Feature | Windows XP | Windows 7 | Windows 8 | Windows RT |
Re-imagined for no reason on the desktop | ‒ | ‒ | ● | ‒ |
Can run your existing Windows programs | ● | ● | ● | ‒ |
New | ‒ | ‒ | ● | ● |
Developers need to share paid app revenue with Microsoft | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ | ● |
Run Android apps with Bluestacks or YouWave | ● | ● | ● | ● |
Customization and choice | ● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ |
Productive user interface and best shell features | ● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ |
Usable user experience | ● | ● | ‒ | ‒ |
Start Menu | ● | ● | ‒ | ‒ |
Taskbar | ● | “Simplified” | Covered by Start | Covered by Start |
Decent file management | ● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ |
Flexible file type associations | ● | “Simplified” | ||
● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ | |
Dumbed down “simplified” User Experience | ‒ | ● | ● | ● |
Audio acceleration | ● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ |
Tailored for audio pros and musicians | ● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ |
● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ | |
‒ | ● | ● | ● | |
Disk footprint increases to unacceptable levels after applying updates | ‒ | ● | ● | ● |
Service packs can be slipstreamed | ● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ |
Backward compatibility of of system features and design | ● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ |
Compatibility for the most part of older programs | ● | ● | ● | ‒ |
Perfect 100% compatibility of older programs and games | ● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ |
Serious workhorse computing | ● | ● | ‒ | ‒ |
‒ | ● (List) | ● (List) | ||
No compromise experience (just kidding) | ‒ | ● | ● | ● |
True no compromise experience | ● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ |
Customizable logon features | ● | ● (somewhat) | ‒ | ‒ |
‒ | ‒ | ● | ● | |
‒ | ● | ● | No Windows Media Player | |
Ruined Internet Explorer user experience | ‒ | ● | ● | ● |
Design changes in hotfixes & service packs | ● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ |
Bugs are “by design” & persist throughout lifecycle | ‒ | ● | ● | ● |
You control the operating system UI | ● | ‒ | ‒ | ‒ |
The operating system UI controls you | ‒ | ● | ● | ● |
Incomplete/half-baked experience | ‒ | ● | ● | ● |
Design aesthetics | Fair but | Beautiful | Ugly | Ugly |
Security | Secure enough | Highly secure | More secure | More secure |
Graphics | GDI, DirectX 9 | GDI, Composited DWM, DirectX 11 | GDI, Composited DWM, DirectX 11.1 | GDI, Composited DWM, DirectX 11.1 |
Networking | SMB | SMB 2, Better discovery | SMB 3 | SMB 3 |
OS Image Deployment | Slow, HAL-dependent | Fast, HAL-independent | Fast, HAL-independent | Fast, HAL-independent |
Microsoft: “Please “upgrade” as Windows XP support ends in April 2014 and Windows 7 support ends in January 2020. Eventually, you will be forced to upgrade anyways.”
Joe Average who owns iDevices: “Oh wow, this is awesome. Take my money, Microsoft”.
The conscious user: “Nice try but epic fail Microsoft. Next time, get someone back in the company, who actually understands first what software usability, consistent interface design, backward compatible design and power user experience mean.”
4 comments:
Some GDI 2D HW acceleration is supported on 7 with WDDM 1.1 ( http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/hardware/ff566559%28v=vs.85%29.aspx )
Only 6 functions (BitBlt, ColorFill, StretchBlt, AlphaBlend, Cleartype fonts & TransparentBlt) out of the 100s of GDI functions are hardware accelerated in Windows 7. :)
Just wanted to say this blog is a real(ly satisfying) "experience". :)
@WndSks, although I will admit, in real-world usage, GDI/2D performance is not an issue in Windows 7 due to the improvements they made for concurrency and low DWM memory consumption. So I have removed the point comparing graphics. Windows 7 is hands down better in the graphics department.
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