Ever since Windows Phone 7 came out last fall, I’ve been following the various offerings.  I’ve steered many a friend from purchasing an iPhone or Android based phone over to Windows Phone 7, usually by going to the store with them and showing them some of the features that caught my eye.  I even got to play with an evaluation version, briefly, of the Samsung Focus.  I feel so in love with it that I immediately began singing the praises of not only the Focus, but of Windows Phone 7.  I found that if I could just get my friends and others to try one, they too became hooked.

Without a doubt “the” feature that attracted me to Windows Phone 7 was the live tiles.  These are the tiles you see on the home screen of the phones that react to different events.  Get a new e-mail?  It changes the number to reflect it.  New status update from a friend on Facebook?  Their picture shows up on the tile.  Upcoming event?  The tile reflects the event.  Simply put, the live tiles let you get information from the phone without being sucked into the phone.  How many times have we seen people walking down the street or in store just totally absorbed by fiddling with their phone?  The beauty of Windows Phone 7 is that you don’t need to be engrossed in the phone itself – you simply glance at it to find the update you are interested in; if you need to know more, you select the tile to be transported to that specific event.  Simple brilliance – and ever friend I’ve shown has been hooked.

There is also the simple elegance of the clean design.  I hate clutter, and the one thing I’ve noticed about WP7 is that it feels as if the OS was designed for a phone.  It wasn’t simply “adapted” for the phone or slapped together.  Things just flow.  You really don’t need to sit there and hunt for the next screen, or next command – it just flows naturally.  I wish desktop OS’s could work as well as Windows Phone 7 does in this regard.

The phone is also a powerful social network integrator – there is no denying that younger and older generations alike are clustering together online at sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and countless others.  WP7 has done an excellent job at integrating these social networks.  Plus, when you like your Windows Live account, it opens up a whole new world of integration between Windows Live and WP7.  I sold one friend on WP7 merely by pointing out how well it integrated Facebook!

It’s good to point out that WP7 doesn’t just “connect” to the social networks, but it integrates them.  You will notice that it’s not about what so and so is doing on Facebook, and who sent you a text message, and what colleague called you from work.  Rather, it’s about what people are doing.  You can see that Fred called you from work this morning, send you two text messages and posted a status update to Facebook – it’s the timeline of Fred.  The same for Seth, Jennifer, Zach and all your other friends.  WP7 is about connecting you to your friends and colleagues – not about trying to differentiate between social apps and networks.

So yes, Windows Phone 7 in my opinion rocks.  So why do you ask don’t I have one?  Well, like most people nowadays, I have to budget my expenses and since my old Windows Mobile 6.1 phone works (and has for over 2.5 years now) it just isn’t in the numbers for me to get one.  Trust me, I’d love to be able to put my “money where my mouth is” but as an adult (versus that pimply kid I was 17+ years ago) I have learned how to admire from afar.  And admire, I certainly am…

Rock on WP7!

Originally submitted at O’Reilly

This compact book offers the quickest path for Windows XP and Vista users to get started with Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system. With Windows 7: Up and Running, you get the essential information you need to upgrade or install the system and configure it to fit your activities, along…

Windows 7: Up and Running

A Great Primer for Mom, Dad & Friends

Pros: Helpful examples, Concise, Easy to understand

Best Uses: Novice, Beginner, Intermediate

Describe Yourself: Sys Admin, Developer

Nowadays almost everyone from grandma to the kid who lives next door is online and has a computer. The digital age has meant that many of us know the basics of how to use a computer, get online and do basic tasks — but for many users they learn a particular way of doing things, and when software (or the OS) changes they find themselves scratching their heads wondering where things went and how they got changed. In this handy primer guide the author has done a fairly good job of helping get casual end-users up to speed on Windows 7.

The book walks you through many of the features that have changed and introduces you to some of the new functionality of the OS (for example, Libraries in Windows 7). It also walks users through common “gothcas” and things to be aware of (for example, why all sites don’t support the use of Web Slices in IE8). Sidebars and a generous library of pictures help to call the reader’s attention to specific items.

I was a little dissapointed in the Installation Chapter of the book, and thus took away one star. Though the author covers netbooks and dual-booting, the issue of upgrading from Vista to Windows 7 is never covered. So let me cover it right here: ALWAYS DO A FRESH, CLEAN INSTALL — NEVER DO AN IN PLACE UPGRADE! Given the brevity of of the chapter on installation, and the main focus of the book, I feel this chapter could even be taken out without taking away from the book.

This book would make an excellent gift for mom and dad, or that friend who just bought a new computer with Windows 7 on it. It’s a good primer for getting started with Windows 7 and making the jump to help keep your digital life a bit more organized and productive!

Exploring Windows 7 – Devices and Printers Video Tutorial

In this video I walk you through an example of how the tool works while I talk a little bit more about the geeky side of Windows 7!

Exploring the Geeky Side of Windows 7 – Math Input Panel

One of the cool features in Windows 7 is that it is smart enough to know not to defragment solid-state or USB drives to help preserve their life.  A lot of people are unaware that solid-state drives (like that USB stick you store your files on) have a limited number of read/write cycles to them!

It’s just one more way Windows 7 is helping make your digital life a little bit easier.

Windows 7 in 77 Seconds – Disk Defragmentation

This guy has been around since the Vista days, but in Windows 7 it is now installed by default in Home Premium, Professional and Ultimate.  It’s a great way to help communicate with your friends, family and co-workers visually – share as little or as much as you want!

I have no doubt this little tool will soon find itself amongst those “can’t live without” tools that you use everyday!

Windows 7 in 77 Seconds – Snipping Tool

With Windows 7 Microsoft has made it easier to keep your digital life in order by including a built-in ISO burner that lets you easily right click on an ISO file and burn it to CD or DVD.  Now only if they would let us view the contents of an ISO file without having to burn it first!

Windows 7 in 77 Seconds – Burning ISO Images

In this video I walk you through this feature and show you how it makes my digital life just a bit easier.

Windows 7 in 77 Seconds – Pinning

Windows 7 in 77 Seconds – Start Menu Searching

Stay tuned for more Windows 7 in 77 seconds tips as we countdown to the launch of Windows 7 on October 22nd!

Windows 7 in 77 Seconds – Desktop Slideshow