Datasheet

New Media Player and Media Center
Vista’s new version of Media Player sports streamlined, easier-to-use con-
trols. The big star, however, is Vista’s Media Center, which not only plays
DVDs and music but lets you watch TV on your PC and even record shows
onto your hard drive for later viewing.
Recording TV shows requires two important things, however: a TV tuner in
your PC and the proper version of Vista. (Vista comes in a startling
five ver-
sions, all described at this chapter’s end.) Installing a TV tuner can be as
simple as plugging a box into your PC’s USB port or sliding a card inside your
PC. I describe both tasks in one of my other books,
Upgrading and Fixing PCs
For Dummies,
published by Wiley Publishing, Inc.
DVD burning
More than five years after DVD burners hit the market, Windows can finally
take advantage of them without third-party software. Windows Vista lets you
copy files and movies to DVDs as well as CDs.
In fact, Vista’s updated version of Movie Maker (described in Chapter 16) lets
you turn your camcorder footage into DVDs that play back on a normal DVD
player and TV. Mail them to your friends and prepare for a deluge of incoming
vacation DVDs, as well.
Calendar
For the first time, Windows now sports a calendar, shown in Figure 1-3, for
keeping track of your appointments. You can even publish your calendar to
other PCs or Web sites, keeping your appointments synchronized with the
calendars of your friends and coworkers.
Easier searching for files
Windows XP really drags its feet when searching for files. Searching for a file-
name takes several minutes on a crowded hard drive, and if you’re searching
your files for a particular word or phrase, you’re in for a long weekend. Vista,
by contrast, spends its idle time fine-tuning an index of every word on your
hard drive.
XP
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Part I: Windows Vista Stuff Everybody Thinks You Already Know
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