Here’s an example of a Windows 7 feature that has two interesting characteristics.
It’s increasingly common for a laptop to be hooked up to a projector for a presentation – a business meeting with Powerpoint, a presentation to a jury or a classroom, or any of a hundred other reasons.
In Windows 7, you can quickly turn on “Presentation Mode.” In a single move, it disables your screensaver, switches your instant messenger to “Do not disturb,” sets the volume to a preconfigured level, and changes the wallpaper to an appropriate choice. The power settings are changed to present going into standby, and popup system notifications are suppressed. When you turn off Presentation Mode, your previous settings are instantly restored.
Two interesting things.
One: that’s great! It’s an example of the attention to detail that permeates Windows 7. Wherever you look, you’ll find things that are convenient and easy to use. You may not care about presentations but you’re likely to find something equally useful to you somewhere else.
Two: the same feature has been in Vista for three years. The only new tweak in Windows 7 is a faster way to enter Presentation Mode by pressing a shortcut, Windows key + P.
My prediction is that you’ll read a lot of articles about cool Windows 7 features that don’t mention the second part.
