Windows 7 Annoyances

[Modelworks]

For the most part I like win7 but there are some things that I dislike.

Audio
----------------
I do not like having to have a default device that then disables other output devices. It is fine for people that have only one way to play back audio , but if you have a HTPC setup or multiple outputs having to manually switch between outputs isn't fun. An option to override so that audio outputs through all connections would be nice.

Networking
------------------
I realize not many people who use computers know much about networking so I understand their thinking behind the home, public, work settings, but it gets in the way of doing network configuring. It is like they stuck networking inside a wizard , making advanced configuring more complicated than before.

Explorer
------------------
Find it cumbersome when working with lots of files. The way it is set up to handle folder layout styles is annoying at best. I switched to total commander to solve that issue.

 

[alcoholbob]

The audio thing does bug me. But I just thought of something (desktop is not running right now). What if you uncheck "give application exclusive access to this device?" Does it output to multiple devices then?

 

[amdhunter]

Originally posted by: Astrallite
The audio thing does bug me. But I just thought of something (desktop is not running right now). What if you uncheck "give application exclusive access to this device?" Does it output to multiple devices then?

Damn, thats one of my biggest gripes as well.

 

[amdhunter]

I wish Explorer would remember the fact that I'd like everything to be viewed in List view. I hate having to set folders of "each type" over and over in the view I want.

Windows 7 (and Vista) also tends to change the view setting on it's own every so often also, which adds to the frustration.

 

[fleshconsumed]

Originally posted by: amdhunter
I wish Explorer would remember the fact that I'd like everything to be viewed in List view. I hate having to set folders of "each type" over and over in the view I want.

Windows 7 (and Vista) also tends to change the view setting on it's own every so often also, which adds to the frustration.

Windows 7 still does it? Damn, I thought they'd be smart enough to fix it.

 

[coolVariable]

MC forgets series recordings when series are not in the current program guide.
And in my experience MC also does not correctly remember what has been previously recorded (and deleted).

 

[M0RPH]

My biggest gripe is just how little is changed from Vista. The only real significant change to the UI is the taskbar. And that doesn't really feel all that innovative to me. I'm dissapointed that they didn't give us more... it feels like Vista 1.5 to me. At the very least they could have made more visual UI changes so it would at least look like a whole new version of Windows.

 

[amddude]

Oh man they just didn't change enough...because the UI is the only thing that matters? You mean other than all this?

touch and handwriting recognition
support for virtual hard disks
improved performance on multi-core processors
improved boot performance
kernel improvements
support for systems using multiple heterogeneous graphics cards from different vendors (Heterogeneous Multi-adapter)

new networking API with support for building SOAP-based web services in native code
features to shorten application install times, reduced UAC prompts
simplified development of installation package
color depths of 30-bit and 48-bit would be supported in Windows 7 along with the wide color gamut scRGB video modes supported 16-bit sRGB, 24-bit sRGB, 30-bit sRGB, 30-bit with extended color gamut sRGB, and 48-bit scRGB
better support for Solid State Drives, including the new TRIM command
Windows XP Mode
mounting of a virtual hard disk (VHD) as a normal data storage
bootloader delivered with Windows 7 can boot the Windows system from a VHD
The Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) of Windows 7 is also enhanced to support real-time multimedia application including video playback and 3D games. That means that Direct X 10 can be used in a remote desktop environment.

 

[Skeeedunt]

Originally posted by: fleshconsumed

Originally posted by: amdhunter
I wish Explorer would remember the fact that I'd like everything to be viewed in List view. I hate having to set folders of "each type" over and over in the view I want.

Windows 7 (and Vista) also tends to change the view setting on it's own every so often also, which adds to the frustration.

Windows 7 still does it? Damn, I thought they'd be smart enough to fix it.

So far all of the Vista Explorer issues seem to be fixed for me... I just went to one of the folders that used the "General Items" template, configured to List View, and did the old "Apply to all folders of this type..." under options. So far it's remembered this (and windows sizes) properly.

There are still the different templates, so you would need to do the same for the Documents template, etc, but it should stick after that (at least so far it has me).

 

[nyker96]

tried the 7600 rtm x64 for 2 weeks, here are the negatives:
+ VLC 1.0 has to run in compatibility mode.
+ java 1,6 32bit JDK won't run after installation
+ photoshop extended cannot invoke Bridge, just won't run.

everything else including games ran fine on it. however, I use this rig for programming and photoshop work,
right now I just don't want to deal with these compatibility issues for my main apps. so just going to wait
for 6-9 months. although the operating system is far superior to vista on every aspect I can find,
good work MS on this one. just need a little time for software to catch up to it the I will switch for good.

 

[amddude]

Dumb question but did you try running photoshop as admin?

 

[The0ne]

Originally posted by: Modelworks
For the most part I like win7 but there are some things that I dislike.

Audio
----------------
I do not like having to have a default device that then disables other output devices. It is fine for people that have only one way to play back audio , but if you have a HTPC setup or multiple outputs having to manually switch between outputs isn't fun. An option to override so that audio outputs through all connections would be nice.

Networking
------------------
I realize not many people who use computers know much about networking so I understand their thinking behind the home, public, work settings, but it gets in the way of doing network configuring. It is like they stuck networking inside a wizard , making advanced configuring more complicated than before.

Explorer
------------------
Find it cumbersome when working with lots of files. The way it is set up to handle folder layout styles is annoying at best. I switched to total commander to solve that issue.

Have same feelings about what you've said too.

Audio
========
Drivers from both Creative and windows are pretty weak. Volume is not acceptable compared to XP drivers. They very low. The ATI HD audio driver screws up the Creative drivers and almost completely mutes any output. Uninstalling the ATI driver did not recover anything. I'm going to have to reinstall Windows. The onboard audio is unaffected, which is a good thing.

Networking
========
Same feeling as you. Worst yes you have to enter a cryptic key, which you can change, to be in the same workgroup. What's wrong with just using the name to be in the same workgroup, isn't that the idea? Yes, it's more secure as well but the hassle is ton more less attractive imo. For the average Joe I can see them bitching about this. As of now, I've yet to properly network at home and if I do can't get file sharing to work with PCs running XP, Vista and Win7. I wish they would just make it like XP.

Explorer
========
Explorer sucks. Use Command or my favorite Xplorer2. Works better.

Desktop
========
No quick launch without easy access. You can still add it however. Don't like the pin toolbar myself. Desktop icons will get shuffle around if Windows has issues with your resolution upon booting. I haven't still figure out why it's doing it on my system to be honest. None of what I've read thus far has help.

Video
========
Neither my ATI or NVidia cards can maintain dual screen mode upon reboot. You have to apply another different setting like "duplicate" and then switch back to "Extend" to enable it. Cards are 4870 and 9800gx2.

There are slowdowns when moving windows around in certain situations, like playing video. The move is actually choppy and not smooth. Has been like this since 7100, now using RTM. Some codecs are not fully compatible with Windows7 for reasons I am not going to bother to research why. Playing HD video such as MKV and such will produce artifacts in either classic or WMP. Using K-lite code packs.

 

[The0ne]

Originally posted by: Skeeedunt

Originally posted by: fleshconsumed

Originally posted by: amdhunter
I wish Explorer would remember the fact that I'd like everything to be viewed in List view. I hate having to set folders of "each type" over and over in the view I want.

Windows 7 (and Vista) also tends to change the view setting on it's own every so often also, which adds to the frustration.

Windows 7 still does it? Damn, I thought they'd be smart enough to fix it.

So far all of the Vista Explorer issues seem to be fixed for me... I just went to one of the folders that used the "General Items" template, configured to List View, and did the old "Apply to all folders of this type..." under options. So far it's remembered this (and windows sizes) properly.

There are still the different templates, so you would need to do the same for the Documents template, etc, but it should stick after that (at least so far it has me).

This didn't work for me in 7100 or RTM. I'll double check this tomorrow. List view is what I need the most. If it's fix I'll start using it again. 🙂

 

[coreyb]

Originally posted by: nyker96
tried the 7600 rtm x64 for 2 weeks, here are the negatives:
+ VLC 1.0 has to run in compatibility mode.
+ java 1,6 32bit JDK won't run after installation
+ photoshop extended cannot invoke Bridge, just won't run.

everything else including games ran fine on it. however, I use this rig for programming and photoshop work,
right now I just don't want to deal with these compatibility issues for my main apps. so just going to wait
for 6-9 months. although the operating system is far superior to vista on every aspect I can find,
good work MS on this one. just need a little time for software to catch up to it the I will switch for good.

I'm not running VLC 1.0 in compatibility mode.

 

[The0ne]

Originally posted by: Skeeedunt

Originally posted by: fleshconsumed

Originally posted by: amdhunter
I wish Explorer would remember the fact that I'd like everything to be viewed in List view. I hate having to set folders of "each type" over and over in the view I want.

Windows 7 (and Vista) also tends to change the view setting on it's own every so often also, which adds to the frustration.

Windows 7 still does it? Damn, I thought they'd be smart enough to fix it.

So far all of the Vista Explorer issues seem to be fixed for me... I just went to one of the folders that used the "General Items" template, configured to List View, and did the old "Apply to all folders of this type..." under options. So far it's remembered this (and windows sizes) properly.

There are still the different templates, so you would need to do the same for the Documents template, etc, but it should stick after that (at least so far it has me).

Just got done playing with this and no Windows 7 doesn't addresses everything. It now does it half ass. Yes, it does save your settings for the particular folder type and remembers your settings but it you still have to do this for all your freaking other folder types that IT labeled. For example, music and videos will need to be set as well.

Still not as bad as Vista but going back to 3rd party programs. Not worth the hassle of constantly having to change view to list.

 

[StinkyPinky]

Originally posted by: fleshconsumed

Originally posted by: amdhunter
I wish Explorer would remember the fact that I'd like everything to be viewed in List view. I hate having to set folders of "each type" over and over in the view I want.

Windows 7 (and Vista) also tends to change the view setting on it's own every so often also, which adds to the frustration.

Windows 7 still does it? Damn, I thought they'd be smart enough to fix it.

Yeah, Vista never remembers my folder settings. I tell it I want all my folders to show detailed view, but it promptly forgets. Pisses me off. Hope it is fixed in Win 7.

 

[Scooby Doo]

Has anyone gotten the Calculating lockup when deleting/copying/moving files? The progress dialog gets stuck and never finishes. Hitting cancel just causing the canceling progress to stall out too. You end up having to kill explorer to stop it.

 

[Mem]

Originally posted by: StinkyPinky

Originally posted by: fleshconsumed

Originally posted by: amdhunter
I wish Explorer would remember the fact that I'd like everything to be viewed in List view. I hate having to set folders of "each type" over and over in the view I want.

Windows 7 (and Vista) also tends to change the view setting on it's own every so often also, which adds to the frustration.

Windows 7 still does it? Damn, I thought they'd be smart enough to fix it.

Yeah, Vista never remembers my folder settings. I tell it I want all my folders to show detailed view, but it promptly forgets. Pisses me off. Hope it is fixed in Win 7.

Strange, my Vista SP2 remembers my folder option view settings.

 

[WildW]

I still can't get used to the new taskbar. I've tried to embrace it, but it still annoys me. Last time I used the RC you still couldn't return to a Vista style start-menu and taskbar.

If you use the full new taskbar, it hides open windows in a menu for each app. This adds extra clicks and digging for open windows, which annoys me.

You can instead change to the old style box-for-each-window on the taskbar, but these appear jumbled in-between the program icons on the taskbar, which looks awful. Can't find a setup I really want to live with.

 

[fleshconsumed]

OK, installed Windows 7 RTM on my HTPC, had some problems (read below), but overall a pleasant experience.

- You can't change to legacy view in Control Panel, but at least they reorganized it to make it more intuitive, so I don't have to spend too much time looking for what I need. Still, setting up network settings is a royal pain in the ass, had to click through half a dozen of screens to set up connection to my wireless router.

- Explorer now has favorites and personal nodes that can't be removed in the left pane. They just take space. I hate them.

- By default Win7 now includes x264 decoders. I'd welcome this change, but Microsoft in their infinite wisdom made them preffered choice when playing videos. This obviously is a problem because one, these codecs artefact on certain videos, surprise, surprise, and two, they are not fast enough to play 1080p videos. FFDshow and especially CoreAVC codec with CUDA support are superior to it in every way, and yet, Microsoft insists on using their own. I spent half a day troubleshooting this installing and uninstalling different players and versions of the codec wondering what the problem is, almost gave up on Win7 since this is my HTPC and playing videos, is well, most important thing I do on it. Luckily, there is a way to fix it. You can either manually change registry to set codec preferences, thank you MS for making my life so easy, or you can use a handy tool from Doom9 forums (link below) which will do it for you, although it may not support all codecs that you use.

http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=146910

- Oh, and one last thing, I like the fact that you can drag and drop open apps in taskbar to rearrange order, sadly, one, similar apps are still grouped together, and two, you cannot rearrange apps within a group.

 

[pctwo]

win explorer no longer shows you free disk space on the status bar. if you select more than 15 files, you have to click more details to see the total file size.

how dumb is this? well, let's say you want to free up ~1000M on your USB drive. in xp, you keep selecting files until you see the total add up to ~1000M and hit delete. in 7, you select some, click details to see what you have so far, select some more, click details, etc. or you delete a bunch, go to my computer to see the free disk space, go back, delete some more, etc.

the status bar is triple the size on XP, but doesn't show the one piece of info most useful to you. EPIC. FAIL.

 

[StinkyPinky]

Originally posted by: pctwo
win explorer no longer shows you free disk space on the status bar. if you select more than 15 files, you have to click more details to see the total file size.

how dumb is this? well, let's say you want to free up ~1000M on your USB drive. in xp, you keep selecting files until you see the total add up to ~1000M and hit delete. in 7, you select some, click details to see what you have so far, select some more, click details, etc. or you delete a bunch, go to my computer to see the free disk space, go back, delete some more, etc.

the status bar is triple the size on XP, but doesn't show the one piece of info most useful to you. EPIC. FAIL.

Can you hover your mouse over the selected files? Doesn't it give you the combined size? Could be wrong.

I miss the show desktop button (yes I know there is a similar one on the right, but I don't like it there)

 

[ManyBeers]

For those of you complaining about folder view settings not sticking....try this tutorial.
I know it works because I followed it...the manual editing one.

 

[Modelworks]

Another option for file management is to use something like Free Commander. It does way more than explorer and is easy to use and customize.
http://www.freecommander.com/

 

[soccerballtux]

Originally posted by: fleshconsumed

Originally posted by: amdhunter
I wish Explorer would remember the fact that I'd like everything to be viewed in List view. I hate having to set folders of "each type" over and over in the view I want.

Windows 7 (and Vista) also tends to change the view setting on it's own every so often also, which adds to the frustration.

Windows 7 still does it? Damn, I thought they'd be smart enough to fix it.

There's a solution to that, I recall googling for it and finding the solution. I googled for something like "folder view keeps changing"