Comparing Windows 7 to XP.
This opinion may be obsolete in terms of operating systems since I have fallen behind the times of the latest and greatest.
I have within the last couple of months had the experience of working with Windows 7 after 11 years of using Windows XP, with both operating systems the professional versions.
I find Windows 7 to have some annoying features after working for many years with XP and getting into habits with that operating system. For some reason in Windows 7 there is this tendency when several windows are open navigating through files for any window close to the top of the screen to be drawn like a magnet to full screen view. This becomes annoying and obstructive when attempting to navigate between two or more windows simultaneously. Seems Windows XP provided better control with this problem.
I also dislike in Windows 7 the disappearance of the move option that always appeared in the left panel of Windows XP Explorer. With Windows 7 it appears the only way to move files is through the mouse option of dragging and dropping a file. This creates the potential of higher probability of misplacing a file since you might accidentally drop a file into another folder using the mouse or other pointing device. I believe there was better control with the file browser navigation option, a second option in Windows XP to avoid having to use drag and drop.
Another problem with elimination of the move file and folder feature of the left panel in Windows XP is using the simple file sharing between two computers in Windows 7. You cannot move files and folders between two computers anymore with Windows 7, you can only drag and drop to move a file into a network location and then copy it to another computer. It stays in the file sharing location for transfer and then you need to delete the file or folder to remove it from this location or move it back to some personal folder location where you will now have redundancy of two files created. This is extremely annoying and/or one additional step to the recycle bin or moving through drag and drop out of network file sharing. This is something that Windows XP had the ability to avoid by having the feature of moving files and folders through network sharing flawlessly.
If you are attempting to create a back up to an external hardware location you cannot move files and folders, the only option is copying. This creates an extra step if you want to permanently remove a file or folder from one location and transfer to somewhere else externally. You have to send the duplicate file to the recycle bin through deleting, and again another step of removing from the recycle bin. A further problem with having to copy a file to an external location is that you also loose information about the historical creation date of that file which ideally should remain accessible through moving files. The only way to preserve such information is to manually write notes inside that file through the properties right mouse click option where you can add text. I consider this to be a security flaw since you loose the time stamp that used to be un-removable in the properties information panel view option. I also find this option to be a problem for iterative saving of files as I often use while working on graphic arts files through stages of development and trying to figure out which file was created first especially in unexpected crashes of the graphic arts software I might be using at a specific time. With regards to this problem Windows XP was much better with these features available.
Although Windows 7 does run faster than XP I believe there is better control of your computer with XP. Windows XP was one of the last operating systems you could buy installation discs for and run a computer without an internet connection. Not everyone wants to use every computer they have on the internet. The traditional use of a computer was offline with discs and later with progress the ability to use plug-in devices without any internet connection. Computers were traditionally used to run application software for amusement, development, or productivity purposes. They seem to be taking away your ability to control your own computer and become vulnerable to any of the security risks of running a computer that is connected to the internet. I prefer to pick and choose a computer to run on the internet and others for security and privacy that have the ability to run offline without any internet connection. I believe Windows made a bad change decision requiring users of their operating systems to be dependent upon internet connections to use their computer with a Windows operating system. Their are many circumstances where an internet connection is not a necessary reason for using a computer and only creates a potential hazard and security risk, something you at least had the option of choosing with Windows XP.
Comparing Media Player on Windows XP to Windows 7 I believe XP worked less chaotic as a data base for playing music and provided much better control. I have many CDs, records, and tapes converted to mp3's that were a lot better organized and controlled in Windows Media Player the XP version. With Windows 7 any time I add a folder of a compilation CD or cassette tape/LP with various artists instead of all songs by one recording artist to Media Player I get two copies in the Media Player library. This is a very annoying problem that did not occur in the XP version. I've tried removing the duplicate copies of the file that appear in the media library yet once you restart Media Player the duplicates are back again. Windows XP Media Player worked flawlessly as a data base library for music folders and files. Has Microsoft ever heard of the expression " If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It"?
There is one feature I do like about Windows 7 that was unavailable in XP. The ability to shrink a hard drive and create additional partitions. With XP you had to buy third party software that did not always create expected results, especially with compatibility issues of software designed for earlier Windows operating systems. The only option you had with XP was to erase and reformat a disc to create partitions. All your partitioning plans had to be taken into consideration before you started using a hard drive to efficiently use the entire disc, with time situations always changed for needs. Since many computers came with XP preinstalled you could not change the size of the hard drive that ran the operating system using Windows XP, instead you had to use a third party software program that did not always produce intended results successfully.
With the exception of the ability to shrink a partition and the fact that Windows 7 does most operations and procedures faster than XP I believe the older Windows XP was the best operating system that Microsoft had to offer for my personal objectives of using a computer. So far as the speed and running faster issue is concerned I am willing to have an operating system that is slower for the advantage of features that are no longer available in Windows 7. In some situations patience is a virtue, especially when the issue of better control is the trade off.
Is it true what I have heard on radio talk shows about computers that Windows 7 will shut down on you sometime in the future if you do not go online to update the operating system? If this is true, again, loss of control compared to Windows XP.
I have within the last couple of months had the experience of working with Windows 7 after 11 years of using Windows XP, with both operating systems the professional versions.
I find Windows 7 to have some annoying features after working for many years with XP and getting into habits with that operating system. For some reason in Windows 7 there is this tendency when several windows are open navigating through files for any window close to the top of the screen to be drawn like a magnet to full screen view. This becomes annoying and obstructive when attempting to navigate between two or more windows simultaneously. Seems Windows XP provided better control with this problem.
I also dislike in Windows 7 the disappearance of the move option that always appeared in the left panel of Windows XP Explorer. With Windows 7 it appears the only way to move files is through the mouse option of dragging and dropping a file. This creates the potential of higher probability of misplacing a file since you might accidentally drop a file into another folder using the mouse or other pointing device. I believe there was better control with the file browser navigation option, a second option in Windows XP to avoid having to use drag and drop.
Another problem with elimination of the move file and folder feature of the left panel in Windows XP is using the simple file sharing between two computers in Windows 7. You cannot move files and folders between two computers anymore with Windows 7, you can only drag and drop to move a file into a network location and then copy it to another computer. It stays in the file sharing location for transfer and then you need to delete the file or folder to remove it from this location or move it back to some personal folder location where you will now have redundancy of two files created. This is extremely annoying and/or one additional step to the recycle bin or moving through drag and drop out of network file sharing. This is something that Windows XP had the ability to avoid by having the feature of moving files and folders through network sharing flawlessly.
If you are attempting to create a back up to an external hardware location you cannot move files and folders, the only option is copying. This creates an extra step if you want to permanently remove a file or folder from one location and transfer to somewhere else externally. You have to send the duplicate file to the recycle bin through deleting, and again another step of removing from the recycle bin. A further problem with having to copy a file to an external location is that you also loose information about the historical creation date of that file which ideally should remain accessible through moving files. The only way to preserve such information is to manually write notes inside that file through the properties right mouse click option where you can add text. I consider this to be a security flaw since you loose the time stamp that used to be un-removable in the properties information panel view option. I also find this option to be a problem for iterative saving of files as I often use while working on graphic arts files through stages of development and trying to figure out which file was created first especially in unexpected crashes of the graphic arts software I might be using at a specific time. With regards to this problem Windows XP was much better with these features available.
Although Windows 7 does run faster than XP I believe there is better control of your computer with XP. Windows XP was one of the last operating systems you could buy installation discs for and run a computer without an internet connection. Not everyone wants to use every computer they have on the internet. The traditional use of a computer was offline with discs and later with progress the ability to use plug-in devices without any internet connection. Computers were traditionally used to run application software for amusement, development, or productivity purposes. They seem to be taking away your ability to control your own computer and become vulnerable to any of the security risks of running a computer that is connected to the internet. I prefer to pick and choose a computer to run on the internet and others for security and privacy that have the ability to run offline without any internet connection. I believe Windows made a bad change decision requiring users of their operating systems to be dependent upon internet connections to use their computer with a Windows operating system. Their are many circumstances where an internet connection is not a necessary reason for using a computer and only creates a potential hazard and security risk, something you at least had the option of choosing with Windows XP.
Comparing Media Player on Windows XP to Windows 7 I believe XP worked less chaotic as a data base for playing music and provided much better control. I have many CDs, records, and tapes converted to mp3's that were a lot better organized and controlled in Windows Media Player the XP version. With Windows 7 any time I add a folder of a compilation CD or cassette tape/LP with various artists instead of all songs by one recording artist to Media Player I get two copies in the Media Player library. This is a very annoying problem that did not occur in the XP version. I've tried removing the duplicate copies of the file that appear in the media library yet once you restart Media Player the duplicates are back again. Windows XP Media Player worked flawlessly as a data base library for music folders and files. Has Microsoft ever heard of the expression " If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It"?
There is one feature I do like about Windows 7 that was unavailable in XP. The ability to shrink a hard drive and create additional partitions. With XP you had to buy third party software that did not always create expected results, especially with compatibility issues of software designed for earlier Windows operating systems. The only option you had with XP was to erase and reformat a disc to create partitions. All your partitioning plans had to be taken into consideration before you started using a hard drive to efficiently use the entire disc, with time situations always changed for needs. Since many computers came with XP preinstalled you could not change the size of the hard drive that ran the operating system using Windows XP, instead you had to use a third party software program that did not always produce intended results successfully.
With the exception of the ability to shrink a partition and the fact that Windows 7 does most operations and procedures faster than XP I believe the older Windows XP was the best operating system that Microsoft had to offer for my personal objectives of using a computer. So far as the speed and running faster issue is concerned I am willing to have an operating system that is slower for the advantage of features that are no longer available in Windows 7. In some situations patience is a virtue, especially when the issue of better control is the trade off.
Is it true what I have heard on radio talk shows about computers that Windows 7 will shut down on you sometime in the future if you do not go online to update the operating system? If this is true, again, loss of control compared to Windows XP.
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For me, the most annoying thing about Windows Explorer navigation in 7 is the inappropriate jump when selecting a folder using a mouse - its like grabbing a wet bar of soap 
Using keys for navigation, (arrow and enter keys), is the most elegant way around that and actually makes Explorer a breeze to use.
There is a software that tweaks Explorer to behave more like XP: www.classicshell.net/gallery/C… -this freeware would likely suit your needs.
Is it true what I have heard on radio talk shows about computers that
Windows 7 will shut down on you sometime in the future if you do not go
online to update the operating system?
In a word, no. That has no basis in reality.
Using keys for navigation, (arrow and enter keys), is the most elegant way around that and actually makes Explorer a breeze to use.There is a software that tweaks Explorer to behave more like XP: www.classicshell.net/gallery/C… -this freeware would likely suit your needs.
Is it true what I have heard on radio talk shows about computers that
Windows 7 will shut down on you sometime in the future if you do not go
online to update the operating system?
In a word, no. That has no basis in reality.
God damn, go outside
Welp, let me metaphorically crack my knuckles and go to town.
You're comparing a system that is officially dead to one that is slowly going to get cut off life support. Both of whom are obsoleted by Windows 8.1 and 10.
If you're that much of a butterfingers when using a mouse, consider joining us in the optical age, or heck, do what I did and get a trackball. Nothing like the fine-loose grain precision of a ball. And more to the point, most people stopped dragging things from window to window and just CTRL+C+CTRL+V'd stuff. Also, for those of us using a modern OS, one might find a move option in the ribbon menu, not that I've ever used it. Just sayin'. :V
Or you don't know how to properly network worth diddly. The shared folder options are there for a reason. :V
Or you never found the backup option in the control panel. 
Do you want your crazy taco with or without the tinfoil? As it were, there certainly is/was a way to obtain updates for offline installations, considering that there is still such a thing as an offline terminal. :Y But considering that you think you'd get viruses just by simply being connected to the internet, I question your placement on the user totem. I'm rating you around 'Doesn't know what a GPU is'. If you're getting viruses so easily, do yourself a favor and upgrade your router's firmware, if it isn't already irreparably corrupted. A good router and a lot of common sense can go a long way to saving you the headache of viruses. And uBlock Origin. Having a modern OS that is up to date helps too, somehow, like they specifically make updates to keep it secure or something crazy like that.
Nobody worth talking to uses Windows Media Player as a serious means of musical organization. 
Also, I see you like your audio like your woodgrain tables: Rough, and full of bumps. Rather than say using OOG, FLAC, or if need be, good ole uncompressed WAV. Not that is really a problem with someone like me who listens to what is for the most part, synthetic music made by computers on computers for other computers. If I want the warm sound of tape or record, I'll listen with an air compressor slowly hissing for the former, and with a car on gravel for the latter.
Or you know, just use a live USB with gparted and save both the time and money. Or are you one of those people still stuck in the Optical Disc era? Like someone comparing an OS from aught 1 and aught 9?
It's 2016. Why are you listening to talk radio? Or the radio at all? As for their concern, it's utter bullhonky. If there was even the slightest grain of truth to this, you would have already heard about it from actual reputable resources, rather than Rush Limburger or the Drudge Report Comedy Show. However, a large amount of 32-bit systems will have a bit of an issue come around the year 2038.
In conclusion, it amuses me that you've only now gotten around to Windows 7. Windows 10 will only be free until this June, hope you're not too late unless you want to pay about 100 USD.
You're comparing a system that is officially dead to one that is slowly going to get cut off life support. Both of whom are obsoleted by Windows 8.1 and 10. If you're that much of a butterfingers when using a mouse, consider joining us in the optical age, or heck, do what I did and get a trackball. Nothing like the fine-loose grain precision of a ball. And more to the point, most people stopped dragging things from window to window and just CTRL+C+CTRL+V'd stuff. Also, for those of us using a modern OS, one might find a move option in the ribbon menu, not that I've ever used it. Just sayin'. :V Or you don't know how to properly network worth diddly. The shared folder options are there for a reason. :V Or you never found the backup option in the control panel. Do you want your crazy taco with or without the tinfoil? As it were, there certainly is/was a way to obtain updates for offline installations, considering that there is still such a thing as an offline terminal. :Y But considering that you think you'd get viruses just by simply being connected to the internet, I question your placement on the user totem. I'm rating you around 'Doesn't know what a GPU is'. If you're getting viruses so easily, do yourself a favor and upgrade your router's firmware, if it isn't already irreparably corrupted. A good router and a lot of common sense can go a long way to saving you the headache of viruses. And uBlock Origin. Having a modern OS that is up to date helps too, somehow, like they specifically make updates to keep it secure or something crazy like that. Nobody worth talking to uses Windows Media Player as a serious means of musical organization. Also, I see you like your audio like your woodgrain tables: Rough, and full of bumps. Rather than say using OOG, FLAC, or if need be, good ole uncompressed WAV. Not that is really a problem with someone like me who listens to what is for the most part, synthetic music made by computers on computers for other computers. If I want the warm sound of tape or record, I'll listen with an air compressor slowly hissing for the former, and with a car on gravel for the latter. Or you know, just use a live USB with gparted and save both the time and money. Or are you one of those people still stuck in the Optical Disc era? Like someone comparing an OS from aught 1 and aught 9? It's 2016. Why are you listening to talk radio? Or the radio at all? As for their concern, it's utter bullhonky. If there was even the slightest grain of truth to this, you would have already heard about it from actual reputable resources, rather than Rush Limburger or the Drudge Report Comedy Show. However, a large amount of 32-bit systems will have a bit of an issue come around the year 2038. In conclusion, it amuses me that you've only now gotten around to Windows 7. Windows 10 will only be free until this June, hope you're not too late unless you want to pay about 100 USD.You wrote; Nobody worth talking to uses Windows Media Player as a serious means of musical organization. Also, I see you like your audio like your woodgrain tables: Rough, and full of bumps. Rather than say using OOG, FLAC, or if need be, good ole uncompressed WAV. Not that is really a problem with someone like me who listens to what is for the most part, synthetic music made by computers on computers for other computers. If I want the warm sound of tape or record, I'll listen with an air compressor slowly hissing for the former, and with a car on gravel for the latter.
If you need to travel down some hidden road made of gravel with no other option you have to take the noisy bumpy ride. There are many recordings that were released on LP and Cassettes back in the 1960's through 1980's that were never reissued or remastered in any digital format, especially excellent recordings that did not sell very well in that time era. Windows Media Player had an excellent media library data base system back in the Windows XP era.
If I were so much of a butter finger using a mouse how come the same problem does not occur using Windows XP? In Windows 7 if you get the bottom perimeter of an open Window too close to that bottom task bar, then BANG, it opens up into a full screen window obstructing the view of any other windows you have open. Extremely annoying.
I do not get viruses easily, in fact since my internet 2 two year obligation service ended back in 2008 I have not experienced any viruses on my computer, or hacks, or malware, or key loggers. The safest way to guarantee against any malicious intrusions is to keep a computer off the internet. What is so anti-computer about that? My first experience with computers dates back to the 1990's where in college labs use of computers involved running software without any internet. That is what computers were originally designed for, the use of software. What I primarily use computers for is graphic arts and some other office software. I am used to being in control of the computer I work with, you start with a plan and objective goal for the machine and set it up for that purpose. I do not need someone to tell me a couple of years later that I cannot continue on this course and force me to do something different with that product. I cannot spend money like a drunken sailor, that is why you plan, to stay within the means of a budget for your intended objective.
I have a couple of other problems with the internet.
First of all the internet is highly addictive, when I did have this service at home I spent far too much time drifting around in cyberspace where one thing always leads to another. Too much valuable time that could have been spent productively doing something else, one option is producing artwork with graphics programs. I ran into a serious personal decline in my standard of living and income back in 2007-2008 and could no longer afford to have the internet at home, now I use the local library for this as an alternative and have discovered that the time limit they have for use helps with this problem of too much time on the internet. They also have a better network internet security system than any I experienced in my years of home use.
When some commercial software such as Windows requires you to use their product on line and denies you the option of buying their product in a store on a disc that you can manually install off-line you are forced to spend more money to use your computer.
I personally like to use Corel Painter something that costs $400 for the full version, or $229 for an upgrade version. To use their latest version it will cost approximately twice as much than the days of Windows XP. Back then I could buy their software and install from disc on an operating system (Windows XP) also installed from disc for $119 to $200 depending on whether you chose Windows XP home version or professional. Did not need to have the internet for this objective back in the days of Windows XP. Now with Windows 10 you are forced to spend money on an internet connection to have your operating system function properly, an additional expense of at least $400 per year. Their operating system sill costs $119 to $200 to buy in a retail store, yet you can only buy an empty box with a key code to go on-line and download the software that will also have to be activated on-line and need systematic upgrades on-line to avoid shutdown, you are totally loosing control of your own computer. If you are unfortunate and limited in resources to spend an additional $400 more could be a problem, especially when you are living in a time era where you are making only 40% of the income you had to spend in the days of Windows XP.
Also, I see you like your audio like your woodgrain tables: Rough, and full of bumps. Rather than say using OOG, FLAC, or if need be, good ole uncompressed WAV. Not that is really a problem with someone like me who listens to what is for the most part, synthetic music made by computers on computers for other computers. If I want the warm sound of tape or record, I'll listen with an air compressor slowly hissing for the former, and with a car on gravel for the latter. If you need to travel down some hidden road made of gravel with no other option you have to take the noisy bumpy ride. There are many recordings that were released on LP and Cassettes back in the 1960's through 1980's that were never reissued or remastered in any digital format, especially excellent recordings that did not sell very well in that time era. Windows Media Player had an excellent media library data base system back in the Windows XP era.
If I were so much of a butter finger using a mouse how come the same problem does not occur using Windows XP? In Windows 7 if you get the bottom perimeter of an open Window too close to that bottom task bar, then BANG, it opens up into a full screen window obstructing the view of any other windows you have open. Extremely annoying.
I do not get viruses easily, in fact since my internet 2 two year obligation service ended back in 2008 I have not experienced any viruses on my computer, or hacks, or malware, or key loggers. The safest way to guarantee against any malicious intrusions is to keep a computer off the internet. What is so anti-computer about that? My first experience with computers dates back to the 1990's where in college labs use of computers involved running software without any internet. That is what computers were originally designed for, the use of software. What I primarily use computers for is graphic arts and some other office software. I am used to being in control of the computer I work with, you start with a plan and objective goal for the machine and set it up for that purpose. I do not need someone to tell me a couple of years later that I cannot continue on this course and force me to do something different with that product. I cannot spend money like a drunken sailor, that is why you plan, to stay within the means of a budget for your intended objective.
I have a couple of other problems with the internet.
First of all the internet is highly addictive, when I did have this service at home I spent far too much time drifting around in cyberspace where one thing always leads to another. Too much valuable time that could have been spent productively doing something else, one option is producing artwork with graphics programs. I ran into a serious personal decline in my standard of living and income back in 2007-2008 and could no longer afford to have the internet at home, now I use the local library for this as an alternative and have discovered that the time limit they have for use helps with this problem of too much time on the internet. They also have a better network internet security system than any I experienced in my years of home use.
When some commercial software such as Windows requires you to use their product on line and denies you the option of buying their product in a store on a disc that you can manually install off-line you are forced to spend more money to use your computer.
I personally like to use Corel Painter something that costs $400 for the full version, or $229 for an upgrade version. To use their latest version it will cost approximately twice as much than the days of Windows XP. Back then I could buy their software and install from disc on an operating system (Windows XP) also installed from disc for $119 to $200 depending on whether you chose Windows XP home version or professional. Did not need to have the internet for this objective back in the days of Windows XP. Now with Windows 10 you are forced to spend money on an internet connection to have your operating system function properly, an additional expense of at least $400 per year. Their operating system sill costs $119 to $200 to buy in a retail store, yet you can only buy an empty box with a key code to go on-line and download the software that will also have to be activated on-line and need systematic upgrades on-line to avoid shutdown, you are totally loosing control of your own computer. If you are unfortunate and limited in resources to spend an additional $400 more could be a problem, especially when you are living in a time era where you are making only 40% of the income you had to spend in the days of Windows XP.
Protip: I separated my points into bullets for readability and ease of use. You've gone and made a haberdasher's wall of text, again.
Fortunately, since I do not use Windows I am not affected by Microsoft's design choices. The problem is most of the people who do use Windows, and Apple, forget that they are using commercial products designed to make money for the companies that sell them. Microsoft is moving in the direction of pay-as-you-go service. Do not be surprised if in a few years Windows is only a platform to access applications on-line with users being charged by the hour.
As for freedom, Windows users do not own their systems. People purchase the right to use the system, but do not own it. If the folks at Microsoft do not like how someone is using their copy of Windows, the company will dictate what users may and may not do. They may also take the system away if they so choose. Those details are in the user's agreement every customer agrees to when they buy the "privilege" of using the product, including Microsoft's right to spy on users.
As for freedom, Windows users do not own their systems. People purchase the right to use the system, but do not own it. If the folks at Microsoft do not like how someone is using their copy of Windows, the company will dictate what users may and may not do. They may also take the system away if they so choose. Those details are in the user's agreement every customer agrees to when they buy the "privilege" of using the product, including Microsoft's right to spy on users.