7 Tips to make your Windows 7 Experience more Productive

It has been a long time since any Windows products have been a hit on the operating system market. Even the long established Windows Mobile Operating System could not compete with the likes like Apple iOS and Google Android. Windows Millennium and Windows Vista have been a bit of a failure after they were launched. When Windows Millennium was launched, users started to think if Windows has lost its plot in the operating system. It was the same when Windows Vista was launched. However, when Windows XP was launched after Windows Millennium, it took people by storm. Windows XP remains the most used operating systems to date.

When Windows Vista messed things up, Windows again comes up with Windows 7 and it brings users’ experience to another level. Most people were surprised the speed and the easiness of the installation. In fact, I was able to install Windows 7 on my Samsung NC10 without any problem while Windows Vista struggled. Even so, many people find it difficult to adapt the transition from Windows XP to Windows 7. The concepts are still the same but it’s just knowing how and where to find them.

Run is not Run Anymore

Remember when you used to have a Run in your start menu and you have to type in exactly the path and filename of the file that you would like to launch? Windows 7 ‘Run’ is more like a search now. Type in any program name and you will get a list of matches. This function will be very useful as you proceed further down this article.

Show Desktop

You have several windows or programs opened. You would like to minimize them all to get to the desktop. How would you do it? Windows Key + D? There’s another way without pressing any key. Move your mouse to the right bottom corner and you will see a preview of your desktop immediately. Click on it and there you are; all windows or programs minimized and you are on the desktop.

Windows Aero

Aero is a nice feature where it could improve your experience with Windows 7 a little bit better. Forget about having a video as you desktop wallpaper. With Aero switched on, you can preview any windows or programs that are currently opened and on your taskbar. When Windows 7 is installed, chances are that the Aero features are turned off. In order to enable it, click Start (The round Windows logo on the left bottom corner) --> Control Panel --> Change the Theme. Select any Aero theme and there you have it. When you are familiar with Windows 7, you will find that you can get to the same Change the Theme option by right click on the desktop and click Personalise.

It is a misconception that Windows Aero uses a lot of resources. I was able to enable to feature on my Samsung NC10 netbook and hence, I wonder if there are any other computers which have lower specifications than a netbook.

Snipping Tool

You are looking at your computer screen and you would like to capture what you are seeing at the moment. What would you do? The keyboard’s print screen button looks useful. Well, what would you do if you would like to capture part of the screen? Print screen, paste it onto paint and crop the printed screen? There is an easy way to do it. Fire up Snipping Tool and click and drag the area that you would like to copy and there you have it.

Sticky Notes

Save the world! Sticky Notes is a useful program where you can have multiple notes, pasted on your desktop. You can have as many sticky notes as you like and they will still be there after a restart. In addition, there are several colours that you can choose. There are not many options but it fits the purpose.

Pin Programs to Taskbar

Tired of having to go through your programs list to find a particular program that you have to run every day? Tired of having cluttered desktop with all the shortcuts to programs that you need to use most of the time? Well, Windows 7 has the ability to pin most programs on the taskbar. Run a program and on the taskbar, right click on the program and click ‘Pin this Program to Taskbar’.

Maximize, Minimize and Shake

Ever have to copy files between folders and find yourself trying to resize two windows explorer to fit the screen equally? Drag one windows explorer to the most left and the other one to the most right and you will get two equal size windows explorer, fit on your screen. To maximize, drag the window to the top. To minimize everything but the window you are dragging, shake it by moving your mouse left and right repeatedly.

The Fun

Of course, the fun doesn’t stop here. There are a lot more things to be explored by users and these 7 tips are just to give you a head start that Windows 7 has improved users’ experience in a good way. Steps are reduced to produce similar results compared to its predecessor. Who wouldn’t want a simpler, faster and better looking operating system?