Posts Tagged ‘Windows OS’
Tips for Easier Printing in Windows 7
In general, printing in Microsoft(R) Windows(R) 7 is the same as it has been for the past several Windows operating systems. You still perform the same installation and user actions to execute a print job. But there are a few new enhancements that strive to eliminate common user and IT hassles:
- Easier printing to devices found in multiple, recurring locations such as the home and office
- Access information about installed print devices and have an easy way to take action
- Achieve greater stability around print drivers
Let’s look at a few of these new features.
Location aware printing
New with Windows 7, the OS (operating system) automatically sets and remembers your default printer based on your current network location. So now, when you go between the office and home, your default printer will change automatically, making it simple to access and use the printer you have in each location. Say farewell to manually changing printers every time you move from one place to another!
Device access and management
As with previous OSs, a device icon will show up in your Devices and Printers folder when you install a new device. But with Windows 7, you can now access helpful product information and take action on the device by simply double-clicking the device icon. This new service provides you with whatever information the printer manufacturer has made available, which can include documentation, tutorials, configuration and setup, supplies re-ordering and support access.
Driver isolation mode
This tip is mostly for IT folks, but anyone who has to administer printer drivers will also appreciate this feature. With Windows 7, print drivers can be loaded in driver isolation mode, ensuring print drivers don’t crash the print spooler (which is pretty much the most common source of failure). HP drivers can help you increase stability and reduce the support issues associated with spooler crashes. You can also avoid issues with corrupt application and file or other driver actions, especially for shared spoolers on a server. For more information on using HP drivers in driver isolation mode, read this driver isolation white paper (PDF, 312KB).
Windows 7 and HP’s Universal Print Driver
While exploring some of the new printing features in Windows 7, it is a good time to look at some of the innovative print solutions that HP delivers for LaserJet printers, AiOs (All-in-Ones) and MFPs (multifunction products).
One of those key solutions is HP’s UPD (Universal Print Driver), which is a free download that allows users to utilize a single driver to discover, connect to and print to a broad range of networked and direct-connected LaserJet devices. The UPD supports PCL5, PCL6 and PS and is now available for Windows 7, including 32-bit and 64-bit versions. It provides the same driver features as HP’s product-specific drivers and allows your users to easily achieve their desired output across the HP LaserJet product family.
Shortcuts, eco-friendly printing and security
To help make printing easier, the UPD allows users to save settings of recurring print jobs as shortcuts for easy re-use. Simply configure your settings for the intended output and click Save As on the Printing Shortcuts tab of the UPD. This will save the settings for that job type for future use. And the UPD comes standard with the Eco-print (two-sided print) shortcut, which makes two-sided printing a snap.
Additionally, if you want to enhance the security of your print job and reduce the waste of uncollected output, you can configure the UPD to print each job with a Personal Identification Number (PIN). This will enable the device to prompt you for a PIN in order to retrieve the print job. And this can be saved as a shortcut for convenient re-use.
HP EasyColor, available in the UPD, can even make smart decisions for you, so you can just hit print. When you’re printing a document that has several color elements of different types (think bar charts, company logos and photos, all in a presentation), the technology analyzes each section and automatically adjusts print output for the best results.
Multitouch Eee PC With Swiveling LCD
You want a netbook but, for some strange reason, are hankering after one that is also a tablet. Well look no further, here we have a convertible Eee PC that is said to pack Intel’s Pine Trail chip.
French language site, Blogeee, reports that this little baby will see an April release and is confident that there will be no delays. While the specifications are not yet solid, Blogee says we can expect a 10.1-inch backlit, 1024×600, LED display (resistive multitouch), the Atom N450, a choice of either 1GB of 2GB of DDR2 and up to 320 GB of storage (along with 500GB of Asus WebStorage). Both the RAM and storage depend on which version of Windows 7 you want (Windows 7 Starter, Windows 7 Home Basic or Windows 7 Home Premium).
The multitouch Eee PC also boasts 3 x USB 2.0 ports, VGA, a multicard reader, the obligatory 0.3 megapixel webcam, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, 802.11b/g/n and will be available in black or white.
No word on price or a U.S. release but let us know if you’re interested and we’ll keep you posted!
Quick Look: Notebook Performance With Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7
We’ve already looked into the performance differences between Windows Vista and Windows 7 in a desktop computing environment. Although many people would recommend using Windows 7 not only for new PCs, but also notebooks as well, it might not make sense to change the operating system on existing systems.
The notebook question was particularly interesting for us. Which of the latest Windows versions provides the best performance on notebooks? And does the Windows version have a noticeable impact on battery life? Both questions can be answered with a “yes.”
There should be little performance difference between similar operating system versions. Windows XP is popular because it is rather sleek and fast. Windows Vista has the opposite reputation, although it introduced several new features that potentially increase performance. For example, SuperFetch loads the most-wanted applications in the background, utilizing all available system RAM, to make them available quickly. ReadyBoost utilizes a fast USB 2.0 thumb drive to provide additional random access memory for applications. ReadyDrive introduced support for HHDDs (Hybrid Hard Drives), although this feature was never used.
And finally, there is Windows 7, which generally provides better performance.
WINDOWS XP
We used a Dell Latitude D630 notebook and three identical 2.5” Seagate Momentus 7200.2 hard drives to install all three Windows versions: Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7. Thus armed, it was time to run a little analysis.
We’ve already looked into the performance differences between Windows Vista and Windows 7 in a desktop computing environment. Although many people would recommend using Windows 7 not only for new PCs, but also notebooks as well, it might not make sense to change the operating system on existing systems.
The notebook question was particularly interesting for us. Which of the latest Windows versions provides the best performance on notebooks? And does the Windows version have a noticeable impact on battery life? Both questions can be answered with a “yes.”
There should be little performance difference between similar operating system versions. Windows XP is popular because it is rather sleek and fast. Windows Vista has the opposite reputation, although it introduced several new features that potentially increase performance. For example, SuperFetch loads the most-wanted applications in the background, utilizing all available system RAM, to make them available quickly. ReadyBoost utilizes a fast USB 2.0 thumb drive to provide additional random access memory for applications. ReadyDrive introduced support for HHDDs (Hybrid Hard Drives), although this feature was never used.
And finally, there is Windows 7, which generally provides better performance.
We used a Dell Latitude D630 notebook and three identical 2.5” Seagate Momentus 7200.2 hard drives to install all three Windows versions: Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7. Thus armed, it was time to run a little analysis.
WINDOWS VISTA
We performed an in-depth comparison of Windows XP and Windows Vista in 2007. This revealed that there were no significant performance differences, but still some minor disadvantages associated with Windows Vista.
Our current Vista installation also includes all updates available as of November 10, along with the drivers listed on the test setup page. We left all Vista default settings unchanged. You’ll find the settings to the “balanced” power scheme.
WINDOWS 7
We were surprised to see such diverse results. Keep in mind that the test notebook was the same in all three runs and that we used very comparable power schemes (balanced/portable). Windows XP with Service Pack 3 clearly provides the highest application performance, and Windows 7 doesn’t seem so superior anymore. We can only assume that Windows 7 tries to be conservative on performance in an effort to maximize battery life. Let’s look at the MobileMark 2007 runtime results now. Our assumption seems to be true. Windows 7 does indeed provide the highest runtime of the three operating systems, while the fastest setup, based on Windows XP with SP3, actually provided the least endurance on battery. The difference isn’t really significant, but on a notebook like the one we used (with powerful 9-cell battery) the runtime variance between Windows XP and Windows 7 was as much as 28 minutes. This is quite a lot if you imagine trying to finalize a presentation on a transatlantic flight.
Toshiba Launches Laptops Pre-loaded With Windows 7
Toshiba has rolled out its flagship Consumer and Commercial models pre-loaded with Windows 7 Operating System.
Toshiba’s range of Notebook PCs feature high definition (HD) CSV screens, LED display, multi-touch control panel, power saving Eco-Utility, higher battery life, new patterns, 3D HDD protection, Fingerprint recognition and Face recognition using HD Auto macro integrated wide angle web-camera.
Toshiba Notebook PCs are now available in all screen sizes from 10.1-inch to 16-inch including Tablet PC models.
For all existing customers, the company has also introduced a free upgrade offer program from Vista to Windows 7. Toshiba provides International Limited Warranty on all models including parts and labour.
The Portege M900-D3212 comes with leather texture finish and is available in Luxe Brown. It is equipped with a 13.3-inch Wide High Definition (HD) Screen with Clear Super View (CSV) technology and Nvidia Graphics Controller with 512MB of dedicated Video memory.
The Satellite M500-D4311 has a Champage Gold Aero design, a 14-inch Wide LED backlit flush screen and a chrome border that encompasses not just the Notebook PC but also the Touchpad console, speaker grills and hinges. This notebook also comes with a backlit keyboard that allows the user to work comfortably even in dark areas and during night. The Satellite M500-D4311 provides the best-in-class multimedia experience with features like Nvidia graphics controller, 512MB dedicated video memory, Harman/kardon speakers and 1366×768 resolution in 16:9 aspect ratio. This notebook can be connected to an LED/LCD Television using the HDMI-CEC REGZA link to deliver high definition multi-media experience to a larger audience.
The new Satellite L500-D5310 and L510-D4311 come in a Black casing with Breeze ID color. The glossy appearance runs on the LCD cover and keyboard alike. This new model of Satellite Notebook PCs are equipped with DDR3 memory that provides better performance along with power saving features. Both these Notebook PC’s comes pre-loaded with Intel Core2 Duo Processor, 3GB of Memory and a 320GB HDD.
The Satellite L500-D5310 is the lightest Notebook PC in the 15.6-inch display category at just 2.72 Kgs. The model boasts of features like High Definition 15.6-inch screen with Clear Super View technology, stereo speakers, HDMI and USB/eSATA port, USB sleep-n-charge function and full-size 104 keys keyboard.
The Satellite L510-D4311 provides superior multimedia experience with its Nvidia graphics controller, 512MB dedicated video memory and a 14-inch LED screen with Clear Super View technology. This model also comes with HDMI, USB/eSATA port and USB sleep-n-charge functions.
Microsoft Warns of Win 7 Graphics Security Hole
A new Windows 7 graphics flaw has been exposed that could expose users of the 64-bit OS to experience non-responsive systems, restarts and unauthorized code execution.
Microsoft detailed in Security Advisory 2028859 that the vulnerability is to do with the Canonical Display Driver (cdd.dll), which is used by desktop composition to blend the Windows Graphics Device Interface (GDI) and DirectX drawing, and affects Windows 7 x64, Windows Server 2008 R2 x64, and Windows Server 2008 R2 for Itanium systems.
Microsoft says that there isn’t a big worry because code execution would be “very difficult due to memory randomization both in kernel memory and via Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR).” Still, those who are worried about security can simply disable Aero visual effects to keep this security flaw at bay until Microsoft issues a fix.
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