Hey guys, i currently have 3 computers, 2 are running on Windows XP and one is running on Vista. What is your sense, should, I be planning on upgrading to Windows7. I am a Pro user. I am also very interested in knowing, how are you thinking through the upgrade process. Is there anything very compelling with Windows 7, that we cannot live with? Thanks- greatly appreciate your help

Mark -Well... It all depends... Are you happy with XP and/or Vista? Is there anything ultra compelling - a must have - a killer app? Not really. There's no one killer app or feature that can not be lived without. But as a whole, Win7 does have plenty to offer. It's generallyfaster than XP and even faster than Vista. But there's no single feature that stands out as being one of those "GOTTA HAVE!" kinda things.Many old favorite standbys - Outlook Express/Windows Mail, Photo Gallery, Messenger, etc.. have been offloaded to Live Essentials. Most of your XP and Vista era apps should run without hassle on Win 7 unless they were coded by programmers who really didn't feel like following the usual best practices guidelines outlined for XP back in 2001.As it is, Windows 7 does offer stability, an easier way of working. The new task bar is worth the price of admission as long as you're willing to give yourself some time to get used to it. If you go in with expectations that this will be just like Vista or XP, it won't be. Whatever you do, don't let it intimidate you. It's not hard to learn and once you do, you won't like going back. The built in search is pretty cool - tho it's not that much different from Vista's built in search. It does, however, blow away anything offered natively in XP. As far as upgrades go - the two XP boxes will need to have all of your data files backed up. Don't bother with the apps, the only upgrade from XP and earlier is a clean install. The Vista box - will also likely benefit most from a fresh, clean install, however, you DO have the option of doing a direct upgrade from Vista to 7. For this box, I would recommend a full system image backup - just in case.

Mark - Oh.. Forgot something...There's a Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor being beta tested. It, like the Vista Upgrade Advisor, will tell you if there's any hardware or software that you'll be having problems with. It can be found here.

Hi, Thank you for your post. Regarding Windows 7, I would like to share the following documents with you: Windows 7 Release Candidate http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/dd353205.aspx Windows 7 Release Candidate: FAQ http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windows-7/faq.aspx Windows 7 Technical Library Roadmap (RC) http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd349342(WS.10).aspx If you need some help regarding how to upgrade to Windows 7 or on some other related issues or questions, please feel free to post a new thread to our Windows 7 forum: http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en/category/w7itpro Thanks. Nicholas Li - MSFT