Author Topic: Windows 7 Public Beta (Read 11301 times)

Fatah Ruark (aka MIKE B) · « **on:** January 11, 2009, 10:55:36 PM »

Anyone try downloading this?

I can get a key for it, but can't seem to get it to download.

Anyone have success??

EDIT: Okay...had to use IE7. Figures.

phanophish · « **Reply #1 on:** January 12, 2009, 12:10:47 PM »

Yep, had the same problem, I was using Firefox.

Got it installed on an old spare HD. Seems pretty snappy. I need to get some more apps installed and see how that goes. I'm currently on Vista 32 and would like to be able to utilize more RAM so I'm testing the 64 bit version.

OFOTD · « **Reply #2 on:** January 12, 2009, 04:02:32 PM »

Been running the 32bit at work and 64bit at home in virtual machines. I've resisted the move to Vista at both with the exception of my Media Center PC at home which runs Ultimate.

7 seems quite a bit faster in both versions not just with startup time but especially when running multiple apps that scream for more system resources at the same time. Disk access appears to be more consistant as well.

I like how they've not dumbed things down as much as they did with Vista. Disabling UAC was never just that easy and now I don't even know its there thankfully. Glad they made the Disk Defrag graphical again. Vista's was had a terrible UI.

My biggest problems so far seem to be things that are my hangups. I like the way Windows Explorer displays in XP. The Vista redesign/mapping is not for me. No changes back to the XP version it seems on the 7 version of Explorer unfortunately.

So far I've run these taper stalwarts without problem so far in 7:

SoundForge 9.0e
CDWav 1.9.7
TLH 2.4.1 Build 160

Also Neowin has had some really good coverage of the beta rollout.

phanophish · « **Reply #3 on:** January 12, 2009, 04:26:44 PM »

Quote from: OFOTD on January 12, 2009, 04:02:32 PM

My biggest problems so far seem to be things that are my hangups. I like the way Windows Explorer displays in XP. The Vista redesign/mapping is not for me. No changes back to the XP version it seems on the 7 version of Explorer unfortunately.

Might give this a try, but I miss XP explorer as well...

http://www.lockergnome.com/windows/2006/10/13/display-classic-menus-in-windows-explorer-vista/

http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/up-keyboard-shortcut-for-windows-vista-explorer/

Also this article is good on customizing the view. I hate the Music details when I want full details.....

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13880_3-10019957-68.html

mmedley. · « **Reply #4 on:** January 14, 2009, 01:00:58 AM »

How is FLAC+Frontend working? Any issues? Any major hardware/driver issues? What driver versions for hardware are you guys using...Vista builds or XP builds (32/64bit?)? I am keeping a close eye on the events, but won't be installing it or messing with it. Think I will wait out until it goes gold to test. Seems to get really favorable reviews thus far. I am thinking this might be the OS to take advantage of the 64bit architecture and finally get software companies on the ball developing.

OFOTD · « **Reply #5 on:** January 23, 2009, 01:02:46 PM »

Well its been a week and I have updates.

I've been running 7 in VM's both at the office and at home. My office machine is a Pentium 2.8Ghz, 2GB RAM, Raedon X600 256MB. Unfortunately my main machine at home finally bit the dust after 4 years of faithful service.

So I decided to build a new machine and make the fulltime switch to a 64bit workstation. Newegg'd most of the parts. Built it the other night. Running Intel i7 920 2.66 (OC'd to 3.8Ghz), 6GB Corsair RAM, Nvidia 9800GTX 1GB. I did a fresh install of Windows 7 64bit and have decided to make it my primary OS for a while to see how it works.

For the most part my initial uses so far have been surfing, email, torrents and audio processing.

Pros:
- Beta is shockingly stable. I've only really had hiccups mostly in Media Center.
- Superbar has taken a bit of time to get used to since I use the Quick Launch in XP a ton but the Superbar is really nice and functional.
- Less bloat everywhere
- A much quicker OS. Even in a VM the OS cooks.
- Networking just keeps getting better and better and easier and easier from Microsoft OS's. Best implementation yet
- Full compatibility with the following audio apps:
- SoundForge 9.0e
- Izotope Ozone 3
- CDWav 1.9.7
- FLAC Frontend 1.7
- FLAC 1.2.1 <-- none of the previous Vista install problems
- TLH 2.4.1 Build 160
- Adobe Audition 3.1
- Adobe Soundbooth CS4

- Currently its free to try so if you run Vista you should try 7
- Every Vista driver i've thrown at it works great.and on the first install

Cons:
- Still a bit unpolished visually but its a beta so what do you expect
- Libraries - MS is revamping the My Documents sorting from XP. A little tough to get used to after using XP for so many years.

Other thoughts:
- If the beta is any indication this is an OS we can all move safely to. It just so quick and surprisingly very stable.
- Its been a bigger jump for me from XP to 7 getting over alot of the styling changes of some of my fav programs like Windows Explorer. Wish they'd have a Classic view for them.
- I have not had any devices that either 1. wasn't installed automatically by 7 or 2. Didn't have a Vista compatible drivers.
- Drivers have all been 64bit drivers for all hardware that I needed to find a driver for.

That's 7 in a nutshell for me. If any one has a questions or wants me to test a particular software package on 7 let me know.

sygdwm · « **Reply #6 on:** January 24, 2009, 03:39:53 PM »

i like it too, but it requires a newish processor and shit tons of ram. just played with it little at work.

Gutbucket · « **Reply #7 on:** January 28, 2009, 06:55:24 PM »

1.8 Turion64 + 2gigs?

I've got an XP laptop I may swap a HDD into and give it a go if that's sufficient. If not I'll reload XP.
I have a freebee copy of Ultimate but I wouldn't put on there regardless.

OFOTD · « **Reply #8 on:** January 28, 2009, 07:13:58 PM »

Quote from: Gutbucket on January 28, 2009, 06:55:24 PM

1.8 Turion64 + 2gigs?

I've got an XP laptop I may swap a HDD into and give it a go if that's sufficient. If not I'll reload XP.
I have a freebee copy of Ultimate but I wouldn't put on there regardless.

That setup will work great. I've seen 7 run on a Celeron 1.6 with 512MB of RAM.

Public beta of 7 is still open for a little bit. Download a legit copy and get a valid key.

Gordon · « **Reply #9 on:** January 28, 2009, 11:15:51 PM »

anyone tried wavelab with the vista patch?

now forgive the n00b question. how easy is it try it as dual boot? thinking about trying it out on my laptop. I mainly use the laptop for surfing and some pics etc. no real editing is done on here except for out of town shows. but I want to fool around with it.

ok. haven't done it yet but found some good info on it online.

not willing to ditch xp on the laptop for now though. my laptop is 3 years old Intel Pentium M 1.86 ghz 2 gigs of ram.

69mako · « **Reply #10 on:** January 29, 2009, 01:05:18 AM »

I've been playing around with it on an old P4 computer with 2GB memory. Works great. Still use XP on the main computer but I did notice that Windows 7 starts up quicker on the older machine than the XP machine. All of the vista 64-bit drivers worked fine too. I plan to install software this weekend on it.

Mako

OFOTD · « **Reply #11 on:** January 29, 2009, 12:16:30 PM »

Here is a absolutely perfect page on dual booting 7 with either XP or Vista.

http://lifehacker.com/5126781/how-to-dual-boot-windows-7-with-xp-or-vista

For those who want to install 7 with Boot Camp on your Mac

http://www.simplehelp.net/2009/01/15/using-boot-camp-to-install-windows-7-on-your-mac-the-complete-walkthrough/

Which version of WaveLab are you using Gordon?

Gordon · « **Reply #12 on:** January 29, 2009, 07:45:10 PM »

Quote from: OFOTD on January 29, 2009, 12:16:30 PM

Which version of WaveLab are you using Gordon?

5.01b

I successfully used the vista patch on Daves laptop so he could run it with vista.

momule · « **Reply #13 on:** January 30, 2009, 10:21:10 AM »

I tried loading the 5.01b with the patch on my lappy running windows 7 and it failed to open. However samplitude 10 and sequoia 7 both loaded just fine. Along with dvd shrink and photoshop CS3

Gordon · « **Reply #14 on:** January 30, 2009, 10:22:51 AM »

Quote from: OFOTD on January 29, 2009, 12:16:30 PM

Here is a absolutely perfect page on dual booting 7 with either XP or Vista.

http://lifehacker.com/5126781/how-to-dual-boot-windows-7-with-xp-or-vista

that was one of the links I found as well. followed directions for partitioning the drive to a T. now xp won't even load. may just install 7 for a while.

Gordon · « **Reply #15 on:** January 30, 2009, 10:28:53 AM »

Quote from: momule on January 30, 2009, 10:21:10 AM

I tried loading the 5.01b with the patch on my lappy running windows 7 and it failed to open.

had you gotten it to work with vista before? just wondering. this may be the clincher for me. I love wavelab too much

momule · « **Reply #16 on:** January 31, 2009, 02:51:53 AM »

Not really. Yes the program would Launch. But was it stable. NO. The dll files helped but it was far from stable.

Try samplitude. Once ya get by the clunky frontend. Its a nice piece of software.

IMO windows 7 is pretty stable. Im running it on a lappy running a amd 2.4ghz with 1gb or ram. Which by specs is bare minimum.

Gordon · « **Reply #17 on:** January 31, 2009, 11:58:49 AM »

Quote from: momule on January 31, 2009, 02:51:53 AM

Not really. Yes the program would Launch. But was it stable. NO. The dll files helped but it was far from stable.

I got it work on daves vista laptop and he hasn't had any issues that I'm aware of.

Gordon · « **Reply #18 on:** February 01, 2009, 11:52:18 AM »

Quote from: Gordon on January 30, 2009, 10:28:53 AM

Quote from: momule on January 30, 2009, 10:21:10 AM
I tried loading the 5.01b with the patch on my lappy running windows 7 and it failed to open.

had you gotten it to work with vista before? just wondering. this may be the clincher for me. I love wavelab too much

I got it to load and open but it fails/freezes when trying to open wave files.

now a problem unrelated to wavelab. my screen resolution is pretty low.

1024 X 728 I've tried updating my drivers, I let windows updates check for drivers etc etc. still can't get over that. in xp on this laptop it goes to 1280 x 800 (something like that).

link to dells site for my drivers

http://support.dell.com/support/downloads/driverslist.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=gen&ServiceTag=&SystemID=XPS_M140&os=WW1&osl=en&catid=&impid=

screen cap of the resolution (oops, doesn't show the drop down beside the resolution but it's as high as it goes). everything looks good in the device manager.

momule · « **Reply #19 on:** February 01, 2009, 12:13:22 PM »

Quote from: Gordon on February 01, 2009, 11:52:18 AM

I got it to load and open but it fails/freezes when trying to open wave files.

That and some of the plugins will not work correctly. like i said its buggy as hell and basically useless. I assume version 6 will support windows 7 and vista a bit more stable.

Quote from: Gordon on February 01, 2009, 11:52:18 AM

now a problem unrelated to wavelab. my screen resolution is pretty low.

1024 X 728 I've tried updating my drivers, I let windows updates check for drivers etc etc. still can't get over that. in xp on this laptop it goes to 1280 x 800 (something like that).

screen cap of the resolution (oops, doesn't show the drop down beside the resolution but it's as high as it goes). everything looks good in the device manager.

When you install drivers and such I find its best to right click on the .exe file and click the compatibility tab and run them in XP mode and run them as the administrator. you may wanna uninstall and reinstall using the above method and see if that dont help.

on a side note also i turn the user acct control crap off.

Fatah Ruark (aka MIKE B) · « **Reply #20 on:** February 01, 2009, 12:30:16 PM »

Quote from: Gordon on February 01, 2009, 11:52:18 AM

now a problem unrelated to wavelab. my screen resolution is pretty low.

1024 X 728 I've tried updating my drivers, I let windows updates check for drivers etc etc. still can't get over that. in xp on this laptop it goes to 1280 x 800 (something like that).

link to dells site for my drivers

http://support.dell.com/support/downloads/driverslist.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=gen&ServiceTag=&SystemID=XPS_M140&os=WW1&osl=en&catid=&impid=

screen cap of the resolution (oops, doesn't show the drop down beside the resolution but it's as high as it goes). everything looks good in the device manager.

It looks like you are still using the generic drivers that Windows provides.

On the compatibility list on the drivers page you listed it says they are only good for XP and Win2000. You need to find a Vista driver for that video card. It may not exist or there may be an unofficial driver for it. I took a quick look around with a Google search and didn't turn up much. A deeper look might turn something up.

You might want to give Dell a call and ask if a Vista driver is available.

OFOTD · « **Reply #21 on:** February 02, 2009, 01:42:11 AM »

While searching through the Steinberg support forums it looks like the Vista patch for WL5 is a third party patch only on torrent sites. It appears that they have made a decision to only support version 6 and up with Vista support. Plus if I understand correctly the 3rd party patch only works in a 32bit environment.

I assume Gordon you have the h20 version of WL5.01b? If its a must have app you may consider buying WL6 or waiting for WL7 to come out which I understand will be a major upgrade including 64bit support.

Gordon · « **Reply #22 on:** February 02, 2009, 01:58:20 AM »

I ditched 7. back to xp pro. I fear change

if it ain't broke.......

OFOTD · « **Reply #23 on:** April 01, 2009, 06:21:45 PM »

Three month update.

I'm running 7 full time at home now and can't imagine switching back to XP ever again. I started with the free Beta build 7000 but have since upgraded to build 7068. You can find the newer builds on most torrent sites and they all work with the keys provided by Microsoft if you signed up for the beta so no piracy issues.

The biggest change (non-GUI related) is the number of devices its supports out of the box. I hooked up an 8 year old printer that XP had trouble with and damned if it didn't get recognized and up and running under the new build 7068. It seems like a giant leap to true plug n play.

Software has been better than expected. Only program that doesn't work for me in Wavelab which i've since given up anyways. Nothing is running in compatibility mode anymore either. All good signs.

The Release Candidate is rumored to be coming out this month so if anyone is thinking of giving this a shot the RC may be a good version to play with.

OFOTD · « **Reply #24 on:** April 13, 2009, 01:26:46 PM »

Apparently MS has required software developers to get a Windows 7 certification tag that all programs must be compatible with both 32 bit and 64 bit versions of Seven.

This (Seven release) is a really good opportunity for folks on the fence about 64bit OS's to make the jump.

Fatah Ruark (aka MIKE B) · « **Reply #25 on:** April 13, 2009, 01:31:12 PM »

I just built up a new computer and have Win7 build 7077 on it. Super nice. I hear 7077 is the last build they will release before the RC.

I'm running all of my programs that I use on a regular basis in Win 7, with the exception of WaveLab which I have running with VMware under XP. Also installed a few programs that I don't use often on that XP install (trying to keep the main OS as clean as possible).

For anyone that was scared off by Vista...you can come back now. I think I might even like Win 7 more than OS X.

OFOTD · « **Reply #26 on:** May 04, 2009, 03:15:44 PM »

Just an update to Windows 7:

1. "On Tuesday, May 5, the Release Candidate (build 7100) will be available to everyone via our Customer Preview Program. As with the Beta, the Windows 7 RC Customer Preview Program is a broad public program that offers the RC free to anyone who wants to download it. It will be available at least through June 30, 2009, with no limits on the number of downloads or product keys available"

This means that anyone can download Windows 7 for free from Microsoft. This is expected to be the only release candidate so you can feel good knowing that any changes made to the OS between now and its actual release date will be fixed via Windows Update. The RC keys last for one year so you'd have a year to decide if you want to purchase 7. Pretty damn good deal if you ask me.

2. XP Mode - http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=2598

Basically this allows you to run XP specific programs and hardware within a virtual XP in Windows 7. There are hardware requirements of course but as i've said in previous posts/threads now is a good time to start making the move or at least thinking of making the move to a 64 bit machine.

While you could run your own virtual machine software (VMWare, Virtual PC) the new feature in 7 actually allows any program installed within the XP mode to show up in your regular start menu. I have been running WaveLab 5.01 (the common H20 version most folks have) from an icon in my quick launch bar. Working with 2 and 4 channel audio has worked flawlessly. I do not use any plugins with WaveLab other than Izotope Ozone 4 which has been working great as well. The XP Mode VM is integrated very well with 7 and functions surprisingly alot better integrated than it did as a standalone VM program.

If anyone has any interest in some screen grabs let me know and i'll post some.

Fatah Ruark (aka MIKE B) · « **Reply #27 on:** May 05, 2009, 03:15:48 AM »

Downloading the RC now.

I've been running build 7077 for the past few weeks. Works great. It will be nice to have the XP mode so I can run Wavelab w/o VMware.

69mako · « **Reply #28 on:** May 21, 2009, 10:08:37 AM »

Has anyone tried to hook up a JB3 to Windows 7? Does it work?

Thanks!

Fatah Ruark (aka MIKE B) · « **Reply #29 on:** June 25, 2009, 05:43:12 PM »

FYI: MS is offering 50% off Windows 7 starting tomorrow (for upgrade versions).

$99 for Win 7 Pro
$49 for Win 7 Home Premium

Looks like I'll get Windows 7 Professional for my desktop. I might order Windows 7 Home Premium for a netbook I might get in the next few weeks.

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/buy/offers/pre-order.aspx

Belexes · « **Reply #30 on:** June 30, 2009, 03:26:12 PM »

$50 deal on the home version upgrade to 7 until July 11th:

http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?p=20731507

XP works fine for me and I have no real reason to switch right now other than MS will no longer support XP.
$50 is a nice deal though....

Əkoostikal · « **Reply #31 on:** August 24, 2009, 01:05:19 AM »

I was just wondering if anyone who has been running this for 3-4 months now if you could give me a quick update to if it is worth installing over Vista..... I am considering moving on from vista this week, I just can't stand it anymore.

Fatah Ruark (aka MIKE B) · « **Reply #32 on:** August 24, 2009, 01:17:06 AM »

I am still loving Win 7. It's actually made me WANT to use Windows.

So much faster. It took me a bit of time to get used to some changes vs. XP (I only used Vista briefly before going back to XP).

I would wait if I were you. The final version is going to be released in about 2 months. If you install the Release Candidate then you'll more than likely need to re-install Win 7 when it officially comes out.

I wouldn't bother waiting for "bugs to get ironed out." It works great now. No real bugs that I've noticed.

Just wait until 10/22 and buy it. Totally worth the upgrade.

OFOTD · « **Reply #33 on:** August 24, 2009, 01:36:45 AM »

Quote from: Fatah Ruark (aka MIKE B) on August 24, 2009, 01:17:06 AM

I am still loving Win 7. It's actually made me WANT to use Windows.

So much faster. It took me a bit of time to get used to some changes vs. XP (I only used Vista briefly before going back to XP).

I would wait if I were you. The final version is going to be released in about 2 months. If you install the Release Candidate then you'll more than likely need to re-install Win 7 when it officially comes out.

I wouldn't bother waiting for "bugs to get ironed out." It works great now. No real bugs that I've noticed.

Just wait until 10/22 and buy it. Totally worth the upgrade.

+1

I have been running Seven for a while now as evidenced in the posts in this thread. Currently running RTM version (with time bomb unfortunately) and I have finally turned my back to XP. Loved XP but Seven really is so much better, faster, stronger that XP seems just old now (heck its been 87-8 years since it came out).

Check out the copy of Ultimate you have and see if you like it.

If you have ANY questions please ask. I am more that willing to share what I know so far.

Əkoostikal · « **Reply #34 on:** August 24, 2009, 06:30:29 PM »

Ok, I need a bit of help here...... I am attempting to to do a dual boot of 7 with Vista..... I followed the directions on the link that was posted earlier to partition the drive for vista and win. 7.... The problem I am having is that windows is not showing enough room on my HD for the partition. I have a 150GB drive in the laptop and of that "my computer" is showing 50GB free space, however when I go to partition "shrink" the drive it only shows about 5GB of available space..... I made sure my trash was empty, and I went through all the steps to "clean" my disc, (defrag., delete previous restore points..... ect...ect....) I got some space back in the "my comp" showing I have more HDD space but in the disc partition section it still only shows about 5GB free space. I am backing up some of my music I have on here and then I am going to delete it to try to free up at least half my HDD space so I can partition about 20GB of free space to the windows 7 install..... If anyone can help me get my disc partitioned without wiping the entire thing clean that would be GREAT!!

TIA - Kiel

jerazis · « **Reply #35 on:** August 25, 2009, 12:43:45 AM »

Most of the 7 drivers are not working with some sound cards and what not. Yes Some hardware can use vista drivers in place of the lacking 7 drivers. I spoke with Lynx and UAD and they will not release there drivers until 7 becomes official. And at that point the audio card folks and others may not be ready to release at the same time. It may be till the new year or later before other companies are ready for 7.

but wave lab works for sure i know that... :-)

Əkoostikal · « **Reply #36 on:** August 25, 2009, 06:38:14 PM »

Update of previous post:

I successfully got 7 dual booted with Vista on my laptop. My first impression is very good of Windows 7 so far..... It also seems to run noticeably faster on my computer. I have run Samplitude 10, Safari, VLC, and iTunes so far with do hiccups at all. It is also nice that I can load my files from the vista partition on Windows 7 with no trouble at all. I may actually consider dumping vista all together and using dual booting using a striped down version of XP to run in the field with my mbox2......

All in all Windows 7 looks pretty nice to me, after only about 12 hours of use though.....LOL I can tell already I prefer this to vista, so I have no doubt vista has to go, and sense Windows 7 seems to run Samplitude just fine (which was my concern) I will no doubt make it my OS of choice for my PC based machines. I will try to install Pro-Tools 8 this week sometime and see how it works. I ran into some problems with it using vista the first time.

rigpimp · « **Reply #37 on:** August 25, 2009, 07:07:13 PM »

I grabbed the RTM version off of MSDNAA the other day. Does this version still have the time bomb?

OFOTD · « **Reply #38 on:** August 25, 2009, 08:19:29 PM »

Quote from: rigpimp on August 25, 2009, 07:07:13 PM

I grabbed the RTM version off of MSDNAA the other day. Does this version still have the time bomb?

30 days to activate but there is a MS workaround to stretch that to 120 days.

ETA: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9136859/Windows_7_will_run_120_days_for_free_Microsoft_confirms

rigpimp · « **Reply #39 on:** August 26, 2009, 05:23:46 PM »

Quote from: OFOTD on August 25, 2009, 08:19:29 PM

Quote from: rigpimp on August 25, 2009, 07:07:13 PM
I grabbed the RTM version off of MSDNAA the other day. Does this version still have the time bomb?

30 days to activate but there is a MS workaround to stretch that to 120 days.

ETA: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9136859/Windows_7_will_run_120_days_for_free_Microsoft_confirms

Even though it came with a serial number and all?

Fatah Ruark (aka MIKE B) · « **Reply #40 on:** August 26, 2009, 05:38:58 PM »

Activation and the Time Bomb are 2 different things.

You have 30 days to activate Windows after you install it, or it will stop working. I'm pretty sure the only way to fix that after the 30 days is to do a fresh install of Windows again.

The TIME BOMB is where the RC will shut itself off every 2 hours starting March 10, 2010.

I'm not sure exactly what happens with the RTM. I'd venture that it still will start shutting down in March.

Not a huge deal to me...I've been very happy with Win 7 and it doesn't bother me one bit to have to pay for it.

rigpimp · « **Reply #41 on:** August 26, 2009, 05:57:38 PM »

I did some Ooogling and found out that the RTM has no Time Bomb expiration ala the RC. Simply 30 days to activate with a legit key. I have one key for x86 and one for x64. Might give this a whirl on the home PC.