Statistics show that 9 out of every 10 PCs runs some version of Windows.  However, looking at the UK figures, Windows XP, which was released in 2001, still holds almost 56% of the market share compared with its replacement Vista which holds 35%.  For one reason or another Vista got a lot of bad press and it was not adopted to the extent that Microsoft had planned.  To ensure they don't repeat past mistakes, Microsoft has been working hard to make Windows 7 an attractive OS and win back confidence and sales in a market seeing increasing popularity for offerings from Apple, Linux and, soon, Google.  Problems with hardware compatibility, upgrade issues, speed and interface annoyances have all been addressed and Microsoft is confident that 7, along with the recent refresh of its Server OS, 2008 R2, and the forthcoming Office 2010 and Exchange 2010 will become what they refer to as 'the New Efficiency'.

As Microsoft Partners, we've been using Windows 7 for a couple of months now and can happily report that this is not another Vista.  We’re all of the opinion that 7 is what Vista should have been 2 years ago.  The improved user interface makes the 'user experience' a much quicker and productive one; we’ve had no issues with any existing hardware, with most drivers being located and installed automatically; and although untested here, we’re excited about both BitLocker To Go and DirectAccess which provide powerful but simple security and support options for business users and administrators.  We have some customers who stuck with XP because Vista failed to run older ‘legacy’ software correctly.  Microsoft have addressed this issue by providing a version of XP within Windows 7 which allows users to run older software in XP Mode either in a separate instance of XP in its own window, or directly from the start menu as if it was running right from Windows 7.  This is a great feature and gives that safety net to users hesitant to take the plunge to 7 for fear of losing access to existing key software.  XP Mode is another example of how virtualisation technology is providing benefits to businesses of all sizes.

Overall, there seems to be more positive excitement surrounding Windows 7 than there was with Vista, and most customers we’ve been talking with are planning to upgrade to 7 sooner rather than later, whether that’s by choosing new PCs with Windows 7 pre-installed, or upgrading from XP or Vista.  We’re certainly encouraging customers to move to Windows 7 as we believe it offers a good range of advantages over previous versions whilst remaining compatible with existing hardware and software. 

Are you planning to deploy or upgrade to Windows 7?  Leave us a comment below.

Further reading:

• PC Pro’s full review of Windows 7
• The Guardian asks key industry figures 'Who needs new Windows?'
• Microsoft’s Windows 7 for Small Business microsite
• Microsoft’s What is Windows 7? microsite

Users can manually disable JavaScript using these instructions:

1. Launch Acrobat or Adobe Reader.
2. Select Edit>Preferences
3. Select the JavaScript Category
4. Uncheck the ‘Enable Acrobat JavaScript’ option
5. Click OK

Administrators can deploy the setting using Group Policy using Rick Patterson's administrative template.

Office 2007 SP2 is available from Windows Update and Microsoft Update or as a separate download.

Many of the key features for business in Windows 7 include improvements to security, most noteably with AppLocker, BitLocker, and User Access Control. However compatibility with older applications was one of the main gripes with Vista, and Microsoft ended up extending the life of XP, allowing Vista users (as well as future Windows 7 users) to downgrade to it. With this in mind, Windows 7 will includes (as a download for Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate editions) Windows XP Mode which will allow users to run a virtual instance of XP, similar to using Virtual PC, as well as running XP applications alongside Windows 7 applications on a single desktop.

The target date for the final release of Windows 7 is sometime between July 2009 and June 2010.

However, today I received some attachments from a supplier in OpenDocument (.odt) format and discovered that Microsoft Word doesn't natively support opening .odt files.  After a quick search I found a number of solutions.  The one I went with was the Microsoft-funded OpenXML/ODF Translator Add-in for Office project.  It's a small download, quick installation, and the add-in worked straight away at converting the .odt docs and displaying them clearly in Word.

An alternative plug-in is Sun's ODF Plug-in for Microsoft Office but I didn't test this as the first solution met my requirements.  Another solution for those wanting to open OpenOffice files without installing a plug-in is to use the OpenOffice.org Portable which runs from a USB flash drive.

Native support for OpenDocument in Microsoft Office will be available to Office 2007 users when Service Pack 2 is released sometime in 2009.

Adobe published Reader 9.1 on 10 March 2009, but users of version 8 had to wait until today for updates to versions 7 and 8 or Reader.  However at the time of writing, the latest 8.1.4 update was only available through Adobe Updater, with the page http://get.adobe.com/uk/reader/otherversions/ still displaying links to 8.1.3.

Performing regular backups should be an essential part of your daily business procedures. The loss of files to data corruption, hardware failure, fire, flood or theft could leave your business on its knees, unable to trade without the information you rely on every day.

While this all makes sense, the reality is that many small or medium-sized businesses fail to maintain adequate backup strategies. Worse still, some don’t backup at all.

To help Kent businesses to keep their data safe, secure and available in the event of a problem, we’re providing a free assessment of your backup procedures (if you’re just starting to think about backups, we’ll help you define your requirements).  We work with a number of trusted service providers and vendors to supply and manage a range of different backup methods for SMEs.  Most versions of Microsoft Windows include backup software, and this will often form part of a multi-tier backup plan.

Don't let your business become another data loss statistic.  For more details, and to arrange a free onsite assessment for your business, call us today on 0845 658 0787 or request a callback.

Do you have PC problems that you or your staff don’t have time to resolve, or your current IT provider has been unable to fix? Why not let Red Tile help your business with 1 month’s free telephone and remote desktop PC support?

We know that choosing an outsourced IT provider is an important decision, and we want you to see for yourself how good we are at supporting your business computer systems. That’s why we’re offering Kent businesses a free trial of our PC support service. There are no catches or contracts, and you’re under no obligation to use our services again. All we ask is that after an initial phone consultation, we meet with you to carry out a brief site survey to assess your requirements. And thanks to the latest on-demand remote desktop software, we don’t need to install any software or hardware to start supporting you. Each time you need support we’ll give you a unique PIN for use on a special area of our website. After following a few simple steps we’ll gain temporary remote access to your PC’s desktop, allowing us to diagnose and identify the problem.  It really is that simple!

Call us today and let us start supporting your business

To take advantage of this amazing offer, call us today on 0845 658 0787 or request a callback. We look forward to speaking with you!

Terms and conditions

Adobe plans to release software updates to address the issue later this month, but until then users are advised to exercise extreme caution before opening PDF files received from any source. If users are in any doubt as to the origin of a PDF file they should not open it and confirm verbally with the sender before proceeding.  Indeed, this should be normal procedure to help avoid computer viruses that spread through e-mail attachments.

As a further precaution Adobe are advising users disable JavaScript in Acrobat Reader. Although this does not eliminate the risk entirely it may protect against some attacks. This can be accomplished as follows:

1. Launch Acrobat or Adobe Reader.

2. Select Edit>Preferences

3. Select the JavaScript Category

4. Uncheck the ‘Enable Acrobat JavaScript’ option

5. Click OK

Windows Server administrators looking to deploy these settings via Active Directory Group Policy can do so using Rick Patterson's Adobe Acrobat and Reader ADM template.

Customers running Sophos Antivirus are protected against the vulnerability. Those running any other anti virus software should check with their vendor as to the status of protection against this threat.

We will be monitoring the situation and will advise when a patch becomes available.