Microsoft wants the world to know that with the release of Windows 7, you gain performance, ease of use, and security. Even though it initially looks like VISTA, it is not VISTA. Microsoft claims they have made this operating system stable by working out the compatibility and security issues that surfaced in VISTA.   Windows 7 introduces several new features and enhancements in both a 32 bit and a 64 bit version. It makes everyday tasks simpler and easier. The desktop is still the primary environment and provides access to all of your programs and files. You will be familiar with many of the desktop components including the background, icons and shortcuts, taskbar, and the infamous start button; however, it has changed in both behavior and appearance from previous versions of Windows. To the right of the Start button are "pinned" icons, used to launch your most frequently used programs. You can easily pin programs to the taskbar. Click once on a pinned icon to start a program. Windows 7 is program-oriented rather than window-oriented. If you open multiple instances of a program or open multiple documents in the same program, only one icon will be displayed. Windows 7 introduces Jump Lists which are context menus that you can use to open recent and favorite files and folders. By right-clicking on a program icon, a jump list opens and displays your recently opened items. You can also pin items to a Jump List for fast access to files that you use frequently. Other simple management features include Snap, Peek, and Shake although the traditional Windows methods for switching between open programs and files are still available. You can use taskbar thumbnails, Flip, and Flip 3-D to quickly switch among open files and programs. Pointing to the taskbar icons open a "live thumbnail" –a small image of that program window. A live thumbnail reflects what is happening in the window. You can also flip through open applications and the desktop by pressing Alt+Tab. This key combination displays thumbnails of all open programs. You can take this process and hold down the windows Key and press Tab to produce a flip through a 3-D view. Aero Snap and Aero Shake allow you to resize and quickly minimize all windows but one. You can "shake" the desired window by quickly dragging the title bar back and forth. A new file and folder management feature is a tool called Libraries. A Windows library is a named collection of folders grouped for organization purposes. Easily find the files you are looking for and manage them as if they were in one location-even when they are in different folders or on several PCs. Every user has four default libraries, and you can create and customize your own libraries. It doesn't matter where a particular file is physically stored-you can access it in its corresponding library for easy retrieval.   Device State is a new feature that makes it easy to hook up and interact with your devices and gadgets, including cell phones, digital cameras, USB flash drives, printers, and music players all in one place. The device manufacturers can provide detailed information for their devices so that clicking a device icon opens a window with images, information, and resources that the device manufacturer can control and update.      Windows 7 system requirements include:  1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor  1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)      16 GB available disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)     Microsoft DirectX® 9 processor with Windows Display Driver Model 1.0 or higher driver If you have an interest in learning more about Windows 7, we are offering a three-hour focus session on Tuesday, March 30 from 9-12. Please contact Cindy Prindle if you have any questions about Windows 7 or Sarah Loeffelholz if you would like to register for this class. You can contact us by e-mail at cprindle@habco.com, or sloeffelholz@habco.com,, or by phone at (608) 784-7737. You can also check our calendar and register for any of our in-house and on-line classes on our website at ww.habco.com, (point to The Training Center on the menu bar). We welcome the opportunity to provide you, our client, the competitive edge by helping your employees become more efficient using your software.