Let’s talk Windows 7 real quick. Yes, it really is that awesome.  Here are 7 quick features that we think you’ll love.

Aero

Aero is a set of visual effects that make your desktop more beautiful while making it easier to look through the windows you have open to find what you want.

Introduced in Windows Vista, Aero is a set of visual enhancements that make your desktop more beautiful and functional. Aero has been refined since Windows Vista and we’re introducing new features like Peek and Shake with Windows 7.

Aero visual hallmarks include subtle animations and translucent glass windows, which you can personalize. Pick from the included color palette, or create your own custom tints with the color mixer.

But there’s more to Aero than just a pretty user interface. Point to a program’s icon on the taskbar and you’ll see a thumbnail-sized preview of all its open windows—even if it’s a running video. Hover on a thumbnail, and it morphs into a full-screen preview. Shake and Peek meanwhile, cut through desktop clutter by quickly minimizing open windows or turning them invisible. The Aero desktop experience is available in the Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate editions of Windows 7.

Snap

Size and arrange windows by simply dragging their borders to the edges of your screen. Instantly expand to full screen and back, or arrange two windows side by side.

Snap is a quick (and fun) new way to resize open windows, simply by dragging them to the edges of your screen. Depending on which edge you choose—top or bottom, left or right—the window will expand vertically, fill the screen, or you can even position windows side by side. Snap makes reading, organizing, and comparing windows a…well, you get the picture.

Windows Taskbar

Open files and get around your PC faster. You can even pin programs you use often to the taskbar so you can launch them in just one click.

In Windows XP, the taskbar gives you a quick place to find the programs you’ve got open. With Windows Vista, your taskbar is smaller and displays the names of open programs and each open window, which is convenient, but sometimes leads to a cluttered taskbar. If you hover over a program on the taskbar, you can view a single thumbnail image, but can’t interact with it further. You can store favorite programs in the Quick Launch toolbar, but can’t customize the rest of the taskbar.

The new Windows 7 taskbar is still the same familiar place for switching between windows. But now it’s easier to see, more flexible, and more powerful.

For instance, in Windows 7 you can “pin” favorite programs anywhere on the taskbar for easy access. Not crazy about the icon lineup? Now you can rearrange them any way you like by clicking and dragging. Finally, there are new ways to preview windows. In Windows 7 Home Premium and above, you can point to a taskbar icon to see an actual image of open files or programs. Then, move your mouse over the image to preview the window full-screen. You can even close windows from the thumbnail previews—a big time saver.

As you hover over an application, the tile glows, but as you move, the light trails and follows you. Rather than cast a monochromatic aura, Windows 7 pulls color from the application (Firefox, for example, burns orange).

Pin

Pin programs to the taskbar. Pin files to Jump Lists. Just like tacking notes on a bulletin board, you can use pin to keep the things you need close at hand.

A lot of us have a fairly small group of programs and files we use a lot. So it makes sense to be able to keep them handy all the time. With Windows 7, you can pin your favorite programs to your start menu.

In Windows 7, you can use pinning to make your PC work even more the way you want. One big improvement is the ability to control where your programs appear on your taskbar. Always want your web browser right next to the start button? Drag the icon where you want it, and it’ll stay there till you move it. You can also pin your program icon to the taskbar, so it’s there all the time. You can even pin specific documents and web sites to Jump Lists on your taskbar.

Jump Lists

Got a file, photo, or website you use a lot? Open it in two clicks. Jump Lists keep the most recent things you’ve used handy for faster access than ever.

The taskbar gives you a quick way to find the programs and files you’ve got open. With Windows 7, you’ll see the next big jump (pun intended) in making it easier to find what you need. Jump Lists take you right to the documents, pictures, songs, or websites you use most often. To open a Jump List, just right-click a program icon on the Windows 7 taskbar. You can also see Jump Lists for the programs on your Start menu – just click on the arrow next to the program name.

For example, the Jump List for Internet Explorer 8 shows frequently viewed websites.  Windows Media Player lists commonly-played tunes and playlists.

Search

Instantly locate and open any file on your PC, from documents to e-mail messages to songs, right from the Start menu just by typing a word or two.

With Windows Vista, we introduced Instant Search, which helps you easily locate files, e-mail messages, and other items on your PC. If you remember the type of file, when it was created, or even what it contains, Instant Search helps you find it quickly from the Start menu and other folders. In Windows 7, Windows Search improves upon this feature by making search results more relevant and easier to review. Now, you can find more things in more places—and do it faster.

Start typing into the Start menu search box—and you’ll instantly see a list of relevant documents, pictures, music, and e-mail on your PC. Results are now grouped by category and contain highlighted keywords and text snippets to make them easier to scan.

Few people store all their files in one place these days. So Windows 7 is also designed to search external hard drives, networked PCs, and Libraries.Overwhelmed by your search results? You can instantly narrow them by date, file type, and other useful categories.

Windows Touch

Ever wish you could just point at what you want and move things around with your hand? With a touch-sensitive screen and Windows 7, you can.

Move over mouse. With Windows 7 and a touch-sensitive screen, you can browse online newspapers, flick through photo albums, and shuffle files and folders—using nothing but your fingers.

Touch technology has been available in Windows for years. But Windows 7 extends it to every corner of your PC. The Start menu and taskbar now sport larger, fingertip-friendly icons. Familiar Windows 7 programs are also touch-ready. You can even finger paint in Paint!

Windows Touch—available only in the Home Premium, Professional, and Ultimate editions of Windows 7—also recognizes multitouch gestures (with the right monitor). Need to zoom in on a picture? Move your fingers apart. Want to right-click on something? Touch it with one finger and tap the screen with a second on the screen. http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/Using-touch-gestures

More great information about Windows 7, including videos of all the features at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/

Related Posts

• November 25, 2009 -- What's New in Windows 7
• August 12, 2009 -- Windows 7 Review