Windows 7: Boot time under 15 seconds?
When Microsoft was developing Vista, or Longhorn, as it was known way back when, company officials were fond of making promises about ways that Microsoft would improve on Windows XP with its next-generation Windows release.
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3.9.2008 Windows 7 (15-Seconds-Boot) No Match for Windows Instant On (8-Seconds-Boot)
Microsoft revealed that it is targeting a 15 seconds boot time for Windows 7 in laboratory conditions, but the fact is that the Redmond company is cooking even something better.
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16.10.2008 Download Windows 7 XP Mode RC and Virtual PC RC
Redmond-based software giant Microsoft made available the release candidate flavor of Windows 7s XP Mode add-on on Tuesday. The beta iteration of XP Mode was released on April 30, along with the beta variant of Windows Virtual PC, and the RC version comes as another step the company is taking towards launching the final iteration of the add-on.
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5.8.2009 Public Vista SP1 RC in a Few Days - XP SP3 RC Next?
Yes, we have come quite a long way since the initial introduction of the pre-beta releases of Windows Vista Service Pack 1 and Windows XP Service Pack 3 to a limited pool of testers, in mid July.
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6.12.2007 Vista SP1 RC Refresh Ships Windows XP SP3 RC Refresh Next?
Should you hold your breath for a new version of Windows XP SP3? Currently, Microsoft has opened up the testing process of the third and final service pack for Windows XP, and, now, all users of the operating system have access to the first Release Candidate of the refresh, as of late 2007.
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10.1.2008 Notable Changes in Windows Server 2008 SP2 RC and Windows Vista SP2 RC
Microsoft continuously improves the Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 operating systems by providing ongoing updates while working with software and hardware vendors to help them deliver improved compatibility, reliability, and performance. These updates are provided to customers by Microsofts hardware and software partners, as well as directly from Microsoft in the form of regularly distributed updates delivered via Windows Update. Updates to Windows are also delivered directly to some affected customers and preinstalled by PC manufacturers.
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1.3.2009 All New XP SP3 RC Refresh 2 and Vista SP1 RC Refresh 2 Available for Download
Making headway with the development of Windows XP Service Pack 3 and Windows Vista Service Pack 1, Microsoft has made available new builds of both service packs.
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25.1.2008 Windows 7 10-Second Boot
Over a year ago, Microsoft revealed that it considered 15 seconds the ideal startup time for Windows 7 under laboratory conditions.
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7.10.2009 How to Change Windows Vista Boot Screen
Some of you remember how it was possible to change the boot logo screen of Windows 95/98. I'm not sure why anyone would go into the trouble of actually doing it, but it seems that it is possible to do the same for Windows Vista.
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19.11.2007 Dual Boot Windows and Linux on Supercomputers
As far as Microsoft is concerned, Windows and Linux dual boot scenarios go beyond the desktop, well beyond. The Redmond company's proprietary operating system and the open source platform can also dual boot on supercomputers.
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19.6.2008 Windows 7 695x boot screen revealed
Chris Holmes, Windows Enthusiast and blogger, has posted a short and somewhat blurry video of the new Windows 7 boot screen in action.
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4.12.2008 The Windows 7 11-Second Boot and the Computer That Made It Possible
Windows 7s evolution compared to Windows Vista is undeniable, and the lucky few that so far have had access to the RTM bits of the latest Windows client can confirm this.
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18.9.2009 Windows Vista Boot Logo Generator Beta
I know a lot of people were disappointed by the lack of a decent boot logo in Vista, so Ive thrown together a tool that should simplify the process of creating the new high resolution boot logos!
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16.1.2007 Enable New Boot screen in Microsoft Windows Vista Beta 2
Tired of the pathetic boot screen in current Vista builds? There is a new trick that will allow you to see what may be the new boot screen for Windows Vista.
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12.5.2006 No Boot Clean Installs Using Windows Vista Upgrade Discs
Although it has been discussed to death here, some official coverage on the front page is needed. Thanks to Ambiance for posting a direct response from Microsoft about the issue.
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28.1.2007 Remove Unnecessary Startup Entries To Boot Windows Faster
Sometimes it's very frustrating when your computer is booting up Windows very slowly especially when someone calls you up to check something on your computer, and you need to call back because your computer takes ages to boot.
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5.5.2007 Windows: Time to Go on a Diet
Obesity seems to be a pretty universal theme in our culture today. Were eating too many fatty and sugar-laced foods and our waistlines and our health are suffering as a collective result.
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3.3.2008 Windows 7 Makes It on Microsoft.com for the First Time
This is certainly a premiere... Windows 7 has managed to make it on a Microsoft.com home page for the first time.
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17.7.2008 Microsoft must know the right time to release Windows 7
Back in 2006, Microsoft released its last installment of Windows till date, Windows Vista to the market (Although it was released on January 2007 for broader audience and retail market).
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12.3.2009 Boot Camp: the day after
Now that Apple's Boot Camp is in the wild, there's very little to be said about booting into alternate operating systems on the Mac, right? Wrong! Because, not surprisingly, no sooner did Apple take the wraps off its little 30th birthday suprise, than Mac owners (or non-Mac owners who could cajole friends into lending them their Macs for a spell) began to put the Apple boot manager through its paces.
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6.4.2006 Vista Boot Screens
Thanks to desperados who report Vista bootscreens download in our forum and to Rick van Dijck (iemanduitnederland) author of the Boot Screens. Some nice boot screens for Windows Vista.
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12.3.2007 0wning Vista from the boot
Federico Biancuzzi interviews Nitin and Vipin Kumar, authors of VBootkit, a rootkit that is able to load from Windows Vista boot-sectors.
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26.4.2007 Windows Vista Blog: "It's Time" video
A simple two word blog post was made minutes ago, on the offical Windows Vista Blog:
"It's time!" windows -
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9.11.2006 Intel Macs may boot XP after all
Reports spreading across the web that Intel Macs can't boot Windows XP might be inaccurate, reports Dan Warne.
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14.1.2006 Apple Boot Camp 1.1.1 Beta
Boot Camp lets you install Windows XP without moving your Mac data, though you will need to bring your own copy to the table, as Apple Computer does not sell or support Microsoft Windows.
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17.9.2006 Vista: Whatever happened to fast boot?
Anyone else remember when Microsoft used to talk about making Windows Vista (or Longhorn, as it was then known) a fast-booting operating system.
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12.4.2007 Windows Home Server nearly ready for prime time
A typical household with two adults and three children can easily have three or more computers. Since each of the users wants access to the Internet, their PCs are likely to already be connected to a router -- but sharing media files and other data among the computers often remains an arduous task.
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2.3.2007 Windows 7 RTM Availability Time-Line Update
Almost everybody who care about Windows 7 probably already knew that Windows 7 RTM General Availability (GA) is scheduled on October 22nd, 2009.
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22.7.2009 Windows 8 Server Roadmap Leaks, This Time in English
With the end of one operating systems development comes the beginning of another; arguably the most fun time of it all.
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15.8.2009 Apple Releases Boot Camp 1.1 (Beta)
Apple has quietly posted an update to Boot Camp to version 1.1. According to the Boot Camp page, the new version remains in beta and contains many updates for all new and previous Boot Camp beta users.
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16.8.2006Windows 7: Few more changes from Beta to RC
Yet again E7 team has posted a massive list of changes from Beta to RC based on feedback, which is quite welcoming. Below are some of the changes
listed by Chaitanya Sareen, a Senior Program Manager on the Core User Experience team, Windows 7. Dual Boot partition drive letter assignment In the
current beta, the other Windows OS in a dual boot configuration wouldn't get a drive letter and therefore wouldn't show up in explorer. This
is fixed in RC after immense feedback from the beta customers.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
13.03.2009Windows 7 Beta to RC transition - What you need to know
Every one of us is waiting for the upcoming Windows 7 RC release. In the meantime, Windows 7 Team has blogged on the upgrade experience from pre-RC
builds to RC build, even when the RC dates are not officially out. This blog post indeed shows the openness of the Windows 7 Team to discuss various
issues regarding Windows 7 RC. If you are expecting any major announcement, then this post does not have any! The blog post talks a little about
upgrading Windows Vista to Windows 7, but as we discussed earlier there is no upgrade path available from Windows XP to Windows 7 "There's no
change here to the plan as has been discussed on many forums.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
07.04.2009Windows 7 695x boot screen revealed
Chris Holmes, Windows Enthusiast and blogger, has posted a short and somewhat blurry video of the new Windows 7 boot screen in action. The latest
sign of changes for Windows 7 signals a departure from the Vista boot up screen. Microsoft kept the boot screen simple with Vista after asking BIOS
makers, PC makers, and video card makers to remove product advertisement screens at system boot. Microsoft created a simple boot method which it
claimed took 6 seconds off initial boot compared to the more graphical boot that it had originally planned with the Longhorn betas.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
04.12.2008Windows 7 RC expected at the end of February
WinnFuture, a German website reports that the one and only RC build of Windows 7 will be ready at the end of February to be sent to select testers.
According to WinFuture's sources, the first-RC build has been compiled by now. The build number currently under test is not known, however
WinFuture reports that 7048 was the latest build of Windows 7 and might be the RC, created a few days before and confirms that work is currently going
on around the Windows 7 RC build.
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full story.....
neowin.net -
19.02.2009Windows 7 RC build 7100 leaks
Redmond still haven't called that plumber, the official RC build has leaked online at the usual places. We revealed yesterday that the Windows 7
RC build was 7100 and according to many Neowin members the x86 version has leaked just a short time ago. We expect the RC will be available to the
public shortly and Redmond could still hit the rumored May 5th date. There is speculation the software giant will hold off until May 15th, the last
day of Tech-Ed 2009.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
24.04.2009Exclusive: Windows 7 RC download goes live
The wait is over folks, Microsoft has published the download page for the Windows 7 RC. As we noted earlier, the download was scheduled to launch
tomorrow and was to be available worldwide. Coming straight from the download page, here are Microsoft's notes for the release candidate: You
don't need to rush to get the RC. The RC will be available at least through July 2009 and we're not limiting the number of product keys, so
you have plenty of time. Watch the calendar. The RC will expire on June 1, 2010. Starting on March 1, 2010, your PC will begin shutting down every
two hours. Windows will notify you two weeks before the bi-hourly shutdowns start.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
05.05.2009How Vista screws dual-booting
nirvana
Declan Kennedy at APC Magazine
has written an interesting
analysis looking at
Microsoft's suspicious
lack of advancement in OS boot
technique.
Put
simply, Vista will still
overwrite the master boot
record with no regard for any
other boot loader that may be
present.
But
Kennedy also describes how,
with the right boot loader
configuration, you can setup a
dual-boot system that allows
you to switch between Windows
and Linux without having to
reboot either OS, using
hibernation.
His
observations open up
interesting possibilities for
Mac users too. Boot Camp would
be considerably more useful if
it didn't involve closing
all applications and fully
restarting the system each
time. If it were just a case
of sleeping one OS to switch
to the other, it'd be the
next best thing to perfect
virtualisation. Will Apple
implement this in time for
Panther?..
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03.09.2006Windows 7 build 7105 RC Milestone reached
Builds for Windows 7 keep powering forward; it seems there are new ones being reported weekly, but here's one that might be worth sitting up and
paying attention for: it appears Windows 7 has reached build 7105, an RC build. But in addition to this, it's worth remembering that a Windows 7
RC could possibly be available April 10th. This timing makes it seem as though Neowin's exclusive source was dead on, and that in a few days time
Microsoft will announce availability of an RC build for its latest operating system. The string for this build is
6.1.7105.0.090404-1235_x86fre_client_en-us_Retail_Ultimate-GB1CULFRER_EN_DVD, and it was compiled on April 4th.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
07.04.2009Exclusive: Windows 7 RC set for April 10, 2009
There have been so many dates flying around concerning the upcoming Release Candidate for Windows 7, and it's beginning to become a daily subject
in the blogosphere. Just when you thought that we were going to see a Windows 7 RC by the end of February, a trusted source within Microsoft has
informed Neowin that the RC will not be ready by the end of February. At this time, Windows 7 RC is internally being tested and the official release
date is set for April 10, 2009. The Windows team is right on schedule with development, and if there are no significant problems over the next few
weeks the April 10, 2009 release date will remain in tact.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
20.02.2009Windows 7 RC coming to MSDN/Technet soon, public May 5
A page over at Microsoft Partners has been updated to show that Windows 7 RC will be publically released on May 5, and should be available for MSDN
and Technet subscribers now. However, clicking through the download link will only get you the beta, right now. This would seem to jive with an
earlier leak on a Microsoft page saying that the RC would be available in May, but that was taken down soon after it was reported. Well see how long
this page stays updated with the Windows 7 RC information, or how long it'll take before RC does actually hit MSDN and Technet.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
18.04.2009Windows 7 RC and Windows XP to be available until 2010
With all this talk about the Windows 7 RC lately, we've seen a few questions asking, "So, how long will I actually be able to still use it,
anyway?" Well, friends, your queries have been answered! Our buddies over at PCWorld are reporting that Microsoft has confirmed that the Windows 7 RC
will be still active until June 1, 2010. This information was actually leaked about a month ago, but Thursday say the Redmond-based software giant
confirm the news.
Read full
story.....
neowin.net -
01.05.2009Vista and Windows Server 2008 SP2 RC released
Last week the Windows Team Blog announced that the availability of SP2 RC for Vista would be available soon. Today they have posted that the download
is now live and you can find the information needed here. If you have a beta install of SP2 loaded on your computer it must be uninstalled before
attempting to load the RC. It should also be mentioned that this, while close, is not a final product and a few hiccups may occur along the way. You
can download the RC directly from the Customer Preview Program or use the Windows Update Experience Kit to obtain the RC for your personal computer.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
05.03.2009How To Warm Boot Windows XP/Vista
Unless you have to, it is many
times advantageous to warm
boot, or rather warm reboot,
Windows. In a warm reboot,
Windows restarts, but the
computer doesnt, skipping the
whole pre-Windows boot
screen/BIOS/startup sequence.
You an
easily specify a warm boot
in both Windows XP and Windows
Vista. Just hold down SHIFT on
your keyboard before clicking
Restart in Vista, or before
clicking OK in the restart
dialog in XP. Enjoy the extra
20 seconds!
Technically, the use of
the term warm boot is a bit
misused here, but the small
amount of time saved by not
re-running the BIOS can be
worth it.
winbeta.org -
17.08.2007Enable New Boot screen in
Vista Beta 2
Tired of the pathetic boot
screen in current Vista
builds? There is a new trick
that will allow you to see
what may be the new boot
screen for Windows Vista.
This new boot screen
is still not what we have been
expecting but is a move in the
right direction compared to
the white progress bar screen
currently used.
Enable New Boot Screen:
1. Click on the
start orb and type in
"MSCONFIG" in the textbox.
2. Once the
System Configuration tool
loads, click on the Boot tab.
3. Under Boot
Options check "No GUI
Boot".
4. Hit
OK and reboot to see the new
screen
More
tweaks at source!
jcxp.net -
12.05.2006Windows 7 RC completed, build 7100
Company insiders and Wzor have confirmed that 7100 is the official Windows 7 RC build. 7100.0.winmain_win7rc.090421-1700 was compiled on Tuesday and
has reportedly been handed out to OEM partners and TAP gold customers. Earlier this month we reported that build 7077 had leaked online and that
Microsoft were pushing towards a 7100 RC release. Microsoft recently published details about a public RC due for May 5th. We expect MSDN/TechNet
customers to receive the bits within the next week if the company is still targeting May 5th. According to reports, 7115.0.winmain.090421-1650 is the
latest build internally at the time of writing.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
23.04.2009Windows Vista SP2 RC to be released to public next week
Last week we had a rumor that Windows Vista SP2 RC was released to select testers. It turns out that it might be just a notification from Microsoft a
week ahead that RC is done and available for testing or it might have been a near final RC made available for testing to select testers. Microsoft
has announced today that the RC of SP2 for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 is available to TechNet and MSDN subscribers to test prior to final
release. Microsoft will make SP2 RC available to the general public via TechNet during next week. As expected the final version of SP2 will be made
available in the 2nd quarter of 2009.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
26.02.2009Windows Vista SP2 RC build released to testers
TechARP predicted last month that RC-Escrow build of SP2 for Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 will be released between the dates Jan 26-30 and
the RC build between the dates Feb 16-20. The RC Escrow build of SP2 was sent to testers at the end of January and the rumor is that now Microsoft has
released the RC build of SP2 to Microsoft Connect testers exactly between the dates predicted by TechARP. Ars reports that RC build is available for
download as a standalone installer package or via Windows Update or as a slipstreamed download which includes 691 individual hotfixes.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
20.02.2009Windows 7 RC to receive test updates on May 12th
Those involved with Windows 7 will remember a while back the beta received test updates, to check if how well the update system worked within
Microsoft's new operating system. Well, a similar thing is happening, this time in the Windows 7 RC variety. This has come straight from the
company itself, via the Windows Team blog, as well as being reported on TechNet. Keeping it the same as the previous updates, they will deliver no
fixes or anything of the sort, and there should be around about 10 of them.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
10.05.2009Beta to RC Changes - Turning Windows Features On or Off
The E7 team has posted an interesting blog post about the various Windows features that are available to turn on or off in the Windows 7 RC. Customers
are now given more control, flexibility and choice in managing the features available in the RC of Windows 7. Below are the list of extra features
that are added to Windows 7 RC: Windows Media PlayerWindows Media CenterWindows DVD MakerInternet Explorer 8Windows SearchHandwriting Recognition
(through the Tablet PC Components option)Windows Gadget PlatformFax and ScanXPS Viewer and Services (including the Virtual Print Driver) Neowin had
already reported about Internet Explorer 8 being an optional component in the latest Windows 7 build 7048, and so are the other features.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
06.03.2009Engineering the Windows 7 Boot Animation
Steven Sinofsky: As we connect through this blog and through all of those talking about Windows 7 it is clear that folks have a lot of passion around
many topics. We learned early on about the passion around the boot/startup sequence and how important it was for that to go by quickly! At the same
time, we know that it is really dull to watch a HDD light blink when resuming a machine from hibernate or powering up a machine. To improve this first
connection with people, we set out to improve the boot sequencejazz it up if you will. It sounds pretty easy, but as we looked into solving this we
found it is a pretty significant engineering challenge. Our goal was to have fun while having no impact on the boot performance of the system. To
explain this engineering and describe the boot sequence, Karen Wong, a program manager on our Core User Experience feature team, authored this
post.
winbeta.org -
19.02.2009
