Windows 7 Tout de Suite
Microsoft almost always wants you to upgrade to the latest and presumably greatest, even though in some cases the new tool is less ready for prime time than a Jason Alexander solo sitcom. But Microsoft is telling IT that the time to move to Windows 7 is now.
Ironically enough, this Windows 7 push just happens to coincide with its Volume Licensing availability.
I've used XP for years, and at first it's fine. Then I find the system simply breaks down, gets slow and becomes flakier than an Au Bon Pain trash can. No amount of defragging and disk cleanup seems to help. And I hate reinstalling. As for Vista, your letters (probably in the hundreds) convinced me that this is an OS well worth skipping.
Windows 7? So far, so good. You all seem to like it, and though my machine still crashes when the lid is shut (I'm using the RC), overall it's a very nice OS. Based on all that, I think IT should convert as soon as economically feasible. So I agree with Microsoft on this one -- so long as your math also tells you it makes sense. Hey, you know your shop better than I do.
But based on a story we discussed Wednesday in which Microsoft warned it can take 20-plus hours in some cases to move to Windows 7, you might want to run a few test migrations!
Posted by Doug Barney on September 18, 2009