This article is meant to review some of the features in Win7. The first feature of Windows 7 I’m going to review is, of course, the new desktop.

The Desktop is the first thing you see when you boot into Windows, so of course it gives you the ‘first impression’ of how your computer looks to you, or to anyone sitting down at your computer.

The first thing I want to draw your attention to in the new release of Windows is the new and improved ’superbar’. This was formerly known as the ‘quickbar’.

Introduced in Windows 95, the quick bar served as a go-to for easily launching your favorite applications. This tool gives you options to greatly increase the amount you can get done while using your computer. Updates to this tool include:

• Easier to see.
• New click and drag feature.
• Thumbnail popups.
• Open and close feature via pop-ups.

I personally never use the quickbar very much, but with the new features and easier use I see this as a huge improvement over the last version.

A huge improvement to the desktop gadgets, introduced in Vista has also been added. The gadgets are now more flexible, allowing you to put them anywhere on your desktop you choose. You can also scale the gadgets to whatever size you see fit now as well. The gadgets can also be snapped together to give it a more clean look if needed.

Another new feature of the desktop is the new ’snap’ feature. This allows windows to be snapped to a side of the desktop by simply dragging it there. Snapping a window to a side also allows for fast resizing. This is a feature that in my opinion should have been introduced much earlier, but it’s good to see it’s finally in there.

The aero shake, so they call it, is one of the first true ‘new’ concepts added to Windows 7 that I’m going to cover. To utilize this utility, you simply grab a window and shake it with your mouse. This minimizes all other windows leaving only the chosen window visible on top. To revert to what you had before, simply shake it again. I personally use the taskbar to shuffle through my windows as I have them all maximized usually, but for others who have multiple windows up at a time this can be a very useful feature.

The aero peek feature is a nifty feature they’ve added and I’m anxious to see if i’ll utilize it in the future. Aero peek allows you to make a window transparent by pulling your mouse to the right edge of the taskbar and your windows will go transparent allowing you to see behind them to your desktop.

The last new desktop feature I’m going to cover is the new background options. While they have added a whole new array of default backgrounds to choose from, the most interesting thing to see is the new ability to make rotating background slideshows. So, if you’re one of the people who like a constantly changing background, here it is! This feature allows you to customize your background into customized slideshows. Now your background is much more fun to look at.