Microsoft Windows 7: A Closer Look at Your Next OS?

Microsoft has killed the Sidebar in Windows 7, but the Gadgets it contained live on. They simply sit wherever you choose to place them on your desktop.

Both the Taskbar and the Start Menu now include Jump Lists--context-sensitive selections of actions relating to a particular application, such as files you've used recently or access frequently.

Device Stage is a new feature that gathers all of the information (everything from drivers and applications to manuals) relating to a particular phone, printer, or other piece of hardware, and lets you access it from a single window. But it will show up only if device vendors create an XML document based on a Microsoft template, a document that also must be approved by Microsoft. The good news is that such documents are a lot easier to create than new device drivers--and vendors can stick with the drivers created for Vista.

Windows 7 introduces Libraries, which are virtual folders that provide easy access to related content, regardless of its location on your PC or even on your network. While the OS will ship with several preset Libraries (Documents, Music, Photos, Video) based on file type, you can create additional Libraries based on criteria you set, such as music genre or photos created on a specific date.

Vista's famously annoying User Account Control becomes less annoying: It now lets you control which potential security risks it alerts you to, and which ones it lets slide.

The new Windows Solution Center lets you review notifications about potential system problems at your convenience, rather than when you're in the middle of doing something else.

The new Federated Search feature collates results from multiple PCs on a network into one list of results.

Windows 7 introduces a slicker interface for choosing, customizing, and/or creating desktop Themes--a feature Microsoft says it will rename Styles before Windows 7 ships.

The new Magnifier feature lets you enlarge a part of a screen in Windows 7.

If you frequently work with multiple windows and need to grab something off your desktop, you'll like the ability to quickly take a look. Here's a Windows 7 desktop before you click on the lower right hand corner of the taskbar...

...And here's the same Windows 7 desktop shown in the previous slide, but with the windows hidden. Now you can see the desktop itself.

Windows 7 can route music and video from PCs on your home network to streaming devices on the Net.

Windows 7's Windows Media Player now pops up in a streamlined version that doesn't overwhelm you with features or hog your entire display.

In the revamped Windows Media Player, a Jump List provides access to recently played content.

Windows 7's Paint application has adopted Microsoft's so-called Scenic Ribbon toolbar interface, as first seen in Office 2007. The ribbon also appears in WordPad.

In Windows 7, the trusty Calculator accessory gets a makeover.

To help you conserve power when using a laptop, Windows 7 provides an improved battery indicator.

Again, for a comprehensive look at the new OS, see Windows 7 First Look: A Big Fix for Vista.