Windows 7 Beta Shutdowns Begin Today

@Madge Gristle: Can't say if it'll work with Windows 7, but I could do a clean install with my Win98 upgrade CD, I just had to insert a Win95 install disk at some point to prove I had one.

corneliuscrab

@mfusion: If you don't like the Beta, or decide not to purchase it next year, you can revert your computer back to Vista automatically. You'll get exactly one nag, and then you'll be done.

And Win 7 installs fairly easily, even without a wipe (I've done both my desktop and laptop) all you need is a free hour or two to let it run, pressing a button from time to time. Grab a coffee, turn on some music and read a book.

To do otherwise, you're essentially denying yourself good free stuff. And Win 7 is very, very good.

Daveinva

@Aarrrgh:

Weird....

Take a look at mine:
[img190.imageshack.us]

I had the same problem in FF3.0

JuiceDaddy

@wrecklass: Vista haters are idiots who have clearly never used the OS. I've had it since its release and never had a problem. In fact, I would go as far as to say I actually like Vista.

Dabamash

Anyone who compares ME to Vista must have never REALLY had ME.

My Vista is better than XP SP2 and mentioning ME is a joke.

ME was a frozen _____up nightmare of an OS. That thing must have really made people consider a Mac. I did!!

@JuiceDaddy: I have no problems finding the login button in ff3.5

Aarrrgh

I was about to FREAK OUT until I realized this only applies to the beta and not the RC.

Whew.

Baashar Alawneh

@SoaringDisbelief: I'm reminded of MacSnobs who haven't used Windows since 1992 and still say things like "oh noes, all you see are BSOD all day!" I haven't seen a BSOD in 8 years, Windows 98, XP and now Vista. They just don't break. Vista's biggest problem in the first couple of months was bad third party drivers. I steered clear of nVidia at the time, and that made the difference. I use OS X, Windows (XP and Vista) and Linux. And I can truly say they are all about the same as far as stability goes these days.

wrecklass

@mfusion: Okay. i believe that you missed my simple point - to download and use the RC for the sole purpose of getting used to it (and enjoying it for the time being) until you upgrade your hardware (which point it will have a separate 7 install). You don't have to wipe whatever install is currently on your laptop. My logic isn't "wrong;" you're assigning things to it I never intended.

nolabar10der

@battra92: what's that saying? "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"

now go tell that to the hipsters and wannabes who always want the latest and greatest. my vista home premium system works just great, i'm not a hard core gamer, and photoshop works just fine with 100 layers on a 50 meg file, no lag. now why would i want to go out of my way to spend more money. i guess some people just don't get it or have a much better trust fund than i do.

@edosan: and once again, why would i want to install an operating system that forces me to purchase something when it expires instead of keeping with the one that i'm using right now that is functioning perfectly well.

it's a weak economy, why should i go out of my way to spend extra money.

and BETA doesn't mean expires. it means pre-release. i still have a BETA of an old ibm OS that works great and has never expired. still using a beta of some software for more than a few years that haven't expired.

nice try with the smarmy tho, maybe it will work for you next time.

@nikaru: Is it that time of the month?

Well, there is this patch that fixes this problem. Google and you'll find.

Calling win7, vista sp3 is an insult to the OS. It is more accurate to say that win7 is how vista was -supposed- to be. The differences are far too great to even begin calling it an sp3 for vista.

Small success story for me: I've been running the beta, and later the RC on my m1330 for 5 months since I moved abroad. I moved back to my country recently, so started my desktop, which still ran XP for performance reasons (and anti-vista standpoints).

Literally 2 minutes after seeing XP, I rebooted with the Win7 install disc in the drive, wiped and installed win7. Works like a charm, even with just 1gb of ram. I'd say it almost works just as fast as my light install of XP did.

+1 microsoft.

unruled

@Wewtaco: +2

~Also, why can't I login to this site with firefox (3.5)?... I always have to start up chrome, otherwise the "login" button is nonexistent~

JuiceDaddy

@mfusion: "now why would i want to install an OS that expires?"

It's a BETA. Says so right in the subject line, see?

@nolabar10der: I would agree that Vista took way too much undeserved blame. I've had it for well over a year now and I LOVE it. I've never once had a problem with it in anyway. If people just wouldn't do stupid things (i.e., download tons of games off the internet getting them viruses or other similar idiotic activities) then they really shouldn't have any issues. Grab a good (free) antivirus, maybe a couple other tweak and/or cleaning programs and you're good to go.

@The Gnomeâ„¢ Inc.: I was wondering that too. I have a system that came with Vista Home Premium, but put a full fresh install of 7 Beta and then 7 RC on there. Even tho my computer isn't running the Home Premium at the moment, when I want to install a 7 Full update, do I have to revert back to Vista Home premium?

Windows 7, so good you wouldn't know it's Vista service pack 3!

I bet this is why they're offering it for $50, that's a decent "upgrade" price while I doubt I'm going to plop $300 smackers for something that is only a little better than Vista.

I don't care if it's prettier, I don't care that they keep changing the interface, all I care is that it works and it's stable. Right now, my operating system is and I aims to keep it that way dag nabit.

ddthesm

@nikaru: So your saying if I masturbate then I wont be able to diss windows? Im lost.

TurboTexas

@SoaringDisbelief: zing!

@nolabar10der: it has been my experience that upgrading the operating system without a full wipe isn't a pleasant experience.

also, i'm keeping my hardware longer because it is performing just as i need it to, there has been no need to upgrade.

your logic is wrong there, if i upgrade my current laptop to windows 7 RC, and then upgrade by purchasing another laptop, how do i never get a nag screen or reboot on this machine? when i buy the new laptop does the operating system automagically upgrade this laptop? is it powered by the blood of virgin unicorns too?

the reasoning behind that is i keep using my older laptops for personal use after upgrading the working one. sooooo, i'll still get those nag screens and reboots.

I'm running Windows 7 RC, so my question is, I'm building my own computer, and I wanna buy the Windows 7 upgrade version, will it be possible to install it on computer with no previous OS installed? I've read many articles, where it was said that Windows Vista upgrade discs were able to install on a PC with no previous OS.

@SoaringDisbelief: use to what? i'm missing the point of the comment...

@mfusion: But you can use RC until March of NEXT YEAR before auto reboots start. By then, 7 will have been well into retail and you would have updated via hardware purchase, by then. What I'm saying is that you can get it now, get accustomed to how she handles, and by the time you get a new rig, you'll have experienced not a single shut down or nag screen.

nolabar10der

@Phoshi: Hmmm. I use a fairly wide range of apps, and I've noticed that if it worked in Vista, it works in 7. Even Vista hardware drivers seem to be doing the job. Granted, mine is but one example. What you're describing is common to any upgrade cycle, though. Even if my crap didn't work, I'd still rather have the OS and then hunt down replacements and/or dual boot until the third party made a driver/version

nolabar10der

@mfusion: My work just switched off of 2K. Right now we have an XP installed base and look to stay that way for at least the next three years. Funny how it used to be that people were upgrading left and right in the old days and now people want to hang on. Vista really changed things.

@SoaringDisbelief: I don't know, Vista has never crashed or forced reboot the entire year I've been using it now.

I'm not sure what OS you're thinking of but it's not Vista.

@Wewtaco: I remember reading somewhere (it could be related to the upgrade from Beta to RC) that you could not upgrade, but could use a tool provided by MS that would backup all your data and software preferences to the new OS (or computer, or wahtever). It is the same that would be used to upgrade from XP to 7 (which is a clean install). You can check the version on the desktop - on the bottom right there is a small text telling which build you are running - 7000 for the Beta, 7100 for the RC.

nhcotrim

Good thing I can't even run Windows 7.

FamiCube64

this one will do the job... er, so I'm told ;) [www.mydigitallife.info]

Adam Notmyname

@wakebordr : possibly not if you do it in the BIOS, but knowing MS, they've probably safeguarded against such a thing.

@kseve: Or was it WAY too much coffee?

@wakebordr : I was wondering the same thing :) I doubt that MS will be defeated by something so basic as setting your computer's clock. Probably uses some kind of MS time server to get the real time to know if it's time to do the shut down dance.

almigi

honestly thought there would be some work around or patch for this somewhere on the net by now

@Joe Amato: used vista as my main OS at work, and just couldn't get around to liking it

@nikaru: wow, no coffee this morning?

and people were getting on me for saying that i didn't want a "free OS" a few months back. totally got flamed.

now why would i want to install an OS that expires? i'm still running windows 2000 pro on a desktop, still updates everyonce in a while. never expires.

'll wait until my next laptop upgrade to get Seven

@kirnkorner2001: According to the Windows 7 update matrix (idk where it is now, I found it on Microsoft's download site), Windows 7 RC will be upgradeable to the Windows 7 RTM without having to erase all of your stuff, but you won't just have to enter a code, you'll actually have to do a full upgrade.

Wewtaco

@SoaringDisbelief: Very True .... At least they can upgrade to "7" and stay away from this hassle.

Kunal Singh Labana

@DMANbluesfreak: Yeah, but it's still a pig. Even with tuned up startup and an otherwise clean rig, I still experience hellishly long boots and other performance issues. It's not *terrible* - just not ideal. You're right in that the reputation is mostly undeserved. It's not February of '07, anymore (back then it really *did* suck).
I completely skipped ME mainly because computers were too expensive to upgrade yearly, then. Ran my '98 rig well into XP. Funny thing about my dad, though. If you so much as mention "ME," he visibly recoils and little veins start throbbing in his forehead.

nolabar10der

@kirnkorner2001: Are you shutting down every hour?
If no, you're on the RC :P

@nolabar10der: *stop not posting while drinking beer
:P

Win7 was awesome, for the 10 minutes I used it. Alas, many of my old apps didn't work (installation/registry stuff, they worked if I reinstalled, I was just too lazy), so I went back to the almost as awesome vista.

Wow, I didn't know my Windows 7 bet had an expir

Wewtaco

@mike_311: +1

Wewtaco

@DMANbluesfreak: yea what the heck is his/her problem?

@SoaringDisbelief: I lol'd.

@Nabeel: In General Terms, an RC is almost identical. In MS Terms, it'll probably have a few tweaks here and there, but you get the idea.

@Joe Amato: I love vista, too!

@nikaru: What is it with LH comments and totally unwarrented explosions these last few days?

@SoaringDisbelief: Nah, not at all. Hourly you can plan for, that's LESS annoying than, say, once every 2 months when I miss an update notification because I'm afk :|

@nikaru: Funny - the original poster suddenly doesn't seem like the one who needs to "get a life."

nolabar10der

@darknecross: There's an option on the page to download without using their download manager...

radiantchains

@darknecross: I don't doubt that you had problems; just don't understand why. I've downloaded multiple RCs in FF without a hitch, and the silly download manager works fine. Didn't try Chrome.

nolabar10der

@nikaru:
what?
your not cool bra.

ZeitParadox

@kirnkorner2001: Seems doubtful. What you're running isn't fully what will be released for retail. Even if you could 'update' the RC, it's always better to start blank.

nolabar10der

@jbarr: Unless you're a poor college student who plans on using Vista until the university offers Windows 7 at a discount (or free :D).

If you set the date back, will it still shut down?

I was using a beta and it refused to turn on if the month was anything past december. I was using vmware so i brought the date back to december and it turned on. I don't know why though.

wakebordr

@netman2670: Its too bad too, because ME actually sucked, where Vista just had a few hiccups and now has a horrible reputation.

@jbarr: Hah, its not even near the end of the day yet.

*Realizes what he just said* *Tear*

lol

@Joe Amato: Agreed. My Vista install runs like a champ! So does my Windows 7 install, plus I like the new features so i can't wait to buy it :D

@nikaru: Queue disemvowelment in 3... 2... 1...

@nolabar10der: I have to agree 100% here. For me, Win 7 has been a complete joy ride. The only issues I had were in using "unofficial" builds which were later corrected in the official builds.

(I actually purchased one version of Windows XP for my parents' box, but that's it.)

Does anyone know if I'm running the RC now, and when I get the real authorization code, will I be able to just put that in and keep running, or will I have to reinstall the OS?

kirnkorner2001

The nag window has been popping up for me the last 10 days. I guess I should have done something earlier.

Just a note, when trying to download the RC from MS, I had some pretty glaring problems.
First, using Chrome, the website hung after choosing which version to download.
Then, using Firefox it wants you to use some Download Manager that never starts up.
For some reason--and I'm assuming a personal one--IE8 didn't even connect to the internet for me, so I don't have anything to say regarding that.

Best fix: Try to download it using Firefox and NoScript. If you prevent MS scripts after clicking the download button, you'll get a normal file dl prompt.
So far the download has been sitting at ~650 KB/s

darknecross

@nolabar10der: Note to self - stop posting while drinking beer.

nolabar10der

@SoaringDisbelief: Yeah right. Fuck off and masturbate your dog. That's the only best thing that I know you could do so stop dissing Windows. Get a life and suck your dad's cock.

nikaru

@Nabeel: And who's to say that you'll be able to buy it (officially) for the same price as their current promo? Might as well drop $50 now and help boost the economy.

I've said it before and I'll say it again - Win7 will mark the first time that I have ever purchased an OS as a standalone. It's just that enjoyable to use despite feeling like a (albeit huge) service pack for Vista.

If you see a computer on eBay that is perfect - except that it lacks a drive or an OS, go ahead and buy it and just use the RC free for almost a year. Even in RC and technically unfinished it's completely stable (for me, at least - seems to be for most, too), and I don't even boot into my XP, Vista, or Ubuntu installs anymore. It's just that enjoyable to use.

It will take a great deal of time for Microsoft to shed the negative connotation that seems to accompany any conversation about them. I think that this OS is a damned good start. Fanboys are going to have to work harder to have any legitimate ammo against this OS. I don't care what you use (I like OSX and (various distros, too), but I think that the days of *automatically* assuming that Windows sucks are over.

nolabar10der

@Patrick Sweeney:
Get used to it. I'm afraid Vista has gained the dubious label of being Microsoft's Edsel. Well, next to ME and Bob that is.

netman2670

@Bryan Tucker: Pffft. Ok, it was in the post. I didn't read it completely. It's been a long day.

@mike_311: haha

jetRink

@Nabeel: I can't say for sure but I'm guessing that once Win7 final rolls out they won't be providing any updates to the RC; so any bug fixes/security improvements since the RC was released would probably be unavailable.

Also, if you have to pay for it in 6 months, why wouldn't you want to just pay for it now?

Naim Falandino

There isn't going to be much of a difference between the RC and the final retail version, right?

Then if Windows 7 is available on sale from October, and I use my RC for free til March, that's around 6 months free before I need to buy anything :P

(it's not like the on-sale version would offer something drastically better than the current RC, would it? )

@jbarr: This applies to the betas only for now, not the release candidate that you have installed. The RC expires March of 2010 as stated in the post.

Bryan Tucker

Another baseless comment from someone who hasn't even used Vista. Vista does not ever crash and burn on me.

Patrick Sweeney

@SoaringDisbelief: As much as I think Vista took a ton of undeserved blame (user stupidity, poor third party driver support, underpowered hardware, etc), that was good. The perfect storm of snark AND being the first post.

8/10

nolabar10der

Does anyone know which build this applies to? The official Release Candidate that I installed shows an expiration of sometime in 2010.

ive been running vista since its release and thats one problem ive never had... youre probably still running xp or osx and havent used vista for more than 10 and it was on a friends computer.

Joe Amato

@SoaringDisbelief:

I don't get it. I'm running Vista and my comp never shuts down (unless I direct it to). Was that supposed to be a joke, or did I miss something?

ninedosus

Well, those people used running Vista are used to this anyway, so it shouldn't be a big deal for them.

SoaringDisbelief

i better hurry up and r

mike_311