Lucky Number

Microsoft has recently released the first beta version of Windows 7 to the public for a peek into what is to come. With Windows 7, Microsoft has gone back to basics, clearing off their drawing boards and really focusing on improving the user’s experience; eliminating the frustrations and obstacles that came along with Vista. Windows 7 is promised to be a lean, efficient and easier system to use. I downloaded the Windows 7 Beta recently and have spent several days putting it through its paces. I have been really impressed with what I have experienced so far. It is a solid, fast-performing, stable OS that appears to be ready for prime time. It is much further along than Vista was at its beta release, I would guess that Microsoft releases Windows 7 well before the end of the year. Windows 7 could be Microsoft’s greatest operating system yet. There are a lot of similarities to the Vista with Windows 7, but also a lot of new and exciting features and changes. In this article, we will take a look at the new Taskbar feature of Windows 7, which many consider the defining feature of the Windows UI. In the coming months, we will explore other exciting new features of Windows 7.

Microsoft has really revamped the Taskbar in Windows 7. The Windows taskbar hasn’t really changed since it debuted in Windows 95, with Windows 7 it undergoes a complete redesign and gains a fresh look. And it’s about time, the Taskbar has become stale and terribly inefficient. It’s obvious that the new Taskbar will change the way that we use Windows. This is a dynamic taskbar, a “superbar”. Initially, it may take some users time to understand the features and overcome the hurdle of its enormous size. But, the reward is a better Windows experience.

Below, I’ve briefly listed some of the highlights that I observed. I am sure there are others as I become more familiar with the new Operating system and some may even change or be added as the Microsoft developers work toward the official release.

It is much more visual; with large icons, Aero glass support and no text.

It’s smarter; there is no longer separate taskbar and quick launch buttons for your apps, avoiding the duplication in previous versions. Right click a button on the taskbar, and you can open recently used docs associate with that particular program. The icons change color when you hover your mouse over to indicate that the application is running.

It’s organized; hovering over a taskbar button, you will see a live thumbnail the same as in Windows Vista. With Windows 7, you can click that thumbnail to switch to the program it mirrors. That is cool, but it goes much further since those thumbnails represent multiple windows of the same program grouped together. That takes the guess work out of which tab or instance of your web browser has the page you are looking for or indentifying which document you want to work on as many of us have multiple documents open within the same application. This is a real time saver.

It‘s no longer merely a window manager; it is now a true application launcher and so much more. This is the new way of controlling your desktop, starting applications, and managing your open windows. I’ve have to say this feature is pretty awesome. If you want one reason to upgrade from XP or Vista to Windows 7 – this is the one.

One of the best sources of information is direct from the development team, click over to this great blog post about Engineering Windows 7 taskbar. It’s the 20th anniversary of Windows, the dev team tracks the progression of the taskbar back to Windows 1.0. It’s a very interesting read.

Check out this superb video from the Dev’s at Channel 9. Windows 7 New Taskbar – An Overview.

Here is a great look at the Windows 7 Taskbar from a presentation at the PDC 2008 conference.