Skip Links

Network World

Ron Barrett

Windows 7: Installed on my Dell X1...Finally

The long overdue testing has begun

By Ron Barrett on Wed, 11/04/09 - 10:45am.

Way back in August I blogged about installing Windows 7 on my Dell X1. Well the long overdue task is now complete. I have to say that the inital results are pretty impresive.

The installation took under 30 minutes for Windows 7 Ultimate. After the full installation was completed, I shutdwon the laptop and powered it up. From the time I hit the button until I recieved a login prompt took exactlly 1 min. 23 seconds. Not bad for 1.1GHz Celeron proccesor. Not to mention that is just about 30 -45 seconds quicker than XP Professional, which I had running on the system.

The only hiccup I have had thus far ( but it is a pretty big hiccup) is finding drivers for video and audio. Neither of which has been updated from the vendors or Dell since 2006. Microsoft's genric Video driver is providing 1024x768 video @ 32bit color, so nothing really lost there.

The laptop is pretty responsive and I have run several apps at once with no lag thus far... I am going to push it a bit further next and see how many apps and things I can have going before it breaks. Stayed tuned for the final part of the WIndows 7 Ultimate test and then we move on to Starter Edition.

Recent Posts
Windows Server 2008 R2: Security Changes and Additions Part III
Windows Server 2008 R2: Security Changes and Additions Part II
Windows Server 2008 R2: Security Changes and Additions Part I
Windows Mobile 6.5 leaves me un-impressed
Exchange Server 2010 tools: Do not forget these tools in your Beta Tests
7 tools for Windows 7 rollouts
ESF Database Migration Toolkit: From SQL to ORACLE without any fuss
Slide Rocket: Create, Collaborate and share your slideshows in the cloud
Remote Desktop Services: Some help to keep you from feeling 'Terminal'-ly lost
ExRCA: Test your Exchange Server 2007 remote connectivity
The iland Workforce Cloud: Go ahead keep your head and desktop in the cloud

Windows 7
Windows 7 Unveiled
Will Windows 7 upgrade strategy keep XP users away…NO!
Fun with Windows 7
Why Windows 7 will crush Linux
Why XP users will switch to Windows 7
Why IT will adopt Windows 7

See my lists of great tools
12 killer freebie SharePoint add-ons
Five great Windows open source tools
8 little-known technologies that instantly make Microsoft shops run smoother
9 wickedly useful Web sites for Windows administrators
12 cool cross-platform tools for Windows, Macs and Linux
20 great Windows open source projects you should get to know
A Better Windows World Tools Library

Like this and want more? Check out the other tools I've written about in A Better Windows World.
Plus, check out the Microsoft Subnet home page for more bloggers, news, humor, security alerts and more.

About A Better Windows World

Ron Barrett has been a technology professional for over a decade, working for several major financial firms and dotcoms. Barrett is a specialist in network infrastructure, security and IT management Ron is also the author of several books including: Office Communications Server 2007 R2: How-To , Windows Server 2008: How-To and The Administrator’s Guide to Microsoft Office 2007 Servers. Ron has been a co-author or technical editor for several other books on Windows administration. Along with book writing, Ron has contributed to several industry magazines such as Redmond, Datamation and Windows IT Pro. Beyond writing, Ron has spoken at several technology conferences for CPAmerica, AICPA and TECHMENTOR.

 

Most Discussed Posts