlook 2007 and the new "To-Do Bar". The enhancements to the calendar such as the ability to view a full week with time slots and the tasks displayed at the bottom of each day are a great addition.

Searching from the Start Menu
Need I say more?

Windows Media Player - Taskbar!
To have a fully functional WMP in the taskbar is such an awesome enhancement.

The New ALT+Tab
I love it. Even though a PowerToy was available for XP that worked pretty much the same this one seems to be more functional and it even shows the desktop as one of the choices.

Control Panel
The Control Panel is better organized and things are placed where they make sense. And once again, built in search!

Network and Sharing Center
Easy access to important information is always key. I love having the ability to see my network (Network Map) and having easy access to it. The "Sharing and Discovery" portion is also nice and it makes it easy to enable and disable features.

Things I Dislike

Windows Explorer Forgets
I open Windows Explorer and then maximize it. The next time I open it I have to do the same thing. Windows Explorer also forgets settings for specific folders. I tell it what I want to see and then a week later it is reset.

Start Menu - It's Backwards
I always liked the folders at the top. This will take some time to get used to. (Then again, who needs all programs with the search function?)

I'll add more to this list later on, something just came up and I have to bolt.

 

[kcnychief]

Hey Matt - in regards to Windows Explorer forgetting, try this -

Open up an Explorer window, maximize it manually. While holding down the CTRL key, close it with the red x in the top corner. Next time you open it, it should remember to be maximized

 

[madmatt]

Worked for every folder except "Documents". Ah well.