Windows Vista wouldn’t be that bad if Microsoft trimmed the bloat and also made it much less annoying, which is what Microsoft is doing, or at least attempting to do. The upcoming Windows 7 is using the same kernel (base code) as Windows Vista. This means that Windows 7 could potentially carry the same bugs and stability issues that many of us have experienced with Windows Vista.

Even after Microsoft’s Professional Developer Conference, there are still little known facts about Windows 7. As I noted earlier this year, the new multi-touch feature of Windows 7 is cool, but I am doubtful that average consumers will adopt this instead of the traditional keyboard and mouse. The memory management in Windows 7, although rather technical, shows some promise to make Windows 7 a bit more stable. The nagging security of Windows Vista is also being morphed into something more useful and less annoying in Windows 7.

Microsoft recently revealed some aspects of the user interface of Windows 7. The new task bar, where the start button resides, uses an array of large icons for quick and handy access to frequently used programs. Personally, I think this mimics the Dock in Apple’s Mac OS X. In fact in the proceeding video demonstrating the new task bar, the speaker mentions that they did indeed copy another operating system—previous versions of Windows. I don’t entirely understand that since no version of Windows has had a task bar like the beta of Windows 7.

The new Windows 7 taskbar has the potential of being very handy. As was demonstrated in the above video, hovering the pointer over a program’s icon in the task bar will popup a preview of the opened sessions of that program. If this feature turns out to be functional, it is a step up from the Dock in Mac OS X.

The reason I question this feature’s functionality is due in part to a pet peeve of mine—I loathe popup elements that do not require a click. Websites today are saturated with popup elements in which you hover your mouse pointer over them, and a window or other element pops up in the foreground. Often times these popup elements appear without warning as you move your mouse pointer to a desired location. You trigger these popup annoyances and are directed to their contents instead of where you really wanted to go. I prefer that these types of elements require a click of the mouse in order for them to appear. The “peak” feature of Windows 7 taskbar requires no click, only a mouse hover. I haven’t been able to test this feature myself, but I am curious how well it will work and how annoying it may be.

Another new feature of Windows 7 is a networking feature called Libraries. This allows you to search and have access to content on other computers on the same network. Again, this sounds suspiciously like Mac OS X.

I’m excited to see what else Microsoft may add or take away in Windows 7. The next OS has promise to be much more enjoyable and much less annoying than Vista. However, based on Microsoft’s track record, Windows 7 may also have the same issues that have plagued previous Windows versions. Microsoft is hoping to release Windows 7 early 2010.

Related articles:

• Microsoft Demos Windows 7 Multi-Touch
• Microsoft Poised to Announce "New" features of Windows 7
• Windows 7 To Be Named Windows Sisyphus?