I am Microsoftie 4 ever (15+ years) working in Windows Services and Content team in the UK, my blog is mainly focused on the Windows family of products and trying to provide help pointers and resources for customers on our products.
Remember the free chapters on Windows 7? Well there are another 8 more chapters to Make the most of your desktop, with chapters about Windows Vista And Microsoft Office
“Improve your productivity at work and impress your family at home with tips and tricks from Microsoft Press books. When you register for this free offer, each week (for eight weeks) we deliver to your inbox an e-mail message that includes a link to download a chapter from a key Microsoft Press book, as well as information about special offers. You can opt out of these communications at any time.”
Make the Best of Your Desktop with Free Microsoft Press Chapters
So you need to register, which is easy and painless and then you should receive them once a week.
The chapters covered are:
1
Presentations in Excel that pack a punch
2
Dress up your Word documents with pictures, graphics, and stylized text
3
Organize your photos, music, videos, and more using Vista
4
Storyboard first – a way to improve your PowerPoint slide shows
5
Addicted to e-mail? Get ideas on how to process and organize your Outlook inbox
6
Setting up file sharing in Vista is easier than you think
7
Summarize data painlessly with pivot tables in Excel
8
Create an easy home movie using Vista
Rob
Following on for the Windows 7 white paper on power management I wanted to highlight what looks like a really interesting up and coming webcast.
TechNet Webcast: Improving Energy Efficiency with Windows 7 Power Management (Level 200)
"Duration: 60 Minutes Start Date: Friday, May 08, 2009 10:00 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada) Event Overview - Energy efficiency and green IT are two of the most active current topics in computing. In this webcast, we detail how the Windows 7 operating system helps improve energy efficiency through new power management innovations. We illustrate how IT professionals can improve battery life and power consumption using new Windows diagnostics utilities. We also show how applications can have a dramatic impact on power consumption, and we discuss how developers can optimize applications for energy efficiency. Presenter: Stephen Berard, Senior Program Manager, Microsoft Corporation, and Pat Stemen, Senior Program Manager, Microsoft Corporation Pat Stemen is a Senior Program Manager on the Windows Kernel team, focusing on Windows power management infrastructure. Pat joined Microsoft in 2003 and has been focusing on sleep transition reliability and energy efficiency diagnostics”
"Duration: 60 Minutes
Start Date: Friday, May 08, 2009 10:00 AM Pacific Time (US & Canada)
Event Overview - Energy efficiency and green IT are two of the most active current topics in computing. In this webcast, we detail how the Windows 7 operating system helps improve energy efficiency through new power management innovations. We illustrate how IT professionals can improve battery life and power consumption using new Windows diagnostics utilities. We also show how applications can have a dramatic impact on power consumption, and we discuss how developers can optimize applications for energy efficiency.
Presenter: Stephen Berard, Senior Program Manager, Microsoft Corporation, and Pat Stemen, Senior Program Manager, Microsoft Corporation Pat Stemen is a Senior Program Manager on the Windows Kernel team, focusing on Windows power management infrastructure. Pat joined Microsoft in 2003 and has been focusing on sleep transition reliability and energy efficiency diagnostics”
It is a Level 200 event that means its houldn’t be too hard core technical in its content.
I was sent this article earlier Top 10 reasons why you should upgrade to Windows 7 from the Neowin web site which is a nice and neat article about why you should consider moving to Windows 7 when it gets released. The comments are worth a read as well.
And those top 10 reasons are:
Cheers
Last week I highlighted the new Power management in Windows 7 Whitepaper. Well Michael Walsh who runs the site has also pointed out some great Windows Vista whitepapers aimed at environmental issues to me that I didn’t know existed:
Check them out and more at Microsoft Environment : Products and Solutions Web site which gives you resources to help you Reduce, Manage, Rethink and Research ways to have a positive impact on the environment with your computing
You can also now follow Microsoft Environmental efforts on twitter @Microsoft_green
Computer World has another great article I have just read Eight Reasons Your Next Computer Should Be a PC
1. Variety is the spice of life
“…you can almost certainly find a Windows PC aimed at you--and usually a bunch of them competing for your dollars. By contrast, Apple has a grand total of nine different Mac models, none of which cater to specialized audiences.”
2. The cost of admission is lower
“What is entirely accurate--and valuable--is that the Windows world offers plenty of PCs at every price point, including the low ones that Apple ignores as a matter of principle. The cheapest Mac laptop, for instance, costs $999; BestBuy.com offers 78 Windows notebooks that cost less than that”
3. Windows PCs have worthwhile features that Macs don’t
“…for instance, built-in memory-card readers are standard, and HDMI connectors for easy HDTV hookups are becoming so. Wireless broadband, built-in TV tuners, and Blu-ray are all reasonably affordable options. In Macland, you can get some of those features only through third-party add-ons. And others you simply must do without.”
4. The more software the merrier
“most companies and individuals that write software choose to do so for the platform that offers them far more potential customers than any other. Third-party Mac programs are often terrific, but there are simply fewer of them, especially in exotic categories.”
5. Windows users get preferential treatment
“…it's a matter of companies chasing after the biggest user base…”
6. You get the chance to do it yourself
“No computer is more perfectly tailored to your needs than one you assemble from scratch using hand-picked components. Building a handcrafted Windows machine is so simple that plenty of people wouldn't dream of settling for a store-bought computer. But while home-made OS X systems exist, they're closer to being science-fair projects than a viable alternative to buying a real Mac manufactured by Apple”
7. Who says Macs have more fun
“…serious computer gaming remains a seriously Windows-centric medium, with many major games making it to OS X only after much of the excitement has died down...or not to OS X at all. And it's Windows machines that are most at home in an entertainment center, with features like CableCard-capable TV tuners, Microsoft's Windows Media Center, and HDMI output. (Apple wants you to put an Apple TV in your living room, not a Mac, and it still can't do everything that Windows Media Center can.”
8. Windows-only corners of the Web remain
“As ridiculous as it all is, there are times when I'm glad--or at least relieved--that I'm able to fire up a Windows PC to get to a site that doesn't seem to want the business of “
So reading that why would you not want to be a PC?
Well not the entire book but you can get 5 free chapters from up and coming MS Press books:
More details over on the Microsoft Press blog Microsoft Press : Five Windows 7 chapters free to all
Just want to point out the new web site Talking About Windows which aims to allow you to
“Join the conversation about the next-generation operating system and connect with the people behind the code, and your peers. Ask the important questions, and make the decision for yourself.”
It is mainly aimed at IT professionals but it is well worth subscribing to http://talkingaboutwindows.com/rss.aspx as it has contributors such as:
Mark Russonovitch – Technical Fellow at Microsoft and Jon Devan - Microsoft Sr VP Windows Core Operating System
Got this great tip from Canadian IT Professionals : Windows 7 – A Review from the Field about the following 3 great Windows 7 videos from PCWhizKid.com
Windows 7 First look
Windows 7 Where are the essentials
Windows 7 Interface Enhancements
Well worth a quick look if you are new to Windows 7
Just been forwarded this link about a really great new piece off software to keep your computer screen clean :)
http://www.raincitystory.com/flash/screenclean.swf
Check it out it really works, it probably works if your computer is using Windows, Mac, Unix etc
I stumbled upon this article in the testfreaks web site 20 Functions of Vista to Improve Your Life and I really enjoyed it and wanted to share it with you all.
‘After all the hype between Vista versus Mac, some Vista users may feel they missed the best technological innovations of our decade. This is just not so. Mac just has better marketing people. Vista skimped on the marketing budget to make good software. So before you trade in your computer for a Mac, read these tips to learn how Vista can simplify your life, leaving you more free time for its fun and exciting features.’
Below are the 20 plus a link to the best Windows Help and How-to articles on the subject so you can learn a little more about each topic and hopefully improve your expereince