Well maybe that's an overstatement. But not only is this Toshiba laptop an improvement over everything that wasn't working properly on my old machine, I'm discovering improvements on things that I didn't even know could be improved.
(Okay, I knew most of it was possible with Macs, but I refuse to own a computer that runs on sorcery.)
I know that touch-screens and tablets and things of that nature are about to completely redefine computing as we know it, unwittingly bringing us closer and closer to something physically resembling The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (the Guide itself, not the book), but I'm thrilled with what I have now, and no immediate technological advances can convince me otherwise.
Why do I like it so much?
I'll start with the computer itself. Despite having a far faster processor and much more RAM than my old laptop, the Toshiba is significantly lighter (same size screen, slightly less thickness). It runs extremely quiet - I don't even notice most of the time the fan goes on - and the battery life is excellent (two hours no matter what, three if I'm careful not to run anything huge). Sound is great (even with the lid closed), and the keyboard doesn't unexpectedly switch to a European layout every now and then.
But, and much to my surprise, the biggest improvements are in the operating system. I wasn't expecting a whole lot from Windows 7 - the last time Microsoft came out with a revolutionary O/S was Windows 95, everything since has fluctuated between mediocre and average - and maybe that's part of the reason I was so completely blown away.
There are some big, extremely noticeable changes in Windows 7. Startup and shutdown times have been drastically reduced since XP (no real experience with Vista, so can't speak to that). Support for USB devices is great - when I plug something in for the first time, Windows finds any drivers it may need on its own.
Even better is the support for monitors - I use a standalone monitor a lot of the time at home (mostly out of habit), and with my old computer I'd sometimes have trouble getting the display to switch to the monitor (or vice-versa, if I unplugged the monitor without switching back to the computer, the laptop screen wouldn't display anything). No such worries here - I can plug and unplug as many times as I want, and Windows makes the switch automatically! (One caveat, the laptop must be powered off, hibernating, or have its lid closed when I attach the monitor cable for this to work.)
But the real story is the million small improvements, the things that probably took one programmer one day to implement. Take the new-look taskbar:
Snazzy, isn't it? This isn't the default setting (and for those who, like I normally do, have trouble adjusting to change, there are options allowing you to customize your taskbar to look and function like pretty much any Windows taskbar in history), but it's the one I've grown accustomed to.
The Windows button, which brings up the start menu, is still in the left-hand corner, but it's been shrunk and redesigned to look more like the program buttons. Up next is basically a combination of the quick launch menu and program buttons from previous versions of Windows - left-clicking on an icon opens the program window, right clicking brings up the same options that clicking on its taskbar icon would have gotten you in older versions of Windows.
One of the options is to have the name of the program follow its icon (like in the past), but turning that off both frees up taskbar space and makes you feel like you're using a Mac. Any program can be pinned to the taskbar (all the ones shown above are), and any unpinned program you open up shows up next to the last pinned program. The shaded box around the Notepad icon means that Notepad is open (MSN always claims to have a window open even when it doesn't).
Another neat feature - if you hover your cursor over a taskbar icon, you'll get a picture of what clicking the icon will bring up - but amazingly, it's in real time. If you're watching a movie and switch over to the Internet, just hover your mouse over the media player icon and you'll get a tiny-screen view of the movie as it progresses!
Finally we come to the right corner, which has been reduced in size and importance - it's pretty much exclusively the domain of system tools and background processes now, although seeing the date at all times comes in handy quite often.
Windows 7 also has a great assortment of new applications, many of which I haven't taken the time to play with yet. Two stand out in particular - Sticky Notes (last regular icon on the taskbar above) allows you to write short notes and stick them on your desktop, and Snipping Tool significantly reduces the time-consuming process of taking a screenshot of something on your computer - open up Snipping Tool, highlight the area you want a picture of, and save it in the format of your choice - no need for the print screen button, copying and pasting, opening up your picture editor of choice, or any of those old steps! (I used it to get the capture of my taskbar!)
For those of you looking to kill time during class, Windows 7 adds a sizable number of new games to its stable - solitaire, minesweeper and other classics are joined by chess, Monopoly, mahjong and more.
Desktop gadgets are a neat idea in theory that hasn't worked out too well in practice - since shortcuts will only take up so much of your desktop space, the idea is that you can fill in that space with other information. Unfortunately, I've only come across one gadget I've found useful enough to put on my desktop - and all it does is give me a weather report.
And the performance? Unbelievable. I don't know how much of this is due to Windows and how much is due to a stronger machine, but the lag time on this computer is absolutely nil. Adding a few hundred songs to iTunes might slow down iTunes, but browse away from that program and you won't have any idea there's such a huge process running in the background.
I'm sure I'll come across much more I like about Windows 7 and my new laptop as I poke around more, but I've already seen enough to be convinced that Windows 7 is a huge step up in terms of organization, customization, and performance - and it definitely deserves all the hype it has received, if not more.
--Ryan
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