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Chapter 1: What Is Windows 7?
are good that you, your neighbors, your boss, your kids at school, and
millions of other people around the world are using Windows.
✓ Microsoft took pains (and several years of work) to make Windows 7 the
most secure version of Windows yet. (Just ask people who upgraded
from previous versions.)
✓ Windows makes it easy for several people to share a single computer.
Each person receives his or her own user account. When users click their
name at the Windows opening screen, they see their own work — just the
way they left it. Windows 7 includes controls for parents to limit the time
their kids spend on the PC, as well as what programs they can open.
✓ Windows includes a new backup program that makes it easier to do what
you should have been doing all along: Make copies of your important files
every night, a task I describe in Chapter 12.
✓ The powerful new search program and library system in Windows 7
mean that you can forget about where you’ve stored your files. To find a
missing file, just click the Start menu and type what that file contained:
a few words in a document, the name of the band singing the song, or
even the year your favorite jazz albums were released.
Should I Bother Switching
to Windows 7?
Microsoft hopes everybody will immediately switch to Windows 7. Because
people buying new PCs automatically already receive Windows 7 preinstalled
on their PC, Microsoft is targeting two other groups: people using Windows XP
and people using Windows Vista.
Separating the ads from the features
Microsoft may tout Windows as your helpful
computing companion, always keeping your
best interests in mind, but that’s not really true.
Windows always keeps Microsoft’s interests
in mind. You’ll find that out as soon as you call
Microsoft for help with making Windows work
right. They charge more than $50 per call.
Microsoft also uses Windows to plug its own
products and services. For example, Internet
Explorer’s Favorites area, a place for you to add
your favorite Web destinations, comes stuffed
with Microsoft’s Web sites.
Simply put, Windows not only controls your
computer, but also serves as a huge Microsoft
advertising vehicle. Treat the built-in advertising
flyers as a salesperson’s knock on your door.
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