Windows 7 beta available 1/9/09

FYI:

"On Friday we will make the beta available worldwide so users can come online and try Windows 7 at home. I encourage you all to go out and download it."

http://tech.yahoo.com/news/afp/20090108/tc_afp/usitinternetconsumerelectronicscesmicrosoft_newsmlmmd

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Comments

skrpune

Grrr, I keep trying to download it and I keep getting "server is too busy" - GAH! Gimme!!

snadam

skrpune wrote: »

Grrr, I keep trying to download it and I keep getting "server is too busy" - GAH! Gimme!!

heh, i have a few guys here trying to snag it too, same results for the past 4 hours

dont feel too bad.

rfult001

"Thanks for your interest in the Windows 7 Beta. The volume has been phenomenal -- we’re in the process of adding more servers to handle the demand. We’re sorry for the delay and we’ll re-post the Beta as soon as we can ensure a quality download experience."

I guess it'll be up again soon.

jibbajabba

Direct Download from Microsoft :

x86
http://tinyurl.com/8vhyvo

x64
http://tinyurl.com/8kjak3

JDMurray

Does the Windows 7 preview downloaded from Microsoft require a key? I found this blog indicating that it does: Psst...here's how to get your Windows 7 beta key

The "pre-prerelease" I have doesn't need a key (probably because it's full of Trojans). If you have this "early" release, don't use the VMWare keygen included in the ZIP. Just download and install VMWare Player from VMWare's Web site. Many keygen programs are Trojan horses and virus droppers.

kalebksp

Windows 7 works like Vista, you don't need a key to install, but it will stop working after 30 days.

For TechNet subscribers, the download page is now handing out keys.

dynamik

I got the "sneak peak" release as well, but I just got an ISO of build 7000. There's no keygen or anything like that. I installed it in a VM, and no key was necessary.

Breadfan

The download page is FINALLY working...

As soon as I signed into my Technet account it went to a page that had a key on it and said to activate it with the one on that page. I downloaded the 64-bit edition (dont know if that makes a difference or not).

From what I have read, it looks to be what Vista should've been, but it seems that MS always skips a generation when getting it right.

When I install it and play around with it, I will post then.

What else do you all like/dislike about it so far (obviously it's not even close to RTM), but I would like to see what you think so far and/or changes they should make before RTM

Silver Bullet

The download I got from MSDN on Thursday prompted for a key which I was able to obtain from the MSDN site. So, the install does prompt you for it, but you can also bypass entering the key by removing the check from the box on that same page. If you do though, I believe that it will only work for something like 3 days.

Posting this post from the install. I have so far had 1 BSOD and it was when coming out of sleep mode. The desktop gadgets don't work at all for me when I turn UAC down to "Do Not Notify". Other than that, I am pretty impressed by the speed that it runs. Have most all the software installed that I run on Vista and it seems to be chugging on along just fine.

I'm looking forward to the final release of this!

Oh yeah, I don't normally run IE but IE 8 on Win 7 is pretty quick too.

skrpune

Silver Bullet wrote: »

So, the install does prompt you for it, but you can also bypass entering the key by removing the check from the box on that same page. If you do though, I believe that it will only work for something like 3 days.

Hrm, so it's like Vista in that you can install without a key, but it only gives you 3 days instead of 30 before you need a key? Or was that typo?

Silver Bullet

skprune wrote:

Hrm, so it's like Vista in that you can install without a key, but it only gives you 3 days instead of 30 before you need a key? Or was that typo?

That is what the Properties of My Computer said when I skipped entering a key. Now whether or not it will go to a limited functionality mode after the 3 days without a key, I don't know.

skrpune

Strange. If it acts like Vista after 30 days without a key, it will completely lock you out completely until you enter a key.

jibbajabba

I wouldn't even want to work with a beta longer than 3 days

mr dinosaur

so whats the word on this, how much different is it from vista?

markk2008

From what I heard it is similar to Vista visually, I think the main differences are in the way that it operates, and its features

Paul Boz

It is quite similar to vista stylistically but functions like XP. You can turn off the UAC with a few clicks and the OS actually runs faster than XP. 7 recognized all of my system's drivers and optimized hardware and power settings. I'm usually not an early adopter of anything but I'm not uninstalling 7 any time soon

JDMurray

I'll be interested to see how well Windows 7 installs and runs on a circa 1999 Intel P3-500 system. I mean, if Microsoft insists of keeping yet another new release of Windows backward-compatible to 1980's technology then it should run OK, right?

Paul Boz

JDMurray wrote: »

I'll be interested to see how well Windows 7 installs and runs on a circa 1999 Intel P3-500 system. I mean, if Microsoft insists of keeping yet another new release of Windows backward-compatible to 1980's technology then it should run OK, right?

I installed it on a P3 with 512mb ram and it runs fine. You can't do anything intensive but hey, it's just like an XP build on the same system.

Lee H

Had this for a few days now and on my PC it doesnt seem any faster than Vista, took about the same time to install too

A few nifty little changes, drag a window to the middle of the side of your monitor and it resizes to fit half your screen, right click the E next to start button and you get your history, same with folders and Media player

Not had any probs with it regarding hardware, didnt even have to install 1 single driver (apart from graphic driver for sli) as it had them all

Best of all is when you hover over the E when you have several pages open and it displays all of them in a line, and then hover over any of the pages and it displays it full screen, very quick when navigating between sites

On the whole, not a worthy cost to upgrade, the differences between Vista and Windows 7 are excellent but not worth the money to spend on them

As ive said on a previous post last week, MS are giving everyone the same key to activate it so you can download it from anywhere and give it a go

Lee H