How to Install Windows 10 Technical Preview the Easy and Safe Way?

Microsoft has finally released the Technical Preview of its latest Windows version- so called Windows 10. It is said that this new OS is designed to make up for the failure of Windows 8 and integrate the perfect features in Windows 8 and Windows 7. You want to have a try? Here I will show you how to install it easily and safely. 

Part 1: Windows 10 Technical Preview Installment Requirement:

Processor: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster
RAM: 1 gigabyte (GB) (32-bit) or 2 GB (64-bit)
Free hard disk space: 16 GB
Graphics card: Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM driver
Others: A Microsoft account and Internet access

Part 2: What’s to Be Done Before The Installation?

1. Backup your entire system. 
This will help you get back to your previous system in case of failing to install Windows 10 Technical Preview. So don’t forget to do this.

2. Backup your data. 
If you don’t want to risk losing your data in your computer you’d better to make a copy of your important data on a removed disk or another spare PC.

3. Ensure you have access to the drivers and applications you need. 
Drivers for basic functions like storage, networking, input, and display come with Windows. These drivers allow you to complete the Windows installation and connect to the Internet. Thus it is essential to backup the drivers. Some applications you use most like Microsoft office is also important. So bear in mind to keep offline installers for these applications.   

Part 3: How to Install Windows 10 Technical Preview:

Considering the safety of your computer I introduce a better option to install the OS-running it on a virtual machine that won't affect your system in any way (except for occupying some space on the hard drive). Let’s go over it step by step:

Step 1: Download ISO of the Technical Preview Preview from Microsoft website. Please choose the appropriate version (32 bit or 64 bit) according to your computer. There is one thing you must to do after downloading it-checking the ISO integrity. You can perform it by using the Microsoft File Checksum Integrity verifier if your computer runs on Windows. 

Step 2: Download and install Oracle VM VirtualBox

Step 3: Run Virtual Box, then click the “New” icon. In the Create Virtual Machine dialog box, type "Windows 10," then click the version selector and choose Windows 8.1 (making sure to match the ISO you downloaded: 32- or 64-bit). Then click “Next”

Step 4: A window like below will come up. Follow the instruction in the window and continue. 

Step 5: Then select "Create a virtual hard drive" and click Create. Accept VDI (VirtualBox Disk Image) as the file type for the drive, and then choose an appropriate size for the virtual drive. Finally, click Create, then VirtualBox will build your virtual drive.

Step 6: After the process completes, click the Start button in the VirtualBox toolbar. You'll see a box guide you to "Select start-up disk." Click the little file folder next to the pull-down, then navigate to the Windows 10 ISO file you downloaded in Step 1. Then click Start. 

Step 7: Choose the "Custom: Install Windows only (advanced)" option when it presents itself. As usual, the setup process may involve a few reboots.

After finishing all the steps above you’re supposed to start Windows 10 on your computer. Just go to explore the new features you have interest in.         

How to Get a New Win 7 PC in Win 8 Era?

What do you think about Windows 8? Is it “divisive”? Microsoft's finger-first, device-agnostic reimagining of Windows draws haters like flies and has played some part—how large a part is up in the air—in driving PC sales off a cliff since its launch. Even so, Microsoft isn't backing down, and Windows 8 and its Live Tiles are darn near ubiquitous in stores. However, are we hostages to Microsoft’s hubris? As we already know, Windows 7 is by no means gone and dead while Windows 8 indeed lurks inside the vast majority of consumer PCs sold today. As a matter of fact, we can have the choice of operating system, which takes a little digging.

Method 1: Buy a Prebuilt PC

Maybe you will get surprise that the consumer Windows 7 PC often priced somewhat higher than comparable Windows 8 PC.

It is know to all that the end-of-sales date for computers with Windows 7 Home Basic, Home Premium, and Ultimate is October 31, 2014. Therefore, just hurry up if you need a consumer computer packing Windows 7 operating system. Except for that, what you can purchase may only be the purchase business-focused laptops and desktops powered by Windows 7 Professional. Worst still, those can cost numerous pretty pennies. As a matter of fact, Windows 7 PC price higher and higher. This is because many indows 7 PCs available today already aiming at the Professional version. Dell, Lenovo, HP, and other mainstream PC makers reside in the business category still sold all Windows 7 computer. Outique PC builders, such as Origin and Falcon Northwest, also offer Windows 7 as an option for their built-to-order rigs. But those custom, drool-worthy computers start out expensive and only go up—way, way, way up—from there.

Therefore, you should consider searching for one that has Windows 7 Professional installed using the downgrade rights from a Windows 8 Pro license if you are shopping for a prebuilt PC. In other words, just search for "Windows 7 downgrade" on your e-tailer of choice. In this way, you won't have to pay for a new Windows license if you ever decide to upgrade to Windows 8 or 8.1, thought we’ll talk more about downgrade rights in a bit.

Method 2: Roll Your Own PC

Here are bad news and good news. Hmm, we begin at good news first. The good news is E-tailers apparently stockpiled Windows 7 licenses by the bucketful before Microsoft cut off access. Finding boxed copies of Windows 7 online is dead simple. Even better, Windows 7 Home Premium still sells for its recommended $100 MSRP. Unlike hardware pre-stuffed with Windows 7, there's been no price inflation on the software front.
The bad news is the deadline has passed for buying standalone, boxed OEM copies of Windows 7. Everyday folks simply can't get them from Microsoft anymore.

In the consideration that you are able to fin boxed copies of Windows XP online, then wish to find Windows 7 on sale for a while, though its cost is sure to creep up as availability dwindles over time. Just think twice what you are buying. In fact, some third-party sellers offer "open box" copies of Microsoft's operating system. Steer clear of those. While despondent Windows 8 owners can install a fresh copy of Windows 7 on their PCs, this option is more likely to appeal to folks cobbling together a DIY computer from the power supply on up.

Method 3: Downgrade Windows 8 Pro

If you are not fond of Windows 8 but want a new laptop that comes with Windows 8 preinstalled, it’s possible to switch back to Windows 7 without having to reformat.
If you buying a PC loaded with Windows Pro, the version of Windows designed for business, you can utilize “downgrade rights” to downgrade it to Windows 7 for free. And individual users will have to jump through a number of hoops to downgrade their Windows 8 Pro systems.

 

For more info: http://www.lostwindowspassword.com/article/how-to-downgrade-windows-8-to-windows-7.html

That is all, if you have any more good tips on these aspect, please don’t hesitate to share with us.

Windows 7 Still as King Despite the Release of Windows 8.1

According to Net Applications / December 2, 2013, Windows 7 market share still growing despite the recently released Windows 8.1 gained users.


From the above figure, we can see that Windows 7 inched to 46.64% in November, up from 46.42% in October. It managed to grow by 0.22 percentage point. Meanwhile, Windows 8 fell 0.87% to 6.66% global market share. Windows 8.1 managed to grow by 0.92% and most of that growth came from Windows 8 users who are allowed to upgrade to the new platform for free. Therefor, the total gain of Windows 8 and 8.1 is 0.05%. Generally speaking, this is a weak figure and really disappointment for Microsoft. Moreover, the market share of Windows XP held steady. Its market share still fell 0.02 percentage point, from 31.24% to 31.22%. (with 31.2 percent of all computers)

All in all, Windows 7 and XP have remained strong while Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 adoption numbers have been slow to grow. This is not a good signs for Microsoft as it could show that many users have still not taken a liking to Microsoft's new touchscreen-centric operating system. In other words, many users do not want to pay $119.99 for the company's latest operating system.

However, Microsoft still trying to convince more users to ditch Windows 7 and Windows XP in favor of Windows 8 or 8.1. As we have already know that Microsoft would like to see Windows XP users move onto latest versions of Windows as it plans to stop supporting the 2001 operating system after April 8, 2014. Well, Windows 8.1 and Windows 7 were the only operating system to gain share between October and November. Though Windows 7 is still king, Windows 8.1 is not so bad. On one hand, In October, a report released by Microsoft indicated that Windows XP and Windows 7 users were much more likely to suffer malware infections than Windows 8 users. On the other hand, while some still cling onto Windows 7, gamers by and large are moving up and ditching Windows 8, Windows Vista, and Windows XP for the latest and greatest. Microsoft should be happy as the gaming market can be very picky; if performance isn’t top notch, the operating system is shunned.

Gong forward, we expect more Windows XP user move to Windows 8.1 and don’t hate Windows 8, just as Microsoft expect. And Windows 7 will still be the king in a long time. What do you think about?

4 Common Ways to Speed Up Windows 7 Performance

Are you a Windows 7 user? Do you encountered slow performance, errors or even blue screens and need to improve Windows 7 performance? Well, you are right here. It is very simple if you handle some tips or trick to tweaking Windows settings. Below are 7 tips and tricks help you speed up Windows 7 performance.

Tip 1: Disable Unused Software that Run at Startup

It is true that some program which is not needed all the time. So you can  improve speed by disabling some of these software. How to achieve this? You can use Microsoft System Configuration Utility tool. Just run it by typing “Msconfig” from the run prompt:

First you can navigate to the “Startup” tab, then deselect the software that are not mandatory:

For example, Adobe Manager and iTunes can be disabled to speed up your Windows 7 performance. It is not stranger that you are not aware of those running processes, as they run in the back.

Tip 2: Disable unused Windows Services

Another common way to improver performance for Windows 7 computer is by disabling unused Windows services. In this way, you can increase the available RAM memory and CPU. For instance, you can open the Services console by typing Services.msc from the run prompt:

First select the services which you need to disable, then right click them, and select "Properties". At last you can set the service "Startup type" to "Disabled".

From here, you can disable Windows Indexing Service or Tablet PC service if you don’t need them.

Tip 3: Scan Your Win 7 Computer for Malware

As you may already know, one of the common problem for poor performance is infecting with viruses. So how to deal with it? For me, I think the best solution is installing an antivirus program and run it on a regular basis. Luckily, we can install icrosoft Security Essentials for free in Windows 7. It will help us deal with it perfectly. Of course, you can also choose other security software such as Nod32, Kaspersky, AVG, etc.

I have ever used “Malwarebytes” to scan for malware. It can be used for ree a period of time before registering or buying it. With it, ree a period of time before registering or buying it

Tip 4: Disable Unnecessary Visual Effects

You may not know that Windows comes by default with some visual effects activated. You can optimize Windows 7 performance by disabling some features like thumbnails, Windows Aero, shadows, etc.
It is very easy to do so. First you just need to right click “My Computer”, then select “Properties”. Click the “Advanced system settings” after the windows opens. At last you will be prompted to the following windows:

Click the “Settings” button in the “Performance tab”. Then select an available option. You can adjust your settings for “best appearance” or “best performance” or select the features that you want to activate one by one:

That is all!If you have some other great tricks to speed up windows 7 performance, don’t hesitate to share with us!

6 Handy Hidden Features on Windows 7

Well, Windows 8.1 has been a hot topic recently. But most Windows users still run Windows 7. Microsoft's circa 2009 operating system was one of the company's most praised releases in decades, and for good reason: It's a highly functional and sturdy piece of software. But as with any OS, it encompasses a deep and large set of capabilities and settings. And this article is about some of those less obvious features.
In fact, you won't find any mention of most of these hidden Windows 7 treasures in the company's official documentation. These features range from system settings through built-in utilities to lesser known keyboard navigation tricks, and everything that we’ve listed here is available without downloading anything extra (well, mostly). Oh, and while you’re here, you might also want to check out our guide to customising Windows 7.

1. God Mode

It may be hyperbolically named, but Windows 7's God Mode is indeed omnipresent. It conveniently puts hundreds of settings from all around the operating system all in one place.To turn on God Mode, create a new folder on your desktop.The resulting folder will contain 270 items, representing virtually every configurable option in Windows 7.

2. Enhanced Calculator

Windows 7's calculator has a few extra tricks up its sleeve, which you'll find under the View menu. It can perform all kinds of unit conversion (temperature, weight, area, and eight others), interesting date calculations, and even has worksheets to calculate a mortgage payment or a car's fuel mileage. It maintains a history of your previous calculations as long as the program is open.

3. Reliability Monitor

When your system's acting flaky and you're trying to figure out what's going on, the Reliability Monitor may help. Search for "reliability" from the Start menu, and run View reliability history. You'll get a graph of your system's "stability index" over a period of days and weeks (rated on a scale of 1 to 10). It displays which programs, Windows components, or miscellaneous items crashed on a given day, helping you identify problem areas.

4. Power Efficiency Report

If your Windows 7 laptop isn't getting the battery life you expect – or if it experiences power-related issues, such as the inability to go into standby or hibernate mode – the problem usually lies with incorrectly configured power management settings.
Windows 7's Power Efficiency Report can help you sniff out potential problems. Search for CMD from the Start menu, run it as an administrator (right click cmd.exe on the menu and choose Run as administrator). From the command prompt, type the following (don’t forget the space):
powercfg –energy
Your system will be scanned, and after about a minute, you'll find a file called energy-report.html in your \windows\system32 folder. Copy the report to another location and open it (you'll get a file not found error if you try to open it from the system32 folder) for detailed information about what system devices or settings are throwing a monkey wrench into your power management.

5. Pin folders to the Taskbar

You already know that you can right click your favourite programs and pin them to the Windows 7 Taskbar for easy access. Right? Although there's no such option for folders, there is another way to keep them close at hand on the Taskbar. Right click any folder, drag it to an empty space on the Taskbar (or to the Windows Explorer button), and let go when "Pin to Windows Explorer" appears. Now when you right click the Windows Explorer button, your folders will be accessible via the Jump List.

6. Wipe free disk space

It's no secret (or at least, it shouldn't be) that when you delete files or folders in Windows, they're not actually erased – the space they took up is simply marked as "available for use," which allows the files to be recoverable (with the right software) until they're overwritten with new data.
There is a utility built into Windows (even XP Pro and Vista) that will overwrite all the free space on a hard drive, ensuring any files you've deleted stay dead. Launch a command prompt and type the following:
cipher /w:X
Replace the letter X with the letter of the drive or partition you want to wipe. Be patient – the process can take a long time if you have a lot of free space.

That is all of these 6 handy hidden features on Win 7. If you have any question, feel free to leave comment below.