** EDIT ** BlitzMAX and Blitz3D work perfectly. Have to run Max as Administrator to be able to compile code, just like in Vista. UAC pops up when doing this.
There's not a lot different from Vista, to be honest. Desktop themes are far more nicely integrated and accessible. I can't find a way to drop Aero and go back to the old Win2000 style. There perhaps isn't an option for that anymore.
The sidebar is gone. Sidebar gadgets are now free-floating entities on the desktop. Much nicer way of doing things.
UAC isn't a pain in the ass any longer. My priviliges are Administrator by default. Whether this is only because it's a beta build, I don't know.
The Windows Experience indexes now go up to 7.9. There's a lengthy explanation of why this is so if you click on the relevant 'help' link after you run the test.
You still have to restart your PC if you change your network workgroup.
The taskbar is quite a lot different, showing just an icon for open programs. Customisable though.
The 'quick launch' bar is sort-of gone. You can just pin programs to the taskbar instead. Again, a much more nicely integrated way of doing things, compared to Vista or XP.
System notifications are centralised (e.g., one icon which you click on shows you the "you need antivirus" and "you need to do a scan [with Windows Defender]"). Nice and unobtrusive.
I haven't delved into the networking too much. Quick glance shows there's a lot of similarity to Vista's networking, but with some obvious layout changes. I will mess with this more tomorrow.
It's bloody nippy. My desktop is not exactly the fastest PC (CPU and RAM index of 4.1) but I'm heartily impressed with system responsiveness. I've installed Steam and run Team Fortress 2. HL2.exe crashes on exit occasionally (crashed on loading, the first time). 3D performance seems OK. Haven't really stress-tested though.
There's a 'biometric devices' entry in Control Panel, to support the fingerprint readers common in laptops, I'm sure.
There's an 'action center' entry in Control Panel. This leads to a seemingly useful maintenance section, where you can do a system restore (amongst a couple of other things).
There's a 'parental controls' entry in Control Panel. Not investigated this. Good idea though.
In 'Sounds' in Control Panel, there's a feature whereby you can have the computer sounds reduced in volume when you're making a phone call (or probably Skype, Live Messenger + headset etc).
There's a 'default location' thing in Control Panel, to integrate with GPS wizardry.
Even Paint and Calculator have had a decent make-over. Calculator has a 'Programmer' mode, where it shows the binary-digit groupings. Genius.
There's a 'HomeGroup' feature in networking, which seems designed to facilitate photo and file sharing above and beyond normal Windows file sharing. Haven't messed with it yet. Seems a bit of a white elephant.
All in all, I'm really impressed. It's what Vista should have been. **EDIT** I can't believe this is beta. It seems complete.
There's not a lot different from Vista, to be honest. Desktop themes are far more nicely integrated and accessible. I can't find a way to drop Aero and go back to the old Win2000 style. There perhaps isn't an option for that anymore.
The sidebar is gone. Sidebar gadgets are now free-floating entities on the desktop. Much nicer way of doing things.
UAC isn't a pain in the ass any longer. My priviliges are Administrator by default. Whether this is only because it's a beta build, I don't know.
The Windows Experience indexes now go up to 7.9. There's a lengthy explanation of why this is so if you click on the relevant 'help' link after you run the test.
You still have to restart your PC if you change your network workgroup.
The taskbar is quite a lot different, showing just an icon for open programs. Customisable though.
The 'quick launch' bar is sort-of gone. You can just pin programs to the taskbar instead. Again, a much more nicely integrated way of doing things, compared to Vista or XP.
System notifications are centralised (e.g., one icon which you click on shows you the "you need antivirus" and "you need to do a scan [with Windows Defender]"). Nice and unobtrusive.
I haven't delved into the networking too much. Quick glance shows there's a lot of similarity to Vista's networking, but with some obvious layout changes. I will mess with this more tomorrow.
It's bloody nippy. My desktop is not exactly the fastest PC (CPU and RAM index of 4.1) but I'm heartily impressed with system responsiveness. I've installed Steam and run Team Fortress 2. HL2.exe crashes on exit occasionally (crashed on loading, the first time). 3D performance seems OK. Haven't really stress-tested though.
There's a 'biometric devices' entry in Control Panel, to support the fingerprint readers common in laptops, I'm sure.
There's an 'action center' entry in Control Panel. This leads to a seemingly useful maintenance section, where you can do a system restore (amongst a couple of other things).
There's a 'parental controls' entry in Control Panel. Not investigated this. Good idea though.
In 'Sounds' in Control Panel, there's a feature whereby you can have the computer sounds reduced in volume when you're making a phone call (or probably Skype, Live Messenger + headset etc).
There's a 'default location' thing in Control Panel, to integrate with GPS wizardry.
Even Paint and Calculator have had a decent make-over. Calculator has a 'Programmer' mode, where it shows the binary-digit groupings. Genius.
There's a 'HomeGroup' feature in networking, which seems designed to facilitate photo and file sharing above and beyond normal Windows file sharing. Haven't messed with it yet. Seems a bit of a white elephant.
All in all, I'm really impressed. It's what Vista should have been. **EDIT** I can't believe this is beta. It seems complete.