Review by Just Anonymous:
I'll admit, I've been running Windows 7 for six months now: the preproduction version of it and have just upgraded to the gold code. So I have quite a bit of experience with the operating system. Let's get to the nitty gritty:

Should you upgrade from Windows Vista? YES! I mean it - upgrade today.

Windows 7 is quite simply faster, more stable, boots faster, goes to sleep faster, comes back from sleep faster, manages your files better and on top of that it's beautiful to look at and easy to use. Even the preproduction version of Windows 7 was better than my Vista with SP2.

Should you upgrade from Windows XP? Maybe, but for different reasons.

XP is a good operating system and if you don't need to add new hardware or software, XP is good. However, XP is old as an operating system. Also chances are that if you're running XP, you might not meet the minimum requirements for Windows 7 - check the compatibility site at Microsoft to see if your system will support Windows 7. That said, Windows 7 is light years ahead of Windows XP in terms of functionality, ease of use, etc - to me it's worth buying a new system.

64 bit or 32 bit?

If you don't know what I'm talking about, that's ok skip this section. If you have a core2 duo or core 2 quad or a multi cpu machine, go with the 64 bit OS, it handles memory and the CPUs much better. If you have a single core CPU, one CPU or run special programs that require 32bit, then stick with 32 bit for now.

BEFORE INSTALLATION:

I recommend you have:

-a core 2 duo or core 2 quad machine

-4gig of RAM (That's about in today's market)

-good hard drive with (200 gig - it doesn't need that much but that's another )

-back up your files to a USB drive like Western Digital My Passport Essential 500 GB USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive WDME5000TN (Midnight Black)

-check to make sure your computer is compatible with Windows 7

INSTALLATION:

Installation was very straight forward. You put in the CD and reboot your machine. You might have to enter your bios and enable the "boot from CD" option. Once the machine reboots a nice screen comes up to guide you through the installation. You have the option to upgrade your PC or do a clean installation. I did an upgrade and it brought in all of my files and settings from my windows Vista system. It worked great.

The upgrade did take about 2 hours for me so definitely consider.

I noticed that early on in the installation the operating system went out to Microsoft's site to look for the latest and greatest updates, so I think this should help Microsoft respond quickly to any hiccups with compatibility.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK:

The driver from my old HP Inkjet printer for 2001 doesn't work on Windows 7 so there are some things that will not transition. I had to use a generic HP driver which doesn't give me the quality that I got from an injet - so overall, I'm up and running with that printer but I'm degraded on the inkjet front. That said, I recently upgraded to a HP CP2025DN Color LaserJet Printer that I love so no real loss there. I'll likely pick up a cheap inkjet for the occasional photo that I might need to print. Everything else upgraded.

BENEFITS

-faster boot time

-faster go to sleep

-faster wakeup

-faster about 20% to 30% faster at running applications than my Vista - seriously (but those are my results without any benchmarks or anything like that, just seeing how fast Adobe Illustrator loads, and how fast all the applications respond)

-joining wireless networks is much easier

-the interface is just plain beautiful

-my wallpapers are now a slideshow that can be set to change every few minutes (I'm not stuck with the same picture)

-Gadgets - these are wonderful little small applications that you can drag onto your desktop. I have a weather gadget and a calendar gadget on my desktop that tell me

-Better taskbar management - hovering over the taskbar icons shows me mini windows of what's running

-Better file management - I can organize my files into Libraries that are sortable not only by type but by folder or other data. It's great! I can browse through my presentations or illustrator files!

-Windows Media appears to be smoother which I love.

-You get some virus protection and firewall with Windows 7 but consider something more comprehensive like McAfee Total Protection 3User 2010. Yes, it'll make your computer run a bit slower but

CONS:

- Some older programs might not work and some drivers might not be available like my inkjet driver.

- Other than that, there aren't too many drawbacks to Windows 7 - it's a great OS.

WHICH VERSION SHOULD I GET?

I got the ultimate version because I have clients who ask, "is your hard drive encrypted?" -- I wanted to be able to say yes and have sensitive data encrypted one of my computer volumes - Bitlocker is only available in the Ultimate version. Ultimate also includes Multilanguage support.

If you're a home user that doesn't do a lot of networking, you might consider just the home premium edition. If you're using a laptop and connect to networks at work, you might want the Professional version of the operating system to help you with domain joining. Also Windows Professional gives you the option to run applications in XP mode so if you have old applications you can use that nifty feature. I already have 1 application running in XP mode - it's nifty to run an old application.

NOTE:

The box contains both the 32 bit and 64 bit OS.

OVERALL:

It's very hard to write a comprehensive review on an entire operating system so I didn't even try - I'm sure magazines will devote entire articles to the operating system and several books will come out. My goal here is just to give everyone a glimpse of what I've found to date with this new OS. I do hope this has helped you in making a decision.

Hats off to Microsoft on Windows 7. It's more of a refined Windows Vista than an entirely new operating system but it was needed. Thank you.

Review by Pyanfar Chanur:
Windows 7 Home Premium is the best version to choose for older machines and/or simpler networks. The "Backup" offered in 7 Pro can be done easily with free tools, and unless you need complex networking, 7 has what it takes to manage a home network. Last, the 'XP Mode' promised in 7 Pro and above will only work on hardware new enough to support "Virtualization Technology" (stop by Microsoft's website to learn more). This isn't the same as "XP Compatibility Mode", which you will still have for all versions of Windows 7 (there's a great video explanation of this on CNET's website in their Windows 7 Center at CNET TV).

Some very important things you need to know about upgrading:

1) There are two types of upgrade: "in-place" (where a Vista machine upgrades to 7 and you get to keep all your programs) and "clean" (where you lose all your old programs and settings).

2) Anyone going from XP to 7 will have to go "clean".

3) Anyone going from a different Vista to 7 (for example, Vista Home to 7 Pro, or Vista Ultimate to 7 Home) will also have to go "clean".

If you have to do 2) or 3), all is not lost--I'll explain in a moment.

Before you even buy 7 for your machine, stop by Microsoft's website for two things:

a) download and run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor. Run it with every device connected to the machine that you'll ever want to use in 7. It'll thoroughly examine your machine for any roadblocks and give you good advice about upgrading.

b) Go to the Windows 7 Compatibility Center and double-check anything that came up negative in the Upgrade Advisor (or didn't show up at all). This site lists detailed compatibility info on a LOT of different devices.

Anything major, like a video card or sound card driver, I'd recommend double-checking with the manufacturer's website to be sure. This almost burned me on two of the machines that I upgraded.

Last, make a backup. There's a free tool called Macrium Reflect that can do this for you.

Do you have to do a "clean" install, but just want to carry over your user accounts and settings? Microsoft makes a program called Windows Easy Transfer that's already in Vista (and can be downloaded from Microsoft for XP) that will export your accounts and settings and let you import them back again. It's very easy to use and does a good job of putting your accounts back together again, even going from XP to 7.

Do you have to do the "clean" install, and you don't want to reinstall all your programs? Laplink has an offer for .95 that will let you use a special version of their program "PC Mover" to upgrade one machine one time. Read the documentation in detail.

The most important thing to doing a "clean" install is that in the Upgrade setup you choose "Custom". Windows will take all of your major files and place them in a folder called "Windows.old". PC Mover and the Easy Transfer program will use this folder to reconstruct your system from, so this is VERY important.

I wish I had more space to go into detail here...bottom line is, if you plan ahead a bit, upgrading to 7 will go very easily (and if it doesn't, you'll have something to fall back on).

Review by Mute208:
Here comes Windows 7, nearly three years after Windows Vista and eight years after Windows XP. By most accounts, Windows 7 is what Vista should have been. Do we finally have a worthy successor to XP?

PROS:

- Fast startup and performance

- Stable

- Nice aesthetic and functional changes to the desktop

- Improved networking, power management & security

- 32-bit & 64-bit versions included

- Windows Media Center

- Windows XP Mode (Professional & Ultimate only)

CONS:

- User Account Control still annoying

- Upgrade can be challenging

- Expensive

There are only two Microsoft operating systems I've personally skipped since DOS 6.x-- Windows ME and Windows Vista. Windows ME was so terrible that PC World coined it the "Mistake Edition." Vista, when initially released, was considered to be bloated, relying on higher hardware requirements than XP, while being outperformed by XP on identical hardware. With Microsoft fast-tracking Windows 7, I decided to skip Vista altogether and upgrade to 7. This review briefly touches upon some of the key features and enhancements of Microsoft's latest OS.

PERFORMANCE & STABILITY

One of the welcome enhancements Microsoft made was start-up time. The shutdown time has been improved as well. Also, in my non-benchmarked experience, Windows 7 has been at least as fast as XP if not faster. The kernel changes and ability to run the 64-bit version probably has a lot to do with that. Most benchmarks from around the Internet seem to support my observations.

64-BIT

I am elated to finally upgrade to a 64-bit operating system in order to take advantage of more memory support and modern processors. I have Intel Core 2 Duo processors in both my systems with 4GB of physical RAM but XP only allowed 3.25GB for system use.

DESKTOP

At first login, you'll notice the changes to the taskbar. The taskbar is no longer just a place to store quick launch icons and view open windows. It now provides functionality in the form of Jump Lists, which allow you to select your most frequently opened files or links from the apps you have "pinned" on the taskbar. The clock and calendar are improved and the Show Desktop icon is now integrated in the far right corner. Other desktop enhancements include Aero Peek, Aero Shake, Snap, new themes and wallpapers. You also get gadget support. All of these features combine to create a much improved and enjoyable desktop experience.

LIBRARIES

Windows 7 introduces a new feature called libraries. Previously, your system had shortcuts to My Documents, My Music, My Pictures, etc. which had files residing in only those specific folders. Files can now reside anywhere on your system and be organized inside libraries. It's similar to how many music and photo applications organize files.

NETWORKING

Even as good as XP was, networking was cumbersome. Windows 7 makes connecting two or more Windows 7 systems together easy, using HomeGroup. This enables easy sharing of files and devices. One downside is that HomeGroup is only supported between Windows 7 systems. File transfer performance between computers has been vastly improved and connecting to a wireless network has never been easier on a Windows machine.

SECURITY

Security in Windows 7 is good and comes with Windows Firewall and Defender. Still, you'll probably want to invest in a more comprehensive Internet security suite, like Norton Internet Security 2010 or Kaspersky Internet Security. User Account Control (UAC) has been tweaked in order to give user accounts more flexibility in controlling their own security as well as providing more detailed information so the user can make better decisions about whether to allow certain actions. Coming from XP however, it is still annoying and I choose to turn it off. Also, in Windows 7 Ultimate, you can encrypt entire hard drives as well as external portable storage devices, like USB thumb drives. Though this is a welcome integrated feature, much of the functionality can be found in a popular open-source program called TrueCrypt. If you want encryption but not multi-language support, you could just get Windows 7 Home Premium and use TrueCrypt.

POWER MANAGEMENT

Power management has been improved overall and you should be able to squeeze more battery life out of your laptop, even when using your DVD drive. Sleep and resume has also been improved. XP wasn't always consistent when entering or resuming from sleep mode, but Windows 7 has been perfect.

WINDOWS MEDIA CENTER

I've only briefly played around with WMC but it looks promising. It has some fun options for media, especially when you're connected to the Internet. It may even be an adequate replacement for component DVR's should you choose to use it as the centerpiece to your entertainment center. The biggest advantage for me is that Windows 7 now includes a DVD decoder. This means that I can now watch DVD's natively. WMC is available in all Windows 7 editions except Starter.

WINDOWS XP MODE

For applications that ran in XP, but won't on 7, there is now XP Mode. It isn't perfect and your system has to have virtualization support and turned on. Go to your system BIOS to check. If supported, then install Windows Virtual PC and Windows XP Mode. Check your hardware if you intend to use XP Mode. XP Mode is only available in Windows 7 Professional and Windows 7 Ultimate editions.

RECOMMENDATIONS

If you're an XP holdout, like I was, I recommend upgrading. Vista SP2 users may have less reason to upgrade but might want to just for the changes to the taskbar and the UAC improvements. For users who don't need to use their computers in a corporate environment, then Windows 7 Home Premium edition is a good choice. I'm guessing most power users will choose Professional, which adds XP Mode and Domain Join. Ultimate also adds drive encryption and multi-language support. I suggest a clean install for best results. If you're a Mac OS X user, there is probably nothing in Windows 7 compelling enough for you to consider switching.

SUMMARY

Windows 7 is the premium Microsoft OS that Windows users have been waiting for. It's fast, secure, stable, visually appealing and fun to use. Windows 7 will make your old system feel fresh and new again. New system owners with Windows 7 pre-loaded can feel confident that they're getting the best Windows OS ever produced.

Review by Just Anonymous:
I'll admit, I've been running Windows 7 for six months now: the preproduction version of it and have just upgraded to the gold code. So I have quite a bit of experience with the operating system. Let's get to the nitty gritty:

Should you upgrade from Windows Vista? YES! I mean it - upgrade today.

Windows 7 is quite simply faster, more stable, boots faster, goes to sleep faster, comes back from sleep faster, manages your files better and on top of that it's beautiful to look at and easy to use. Even the preproduction version of Windows 7 was better than my Vista with SP2.

Should you upgrade from Windows XP? Maybe, but for different reasons.

XP is a good operating system and if you don't need to add new hardware or software, XP is good. However, XP is old as an operating system. Also chances are that if you're running XP, you might not meet the minimum requirements for Windows 7 - check the compatibility site at Microsoft to see if your system will support Windows 7. That said, Windows 7 is light years ahead of Windows XP in terms of functionality, ease of use, etc - to me it's worth buying a new system.

64 bit or 32 bit?

If you don't know what I'm talking about, that's ok skip this section. If you have a core2 duo or core 2 quad or a multi cpu machine, go with the 64 bit OS, it handles memory and the CPUs much better. If you have a single core CPU, one CPU or run special programs that require 32bit, then stick with 32 bit for now.

BEFORE INSTALLATION:

I recommend you have:

-a core 2 duo or core 2 quad machine

-4gig of RAM (That's about in today's market)

-good hard drive with (200 gig - it doesn't need that much but that's another )

-back up your files to a USB drive like Western Digital My Passport Essential 500 GB USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive WDME5000TN (Midnight Black)

-check to make sure your computer is compatible with Windows 7

INSTALLATION:

Installation was very straight forward. You put in the CD and reboot your machine. You might have to enter your bios and enable the "boot from CD" option. Once the machine reboots a nice screen comes up to guide you through the installation. You have the option to upgrade your PC or do a clean installation. I did an upgrade and it brought in all of my files and settings from my windows Vista system. It worked great.

The upgrade did take about 2 hours for me so definitely consider.

I noticed that early on in the installation the operating system went out to Microsoft's site to look for the latest and greatest updates, so I think this should help Microsoft respond quickly to any hiccups with compatibility.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK:

The driver from my old HP Inkjet printer for 2001 doesn't work on Windows 7 so there are some things that will not transition. I had to use a generic HP driver which doesn't give me the quality that I got from an injet - so overall, I'm up and running with that printer but I'm degraded on the inkjet front. That said, I recently upgraded to a HP CP2025DN Color LaserJet Printer that I love so no real loss there. I'll likely pick up a cheap inkjet for the occasional photo that I might need to print. Everything else upgraded.

BENEFITS

-faster boot time

-faster go to sleep

-faster wakeup

-faster about 20% to 30% faster at running applications than my Vista - seriously (but those are my results without any benchmarks or anything like that, just seeing how fast Adobe Illustrator loads, and how fast all the applications respond)

-joining wireless networks is much easier

-the interface is just plain beautiful

-my wallpapers are now a slideshow that can be set to change every few minutes (I'm not stuck with the same picture)

-Gadgets - these are wonderful little small applications that you can drag onto your desktop. I have a weather gadget and a calendar gadget on my desktop that tell me

-Better taskbar management - hovering over the taskbar icons shows me mini windows of what's running

-Better file management - I can organize my files into Libraries that are sortable not only by type but by folder or other data. It's great! I can browse through my presentations or illustrator files!

-Windows Media appears to be smoother which I love.

-You get some virus protection and firewall with Windows 7 but consider something more comprehensive like McAfee Total Protection 3User 2010. Yes, it'll make your computer run a bit slower but

CONS:

- Some older programs might not work and some drivers might not be available like my inkjet driver.

- Other than that, there aren't too many drawbacks to Windows 7 - it's a great OS.

WHICH VERSION SHOULD I GET?

I got the ultimate version because I have clients who ask, "is your hard drive encrypted?" -- I wanted to be able to say yes and have sensitive data encrypted one of my computer volumes - Bitlocker is only available in the Ultimate version. Ultimate also includes Multilanguage support.

If you're a home user that doesn't do a lot of networking, you might consider just the home premium edition. If you're using a laptop and connect to networks at work, you might want the Professional version of the operating system to help you with domain joining. Also Windows Professional gives you the option to run applications in XP mode so if you have old applications you can use that nifty feature. I already have 1 application running in XP mode - it's nifty to run an old application.

NOTE:

The box contains both the 32 bit and 64 bit OS.

OVERALL:

It's very hard to write a comprehensive review on an entire operating system so I didn't even try - I'm sure magazines will devote entire articles to the operating system and several books will come out. My goal here is just to give everyone a glimpse of what I've found to date with this new OS. I do hope this has helped you in making a decision.

Hats off to Microsoft on Windows 7. It's more of a refined Windows Vista than an entirely new operating system but it was needed. Thank you.

Review by Mute208:
Here comes Windows 7, nearly three years after Windows Vista and eight years after Windows XP. By most accounts, Windows 7 is what Vista should have been. Do we finally have a worthy successor to XP?

** CLEAN UPGRADE UPDATE BELOW 10/29/09 **

PROS:

- Fast startup and performance

- Stable

- Nice aesthetic and functional changes to the desktop

- Improved networking, power management & security

- 32-bit & 64-bit versions included

- Windows Media Center

- Windows XP Mode

CONS:

- User Account Control still annoying

- Upgrade can be challenging

- Expensive

CLEAN UPGRADE UPDATE 10/29/09 **

It seems that a lot of upgraders have been complaining about the upgrade process, especially from XP. Most of us expected to be able to format our hard disks and be prompted for either the XP disc or product key. Alas, this is not the case. The upgrade is much more complicated than it should be and some workarounds have been discovered

Method A (simplest)

If you already have an older version of Windows on the hard drive, finish the Custom Install, without entering the product key. After installation, go to your System Properties and click the link to activate Windows. Enter your product key and it should activate. This has worked for me twice.

Method B (hardest)

If Method A doesn't work, try the registry hack.

1. Finish the custom install without entering the product key then click Start and type regedit.exe into the "Search programs and files" box.

2. In the registry, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Setup/OOBE/. In the pane on the right, you'll see an entry for MediaBootInstall. Double-click on it and change the value from "1" to "0" and click OK.

3. Close regedit and go to Start -> All Programs -> Accessories then right-click on Command Prompt and select "Run as administrator." You'll get a UAC alert, click Yes.

4. At the command prompt, type: slmgr /rearm and hit Enter. Reboot.

5. Now try to activate. If it fails, make sure there are no pending Windows Updates to install. If there is, install them, reboot and start over from Step 4.

Method C (most time consuming)

Perform the Custom Install and skip the product key. Once completed, run the upgrade again from within Windows 7 but this time, enter the Windows 7 upgrade key and then activate Windows.

** END UPDATE **

I had been running the Windows 7 release candidate for 3 months and the full version 2 weeks before official release date. The experience convinced me to finally upgrade my Windows XP systems to 7. This review briefly touches upon some of the key features and enhancements of Microsoft's latest OS.

PERFORMANCE & STABILITY

One of the welcome enhancements Microsoft made was start-up time. The shutdown time has been improved as well. Also, in my non-benchmarked experience, Windows 7 has been at least as fast as XP if not faster. The kernel changes and ability to run the 64-bit version probably has a lot to do with that. Most benchmarks from around the Internet seem to support my observations.

64-BIT

I am elated to finally upgrade to a 64-bit operating system in order to take advantage of more memory support and modern processors. I have Intel Core 2 Duo processors in both my systems with 4GB of physical RAM but XP only allowed 3.25GB for system use.

DESKTOP

At first login, you'll notice the changes to the taskbar. The taskbar is no longer just a place to store quick launch icons and view open windows. It now provides functionality in the form of Jump Lists, which allow you to select your most frequently opened files or links from the apps you have "pinned" on the taskbar. The clock and calendar are improved and the Show Desktop icon is now integrated in the far right corner. Other desktop enhancements include Aero Peek, Aero Shake, Snap, new themes and wallpapers. You also get gadget support. All of these features combine to create a much improved and enjoyable desktop experience.

LIBRARIES

Windows 7 introduces a new feature called libraries. Previously, your system had shortcuts to My Documents, My Music, My Pictures, etc. which had files residing in only those specific folders. Files can now reside anywhere on your system and be organized inside libraries. It's similar to how many music and photo applications organize files.

NETWORKING

Even as good as XP was, networking was cumbersome. Windows 7 makes connecting two or more Windows 7 systems together easy, using HomeGroup. This enables easy sharing of files and devices. One downside is that HomeGroup is only supported between Windows 7 systems. File transfer performance between computers has been vastly improved and connecting to a wireless network has never been easier on a Windows machine.

SECURITY

Security in Windows 7 is good and comes with Windows Firewall and Defender. Still, you'll probably want to invest in a more comprehensive Internet security suite, like Norton's. User Account Control (UAC) has been tweaked in order to give user accounts more flexibility in controlling their own security as well as providing more detailed information so the user can make better decisions about whether to allow certain actions. Coming from XP however, it is still annoying. Also, in Windows 7 Ultimate, you can encrypt entire hard drives as well as external portable storage devices, like USB thumb drives. Though this is a welcome integrated feature, much of the functionality can be found in a popular open-source program called TrueCrypt.

POWER MANAGEMENT

Power management has been improved overall and you should be able to squeeze more battery life out of your laptop, even when using your DVD drive. Sleep and resume has also been improved. XP wasn't always consistent when entering or resuming from sleep mode, but Windows 7 has been perfect.

WINDOWS MEDIA CENTER

I've only briefly played around with WMC but it looks promising. It has some fun options for media, especially when you're connected to the Internet. It may even be an adequate replacement for component DVR's should you choose to use it as the centerpiece to your entertainment center. The biggest advantage for me is that Windows 7 now includes a DVD decoder. This means that I can now watch DVD's natively. WMC is available in all Windows 7 editions except Starter.

WINDOWS XP MODE

For applications that ran in XP, but won't on 7, there is now XP Mode. It isn't perfect and your system has to have virtualization support and turned on. Go to your system BIOS to check. If supported, then install Windows Virtual PC and Windows XP Mode. Check your hardware if you intend to use XP Mode.

RECOMMENDATION

If you're an XP holdout, like I was, I recommend upgrading. Vista SP2 users may have less reason to upgrade but might want to just for the changes to the taskbar and the UAC improvements. For users who don't need to use their computers in a corporate environment, then Windows 7 Home Premium edition is a good choice. I'm guessing most power users will choose Professional. I suggest a clean install for best results. If you're a Mac OS X user, there is probably nothing in Windows 7 compelling enough for you to consider switching.

SUMMARY

Windows 7 is the premium Microsoft OS that Windows users have been waiting for. It's fast, secure, stable, visually appealing and fun to use. Windows 7 will make your old system feel fresh and new again. New system owners with Windows 7 pre-loaded can feel confident that they're getting the best Windows OS ever produced.

Review by T. R. Collins:
"Windows Vista(tm) Home Premium cannot be upgraded to Windows 7 Professional.

You can choose to install a new copy of Windows 7 Professional instead, but this is different from an upgrade, and does not keep your files, settings, and programs. You'll need to reinstall any programs using the original installation discs or files. To save your files before installing Windows, back them up to an external location such as a CD, DVD, or external hard drive. To install a new copy of Windows 7 Professional, click the Back button in the upper left-hand corner, and select "Custom (advanced)".

Simply said you cannot upgrade Home Premium, keeping your programs and files, you must start over similar to a clean install.. To install Windows 7 on top of Home Premium while maintaing all of your files, programs, settings etc., you must purchase the Ultimate Upgrade for more.

This will allow people who are not "computer friendly" upgrade without the hassle of backing up files, re-installing programs etc. especially if you don't know where the original program CD(s) are...

trc

Review by Stephen:
Let me preface this review with my qualifications so that you may understand the extent I've gone to with operating systems to end up proudly claiming, "I'm a PC."

I use Linux (RedHat) at work, I've tried Ubuntu and Lycoris long before it, I've tried Debian and Slackware and however many other flavors of *nix in the past just to say I tried them. I've messed with BeOS (Zeta development was an exciting time), I've played with Mac OS X on numerous occasions (beautiful OS), and I've tried countless obscure operating systems that I doubt even 1% of those reading this would know about (and trust me; there's a reason for you not knowing about them, lol). Why have I messed with them all? Because I enjoy operating systems and I find them to be amazing achievements. There's no denying that Mac OS X is a beautiful OS that performs quite well within the structured hardware environment Apple has created. Linux is hella useful on an enterprise level (though Windows Server is easily comparable these days) and even home flavors of Linux have become quite nice (Ubuntu)! The fact of the matter is that I'm partial to Windows through my experiences with having tried just about every flavor of every OS out there over the past 10 years or so. I used to collect beta versions of operating systems (not just Windows, but others as well), so I've not only tried the final products, but I've also gained appreciation for them by seeing them and playing with them through their development cycles. Where Windows is concerned, at one point or another, I've instally just about every build of every version currently out there (and trust me, there are TONS of builds - alpha and beta bits from every version of Windows, including obscure bits like Windows Neptune). I've ridden the roller coaster through the highs (Windows 95, 98, 2000, XP, and now 7) and lows (Windows ME, Windows Vista's initial release) and I couldn't be happier that I've stuck it out.

Enter Windows 7.

Windows 7 is amazing. There is no other way to put it. It's being hyped as, "Vista done right," or something of that nature. Well, Windows 7 is soooo much more than that. True, the user interface may resemble Windows Vistas, but only at first glance. The single-most revolutionary aspect of Windows 7 is the new task bar. It has provided so much additional functionality that you would never know you wanted (or needed). The ability to pin tasks, the ability to move items around on the task bar, the privacy of not having titles of your windows down in the task bar for anyone to see, the new interactive thumbnail previews, the new placement of the show desktop button... I could go on. It may take you a bit to get used to the new task bar, but trust me... you will and you will absolutely come to love it. Going back to anything less just won't feel right.

Next on the docket is HomeGroups. Look, file sharing between home computers has never been easier. NEVER. I have Windows 7 on my desktop and on my laptop. The desktop, I recently built, so while awaiting my wireless card for it, I wanted to see if I could tether my laptop's internet connection. In the past, it wasn't exactly difficult to set it up, but it was much more involved than it is now. All you need is a regular ethernet cable, connent one end to your laptop and the other to your desktop, give permissions to share (made simple through HomeGroups) and voila! I can use the internet on my desktop via my laptop's internet connection. And not only that, I was able to set up the laptop and desktop to share files between one another via the same cable... and it was incredibly simple! I won't walk through the steps here since this review is already getting a bit lengthy, but the long and the short of it is that file and resource sharing between Windows 7 computers is RIDICULOUSLY intuitive.

Lastly, are you still on XP? Are you one of those business who decided way back when that you would just skip Vista and roll out Windows 7? Well, guess what? Windows 7 is here and it's time you make good on your decision. As the title to my review implies, Windows 7 bests both Vista and XP. There is no longer any excuse for you to stick with XP when Windows 7 performs EVEN BETTER. The only learning curve for XP users will be getting used to the new user interface and the change in location of certain files/folders (which admittedly irked me at first, but those changes came about in Vista, so I've been long used to them). Bite that bullet. It's worth it, trust me. Oh, and cost? Windows 7 is worth its weight in gold. It's an operating system. Think about everything it does for you, all the applications it allows you to run, the tasks it allows you to perform... in the grand scheme of things, the cost of Windows is one of the best investments you can make for yourself, so go ahead and treat yourself to Windows 7. Seriously. Don't buy into the stupid Mac hype videos of, "more of the same" and pay no mind to the Microsoft commercials where people say Windows 7 was their idea. Go try it for yourself. Download a free evaluation copy, install it, and give it a whirl. See for yourself.

Since Amazon removes links from posts now, search Google for Windows 7 Enterprise 90-Day Evaluation. You will need a Windows Live ID and though it's an evaluation of Windows 7 Enterprise, it looks and feels like every other SKU.

-Stephen

MSFTKitchen (Google it)

I thought about placing this review on all the SKUs of Windows 7, but since I use Ultimate on a regular basis and not the other SKUs, I think it's only appropriate to leave it here, as-is. Thanks for reading (if you made it this far, that is)!

Review by Rico:
When I got my copy of Windows 7 Ultimate, I really wasn't sure what to expect. I had not been running any beta or release candidate, so I had no idea how I would like Windows 7 or even the install process. I am running a Dell XPS desktop, and I had recently installed 8GB of memory in anticipation of formatting and installing Windows 7 64 bit edition. Sounds like overkill I know, but I got a great deal on the memory and wanted to go to a 64 bit version when Windows 7 came out. I will get into some of the differences shortly, but let me just say that the installation was painless...I mean really painless. My desktop is a few years old, and I expected to be hunting device drivers online to get everything working. I didn't have to! I was quite surprised when the install process completed and everything was working great. I didn't have to download a single device driver...and that IS a first for me when changing operating systems!

There is a small learning curve because some things have changed and you will have to spend a few minutes trying to find them, but it's not a big deal.

I wold suggest spending some time just looking around to see where things are located as well as what new shiny bells and whistles are available.

The Start Menu: I was one of those guys who always changed my start menu back to the Windows 2000 type. I hated the XP menu with a passion.

Imagine my horror when I figured out there was no way to change it in Windows 7! I was certainly upset at first, until I started actually using the new menu.

I have a habit using the old start-run option and typing in some of the programs I use. For example, I would use start-run winword to open Microsoft Word. I know, it sounds crazy, but my computer days started with DOS, so I still have some love for the command line! I noticed in Windows 7, there is no run command...but after using it I realized it didn't need one because the search box actually does the same thing. Once I figured out how to pin programs to the start menu, I realized that I am finally happy using a new menu interface.

Windows 7 32 bit or 64 bit?

Windows 7 comes with two disks, one for 32 bit and one for 64 bit. You can choose which one you want to use based upon your devices, and your needs.

If you are upgrading from another version of Windows, you can't change unless you do a fresh install. If your computer supports 64 bit and you aren't using extremely old software, I would suggest going to 64 bit if you are doing a new install anyway. It will still run 32 bit programs, and you will may benefit from the 64 bit version. You might consider adding some memory as well if you want since you can use more than 4GB memory with the 64 bit version. If you are using an older computer with minimal memory anyway, I would just stick with the 32 bit version. Microsoft has a nice feature on their Windows 7 website to check compatibility with Windows 7 in both 32 bit and 64 bit, so you can see which of your programs may be an issue.

Summary:

I am really happy with Windows 7. Not only was it easy to install, without needing me to find any drivers, etc...but the interface is also easy to use. You won't be having to make a hundred changes just to do something as you may have in Windows Vista. There are no more major issues with User Account Control for those of you who are using Vista now! Is Windows 7 worth the upgrade? I think it is. I have two versions, one is the full version of Windows 7 Ultimate and the other is Windows 7 Home Premium upgrade for my laptop (currently running Vista). I have found Windows 7 to be stable, with no cryptic error messages to stop me from doing what I want to do. I believe Windows 7 is an operating system that people will actually enjoy using...it's a big improvement from Vista, and I think most people will be happy to finally have a reason to upgrade from Windows XP.

Review by Mute208:
Here comes Windows 7, nearly three years after Windows Vista and eight years after Windows XP. By most accounts, Windows 7 is what Vista should have been. Do we finally have a worthy successor to XP?

PROS:

- Fast startup and performance

- Stable

- Nice aesthetic and functional changes to the desktop

- Improved networking, power management & security

- 32-bit & 64-bit versions included

- Windows Media Center

- Windows XP Mode

CONS:

- User Account Control still annoying

- Upgrade can be challenging

- Expensive

There are only two Microsoft operating systems I've personally skipped since DOS 6.x-- Windows ME and Windows Vista. Windows ME was so terrible that PC World coined it the "Mistake Edition." Vista, when initially released, was considered to be bloated, relying on higher hardware requirements than XP, while being outperformed by XP on identical hardware. With Microsoft fast-tracking Windows 7, I decided to skip Vista altogether and upgrade to 7. This review briefly touches upon some of the key features and enhancements of Microsoft's latest OS.

PERFORMANCE & STABILITY

One of the welcome enhancements Microsoft made was start-up time. The shutdown time has been improved as well. Also, in my non-benchmarked experience, Windows 7 has been at least as fast as XP if not faster. The kernel changes and ability to run the 64-bit version probably has a lot to do with that. Most benchmarks from around the Internet seem to support my observations.

64-BIT

I am elated to finally upgrade to a 64-bit operating system in order to take advantage of more memory support and modern processors. I have Intel Core 2 Duo processors in both my systems with 4GB of physical RAM but XP only allowed 3.25GB for system use.

DESKTOP

At first login, you'll notice the changes to the taskbar. The taskbar is no longer just a place to store quick launch icons and view open windows. It now provides functionality in the form of Jump Lists, which allow you to select your most frequently opened files or links from the apps you have "pinned" on the taskbar. The clock and calendar are improved and the Show Desktop icon is now integrated in the far right corner. Other desktop enhancements include Aero Peek, Aero Shake, Snap, new themes and wallpapers. You also get gadget support. All of these features combine to create a much improved and enjoyable desktop experience.

LIBRARIES

Windows 7 introduces a new feature called libraries. Previously, your system had shortcuts to My Documents, My Music, My Pictures, etc. which had files residing in only those specific folders. Files can now reside anywhere on your system and be organized inside libraries. It's similar to how many music and photo applications organize files.

NETWORKING

Even as good as XP was, networking was cumbersome. Windows 7 makes connecting two or more Windows 7 systems together easy, using HomeGroup. This enables easy sharing of files and devices. One downside is that HomeGroup is only supported between Windows 7 systems. File transfer performance between computers has been vastly improved and connecting to a wireless network has never been easier on a Windows machine.

SECURITY

Security in Windows 7 is good and comes with Windows Firewall and Defender. Still, you'll probably want to invest in a more comprehensive Internet security suite, like Norton Internet Security 2010. User Account Control (UAC) has been tweaked in order to give user accounts more flexibility in controlling their own security as well as providing more detailed information so the user can make better decisions about whether to allow certain actions. Coming from XP however, it is still annoying and I choose to turn it off. Also, in Windows 7 Ultimate, you can encrypt entire hard drives as well as external portable storage devices, like USB thumb drives. Though this is a welcome integrated feature, much of the functionality can be found in a popular open-source program called TrueCrypt. If you want encryption but not multi-language support, you could just get Windows 7 Professional and use TrueCrypt.

POWER MANAGEMENT

Power management has been improved overall and you should be able to squeeze more battery life out of your laptop, even when using your DVD drive. Sleep and resume has also been improved. XP wasn't always consistent when entering or resuming from sleep mode, but Windows 7 has been perfect.

WINDOWS MEDIA CENTER

I've only briefly played around with WMC but it looks promising. It has some fun options for media, especially when you're connected to the Internet. It may even be an adequate replacement for component DVR's should you choose to use it as the centerpiece to your entertainment center. The biggest advantage for me is that Windows 7 now includes a DVD decoder. This means that I can now watch DVD's natively. WMC is available in all Windows 7 editions except Starter.

WINDOWS XP MODE

For applications that ran in XP, but won't on 7, there is now XP Mode. It isn't perfect and your system has to have virtualization support and turned on. Go to your system BIOS to check. If supported, then install Windows Virtual PC and Windows XP Mode. Check your hardware if you intend to use XP Mode.

RECOMMENDATIONS

If you're an XP holdout, like I was, I recommend upgrading. Vista SP2 users may have less reason to upgrade but might want to just for the changes to the taskbar and the UAC improvements. For users who don't need to use their computers in a corporate environment, then Windows 7 Home Premium edition is a good choice. I'm guessing most power users will choose Professional, which adds XP Mode and Domain Join. Ultimate also adds drive encryption and multi-language support. I suggest a clean install for best results. If you're a Mac OS X user, there is probably nothing in Windows 7 compelling enough for you to consider switching.

SUMMARY

Windows 7 is the premium Microsoft OS that Windows users have been waiting for. It's fast, secure, stable, visually appealing and fun to use. Windows 7 will make your old system feel fresh and new again. New system owners with Windows 7 pre-loaded can feel confident that they're getting the best Windows OS ever produced.

Review by X. Liu:
I have been using Windows 7 Professional for over a month now. (Received an early copy) I must admit the upgrade experience is a hassle but once you install Windows 7 you will be pleasantly surprised. I recommend a clean install for all users. Windows 7 has a noticeably snappier boot time than Windows Vista. What users will notice most are the changes to the interface. It took some time to get adjust new taskbar but once I became familiar with the new interface, I found it to be an improvement over previous Windows versions. Windows 7 also includes a comprehensive device drivers, I have only had an issue with an old printer where Windows 7 could not find the drivers. But with Virtual XP this was no problem, I simply installed the Virtual XP, and used my printer within the virtualized environment. I also noticed improved power management, including once of my favorite features which is the auto dimming of my laptop monitors once my computer is not being used.

Improvements/Pros/New Features

-New Taskbar interface, each program is represented by an icon for a clutter free taskbar

-Quicker boot times

-Comprehensive driver library

-Supports many devices out of the box

-Less annoying

-Virtual XP (for those who still need Windows XP)

-Networking

Recommendations

-Microsoft Security Essentials: A free antivirus program provided by Microsoft that fights viruses, spyware, rootkits, and Trojans. This program is a separate installation, and is also compatible with XP, Vista, and 7.

-Ninite: Free program that provides easy PC Setup, and helps to install Multiple Applications at once. Is a lifesaver for Windows 7 upgrades. Caveat, limited to popular programs such as pidgin, flash, firefox, skype, itunes

-FYI, if you are a student with a .edu email address, you can get Windows 7 Professional from Microsoft for . Just google "Ultimate Steal"

Review by Just Anonymous:
I'll admit, I've been running Windows 7 for six months now: the preproduction version of it and have just upgraded to the gold code. So I have quite a bit of experience with the operating system. Let's get to the nitty gritty:

Should you upgrade from Windows Vista? YES! I mean it - upgrade today.

Windows 7 is quite simply faster, more stable, boots faster, goes to sleep faster, comes back from sleep faster, manages your files better and on top of that it's beautiful to look at and easy to use. Even the preproduction version of Windows 7 was better than my Vista with SP2.

Should you upgrade from Windows XP? Maybe, but for different reasons.

XP is a good operating system and if you don't need to add new hardware or software, XP is good. However, XP is old as an operating system. Also chances are that if you're running XP, you might not meet the minimum requirements for Windows 7 - check the compatibility site at Microsoft to see if your system will support Windows 7. That said, Windows 7 is light years ahead of Windows XP in terms of functionality, ease of use, etc - to me it's worth buying a new system.

64 bit or 32 bit?

If you don't know what I'm talking about, that's ok skip this section. If you have a core2 duo or core 2 quad or a multi cpu machine, go with the 64 bit OS, it handles memory and the CPUs much better. If you have a single core CPU, one CPU or run special programs that require 32bit, then stick with 32 bit for now.

BEFORE INSTALLATION:

I recommend you have:

-a core 2 duo or core 2 quad machine

-4gig of RAM (That's about in today's market)

-good hard drive with (200 gig - it doesn't need that much but that's another )

-back up your files to a USB drive like Western Digital My Passport Essential 500 GB USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive WDME5000TN (Midnight Black)

-check to make sure your computer is compatible with Windows 7

INSTALLATION:

Installation was very straight forward. You put in the CD and reboot your machine. You might have to enter your bios and enable the "boot from CD" option. Once the machine reboots a nice screen comes up to guide you through the installation. You have the option to upgrade your PC or do a clean installation. I did an upgrade and it brought in all of my files and settings from my windows Vista system. It worked great.

The upgrade did take about 2 hours for me so definitely consider.

I noticed that early on in the installation the operating system went out to Microsoft's site to look for the latest and greatest updates, so I think this should help Microsoft respond quickly to any hiccups with compatibility.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK:

The driver from my old HP Inkjet printer for 2001 doesn't work on Windows 7 so there are some things that will not transition. I had to use a generic HP driver which doesn't give me the quality that I got from an injet - so overall, I'm up and running with that printer but I'm degraded on the inkjet front. That said, I recently upgraded to a HP CP2025DN Color LaserJet Printer that I love so no real loss there. I'll likely pick up a cheap inkjet for the occasional photo that I might need to print. Everything else upgraded.

BENEFITS

-faster boot time

-faster go to sleep

-faster wakeup

-faster about 20% to 30% faster at running applications than my Vista - seriously (but those are my results without any benchmarks or anything like that, just seeing how fast Adobe Illustrator loads, and how fast all the applications respond)

-joining wireless networks is much easier

-the interface is just plain beautiful

-my wallpapers are now a slideshow that can be set to change every few minutes (I'm not stuck with the same picture)

-Gadgets - these are wonderful little small applications that you can drag onto your desktop. I have a weather gadget and a calendar gadget on my desktop that tell me

-Better taskbar management - hovering over the taskbar icons shows me mini windows of what's running

-Better file management - I can organize my files into Libraries that are sortable not only by type but by folder or other data. It's great! I can browse through my presentations or illustrator files!

-Windows Media appears to be smoother which I love.

-You get some virus protection and firewall with Windows 7 but consider something more comprehensive like McAfee Total Protection 3User 2010. Yes, it'll make your computer run a bit slower but

CONS:

- Some older programs might not work and some drivers might not be available like my inkjet driver.

- Other than that, there aren't too many drawbacks to Windows 7 - it's a great OS.

WHICH VERSION SHOULD I GET?

I got the ultimate version because I have clients who ask, "is your hard drive encrypted?" -- I wanted to be able to say yes and have sensitive data encrypted one of my computer volumes - Bitlocker is only available in the Ultimate version. Ultimate also includes Multilanguage support.

If you're a home user that doesn't do a lot of networking, you might consider just the home premium edition. If you're using a laptop and connect to networks at work, you might want the Professional version of the operating system to help you with domain joining. Also Windows Professional gives you the option to run applications in XP mode so if you have old applications you can use that nifty feature. I already have 1 application running in XP mode - it's nifty to run an old application.

NOTE:

The box contains both the 32 bit and 64 bit OS.

OVERALL:

It's very hard to write a comprehensive review on an entire operating system so I didn't even try - I'm sure magazines will devote entire articles to the operating system and several books will come out. My goal here is just to give everyone a glimpse of what I've found to date with this new OS. I do hope this has helped you in making a decision.

Hats off to Microsoft on Windows 7. It's more of a refined Windows Vista than an entirely new operating system but it was needed. Thank you.

Review by Pyanfar Chanur:
If you're looking at Ultimate, chances are it's for one of these three reasons:

1) You have Vista Ultimate and don't want to lose all your programs/settings (more on this in a moment)

2) You want BitLocker hardware-level encryption. You'll need to do some tinkering with a USB key or have hardware that supports it (see comments to this review for details)

3) You regularly work in multiple languages and need to easily switch from one to the other

Unlike Vista Ultimate, Windows 7 Ultimate doesn't offer DreamScenes or any other eye candy different from its cousins Home and Pro. In fact, if you were a fan of the Windows Vista DreamScenes, you should know that you will be losing them when you step up to Windows 7.

Some very important things you need to know about upgrading:

1) There are two types of upgrade: "in-place" (where a Vista machine upgrades to 7 and you get to keep all your programs) and "clean" (where you lose all your old programs and settings).

2) Anyone going from XP to 7 will have to go "clean".

3) Anyone going from a different Vista to 7 (for example, Vista Home up to 7 Pro, or Vista Ultimate down to 7 Home) will also have to go "clean".

If you have to do 2) or 3), all is not lost--I'll explain in a moment.

Before you even buy a 7 upgrade for your machine, stop by Microsoft's website for two things:

a) download and run the Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor. Run it with every device connected to the machine that you'll ever want to use in 7. It'll thoroughly examine your machine for any roadblocks and give you good advice about upgrading. Even very new machines will have one or two programs that need some checking.

b) Go to the Windows 7 Compatibility Center and double-check anything that came up negative in the Upgrade Advisor (or didn't show up at all). This site lists detailed compatibility info on a LOT of different devices.

Anything major, like a video card or sound card driver, I'd recommend double-checking with the manufacturer's website to be sure. This almost burned me on two of the machines that I upgraded.

Last, make a backup. There's a free tool called Macrium Reflect that can do this for you.

Do you have to do a "clean" install, but just want to carry over your user accounts and settings? Microsoft makes a program called Windows Easy Transfer that's already in Vista (and XP users can download it from Microsoft) that will export your accounts and settings and let you import them back again. It's very easy to use and does a good job of putting your accounts back together again, even going from XP to 7.

Do you have to do the "clean" install, and you don't want to reinstall all your programs? Laplink has an offer for .95 that will let you use a special version of their program "PC Mover" to upgrade one machine one time. Read the documentation in detail.

The most important thing to doing a "clean" install is that in the Upgrade setup you choose "Custom". Windows will take all of your major files and place them in a folder called "Windows.old". PC Mover and the Easy Transfer program will use this folder to reconstruct your system from, so this is VERY important.

I wish I had more space to go into detail here...bottom line is, if you plan ahead a bit, upgrading to 7 will go very easily (and if it doesn't, you'll have something to fall back on).

Review by Frank E. Trinkle:
This is an OEM full-version of 64-bit Windows 7 Ultimate. It is licensed ONLY to be sold for use with NEW computer equipment (primarily for self-builders). You cannot upgrade an existing Vista computer with this pack unless you completely reformat your hard drive and re-install EVERYTHING. Win 7 has been reviewed in other areas, and I gave it four stars in a full review, but wanted to warn customers about being SURE they are purchasing what they expect with this edition.

Review by P. Alexander:
I purchased this version of windows 7 to load into VM Fusion to run on my MacBook Pro. The installation was flawless and it has met all of my expectations. I am able to access and run all of the programs I used that require a windows OS.

Review by J. Jaeger:
I don't see much commentary here about the actual product performance. There is a lot of confusion about this upgrade in the retail outlets, so I thought I'd explain to those with questions.

I researched Windows 7 before I bought my computer, and knew I wanted Win 7 Professional in case I wanted to run XP programs. Most retail outlets only had Win 7 Home Premium installed on their computers. The computer stores had the Win 7 Pro computers on backorder. Through some investigation at Microsoft, I found out that all versions of Win 7 are preinstalled, and you just need to get a key to "unlock" the higher versions. This is that key.

It took a total of 14 minutes to install this upgrade on my new computer. The hardest part was typing in the multi-digit key. (In other words, not hard!) It ran for 12 minutes, and then it was ready to go!

I haven't tried the features of Win 7 Pro to rate it, but this upgrade works as promised.

Review by Roger J. Buffington:
Most laptops/notebooks seem to ship with Windows 7 Home Premium rather than Windows 7 Professional. That is probably fine for most users. However, if you need your Windows 7 Notebook to be part of a business domain network, you need Windows 7 Professional. This upgrade is how you accomplish the change.

It turns out that Windows 7 Home Premium already contains Windows 7 Professional; it is simply not enabled. When you buy this upgrade you are getting an upgrade key. No disk, just a key sticker and very brief instructions. Key it in pursuant to the laughably simple instructions and within minutes you will be running Windows 7 Professional. One caveat: apparently you cannot upgrade from Windows 7 32 to Windows 7 64 bit. This will affect very few users as I do not believe that hardly any computers are shipping with 32 bit Windows 7. Nor should they. Windows 7 64 bit is very compatible with existing 32 bit software, and in the future we can expect lots of 64 bit software and we all want to be ready for it.

Some have criticized Microsoft for charging for the upgrade from Home Premium to Professional, but my opinion (which is only that) is that Microsoft makes its living by selling operating system software and this is one way for them to do it. At least the upgrade is easy, painless, and quick. RJB.

Review by Diana H. Dukes:
I bought this version because it was the best price and was in stock. The OEM version was easy to install.The 32 bit I feel was the best for drivers. It runs better than XP. Boots faster and is alot smarter. The learning curve has not been too bad not having seen Vista (glad I didn't) I would recommend it for Vista users to convert. Once the companies upgrade there software to better Accomodate Window 7, it will be even better. Vista driver seem to work well, as do some of the XP drivers. I ran the Beta (free) version before I made this decision.

Review by James R. Davidson:
I really like the looks of Windows7.

I like the fact that I can move the task bar around.

Being able to have your own pictures as your background change every 5mins.is nice.I'm sure there are some other features that I like but I can't think of them right now.

Review by Mute208:
Here comes Windows 7, nearly three years after Windows Vista and eight years after Windows XP. By most accounts, Windows 7 is what Vista should have been. Do we finally have a worthy successor to XP?

** CLEAN UPGRADE UPDATE BELOW 10/29/09 **

PROS:

- Fast startup and performance

- Stable

- Nice aesthetic and functional changes to the desktop

- Improved networking, power management & security

- 32-bit & 64-bit versions included

- Windows Media Center

- Windows XP Mode (Professional & Ultimate only)

- Family Pack value

CONS:

- User Account Control still annoying

- Upgrade can be challenging

** CLEAN UPGRADE UPDATE 10/29/09 **

It seems that a lot of upgraders have been complaining about the upgrade process, especially from XP. Most of us expected to be able to format our hard disks and be prompted for either the XP disc or product key. Alas, this is not the case. The upgrade is much more complicated than it should be and some workarounds have been discovered

Method A (simplest)

If you already have an older version of Windows on the hard drive, finish the Custom Install, without entering the product key. After installation, go to your System Properties and click the link to activate Windows. Enter your product key and it should activate. This has worked for me twice.

Method B (hardest)

If Method A doesn't work, try the registry hack.

1. Finish the custom install without entering the product key then click Start and type regedit.exe into the "Search programs and files" box.

2. In the registry, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Setup/OOBE/. In the pane on the right, you'll see an entry for MediaBootInstall. Double-click on it and change the value from "1" to "0" and click OK.

3. Close regedit and go to Start -> All Programs -> Accessories then right-click on Command Prompt and select "Run as administrator." You'll get a UAC alert, click Yes.

4. At the command prompt, type: slmgr /rearm and hit Enter. Reboot.

5. Now try to activate. If it fails, make sure there are no pending Windows Updates to install. If there is, install them, reboot and start over from Step 4.

Method C (most time consuming)

Perform the Custom Install and skip the product key. Once completed, run the upgrade again from within Windows 7 but this time, enter the Windows 7 upgrade key and then activate Windows.

** END UPDATE **

I had been running the Windows 7 release candidate for 3 months and the full version 2 weeks before official release date. The experience convinced me to finally upgrade my Windows XP systems to 7. This review briefly touches upon some of the key features and enhancements of Microsoft's latest OS.

PERFORMANCE & STABILITY

One of the welcome enhancements Microsoft made was start-up time. The shutdown time has been improved as well. Also, in my non-benchmarked experience, Windows 7 has been at least as fast as XP if not faster. The kernel changes and ability to run the 64-bit version probably has a lot to do with that. Most benchmarks from around the Internet seem to support my observations.

64-BIT

I am elated to finally upgrade to a 64-bit operating system in order to take advantage of more memory support and modern processors. I have Intel Core 2 Duo processors in both my systems with 4GB of physical RAM but XP only allowed 3.25GB for system use.

DESKTOP

At first login, you'll notice the changes to the taskbar. The taskbar is no longer just a place to store quick launch icons and view open windows. It now provides functionality in the form of Jump Lists, which allow you to select your most frequently opened files or links from the apps you have "pinned" on the taskbar. The clock and calendar are improved and the Show Desktop icon is now integrated in the far right corner. Other desktop enhancements include Aero Peek, Aero Shake, Snap, new themes and wallpapers. You also get gadget support. All of these features combine to create a much improved and enjoyable desktop experience.

LIBRARIES

Windows 7 introduces a new feature called libraries. Previously, your system had shortcuts to My Documents, My Music, My Pictures, etc. which had files residing in only those specific folders. Files can now reside anywhere on your system and be organized inside libraries. It's similar to how many music and photo applications organize files.

NETWORKING

Even as good as XP was, networking was cumbersome. Windows 7 makes connecting two or more Windows 7 systems together easy, using HomeGroup. This enables easy sharing of files and devices. One downside is that HomeGroup is only supported between Windows 7 systems. File transfer performance between computers has been vastly improved and connecting to a wireless network has never been easier on a Windows machine.

SECURITY

Security in Windows 7 is good and comes with Windows Firewall and Defender. Still, you'll probably want to invest in a more comprehensive Internet security suite, like Norton Internet Security 2010 or Kaspersky Internet Security. User Account Control (UAC) has been tweaked in order to give user accounts more flexibility in controlling their own security as well as providing more detailed information so the user can make better decisions about whether to allow certain actions. Coming from XP however, it is still annoying and I choose to turn it off. Also, in Windows 7 Ultimate, you can encrypt entire hard drives as well as external portable storage devices, like USB thumb drives. Though this is a welcome integrated feature, much of the functionality can be found in a popular open-source program called TrueCrypt. If you want encryption but not multi-language support, you could just get Windows 7 Home Premium and use TrueCrypt.

POWER MANAGEMENT

Power management has been improved overall and you should be able to squeeze more battery life out of your laptop, even when using your DVD drive. Sleep and resume has also been improved. XP wasn't always consistent when entering or resuming from sleep mode, but Windows 7 has been perfect.

WINDOWS MEDIA CENTER

I've only briefly played around with WMC but it looks promising. It has some fun options for media, especially when you're connected to the Internet. It may even be an adequate replacement for component DVR's should you choose to use it as the centerpiece to your entertainment center. The biggest advantage for me is that Windows 7 now includes a DVD decoder. This means that I can now watch DVD's natively. WMC is available in all Windows 7 editions except Starter.

WINDOWS XP MODE (Professional & Ultimate Editions ONLY)

For applications that ran in XP, but won't on 7, there is now XP Mode. It isn't perfect and your system has to have virtualization support and turned on. Go to your system BIOS to check. If supported, then install Windows Virtual PC and Windows XP Mode. Check your hardware if you intend to use XP Mode.

RECOMMENDATIONS

If you're an XP holdout, like I was, I recommend upgrading. Vista SP2 users may have less reason to upgrade but might want to just for the changes to the taskbar and the UAC improvements. For users who don't need to use their computers in a corporate environment, then Windows 7 Home Premium edition is a good choice. I'm guessing most power users will choose Professional, which adds XP Mode and Domain Join. Ultimate also adds drive encryption and multi-language support. I suggest a clean install for best results. If you're a Mac OS X user, there is probably nothing in Windows 7 compelling enough for you to consider switching.

SUMMARY

Windows 7 is the premium Microsoft OS that Windows users have been waiting for. It's fast, secure, stable, visually appealing and fun to use. Windows 7 will make your old system feel fresh and new again. New system owners with Windows 7 pre-loaded can feel confident that they're getting the best Windows OS ever produced.

Review by Just Anonymous:
If you're like most people, you have several computers running throughout your house: a desktop, a laptop, a kid's laptop etc. This 3 license package is a great way to upgrade all of your PCs in your home for one low price.

Here's my generic Windows 7 review:

I'll admit, I've been running Windows 7 for six months now: the preproduction version of it and have just upgraded to the gold code. So I have quite a bit of experience with the operating system. Let's get to the nitty gritty:

Should you upgrade from Windows Vista? YES! I mean it - upgrade today.

Windows 7 is quite simply faster, more stable, boots faster, goes to sleep faster, comes back from sleep faster, manages your files better and on top of that it's beautiful to look at and easy to use. Even the preproduction version of Windows 7 was better than my Vista with SP2.

Should you upgrade from Windows XP? Maybe, but for different reasons.

XP is a good operating system and if you don't need to add new hardware or software, XP is good. However, XP is old as an operating system. Also chances are that if you're running XP, you might not meet the minimum requirements for Windows 7 - check the compatibility site at Microsoft to see if your system will support Windows 7. That said, Windows 7 is light years ahead of Windows XP in terms of functionality, ease of use, etc - to me it's worth buying a new system.

64 bit or 32 bit?

If you don't know what I'm talking about, that's ok skip this section. If you have a core2 duo or core 2 quad or a multi cpu machine, go with the 64 bit OS, it handles memory and the CPUs much better. If you have a single core CPU, one CPU or run special programs that require 32bit, then stick with 32 bit for now.

BEFORE INSTALLATION:

I recommend you have:

-a core 2 duo or core 2 quad machine

-4gig of RAM (That's about in today's market)

-good hard drive with (200 gig - it doesn't need that much but that's another )

-back up your files to a USB drive like Western Digital My Passport Essential 500 GB USB 2.0 Portable External Hard Drive WDME5000TN (Midnight Black)

-check to make sure your computer is compatible with Windows 7

INSTALLATION:

Installation was very straight forward. You put in the CD and reboot your machine. You might have to enter your bios and enable the "boot from CD" option. Once the machine reboots a nice screen comes up to guide you through the installation. You have the option to upgrade your PC or do a clean installation. I did an upgrade and it brought in all of my files and settings from my windows Vista system. It worked great.

The upgrade did take about 2 hours for me so definitely consider.

I noticed that early on in the installation the operating system went out to Microsoft's site to look for the latest and greatest updates, so I think this should help Microsoft respond quickly to any hiccups with compatibility.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK:

The driver from my old HP Inkjet printer for 2001 doesn't work on Windows 7 so there are some things that will not transition. I had to use a generic HP driver which doesn't give me the quality that I got from an injet - so overall, I'm up and running with that printer but I'm degraded on the inkjet front. That said, I recently upgraded to a HP CP2025DN Color LaserJet Printer that I love so no real loss there. I'll likely pick up a cheap inkjet for the occasional photo that I might need to print. Everything else upgraded.

BENEFITS

-faster boot time

-faster go to sleep

-faster wakeup

-faster about 20% to 30% faster at running applications than my Vista - seriously (but those are my results without any benchmarks or anything like that, just seeing how fast Adobe Illustrator loads, and how fast all the applications respond)

-joining wireless networks is much easier

-the interface is just plain beautiful

-my wallpapers are now a slideshow that can be set to change every few minutes (I'm not stuck with the same picture)

-Gadgets - these are wonderful little small applications that you can drag onto your desktop. I have a weather gadget and a calendar gadget on my desktop that tell me

-Better taskbar management - hovering over the taskbar icons shows me mini windows of what's running

-Better file management - I can organize my files into Libraries that are sortable not only by type but by folder or other data. It's great! I can browse through my presentations or illustrator files!

-Windows Media appears to be smoother which I love.

-You get some virus protection and firewall with Windows 7 but consider something more comprehensive like McAfee Total Protection 3User 2010. Yes, it'll make your computer run a bit slower but

CONS:

- Some older programs might not work and some drivers might not be available like my inkjet driver.

- Other than that, there aren't too many drawbacks to Windows 7 - it's a great OS.

WHICH VERSION SHOULD I GET?

I got the ultimate version because I have clients who ask, "is your hard drive encrypted?" -- I wanted to be able to say yes and have sensitive data encrypted one of my computer volumes - Bitlocker is only available in the Ultimate version. Ultimate also includes Multilanguage support.

If you're a home user that doesn't do a lot of networking, you might consider just the home premium edition. If you're using a laptop and connect to networks at work, you might want the Professional version of the operating system to help you with domain joining. Also Windows Professional gives you the option to run applications in XP mode so if you have old applications you can use that nifty feature. I already have 1 application running in XP mode - it's nifty to run an old application.

NOTE:

The box contains both the 32 bit and 64 bit OS.

OVERALL:

It's very hard to write a comprehensive review on an entire operating system so I didn't even try - I'm sure magazines will devote entire articles to the operating system and several books will come out. My goal here is just to give everyone a glimpse of what I've found to date with this new OS. I do hope this has helped you in making a decision.

Hats off to Microsoft on Windows 7. It's more of a refined Windows Vista than an entirely new operating system but it was needed. Thank you.

Review by CS:
(Note: This review also shows up in the reviews for the download version. Don't ask me why Amazon doesn't show the reviews in both places for what's really the same product, with just different delivery mechanisms. I bought the box version, if you want to know.)

This part written Dec 9, 2009 (see updated comments below)

This is of course a preliminary review (written Dec 9 based on use in the last few days). At this time one can't do more than a rough cut estimate of the tax return -- the IRS forms aren't finalized, the state forms aren't available, and of course the various income reports (W2, 1099, etc.) aren't out yet.

I don't have a super complicated tax situation this year: it just requires some things that a good tax program should handle easily. So far this program seems to do just fine. I found it easy to use, and found that imports from Quicken and from TXF files worked without any problems. Schedules A, B, and D worked just fine, and the related screens were easy to use and understand. Excess FICA was calculated correctly, as was the child tax credit. The AMT calculation does of course remain weirdly complicated (once a year I mutter to myself about all politicians in DC), but the program does take care of it with no apparent problems.

I used TaxCut last year -- chose it over TurboTax just because of cost, and was quite satisfied. I'm not convinced this year either that you get value for the extra you pay for TT. (Incidentally, note that if you have investment income you probably need to get TT Premium, so the price would be nearly double that of HRB Deluxe.)

A warning I wrote in my review last year seems worth repeating: Don't expect a tax program to apply tax laws correctly in all circumstances; for anything at all out of the ordinary, make sure you double-check against an IRS guide or another guide like JK Lasser's. The folks who design and write and test the programs make mistakes, too. And for the same reason, give the calculations a sanity check, don't just use the program blindly, or you could get tripped up by a software bug that wasn't caught.

I will update this review in Jan/Feb when I've had a chance to do more with it.

Update Jan 29, 2010:

I have now done a first complete pass on my taxes, based on W2s, 1099s, and some projected 1099s. I also have had an opportunity to use TurboTax Deluxe (I got a free copy, legally), so have been able to compare the two products.

I continue to like HRB Deluxe. It's easy to use, and has been trouble-free. There are a couple of things I particularly like, that might be worth mentioning. (1) They show you when the next update is expected, so you don't waste your time running the update check until there is something. (2) Entering info from interest paying mutual funds that might have muni income (tax-free for Fed) is simple: HRB gives you a simple way to enter the amount that's tax-free in your state, and takes care of it without hassle. TT can also deal with this, but I don't like their way as much (they create a separate 1099 to split the income into two parts).

Interestingly, TTD is also noticeably slower starting up than HRBD. Don't know why.

The one advantage TT does have over HRB is on coverage of automated downloads: TT can download your 1099 info from a larger set of institutions than can HRB. W2 downloads look the same between the two. This does save some time, and could be sufficient to be a decider for some. Not for me.

Review by D. Yip:
I've used H&R Block's tax software for the last four years and haven't had a problem until the 2009's version. In general, the software is comparable to others in its simplicity and user-friendliness. This year, I bought the Deluxe Home Edition which comes with a state; however, when I tried downloading my free state program, it was indicated that I had to pay .95. To make a long story short, I spent 45 minutes speaking with a customer representative before she finally sent me the state link. I was very disappointed as the person initially told me she could not help me because I did not purchase the software directly from H&R Block. When I asked to speak to the manager, I was put on hold for long periods of time. For an issue that has occurred on multiple occasions (as indicated from these reviews), I was highly disappointed with the length of time it took the representative to come up with a solution. Also, had I not insisted on speaking with a superior (who apparently didn't think my issue was worthy of attention) the representative had originally asked me to go ahead and pay for the state and submit paperwork for a refund. It's odd that the program would encounter such a problem and I am very disappointed with the way the situation was handled.

Review by CS:
(Note: This review also shows up in the reviews for the download version. Don't ask me why Amazon doesn't show the reviews in both places for what's really the same product, with just different delivery mechanisms. I bought the box version, if you want to know.)

This part written Dec 9, 2009 (see updated comments below)

This is of course a preliminary review (written Dec 9 based on use in the last few days). At this time one can't do more than a rough cut estimate of the tax return -- the IRS forms aren't finalized, the state forms aren't available, and of course the various income reports (W2, 1099, etc.) aren't out yet.

I don't have a super complicated tax situation this year: it just requires some things that a good tax program should handle easily. So far this program seems to do just fine. I found it easy to use, and found that imports from Quicken and from TXF files worked without any problems. Schedules A, B, and D worked just fine, and the related screens were easy to use and understand. Excess FICA was calculated correctly, as was the child tax credit. The AMT calculation does of course remain weirdly complicated (once a year I mutter to myself about all politicians in DC), but the program does take care of it with no apparent problems.

I used TaxCut last year -- chose it over TurboTax just because of cost, and was quite satisfied. I'm not convinced this year either that you get value for the extra you pay for TT. (Incidentally, note that if you have investment income you probably need to get TT Premium, so the price would be nearly double that of HRB Deluxe.)

A warning I wrote in my review last year seems worth repeating: Don't expect a tax program to apply tax laws correctly in all circumstances; for anything at all out of the ordinary, make sure you double-check against an IRS guide or another guide like JK Lasser's. The folks who design and write and test the programs make mistakes, too. And for the same reason, give the calculations a sanity check, don't just use the program blindly, or you could get tripped up by a software bug that wasn't caught.

I will update this review in Jan/Feb when I've had a chance to do more with it.

Update Jan 29, 2010:

I have now done a first complete pass on my taxes, based on W2s, 1099s, and some projected 1099s. I also have had an opportunity to use TurboTax Deluxe (I got a free copy, legally), so have been able to compare the two products.

I continue to like HRB Deluxe. It's easy to use, and has been trouble-free. There are a couple of things I particularly like, that might be worth mentioning. (1) They show you when the next update is expected, so you don't waste your time running the update check until there is something. (2) Entering info from interest paying mutual funds that might have muni income (tax-free for Fed) is simple: HRB gives you a simple way to enter the amount that's tax-free in your state, and takes care of it without hassle. TT can also deal with this, but I don't like their way as much (they create a separate 1099 to split the income into two parts).

Interestingly, TTD is also noticeably slower starting up than HRBD. Don't know why.

The one advantage TT does have over HRB is on coverage of automated downloads: TT can download your 1099 info from a larger set of institutions than can HRB. W2 downloads look the same between the two. This does save some time, and could be sufficient to be a decider for some. Not for me.

Review by Gordo:
I'm mostly only writing my review to offset the wave of negative comments. I had absolutely no problems with the Amazon software download tool. If you are concerned that you might have a problem with it, just test it out first by downloading a free game or something. Next, someone complained that the amazon downloader tool remains on your system after the download - this is true unfortunately, but its also not a big deal, it shows an icon in the bottom right corner of your screen, and you can simply right click it, and close it, it will then ask you if you want to load it when windows starts, just uncheck this, and it will no longer be running on your computer. Finally, some people complained that they didn't get their product code. I don't know if this was a bug that was fixed or what, but the downloader software clearly displayed my product code (used for e-filing your return), furthermore, you can get the code at any time via Amazon.com, just click on the "Go to your software library" button.

The H&R Block software loaded fine on Vista with no problems. If you are using user account controls, you should right click the install file and choose "Run as Administrator". After the software installed, the first thing it did was update itself. Now I must admit it did appear to hang during this update process for some reason showing it was 100% on the download, and I had to click "cancel" but then it installed the update with no problems after that.

The tax software is very nice, most detailed reviews I've read comparing various software rank H&R Block (formerly TaxCut) and TurboTax as the two best, and they mostly say they are almost identical but as far as I know, only H&R Block offers audit support. You can import last years files from either software so switching from year to year is not a problem. Every year these programs get better and better, with more features and forms, and simpler interface. I love the simple question and answer format, and the easy free federal e-File. I also like that it includes the state software too. Instead of paying extra to e-File my state return, I just print it out and mail it in (for only the cost of a stamp). This software handles everything I want to do including Schedule D creation, and even schedule F for farm income. Overall its a good value.

Review by AnthonyCA:
I have always used turbotax but this year but they changed their pricing. The package says one free state download. True, you can download one state of your choice. However, you only get to prepare one state only. All additional state preparations are at via download of even the same state. Thus for example, you have two family members living in California. The first person downloads the free California state download. If the second family member, who also needs to file the California state return, the second family member needs to pay to turbotax via the software, to prepare the second state return, again, even if it is the same state. Contacted turbotax and it took several tries until they stated that this is the case. The first few times they would not confirm it but rather dodge the question and give an ambiguous answer, not admitting to the change.

1/16/10 update: after installing an online software update yesterday, it seems that turbotax has now changed their policy/software back to the way it was in previous years (probably due to the numerous complaints that they have received). Now, as with last year's edition, you can do more than one state preparation for the same state, for the one free state that you have download. I have now given it 4 stars instead of the previous 1 star, with 4 stars becuase turbotax, as stated above, tried to previously limit the one free download to also mean one state prep (which is not the case now). Other than the previous frustration regarding the state download problem, turbotax has always given me great results. Great advice/info when you tag the help function. The help function will guide you for whatever is currently on the screen, thus you do not have to hunt for the information.

2/17/10 update

I have still been hearing that some people cannot do more than one state prep for the free included one state download. I have downgraded the star ratings from a 4 previously to a 2 now because the state download/prep problem still exists for some people. If the problem is fixed, I will upgrade the star rating then.

Don't know if it is real but "Bob Meighan, VP of turbotax" wrote to one of my comments on the deluxe version stating that:

****************************

Bob Meighan says:

Anthony... TurboTax does not charge extra for preparing multiple state returns for the same state. There was no change in our pricing policy this year. I believe if you received a different story from one of our agents, I suspect it was because they probably thought you were referring to TurboTax Online, where you are charged for each return.

Bob Meighan

VP, TurboTax

****************************

Again I don't know if Bob is for real. If so, I would kindly ask Bob if he could change the turbotax website to state officially, for once and for all, that a buyer of the desktop version shall have unlimited state preps for the same free included state download.

I have also heard from another buyer that turbotax said this was due to a software flaw and should be fixed by Feb 25. We shall see. In the meantime, even though I can do multiple returns on the same state, many others cannot, thus buyer beware.

2/28/10 update:

The problem seems to be fixed. I am upgrading the ratings from 2 stars to 4 now, after it seems to be finally working now. I have received a comment stating that now it is possible to prepare more than one same state return from the free one included state download. Please let us know if it IS or IS NOT working for you.

Review by Tony Smith:
Given all the negative reviews of Turbo Tax last year, I bought Tax Cut. This was after years of using Turbo Tax. I agreed with those that pointed out how Intuit was trying to make more money off their product by the way they packaged their product. Unfortunately, one of my most tedious tasks in tax preparation is reporting stock transactions. Tax cut provided absolutely no way to download my transactions from Fidelity. Turbo Tax has agreements with most major brokerage houses for automatic down loads of your brokerage records.

So, I also bought Turbo Tax and finished my return. Until other products offer this feature, it's not worth it for me to switch.

Review by AnthonyCA:
I have always used turbotax but this year but they changed their pricing. The package says one free state download. True, you can download one state of your choice. However, you only get to prepare one state only. All additional state preparations are at via download of even the same state. Thus for example, you have two family members living in California. The first person downloads the free California state download. If the second family member, who also needs to file the California state return, the second family member needs to pay to turbotax via the software, to prepare the second state return, again, even if it is the same state. Contacted turbotax and it took several tries until they stated that this is the case. The first few times they would not confirm it but rather dodge the question and give an ambiguous answer, not admitting to the change.

1/16/10 update: after installing an online software update yesterday, it seems that turbotax has now changed their policy/software back to the way it was in previous years (probably due to the numerous complaints that they have received). Now, as with last year's edition, you can do more than one state preparation for the same state, for the one free state that you have download. I have now given it 4 stars instead of the previous 1 star, with 4 stars becuase turbotax, as stated above, tried to previously limit the one free download to also mean one state prep (which is not the case now). Other than the previous frustration regarding the state download problem, turbotax has always given me great results. Great advice/info when you tag the help function. The help function will guide you for whatever is currently on the screen, thus you do not have to hunt for the information.

2/17/10 update

I have still been hearing that some people cannot do more than one state prep for the free included one state download. I have downgraded the star ratings from a 4 previously to a 2 now because the state download/prep problem still exists for some people. If the problem is fixed, I will upgrade the star rating then.

Don't know if it is real but "Bob Meighan, VP of turbotax" wrote to one of my comments on the deluxe version stating that:

****************************

Bob Meighan says:

Anthony... TurboTax does not charge extra for preparing multiple state returns for the same state. There was no change in our pricing policy this year. I believe if you received a different story from one of our agents, I suspect it was because they probably thought you were referring to TurboTax Online, where you are charged for each return.

Bob Meighan

VP, TurboTax

****************************

Again I don't know if Bob is for real. If so, I would kindly ask Bob if he could change the turbotax website to state officially, for once and for all, that a buyer of the desktop version shall have unlimited state preps for the same free included state download.

I have also heard from another buyer that turbotax said this was due to a software flaw and should be fixed by Feb 25. We shall see. In the meantime, even though I can do multiple returns on the same state, many others cannot, thus buyer beware.

2/28/10 update:

The problem seems to be fixed. I am upgrading the ratings from 2 stars to 4 now, after it seems to be finally working now. I have received a comment stating that now it is possible to prepare more than one same state return from the free one included state download. Please let us know if it IS or IS NOT working for you.

Review by bobinstl:
In addition to the well documented price increases, in-your-face suggestive sales pitches throughout the program, and proprietary tax file format which doesn't work with other programs, you may add 'install problems'. Just received my TY '09 Turbotax Premier and it took two hours to install. Got a 'Microsoft .NET 3.5 SP 1 error' right out of the gate. Tried it on another computer with the same results. Check the Intuit website- apparently this is a known problem because the site directs you to verify installed MS .NET installations and then remove the corrupted items. Let me save you some time. Uninstall MS.Net thru Add/Remove program then use the removal tool from the Intuit website, restart, then reinstall MS .NET and install Turbotax. Wish I'd have known this earlier. Two hours in and just starting my taxes...

Review by AnthonyCA:
I have always used turbotax but this year but they changed their pricing. The package says one free state download. True, you can download one state of your choice. However, you only get to prepare one state only. All additional state preparations are at via download of even the same state. Thus for example, you have two family members living in California. The first person downloads the free California state download. If the second family member, who also needs to file the California state return, the second family member needs to pay to turbotax via the software, to prepare the second state return, again, even if it is the same state. Contacted turbotax and it took several tries until they stated that this is the case. The first few times they would not confirm it but rather dodge the question and give an ambiguous answer, not admitting to the change.

1/16/10 update: after installing an online software update yesterday, it seems that turbotax has now changed their policy/software back to the way it was in previous years (probably due to the numerous complaints that they have received). Now, as with last year's edition, you can do more than one state preparation for the same state, for the one free state that you have download. I have now given it 4 stars instead of the previous 1 star, with 4 stars becuase turbotax, as stated above, tried to previously limit the one free download to also mean one state prep (which is not the case now). Other than the previous frustration regarding the state download problem, turbotax has always given me great results. Great advice/info when you tag the help function. The help function will guide you for whatever is currently on the screen, thus you do not have to hunt for the information.

2/17/10 update

I have still been hearing that some people cannot do more than one state prep for the free included one state download. I have downgraded the star ratings from a 4 previously to a 2 now because the state download/prep problem still exists for some people. If the problem is fixed, I will upgrade the star rating then.

Don't know if it is real but "Bob Meighan, VP of turbotax" wrote to one of my comments on the deluxe version stating that:

****************************

Bob Meighan says:

Anthony... TurboTax does not charge extra for preparing multiple state returns for the same state. There was no change in our pricing policy this year. I believe if you received a different story from one of our agents, I suspect it was because they probably thought you were referring to TurboTax Online, where you are charged for each return.

Bob Meighan

VP, TurboTax

****************************

Again I don't know if Bob is for real. If so, I would kindly ask Bob if he could change the turbotax website to state officially, for once and for all, that a buyer of the desktop version shall have unlimited state preps for the same free included state download.

I have also heard from another buyer that turbotax said this was due to a software flaw and should be fixed by Feb 25. We shall see. In the meantime, even though I can do multiple returns on the same state, many others cannot, thus buyer beware.

2/28/10 update:

The problem seems to be fixed. I am upgrading the ratings from 2 stars to 4 now, after it seems to be finally working now. I have received a comment stating that now it is possible to prepare more than one same state return from the free one included state download. Please let us know if it IS or IS NOT working for you.

Review by Tom in Bellevue, WA:
I have used previous versions for about the last 10 years. All my previous experience was with the "Premier" version. The only reason I bought this version this year is that for some reason, they moved the Schedule C functionality from Premier to the Home and Business version, and thereby increased the price by about for the same thing. That is the only reason I downgraded the product: I feel that they are gouging small business customers with this change, and I think they should correct it by putting this functionality back at the Premier price level.

As for the use of the program, I just downloaded and installed it. Installation was flawless. In a quick overview of the program, it seems to be stable so far, unlike the reviews for the CD version of the same software. I like the new format for "Explore on My Own" to take you out of the guided process and allow easier handling of specific tax topics: Turbotax has always had a similar function -- I just like this view of it better than before. The importing of my previous tax year info and personal info was easier and more seamless than in prior versions.

Another reason I came back to Intuit this year was that even though they occasionally have bugs with their products, they stand behind them with excellent tech support. My recent experience with conflicts between Quickbooks and Microsoft Vista and 7 operating systems resulted in numerous hours on the phone with their tech support -- they were both persistent and generous with tech support time until they found a work-around to the incompatibilities. Knowing that they take this approach was a huge factor in having the confidence to proceed with their TurboTax product again this year.

Review by Philip Klatte:
This program was very easy to us, and it was surprisingly easy to go back and change things after half filling it in. I filled out most of the form long before I got my W-2 and 1099s, and going back was no problem. When going back in the form, the only thing I recommend is using the tabs to go to the right section ("Personal", "Dependents", "Income", "Adjustments", etc.) and then clicking on the "Go To" link for the _summary_ of that category. This allows you to hone right in on what you want to find; it's easy to get stuck in the linear input process if you don't use some direction.

The biggest problem was that you have to find the "key code" that comes with this version of the program, allowing for 5 free e-files. All the in-program help said that if you downloaded the program, the code would be mailed to you, and it even showed what such an email might look like. I checked the email I have registered with Amazon, and my email I might have put in during registration (I couldn't remember if there had been a registration process), and I couldn't find the "key code". It turns out that there is no email. ...you need to go to the Amazon folder that gets put in your Start Menu, as a part of installing the downloader. In that folder ("Amazon"-->"Amazon Games & Software") there is an icon labelled "Go to Your Games & Software Library". If you click on that, then click to "view order key", it will show you the "key code". The key code does not look like the example that H&R Block shows you ("ABCD-1234"), it _is_ four characters -dash- four characters, but it's totally random looking (not letters on one side and numbers on the other -- e.g. "HQ8F1-RG29L" -- I almost didn't recognize it after looking at the example that H&R Block had in their Help text).

I used TurboTax last year. I switched this year to H&R Block At Home because I wasn't happy with it and someone in a review had mentioned this program. I am much happier with H&R Block than TurboTax -- it seems much less like a random series of questions, and I can guess what it's getting at on the forms when it' asking me questions.

Review by Cat Herder:
I have been using this product since 2004. I liked it better than Intuit's TaxCut when I compared them head to head.

Sure, it was clunky, but it seemed to have the tax code down pat and the step by step methodology was effective.

This year H&R Block renamed the product and put a slightly slicker interface on the product. Unfortunately, they seemed to have missed a few things under the hood.

I've spent about three hours with the software this evening and have found two problems. One minor and one major. They are both related to the sale of our old house and purchase of another house in 2009.

The minor issue is that the software makes it easy to enter the data to support a home office deduction. For the last two years we have been claiming my wife's office as it was qualified in all respects. We sold that house last year and while doing the interview on the sale, it wanted me to calculate who much depreciation IT calculated in prior years. Umm, if the darn software can read last year's return, surely it could extract last year's depreciation. It would be reasonable to expect it to ask for other Taxcut save files to extract add'l years depreciation. But it can't/won't. That's minor compared to my next discovery.

We have read and re-read IRS publication 5405 - related to the Federal Homebuyer's credit. The form seems clear. We appear to be eligible for 00 for helping the economy. A nice surprise! The software even has the right IRS form, with the right date, and it calculates correctly. Yet.....the INTERVIEW doesn't address the November 2009 extension covering existing homebuyers hwo buy a new home. That's looking like a defect to me.

So, I availed myself of the support options:

1. I called the 800 # (nice that it's 24x7 this time of year). Waited a modest 4 minutes, and a nice lady with perfect English. She asked for my email, and then we were disconnected.

2. Good thing I also had the CHAT page up and another tech showed up. I explained the issue and he asked me to double check that the software was indeed up to date (I told the software to update 3 times). All he could offer was an apology and did not know of anyway for me to report what appears to be a defect. He did offer that if I filed and there was an error and a fine, H&R Block would cover me up to ,000. I explained an omission may be an error, but it there wouldn't be a fine. Thus H&R Block was not going to cover this situation.

Frankly, if I finish my return using this software I'm going to need whiteout to add the credit when I follow the IRS requirement to print the return (and supporting documents) and mail it in. [DRG - see updated notes below].

I hope this is so obvious that H&RB knows about it - perhaps the economy is so bad I'm their only customer fortunate enough to buy a house this year? I don't know. I'm going to give their corporate office a call tomorrow and see what happens when I "ask for the President's office". If that doesn't work then Amazon can refund my money and Intuit can suck me a little bit drier as I'll have to become one of their Zombies this year.

Updated 3/1/2010

I called their HQ during the day and asked for a manager, after some quick forwarding I was talking to a manager and explained the situation and why I felt that there was an incomplete feature. The outcome was two fold:

1. I was shown that you can use the attached IRS forms in lieu of the interview. The credit did calculate correctly - I just have to avoid using that particular interview.

2. I spoke with a support tech who knew how to handle tech savvy customers and professionally represent his company. After taking exquisite notes, and reading them back to me, he assured me that they were going to get this over to "engineering". I believe him.

So I continue on feeling much better about the situation.

Review by Allan Ray Miller:
There are two bugs that affect H&R Block At Home 2009 for some Apple Mac users. Since both problems prevent customers from updating the program from the H&R Block web servers, customers must correct both problems manually before any updates from H&R Block are possible. I already discussed this in the Comments section on John Young's review, however I realize that not everyone follows the Comments link, plus this new description is more concise. So you get it again.

Who it affects: Mac customers who both: 1) have multiple login accounts on the Mac and 2) attempt to run H&R Block At Home 2009 from a non-admin account.

Problem #1: During the installation process the initial update fails due to file permissions. Error message is: "1008:5,-5000 Access denied error. You do not have enough access privileges for this installation"

Resolution: 1) Stop the program installation and log in under the admin account, 2) open a Finder window, 3) open the Applications folder, 4) uninstall the H&R Block 2009 program by dragging the icon to the Trash, 5) in the Finder window open the Utilities folder, 6) run the Disk Utility program, 7) select your hard drive as the disk upon which to operate, click on the "Repair Disk Permissions" button and wait for that process to complete, 9) reinstall the H&R Block 2009 program under the admin account.

Problem #2: When running H&R Block 2009 using a non-admin login account, the program crashes immediately upon launch due to file permissions. Error message is: "Initialization Failed. Exception thrown during initialization: File open failed. File = /Users/Shared/H&R Block/2009/update.tim in open:MacFileWriterImpl"

Resolution: 1) Exit the program and log in under the admin account, 2) open a Finder window, 3) open the Macintosh HD icon, 4) open the Users folder, then the Shared folder, then the H&R Block folder, 5) right-click on the 2009 folder, 6) select "Get Info" on the menu, 7) on the pop-up window in the "Sharing & Permissions" section set ALL permissions that say "Read Only" to instead say "Read & Write", return to the Finder window and open the 2009 folder, 9) right-click on the update.tim file, 10) select "Get Info" on the menu, 11) on the pop-up window in the "Sharing & Permissions" section set ALL permissions that say "Read Only" to instead say "Read & Write".

Upon successful resolution of both of these problems the customer will be able to run H&R Block 2009 from a non-admin account to do their taxes. As of the date of this note however (1/22/2010) all program updates must still be made using the admin account.

I discovered and diagnosed this on my own machine. Fortunately I'm a geek and so was able to figure out the problem & share it with others. Obviously H&R Block did not test this scenario before they shipped the program. Dunno if a similar problems exists on Windows machines. Also dunno if there will be further problems when I download & install the State program. I haven't gotten that far yet.

UPDATE Problem #3: I installed the Maryland state program tonight (1/27) when it became available for download. Given the problems above I used the admin account to do the install and then switched back to my normal account. Ran the program: no Maryland state tax program installed! And you're only allowed to download it one time without paying again! Turns out the state program downloads into the directory ~/Library/Application Support/H&RBlock/2009/ (for non-techies ~ means starting at your home directory) and a non-shared plugin is created. This thwarts other accounts from using the state program.

Resolution: Using a Finder window in the admin account copy the file ~/Library/Application Support/H&RBlock/2009/Completed Updates/md.dmg (for other states replace md.dmg with your state's abbreviation e.g. va.dmg for Virginia.) Paste this into a shared directory such as Macintosh HD/Users/Shared. Go back into your normal account and copy that same file from the Shared directory into your own ~/Library/Application Support/H&RBlock/2009/Completed Updates/ directory. Double click on that file (md.dmg in my case.) A new window will pop up and you'll see a new file which starts with your state's two-letter abbreviation. In my case it was called MD.TCstate09. Double click on that file. Another window will pop up which says it is installing the state plug-in. After that, you'll be able to use the state program under your normal user account as you intended.

Don't ask me how to update all of this mess at this point when H&R Block is ready to push out new program updates. Do you use the admin account? The user account? Who knows? It might even depend upon whether you are updating the Federal or the State return. What a mess!

H&R Block really blew it this year on multi-user account support, at least on the Macs. I tried relaying this to their Customer Service (3 phone calls and 2 online Chat sessions) but they had no one who understood the Macs and no way for me to email to them my diagnosis and solutions. They were nice and tried to be helpful but I'm not sure they got exactly what I was saying. I hope so though.

I have liked H&R Block in the past and they are cheaper than TurboTax. This year, however, makes it difficult to remain a loyal customer. We'll see what I do in tax year 2010.

Anyway, I hope my pain is able to help other Mac users get up and running.

Review by Alan W. Harris:
Having used TaxCut Basic last year, I received two CD copies in the mail of this year's tax program from H&R Block, but both keyed to the "Premium" level program, at "premium" price. For me, all I am looking for is the equivalent of a spreadsheet that propagates entries into all the relevant forms and schedules and does the sums. The "Basic" level program is good enough for that, even though my return is fairly complex; it covers all forms and schedules for federal filing. The difficulty is getting one's hands on the "Basic" version, H&R Block is so aggressive in peddling the higher level programs that it can be difficult finding the "Basic" version -- thanks, Amazon.

An annual annoyance is state returns. For most states, mine (California) included, filing state taxes is so simple, once the Federal is done, and so automated on the state web site, that I don't waste money on state tax options. Too bad H&R Block and TurboTax don't price their state products closer to what they're worth. In the meantime, I just waste some paper and file by mail.

Review by Dion A. Antonio:
The purchasing and downloading process was a breeze. Although I'm not a big fan of installing Amazon's download application (why couldn't they just give us a direct link to download the program?), it went without a hitch. As far as installation, that went well too. No errors.

I have Windows 7, 64 bit. The H&R Block website states that this software works on both 32 and 64 bit versions of the OS. So I was surprised when I went to run the application that it wouldn't work! A pop-up immediately came up and states that the application crashed. I tried various "Compatibility" modes and even tried to "Run as an Administrator". None worked. I checked the Windows Event logs and the H&R Block application crash does show up. I uninstalled and reinstalled the program, again to no avail.

Long story short, I didn't feel like messing around much more. So I just fired up VMWare, installed Windows XP 32-bit, and installed the B&R Block software. It now works perfectly! It sucks that I had to do that just to get the software to work. So I give a 3 because it works great now, but loses 2 points for not working as advertised (on a Windows 7, 64-bit machine).

Review by A. Varney:
I have used the Taxcut software for the past few years and have always been happy with the product and price. This is the first time I have tried the downloaded version. I'm happy to say it downloaded quickly, installed easily and worked as flawlessly as the boxed versions I have used in past years. I was working on my taxes within 10 minutes instead of waiting for my software in the mail. I also liked that downloaded version is more enviromentally friendly since there isn't all that added packaging and shipping. Just an FYI, you will need a to redeem a "keycode" in order to file your federal return for free. This keycode is in your download library in your Amazon account.

Review by M. Spalmacin:
The H&R At Home Deluxe Federal + E-file CD received from Amazon installs quickly enough. On attempting to start the installed program I immediately receive a message saying that At Home is not running on the computer it was originally installed on. That's silly because this is the only computer I have. But I follow the suggestion to un-install, then re-install the software. I get the same result, At Home won't start.

My on-line chat with H&R Support eventually leads to their request to check into Microsoft Update and install any missing "Critical" updates. There are none. But there are some "Important" ones. However, they're for programs I don't have (e.g., Office 2003, Server 2005, etc.) or don't want (e.g., Internet Explorer 8). H&R Support can't be any more specific about which updates might be necessary and I can't tell from the explanations of the updates which one(s) might affect At Home's inability to know where it's running.

I'm stuck.

I'm not going to install 8 updates willy-nilly, hoping one (or more) of them will solve the problem. At Home is obviously checking some internal value somewhere that tells it where it thinks it was installed against some value stored in the bowels of 64-bit Windows Vista, but H&R Support can't tell me what At Home is looking for.

So I still have no clue why At Home won't even start up. Has anyone else stumbled across this problem in 64-bit Vista (w/Service pack 1) and solved it? If not, I'm going to have to return H&R Block At Home (2009) and see if I have any better luck with Turbo-Tax for 2009.

I'm frustrated because last year I switched from Turbo Tax to H&R Block Tax Cut and found it easy and simple to use. Oh, well, back to Turbo Tax.

*** Update, Jan 12th, 2010 ***

An H&R At Home representative contacted me at home (no pun intended!) after reading the above review. He apologized for the failure and said that I had encountered a known problem that wasn't related to "critical" Vista-64 updates. The problem affects some but not all Vista-64 users. Anyway, nothing I might have done during or as a result of the on-line chat would have solved my problem. He said they have a fix in hand for the problem and that they expect to have it available for download on Jan 15th. All in all, well handled by H&R and a good public relations endeavor. My opinion of them has risen substantially as a result of our conversation.

Review by Allan Ray Miller:
There are two bugs that affect H&R Block At Home 2009 for some Apple Mac users. Since both problems prevent customers from updating the program from the H&R Block web servers, customers must correct both problems manually before any updates from H&R Block are possible.

Who it affects: Mac customers who both: 1) have multiple login accounts on the Mac and 2) attempt to run H&R Block At Home 2009 from a non-admin account.

Problem #1: During the installation process the initial update fails due to file permissions. Error message is: "1008:5,-5000 Access denied error. You do not have enough access privileges for this installation"

Resolution: 1) Stop the program installation and log in under the admin account, 2) open a Finder window, 3) open the Applications folder, 4) uninstall the H&R Block 2009 program by dragging the icon to the Trash, 5) in the Finder window open the Utilities folder, 6) run the Disk Utility program, 7) select your hard drive as the disk upon which to operate, click on the "Repair Disk Permissions" button and wait for that process to complete, 9) reinstall the H&R Block 2009 program under the admin account.

Problem #2: When running H&R Block 2009 using a non-admin login account, the program crashes immediately upon launch due to file permissions. Error message is: "Initialization Failed. Exception thrown during initialization: File open failed. File = /Users/Shared/H&R Block/2009/update.tim in open:MacFileWriterImpl"

Resolution: 1) Exit the program and log in under the admin account, 2) open a Finder window, 3) open the Macintosh HD icon, 4) open the Users folder, then the Shared folder, then the H&R Block folder, 5) right-click on the 2009 folder, 6) select "Get Info" on the menu, 7) on the pop-up window in the "Sharing & Permissions" section set ALL permissions that say "Read Only" to instead say "Read & Write", return to the Finder window and open the 2009 folder, 9) right-click on the update.tim file, 10) select "Get Info" on the menu, 11) on the pop-up window in the "Sharing & Permissions" section set ALL permissions that say "Read Only" to instead say "Read & Write".

Upon successful resolution of both of these problems the customer will be able to run H&R Block 2009 from a non-admin account to do their taxes. As of the date of this note however (1/22/2010) all program updates must still be made using the admin account.

I discovered and diagnosed this on my own machine. Fortunately I'm a geek and so was able to figure out the problem & share it with others. Obviously H&R Block did not test this scenario before they shipped the program. Dunno if a similar problems exists on Windows machines. Also dunno if there will be further problems when I download & install the State program. I haven't gotten that far yet.

UPDATE Problem #3: I installed the Maryland state program tonight (1/27) when it became available for download. Given the problems above I used the admin account to do the install and then switched back to my normal account. Ran the program: no Maryland state tax program installed! And you're only allowed to download it one time without paying again! Turns out the state program downloads into the directory ~/Library/Application Support/H&RBlock/2009/ (for non-techies ~ means starting at your home directory) and a non-shared plugin is created. This thwarts other accounts from using the state program.

Resolution: Using a Finder window in the admin account copy the file ~/Library/Application Support/H&RBlock/2009/Completed Updates/md.dmg (for other states replace md.dmg with your state's abbreviation e.g. va.dmg for Virginia.) Paste this into a shared directory such as Macintosh HD/Users/Shared. Go back into your normal account and copy that same file from the Shared directory into your own ~/Library/Application Support/H&RBlock/2009/Completed Updates/ directory. Double click on that file (md.dmg in my case.) A new window will pop up and you'll see a new file which starts with your state's two-letter abbreviation. In my case it was called MD.TCstate09. Double click on that file. Another window will pop up which says it is installing the state plug-in. After that, you'll be able to use the state program under your normal user account as you intended.

Don't ask me how to update all of this mess at this point when H&R Block is ready to push out new program updates. Do you use the admin account? The user account? Who knows? It might even depend upon whether you are updating the Federal or the State return. What a mess!

H&R Block really blew it this year on multi-user account support, at least on the Macs. I tried relaying this to their Customer Service (3 phone calls and 2 online Chat sessions) but they had no one who understood the Macs and no way for me to email to them my diagnosis and solutions. They were nice and tried to be helpful but I'm not sure they got exactly what I was saying. I hope so though.

I have liked H&R Block in the past and they are cheaper than TurboTax. This year, however, makes it difficult to remain a loyal customer. We'll see what I do in tax year 2010.

Anyway, I hope my pain is able to help other Mac users get up and running.

Review by JBW:
I've used TaxCut's Deluxe or Premium software to do my personal taxes for several years without any complaints. Before that I used Turbo Tax for several years and only switched because TaxCut was less expensive to do the same thing. This year my husband and I started a small business, so I purchased the H&R Block At Home 2009 Premium & Business software. After loading the software, the federal interviews would not run for a corporation (1120/1120S forms and supporting forms).

I waited until Jan 4, checked for updates and had the same problem. So, after calling their customer support center three times, I finally got a support person who told me their business interviews were not yet available and they did not have a tentative date for their availability. The main forms have been approved by the IRS, but H&R Block hasn't finished the interview portion of the software.

I had hope to use the product to complete our W-2 and W-3 forms which are due by Jan 31, 2010. But, now I have no way of knowing whether to return the product since the business portion is inoperable and buy TurboTax, or wait it out and hope the updates are available in time.

I hope this is helpful in reducing anyone else's frustration who might have a small business and want to use this to complete their W-2 forms.

Review by Linda Day:
The section that follows is my first impression of the Business program, generated on January 15. At the end of that, I include my second impression on February 15 of the business program (1120S). I'll include a review of the 1040 portion of this software after I do those taxes. OK, that review is in at the very bottom. I'd rate the 1040 as 4-stars.

Ok, I knew H&R was a little more primitive than TurboTax (which I used for 10 years or so), based on my experience with their personal tax package for 2008 taxes, but it was adequate. So this year I tried the Business software (S corp), the only part of this combo-burrito I've tried so far. It is REALLY primitive:

1. First, don't necessarily expect to be able to make sense of the display! The program may show up on your monitor with the check boxes bearing NO spacial relationship to the actual choices. So you call the help desk, and someone tells you to reset your monitor properties to display 1024x768. Oh and make sure that under "Advanced" the dpi resolution is set to 96. The is the only software I've ever used that couldn't recognize my monitor and display correctly. Massive lameness -- and it took 2 long tech support calls to fix it.

1.5. For a while, tech support thought the software was corrupt. I had registered it but BECAUSE I BOUGHT THE SOFTWARE FROM AMAZON, H&R BLOCK HAD NO RECORD OF MY REGISTRATION. So if the software had actually been bad, they could not have downloaded a clean version -- I would have had to return the box to Amazon for a refund and reorder it!! And the tech support person noted that Amazon would probably not take it back because it had been opened! Be warned -- if you really want this stuff, pay the man and download it from H&R Block.

2. Recognize that tech support people have just been hired and will not really know anything, tho they will be friendly and eager to help. Plan to spend an hour or two with vague directions trying to get where you're trying to go. Cultivate a Zen state of mind...

3. Expect the "interview" questions to be something like: "Did you have any 53(c) sect 89 reclaimable charge-backs loss amortizations for deductible klefnabulator expenses?" When you look for more information, there isn't any. When you check out the IRS instructions, they say (surprise!) exactly what the "interview" question said. TurboTax asks you in English, tells you what the amount applies to, and even tells you how commonly this item is entered.

4. Don't expect the program to be smart about anything. TurboTax figures out that if you don't have deduction A, you can't possibly have B or C, but H&R Block asks you every question.

5. Don't expect to be able to import from QuickBooks or last year's taxes produced by TurboTax. Generate those reports and type in your numbers.

6. Don't expect all the forms to be there -- and don't expect the software to let you know. I tried and tried to get to Form 4562, Amortization and Depreciation, and ended up at several different dead-ends. I again called tech support and talked at length with a guy who took me through more dead-ends before finally discovering that the form "hadn't been released by the IRS yet." You might think the software itself would let you know, but you'd be wrong.

7. To switch between your 1120S and filling out a 1099-misc for a contractor is not intuitive. Another call to tech support. For 20 minutes or so, the guy didn't seem to understand what a 1099 was, or even understand that I was working on an S-Corp return and not a 1040(!). More dead ends. Finally, he got help and told me to close the program and reopen it to get where I wanted to go.

8. I then gave up. I should say that I did all this stuff on Jan 15, which I admit is early in the year. So if things improve markedly, I'll update this review.

9. Meanwhile, based on this experience, I would say that the fact this combination package is about half the price of the separate TurboTax business and personal packages, does NOT make it a good deal! It is easy for me to loath Intuit, but next year I'll most likely be doing business with them again. Sigh.

Here's an business tax update on February 15. The updated software still doesn't recognize my monitor, but at least I knew what to do this time and finished filling out taxes fairly quickly. I have done my own taxes for years and had QuickBooks reports and prior year forms. Dollar-wise, the program is off from what I calculated from QuickBooks by about 4, but at this point I'm not quibbling. Nothing has changed from what I said in January, although it seems that all the forms are now available. The interview still seems quite stupid -- and it makes mistakes: I filled out the tax form for an S corporation, which NEVER pays taxes, and the program asked me how much estimated tax I'd paid and tried to get me to pay a penalty for not paying -- AND the business lost money last year! (How often do YOU pay taxes on money you've lost?] Plus, when I opened the file I'd saved from January, the program did not remember where I was but started over at the beginning. Very lame. Yes, TT costs twice as much, but it terms of ease of use and lower stress factor, it is probably worth it. Sigh. I really expected more.

Feb 26, 2009. I've just finished my personal 1040 taxes, and my what a difference! This part of the software is professional, smooth, and easy to use. It recognizes my monitor (ta da!) so I don't have to reconfigure my system to run it. However, I changed the location of my tax file, and it did not remember that. It's a little different than TurboTax, but seems to work fine. Only disadvantage I can see compared to TT is that there is no way to see a WYSIWYG version of your forms (what they show you has the information but does not look much like the paper in your hand) and their reporting and comparison functions at the end are not as complete or complex as TT. But it does the job, and the interview is friendly and intelligent.

Now the question is: Knowing that the business software is lousy and the personal stuff is good, what you gonna do?