Newsletter Archives

• Netbooks can ship with any version of Win7

  Posted on September 29, 2009 at 10:35 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  Actually, this isn’t new news at all. But TG Daily reports that Microsoft UK has confirmed that netbooks can ship with any version of Windows 7.

  Far as I know, that’s never been a question. It’s just that Starter Edition is considerably cheaper than other versions of Windows 7. Microsoft has placed hardware restrictions on Starter Edition – netbook manufacturers can only sell Starter on certain kinds of (generally skimpy) hardware. But as far as I know, there’s never been a restriction on selling any of the mainstream versions of Windows 7 pre-installed on any piece of hardware.

  (The TG Daily article also mentions that the three-application limit has been removed from Starter Edition, but that happened a long time ago. I talked about it four months ago, on May 23.)

  I’ve long advocated running Windows 7 Home Premium on netbooks. I used an ASUS 1000H with Win7 Ultimate all through the beta and RC versions, without a hiccup. In short, as I explain in Windows 7 All-In-One For Dummies, there’s no reason to get Starter Edition with your new netbook, unless you absolutely can’t afford Home Premium.

  UPDATE: I’m seeing this report pinging all over the Internet, and I’m aghast. Nothing has changed. Why is this “news”??? Microsoft set MAXIMUM hardware requirements for Starter Edition: I talked about that in my June 4 Top Story in Windows Secrets Newsletter. Netbook manufacturers who wanted to sell their wares with Windows 7 Starter installed couldn’t pump up their netbooks very much, as I explained last month. But there’s never been a hardware restriction on Home Premium, Business or Ultimate.

  Windows News Windows 7 Starter Edition

• Windows Secrets: get rid of the drive-by .NET Framework Firefox add-on

  Posted on June 4, 2009 at 17:29 CDT by woody • Comment in the Forums

  The new Windows Secrets Newsletter is out.

  Nice lead article about the Windows 7 Starter Edition and what it means for the future of netbooks, at least in the near term.

  In the same issue, also in the free content, Brian Livingston has dissected that nasty patch Microsoft applied to Firefox, without your knowledge or consent. Brian shows you how to tell if you have the add-on, and if you do, how to get rid of it.

  Check out the article, then check out your system.

  Windows Patches/Security Firefox, NET Framework patch, Windows 7 Starter Edition