Windows 7 Beta Product Guide | PDF | English Introduction: PCs are an integral part of the everyday lives of billions of people. They come in more sizes and shapes, can do more things, and are used for more purposes than anyone could have imagined just fve years ago. And as the role of the PC has
continued to evolve, your expectations for what an operating system should deliver
have grown.
First and foremost, you care more than ever about the basics. You want your PC to deliver on the “fundamentals”—to be ready, responsive, safe, reliable, and work well with the applications and devices you depend on. And you want everyday tasks to be faster and easier—including new choices in how you interact with your PC, greater control over your desktop, and the ability to quickly fnd what you need, regardless of where it resides.
You also want all of your digital devices—including PCs, cell phones, cameras, and MP3 players—to connect and work together, so that you can easily fnd, access, and share information across the components of your digital world. You want to get more out of each device, easily connect them to your PC, and take full advantage of the features you paid for. You want to easily add new PCs to your home network and share media and fles across your PCs. And you’d like to be able to enjoy your digital media when and where you want, regardless of how or where it’s stored.
Finally, you want a simpler, more integrated online experience. You want to easily get online, stay connected on-the-go, and remain productive anywhere. You want your PCs and the Web to work together, making it easier to access online services that help keep your life in sync and stay connected to the communities, people, and information you care about. And when browsing the Web, you want the experience to be faster and easier while delivering greater levels of safety, choice, and control.
The role of the PC in the enterprise is evolving as well, presenting new challenges for IT professionals who must enable end users to get more done, fnd information faster, and work from any location. The growth of mobile computing and the need to provide more fexibility to end-users mean that IT professionals must maintain control over an increasingly complex computing environment. IT professionals must also continue to enhance security and compliance, all while keeping costs in check.
This guide examines how the Windows® 7 operating system helps meet the needs of both end users and IT professionals. It’s written as a companion to the Beta version of Windows 7 released in January 2009. Not all features that will be delivered in the fnal version of Windows 7 are covered in this guide; however, it provides a great early look at how Windows 7 will make the things you do today faster and easier and make new things possible. We encourage you to reference this guide as you experiment with the Beta version of Windows 7.
Features and functionality described in this guide or exposed in the Beta version of
Windows 7 are not a guarantee of inclusion in the fnal, released product.