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So I just installed Windows 7 RC1 as my primary operating system on my desktop and so far, I’m liking what I’m seeing, but there are a few things I’m discontent with.  This is probably what Windows Vista should have been, but you take what you get.

Boot Time: So starting with the boot screen, there is actually a nice little animation, but no loading bar.  Some people will like having the animated part, but there are probably those who like the loading bar.  Personally, I like the little animation.  The user logon screen is the same, other than the background reminds me of Twitter.  I will probably end up changing it to something else Halo related.

Desktop: I am liking the new desktop changes a lot, especailly that the gadgets aren’t restricted to the Windows Sidebar.  A lot more gadgets are also supported than in the Win7 Beta.  I got all my gadgets back from my Vista OS and put them in and some actually work better in Windows 7 than they did in Windows Vista.  I like the ability to rotate desktop backgrounds and how they manage themes now.  It’s a lot more understandable and easy to change a specific part of your existing theme and to save it.  I haven’t messed with the new sound themes, but I set mine to the Windows Classic for now.  I was really unsure how I would like taskbar, but I’m getting used to it.  The program name doesn’t show up by default and you have to change a setting, but once you get it set up, it works pretty well.

Explorer: There’s a new feature called libraries that you can associate files and folders to a specific library, like pictures, music and video.  It’s really convenient if you want to have all your stuff in one place, but it’s a pain when File Dialog boxes go to the libraries instead of the actual ‘My Pictures’ or ‘My Documents’ folders.  Instead, you have to navigate to your user profile and then click on the folders.  I only wish there was an option to change that, but oh well.  The sidebar has had a lot of changes made to it as there are about 3 different categories, ranging from Favorite Places to Home Networks.  Another addition that I haven’t researched yet is the new Homegroup.  I have no idea what it does yet.  All I know is that I had to do something with it to set up media sharing for my XBOX 360.  Aside from the occasional explorer crash, I’d say the quality of explorer hasn’t changed that much.

Base OS: Microsoft did a good job at going back and reworking the system requirements.  The fact that there are less requirements for Windows 7 over Windows Vista is a big plus, and I think Microsoft will see a lot more people buying Windows 7 than they did for Vista.  Aero works a lot better and how Windows handles all the program previews is not nearly as processor intensive as Aero was for Vista.  The fact that I’m using about 2/3 memory in Windows 7 than I did in Vista at startup says a lot.  The UAC has been reworked to only notify important things instead of notifying for everything you did (which is why most people turned them off in Vista).  I have kept it on, and haven’t regreted it yet.

Windows 7 is a lot better than Windows Vista and I reccomend anyone who is running Vista to Upgrade to Windows 7 as soon as you can.  You will find it a lot faster and for some, more pretty.  For those running XP, it’s a big change on how things are layed out, but it’s a lot easier to get used to over trying to switch to Vista.

Well, the first day of e3 has passed and I have to say that I’m pleased with most of what I saw.  Now I was at work all day, so I had to come back and watch replays on IGN, which, in and of itself, wasn’t that bad.  Now I’m specifically talking about the Microsoft presentation for the XBOX 360, since that’s my primary interest in e3.

Starting off with new game announcements, Left 4 Dead 2 looks very promising especially after the success of Left 4 Dead.  New weapon items will definitely change the game play into a nice melee combat combination instead of just a zombie shoot-’em-up (which is still exciting to play).  With big successes with their first game on the console, I don’t see them backing out of it anytime soon.  Personally, I like PC gaming more than console, and I own L4D through Steam, so I am really looking forward to the game, whether on the console, or the PC.

Now for the Beatles Rock Band, I don’t see it being much of a hit other than the fact that you now get to play the Beatles’ songs.  Granted, the fact that they opened up the presentation will probably turn more heads than if they weren’t there, but it’s not an item I’m looking to buy.

Alan Wake: how do you classify this?  Interesting game play and storyline is sure to make this game unique.  Looks like a FPS with a twist, but not enough information to tell anything more for this game.  This is definitely something I’ll keep my eye on.

Now onto my Halo rant of this post.  Halo 3: ODST definitely takes a new view on the Halo Universe and alters the game play in a way that will hopefully open up the storyline more.  One of the things that has really held the Halo franchise back, in my opinion, is the fact that the whole story is linear, and there’s no way to deviate from the story or make up your own path.  With that said, I hope there aren’t too many flashbacks in the game, and that it stays somewhat centrally focused, instead of hopping from one ODST to another.  The new HUD is going to change gamestyle play from what it has been in previous games, requiring a little more tactics than people are used to.  Onto the new multiplayer mode, Firefight kinda sounds like COD’s Nazi Zombies, but you are just fending off a ton of Covenant.  Didn’t hear much about this, but I’m hoping it turns out well when released in September.

OK, now we all know that Halo was too good of a franchise to give up, and it’s no surpirse Bungie had a Top Secret project involving Halo.  Now I remember somewhere reading that Bungie would do a prequel to Halo, and that’s what they have done with Halo Reach.  Now I could rant on all day saying that I called this move, but with how little we got in the teaser, I’m not sure what to expect from the game.  Now if you have read the books, you will know about what happened to Reach, so now I’m wondering what kind of game this is going to be.  It will most likely be a FPS, but what will the storyline be like, how are the Spartans involved, etc.  Lots of room for speculation, so we’ll just have to wait for more.

The XBOX Dashboard: Personally, I liked the old dashboard better over the NXE dash, but you take what you get.  Now I’m a college student and I spend a good majority of the time at my computer, so it seems like these extra features they are adding on are kinda pointless.  Granted, I see a lot of people using last.fm for maybe things like parties or such, but Facebook and Twitter?  How involved does XBOX Live have to be to take over the computer?  Next thing you know, you are going to have the ability to have Google on your box (Microsoft probably wouldn’t allow that though).  Granted, the cool factor may have some role here, but if you are too lazy to get off the couch and type a couple of lines, then there’s something wrong.  Now I do like the fact that XBOX will link your Facebook to your Gamertag, and that would be a good way to find your friends that you didn’t know had an XBOX, but I think I’ll stick to my computer.  Now I’m not saying that they are bad additions, I just think it’s not that practical, especially when you have them on your phone, the ultimate mobile device.

Project Natal is perhaps my most favorite thing out of the presentation (other than the Halo stuff, of course).  Now the demonstration of the device seemed to point out that they are still working out kinks, but it looks very promising.  Future games will be very exciting if this technology proves to be what XBOX advertises it to be.  But with no release date, there’s no way to tell when this will be available and how developers will be able to use the technology in their games.

On a final note, I’ve never heard of Metal Gear, so I don’t know what to think about it, Forza I don’t care for, because I like Burnout and NFS more, and when can I get Pokemon on my XBOX?